Kinner Kailash Circuit, Himalayas

A stunningly beautiful trek in the seldom-visited Himalayan region of Kinnaur in Northern India, meeting the thangka painting masters of Dharamsala before making a circular parikrama around the holy mountain of Kinner Kailash.

Located on the Indo-Tibetan border, Kinnaur, Land of the Gods, is perhaps the most fascinating region of the Indian Himalayas with some of the highest mountains in Himachal Pradesh. This is the only area in the world where Buddhist worship has gone on completely uninterrupted, and Kinnaur has never been subject to outside invasion.

Being restricted to all until 1993, it has the mystique of a forbidden kingdom and an aura of the unknown. Nature’s work here is awe-inspiring. Bisecting the Kinnaur Valley is the foaming Satluj River, which rises near Mount Kailash in Tibet, and passes through spectacular gorges carved by its strong currents.

Most of the terrain consists of austere, rugged mountains, somewhat reminiscent of Ladakh, but still far from the tourist trail, and where Buddhist practices are still very much alive.

Nigel Gifford, founder of the tour company, was a member of the first British party in thirty years to be given permission to enter Kinnaur. At supper one evening with the monks of the 1000-year-old Tabo monastery, the party were given access by the Abbot to see the original thangka paintings on walls deep inside the most hallowed chambers of the monastery. The Abbot also happened to mention a mountain called Kinner Kailash, which had a shivalingam, a glistening spire that changed colour with the intensity of the sunlight. It was situated, he explained, near the old Hindustan-Tibet Road, a fascinating tributary of the Silk Route cutting across the Greater Tibetan Plateau, and, he added, a sacred mountain revered by Buddhist and Hindu alike. Making a clockwise circuit, or parikrama, round the base of the mountain is particularly auspicious. The circuit attracts many pilgrims every year, and begins from Bathad, heading over the Charang La at 5200 metres before finishing in Sarahan.

This journey of Tibetan flavours combines an opportunity to see the amazing thangka painting masters at work in Dharamsala, and a rare opportunity to join the pilgrims as they make a complete circuit, or parikrama, of the sacred mountain Kinner Kailash. It may also be possible while in Dharamsala to arrange a private audience with the Karmapa Lama, one of Tibet’s most important spiritual leaders alongside the Dalai Lama.

The journey begins in Delhi with the overnight train to Pathankot. From here it’s a short drive to Dharamsala, and we will have two full days to explore this fascinating town, the seat of exile for His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama and with echoes of the British Raj. Of particular interest will be the Norbulingka Institute, which keeps the flame of Tibetan Culture still burning, and where we will be able to examine the extraordinary work of the master thangka painters and metalworkers who have each served a six-year apprenticeship. From Dharamsala, we drive approximately six hours to the trailhead at Bathad. Over the next nine days we will complete the circuit of Mount Kinner Kailash.

The trek itself is challenging, suitable for anyone with good general health, and we will cross a major pass, the Charang La (5200 metres), a formidable but highly rewarding route through the mountains. The vegetation becomes sparser as the route continues, until we enter a rock-strewn wilderness, crossing impressive glacial moraines. Snow leopards and ibex still roam among these peaks. The views of many unnamed mountains are breathtaking, and at one point we can see directly into Tibet, only a few kilometres away.

Prayer flags dot the landscape, and some of the villages have a fairytale quality, especially Chitkul, towards the end of the trek, whose quaint houses, temples, gompas and setting in the verdant Sangla Valley, possibly the finest in Himachal Pradesh, conjure up a perfect image of Shangri-La. The bewitching scenery and views of the eternal snows from here are a memorable sight. The last two days see us driving back to Simla before taking the train back to Delhi and the end of the journey.

Price details: Price includes transfers, hotels (B&B, twinshare), full board camps, local guide in Delhi, transport (4WD, trains), services of a local porter, camp team & local guide.