Buran Ghati Trek — A Thrilling, Challenging And Wild Trekking

 On certain occasions, the trekking enthusiast in me knows no bounds of adventure. There have been times when I have been short on time but craved a thrilling, challenging and wild trekking expedition. Less time and wild itineraries do not usually gel well but I truly believe that when you look for something with all your passion it finds its way to you. Buran Ghati is an emotion, it is my most recent trekking expedition and I have had the opportunity to do it with the best of trekking companies.

The Buran Ghati Trek is unique in that it offers a perfect blend of savage exposure as well as serene relaxing spaces. My hunt for a short but action-packed trekking expedition came to an end with the Buran Ghati Trek which is largely offered by the best trekking companies across India.

This July, I managed to pull over my work-life cycle and escaped to the state of Himachal Pradesh for an enticing vacation. The Buran Ghati Trek had me drooling ever since I came across it and I was extremely eager to venture into this expedition. I took an overnight bus to reach Shimla early in the morning and got driven by my trekking company for approximately 160 kms to reach the serene village of Janglik situated at an altitude of 9,200 ft. After continuous travelling since the previous night, I was as good as dead at Janglik where I quickly dined and retired for the night.

Exhilarated, I woke up to a bright new morning and buckled up for the trek to Dayara Thatch which lies 4kms away from Janglik. A fine trek through local inhabitations further through deodar and oak forests along a moderate ascent finally led to the verdant green Dayara meadow where we camped for the night. The exquisite views from Dayara Thatch were exotic and convincing of a promising expedition ahead. I relished the calmness and spectacular beauty of the region and called it a day at Dayara Thatch post dinner.

Litham, located at an altitude of 11,800 ft was the next stop on the itinerary. I freshened up and tightened my laces to get going for the day. Litham lies 3 kms away from Dayara Thatch. The route from Dayara Thatch to Litham is vibrant, stirring and intriguing. We trekked past Bhoj forests to spot the dazzling Chandranahan waterfalls. Soon, the mighty snow laden Dhaualadhar Range became apparent as we reached the campsite at Litham. It took us approximately 4 hours to cover this stretch which was breathtakingly beautiful.

At Litham we stayed back for an additional day to acclimatize as well as thoroughly explore and experience the charm in its vicinity. We visited the Chandranahan Lakes the same day. Chandranahan is a pristine lake that rests at a height of 13,800 ft in the lap of the Pabbar Valley. It is a soothing, surreal and almost uto pian lake which had me drooling for a brief moment. The trek from Litham to Chandranahan lake was quite challenging and adventurous. It took us nearly 3 hours to cover that stretch. We returned to and camped at Litham for the night.

Up next was the 4 km long trek to Dhunda. The trail from Litham to Dhunda had a blend of gradual and steep ascents. With the alluring Rupin Valley on our right, we trekked towards Dhunda and found the Dhauladhar Range appear bigger and clearer before us. As we trekked higher the Ghuna Pass became visible and shook us inside out with its inexplicable charmer. A bit of further trekking unfolded the first glimpse of the relentlessly glorious Buran Ghati before us. The landscape at that point was truly heavenly and unfathomable. We camped at Dhunda and indulged in passionate stargazing that night.

The next morning began with the most anticipated leg of the expedition. We started our trek towards the Buran Ghati Pass with zeal and vigour. The trail was steep and exceptionally tricky. Trek leaders from the trekking company briefed us about the technical climbing and off we went into the mountains. We traversed mighty boulders to reach the extraordinarily beautiful Buran Ghati Pass located at a whopping height of 15,000 ft. As rip-roaring and dramatic was the climb to the Pass so action-packed was the descent from the Pass. Panting, roaring and devouring the stimulating activity we finally descended to Munirang and camped at a height of 11,800 ft where we camped by the river and enjoyed a delightful evening.

An easy trek from Munirang to Barua village marked the ending of the Buran Ghati Trek. Many batches of the best trekking companies accompanied us as we hopped onto the 5 km long descent to Barua village. After traversing exotic forests we found vehicles at Barua waiting to drive us back to Shimla. And in no time, there we were at Shimla, with fond memories, nail-biting experiences and a heart full of happy emotions.