Khuliya Top Trek
 

Khuliya top is a pleasant weekend trek that not many people have ventured or even heard off. The special views from Khuliya top of the Panchachuli range is the envy of trekkers. Very rarely do you get such grand views of the Himlayas on such a short quick trek. 

It was not until November of 2011 that I came across an album posted by a pro-trekker and friend of mine Piyush on Khuliya Top that I was seriously compelled towards discovering this place. And so a visit to this sleepy town "Munsiyari" in Uttrakhand was visualized in the last week of November 2011. So much had I heard of Panchachuli peaks, the heart-breaker from Pithorgarh district of Uttarakhand. It was time for me to finally see it by my own eyes. And so a four day road journey to Munsiyari from Delhi was planned with one intention to explore, document the hidden beauty of Kumaon and the trekking potentials in that area. I posted my intention of doing this trek on my facebook account and got helpful suggestions on how to do the Khuliya top trek and travel to Munsiyari which was a matter of concern if done on public transportation.

Luckily, a trekking enthusiast and a dear friend of mine, Deepak Gahlot expressed his interest in joining me for the trek and was more than willing to make it a road trip in his reliable Maruti Swift VDI. Having Deepak on-board was most welcomed as at any day I prefer to have company of a like-minded trekker than doing it solo. Plus his arrival solved the concern of travel to Munsiyari. If you intend to travel in public transport to Munsiyari from Delhi, you have two options. First option is to catch the Delhi to Munsiyari Uttrakhand transport bus from Anand Vihar ISBT terminal which will leave at 4 pm and reaches Munsiyari at 6 pm next day. Or you can catch a train till either, Haldwani or Kathgodam from Old Delhi Railway station and then take a bus to Almora, and another bus from Almora to Thal. At Thal you can catch a shared jeep to Munsiyari which is 73 kms ahead. All this makes the travelling too hectic for anyones liking.

0n 2^nd December 2011, Deepak and I left from Delhi at 4 pm, hoping to reach Kathgodam by the night time. We reached Kathgodam by 11:30 pm and Deepak proposed of halting at Almora by stretching ourselves a little more. We took the route from Bhimtal to Bhowali and finally reaching Almora at 2 am. By the time we reached “Almora” we were tired and decided to sleep in the car itself. At 4:30 am, Deepak woke me up and told me to push for “Kausani” to enjoy the early morning sun-rise view of the Kumaon ranges. The prospect of watching the lovely “Nanda devi”, “Trishul”, “Nanda kot”, “Maiktoli” peaks was too tempting and hard to ignore. Miraculously all the tiredness just vanished and after sipping a hot cup of ginger tea we were looking forward to seeing the peaks. For Deepak it would be the first time visit to Kausani. As for me, I once had the fortune of staying in Kausani for 3 days, but a gap of 5 years was too long and I was craving for the view. We reached Kausani at 6 am and drove the car to the mountain view spot where all the hotels are strategically located. It was still dark at 6 am and we patiently waited for the sun to come up and do its magic. By 6:15 am the sun came up and the first effects of the rays were visible on Mt. Trishul and Nanda Devi. The sight was beautiful. 

Never in my life, have I seen such a beautiful morning view. And then to my amazement, Deepak declared he can see the mighty Chowkhamba in the extreme left. I rubbished his claim, stating it cannot be visible. Baffled I saw a huge wide white massif in the distance. Deepak was totally ecstatic and I was stunned with the view of the mighty Chowkhamba which I have lately come to revere a lot. I immediately took out my camera and worked on the ISO settings to capture what my eye was pondering on. At the right side, the mystical Panchachuli ranges were visible and the valley beneath where Munsiyari is located. We spent couple of hours here and then headed to Chaukori via Bageshwar. The road from Bageshwar to Chaukori gave us beautiful view of Nanda Devi and Nanda Devi East, Trishul, Panwali Dwar peaks. This was the beginning of good things to come. By the time we reached KMVN Lodges in Chaukori, the view of the Kumaon ranges expanded with Panchachuli peaks also coming in the background alongside Nanda devi. We missed not spending more time in Chaukori for we had to reach Munsiyari before sunset. Surprisingly the roads till Thal were in good conditions and we were able to reach Thal by 2 pm. Now only a 70 odd kms drive to Munsiyari was left. The conditions of roads from Thal to Munsiyari was in bad shape owing to series of massive landslides. It took us 3 hours to reach Munsiyari and we finally landed to KMVN lodge in the heart of Munsiyari town by 5 pm. The evening was spent in recharging our batteries and going to bed after an early dinner.

Next day we woke up early at 6 am and ventured out to get a good view of the Panchachuli peaks at sunrise time. The much heard Panchachuli peaks, striking an immense presence in our hearts were a delight to watch. The Panchchuli peaks are a group of five snow-capped peaks with altitudes ranging from 6,334 metres (20,781 ft) to 6,904 metres (22,651 ft). They form the watershed between the Gori and the Darmaganga valleys. The five peaks on the Panchchuli massif are numbered from northwest to southeast. The tallest of the lots, Panchachuli-2, at 6.904 meters is the prime peak and attracts all the attention.



Satisfied with what we got to see, we headed back to KMVN lodge and had our breakfast and made arrangements for a guide cum porter for a 1 night camping at Khuliya Bugyal. Our guide, Laxman, a 21 year old young local boy informed us that we could camp at the newly built lodge, 1 km below the Khuliya Bugyal. This property is not yet operational and that this would save us from pitching tents at Khuliya Bugyal. We negotiated for the cost of his daily wage at Rs 300 per day and got supplies of food, oil etc. The cooking utensils, sleeping bags were being arranged by Laxman. On the prospect of arranging for gas and a stove, Laxman informed we can save on that cost by using forest wood to make a fire for cooking. Apparently you do not need to take any prior permission for camping at Khuliya Bugyal or for starting a bon-fire from The Forest department. By 12 noon we made our way to Balati bend where we parked our car. This is the point where the trek begins. My Protrek watch showed the altitude as 2500 meters. This meant a trek of 7 kms uphill with a total altitude gain of 1000 meters, considering Khuliya top to be 3500 meters in height. This makes a setting for a comfortable trek with no need for a spare day for acclimatization.

 

We picked up our bags and started with our trek at 12:30 pm. We were greeted with a clear view of the Panchachuli and Rajrambha peaks. Rajrambha peaks are placed at north west side of Panchachuli-1 and is not clearly visible from Munsiyari town. The trails here are well defined and laid so Khuliya Bugyal can be reached even without a guide. The trail goes inside the forest, though not so dense, which brings me to my concern on lack of apathy shown by Forest Officials in planting saplings of trees to replenish the Forest cover. We trekked for 30 minutes before we reached a bend from where the Potato farmland was clearly visible below.



The views of the Panchachuli peaks were consistent and added to our delight when compared to trail which was becoming increasingly monotonous. The trek from now onwards was a steep incline and it took us 3 hours to reach the lodge area where we had planned to camp. This property is in its final completion stage and we managed to procure the keys to one of the room whose interiors and electrical work was pending. It gave us a space to camp and sleep. No luxuries of a lodge were available to us. The altitude of this property was 3000 meters and the view from the outside was simply outstanding. We put our bags in place and told Laxman to arrange for the woods so that some tea could be made. A thought came in my mind of going to Khuliya Bugyal and get a first hand view of the sunset over Panchachuli peaks straight away. However, the view from the lodge was so rewarding that we decided otherwise. A special word to those who want to venture to Khuliya Bugyal is to not miss the sunset view as seen of Panchachuli peaks. The view is to die for and is nostalgia personified.

Camping out at the lodge with a lovely bon-fire made by Laxman, eating eggs and Maggie in a moonlight night with Panchachuli peaks shinning in the darkness, it could not get better than this. We slept late at night after singing songs complimenting the atmosphere and drinking to our good fortunes of being alive and witnessing such beauty of mother nature. Needless to say we were nostalgic and in the end it was all worth the efforts.

piercing our eyes but it did not deter us in any what way. The sight of Trisuli, Nanda kot, Nanda devi, Maiktoli peaks at the extreme left was captivating.



We made good use of our compact binoculars and enjoyed the close-up view of the peaks. Now we could see the Khuliya top at the backside looking increasingly reachable. However, as we walked nearer to it, the farther it seemed something which always happens when you trek in these regions. As we gained altitude, we got better view of Nanda Devi peak something both of us adore a lot. This was a good incentive for both of us to push for Khuliya top. Finally when we reached the top, the altimeter read 3465 meters. This reaffirms that the Khuliya top is at the height of 3500 meters.



At the backside lies another top on the other side of the mountain. Laxman told me of a trail leading to Rantham top at an altitude of over 4000 meters from Khuliya top going via Namik Glacier and Namik Village. The prospect of a trekking trail ahead of Khuliya Top means a week long trek can be attempted in this area. This discovery of a new trekking trail very rarely ventured vindicated that Munsiyari does have trek options available in its vicinity and if one can handle the hardship of reaching Munsiyari, the overall trekking experience is indeed rewarding.