A short trek through villages on the slopes of Dhauladhar to Kareri Lake with spectacular views. Kareri Trek does not have any demanding days. Excellent connection by road to all over makes this an easy approach to the trail head.
In the 26th January 2017 long weekend we embarked on this trek. The winter has been pretty white till now and to top that, 24-27th January was forecasted to be rain and snow all over. Even after 5 dropouts from our team, 11 brave souls headed for Kareri Lake Trek.
Day 1 | Ghera – Kareri : We took the 9 : 22 PM bus from Delhi ISBT and reached Dharamshala ISBT at 9 AM in the morning. It was dark and gloomy. We walked to Sita Guest House just 100 m from the ISBT. We got freshened up and after completing breakfast we started out journey towards Ghera. It started raining when we were in the guest house. When we reached Ghera (1325 m) it was drizzling. We had tea and then decided to ride the car till Kareri Village and not to trek in rain.
God had other plans for us. Midway the road to Kareri, there was a landslide and the car returned to Ghera. We packed up with rain coats and started hiking in the rain. After crossing the government school of Seri (1470 m) we hiked higher and higher. Finally we reached Kareri ( 1800 m) after 1 ½ hours trek. Being completely wet, we decided not to camp rather stay in home stay.
Once we reached the homestay, we had a fire lit up and spent the rest of the day in front of it. Sadly no pictures due to continuous rain and wet conditions.
Day 2 | Kareri – Harote – Kareri : The rain had stopped and we started the hike at 10 AM. After crossing the trails through the village, we reached a road coming from Pathankot and continued in it to reach a concrete bridge. From here starts a dense forest of Oak and Rhododendron and a steep ascent. In the midway we crossed a boulder crossing over the stream and continued on the true right of the stream. After this the snow captured the trail and it reached to almost 4 feet deep when we reached Harote (2500 m).
It was almost 1:30 when we finished out lunch and decided to turn back due to lack of time to reach the lake and return.
The best thing of the day is the sightings of numerous (at least 20) Monal and a pair of Ibex. Due to lack of proper telephoto lens and foggy condition, we failed to capture them in lens.
The Homestay at Kareri
A small bridge just ahead of the village
The steps start from Ghera and continues till Kareri Lake
Reaching the road coming from Pathankot
A road well laid
The concrete bridge is just round the corner and after that its a narrow trail
Ferns and Moss are omnipresent
The dense forest of Kareri
The team at the bridge over Nyund Stream
The trail through the dense forest along Nyund Stream
We continue on the true left of the stream
Wet jungle trails. Very Very Slippery.
Canopy
One of the beautiful trails till date
Its a steep climb
Negotiating snow patches
With ice on the steps, its becoming tiring.
The fog hides the steep fall on the side making its little easy.
On the trail
On the trail
Climbing and climbing
On the trail
On the trail
On the trail
Did u notice the heart shaped ice formation in the middle of the stream.
At 2500 m elevation
Snow all around.
Kuldeep Chand, Our Guide turning back from the end.
We still had a lot more climbing to be done. Some time in future.
Heading down.
On the trail
On the trail
On the trail
The trails are simply beautiful.
A well deserved break.
The beautiful trail.
On the trail
Sunset from the village.
Day 3 | Kareri – Ghera – Stowari : Last night was really cold. The morning was also well below freezing and clear weather with cold breeze. After a hot breakfast, we started moving down at 10 AM. This time we skipped the road on the top and took the steep decent. After this we continued on the road. Our team divided in to two halves with one half moving on the road by car to Macleodganj while the other team walked all the way to Ghera and then climbed to Stowari on the other site and take a short bus ride to Macleodganj.
We reached Ghera at 12:30 PM and after a small light lunch we started climbing again at 1:30 PM. The climb is steep but not demanding. We moved through the forest trails and reached Stowari (1750 m) at 3 PM. We took the bus at the road head and ended the day in Macleodganj where we meet up with the other half. We took the night bus at 7 PM to Delhi.
The complete Team
Dhauladhar and Kareri Village
Shepherds Trail
The steep decent from Kareri
Somewhere from the trail.
Climbing towards Stowari. Finally a sunny trail.
Stowari is teep climb from Ghera
Kareri can be seen in the background.
Useful Information:
This is an easy summer trek can can be done with homestay and Dharamshala at Lake. No guide required if you are with a map and gps and if not your first trek.
The trail is easy and no demanding days. Demanding in winter with lots of snow. Be careful in monsoon for slippery steps and leeches.
Do not miss the jungle trails from Stowari to Kareri and beyond. The trails are not as frequent as the Triund Indrahar trail and is secluded and stunning.
Guide Contact: Mr. Kuldeep Chand a trusted Guide in the region can be reached at +91-9418414668
Useful items / resources to get for Trek – click to purchase from Amazon.
Further Reading
Rain Protection
Sun Protection
Backpack
Well written Sir, it was great experience. Thank you.
Great commentary accompanied with wonderful pics
As usual very well narrative and good descriptive..Thanks