Dodital trek

This is the first day of our thrilling journey. We will start early from Rishikesh so that we can reach our base by early evening. This is not a very long drive but takes you through some of the most beautiful mountain towns of Uttarakhand. Agoda is a quiet village situated about 6 kms from Sangamchatti in Uttarkashi district. About 100 families live in this village and many of them now run homestays. It is a very scenic and quite village that could feel like it is right out of your imagination. You can explore the village all evening and prepare for the trek tomorrow. Overnight in homestay/lodge.

Today is the day we start our trek. Our trail takes us through thick forests of oak and rhododendron trees. If you are visiting during the spring season, you will see the whole forest bloom with bright red flowers. The trail is an ascent all the way up to Manjhi, a small shepherd settlement where we are going to spend the night in camps. Manjhi is a quiet place where you will find open ground and plenty of spaces to explore. The views from Manjhi are great for photography and nature lovers. After a gracious dinner, get the rest you need. Overnight in camps.

This is going to be a milder day in terms of effort. A zig zag path will take you up in altitude but the climb is not very steep. The views will get more spectacular as you gain height. You get the feeling that you are inching closer to greater Himalayas. After a certain point, you start descending all the way down to Dodital where a magical emerald lake awaits you. You are going to cherish the sight of this alpine lake surrounded by dense forests. This is what you would call a perfect campsite. Explore the area around the lake and spot the brown Himalayan trout in the lake. This is a very sacred place with a sacred history. Meditators can find any place near the temple to be the ideal place for sitting in meditation since the energies are perfectly aligned at such spiritual hotspots.

This is probably the most thrilling and slightly difficult run of the trek. Today we will start early in the morning after a heavy breakfast. We will carry packed lunches along. The trail to the reach our highest point for the day is about 5 kms from Dodital. It is a steep climb through a trail that runs through Birch forests. At the end of the trail, you reach an opening into the Darwa meadows. It is a high altitude pass full of greenery in the monsoon months. You get panoramic views of greater Himalayan peaks. After exploring the area, we will start our descent towards our base camp and it will take us around 2-3 hours to get back. Walk carefully while descending because it is rightly said that getting down is more difficult than going up. Reach campsite and explore the area or chat with a friendly local. Overnight at camp in Dodital.

Wake up to a spectacular sunrise. This is the day we start tracing back our steps. We will be descending all the way down to Agoda village. Since you are going to descend, make sure you land your feet at the right places and never run down any slopes. While walking down slopes, there is always extra stress on the knees, so make sure you are walking with control. Reach Agoda and stay in camps/lodge overnight.

This is the last day of our memorable journey. We will start for Rishikesh after a tasty local breakfast. This drive will take us back to where we started from. You can enjoy the views and recollect the fond memories of the beautiful journey we made. We will reach Rishikesh by evening and you can follow up on your plan ahead.