Parang La Trek

• Get ready to get to an altitude of 14,990 feet approx, after a 3 to 4 hour long trek.

• It would be a long trek through the mountainous slopes which would take you to the base portion of a narrow gorge.

• After a short rest at the base of the narrow gorge, later in this phase of Parang La Trekking you’d climb towards the meadow of Thaltak.

• On reaching the altitude, you’d pitch your tents and enjoy a peaceful camping.

• After spending a night at Thaltak and enjoying a sumptuous breakfast, set yourself on a journey to Jagtha and later towards Bong Rozen.

• The first phase of the Parang La Trek to Jagtha and Bong Rozen is a 8km long trek through the challenging paths.

• The route would be full of obstacles like hordes of small and big rocks, and a river stream that you’d ultimately follow upwards to reach the destination.

• On arriving at Bongrojen, go and take a short tour around the campsite where you’d stay overnight.

• This phase of the trek would take you through the main stretches of Parang La and through the summit of the pass itself.

• Brace yourself for a long day and start with a hot breakfast.

• You’d ascend to an elevation of upto 18,290 feet at Parang La, and on reaching the summit have a good look of the bewitching views of Spiti Valley.

• Later descend towards the Pare Chu River, after some steep and mountainous trails tread on the flat plains on your way back to Dak Karzong located at an altitude of 16,200 feet.

• Karzong is a small, flat and barren valley with high mountains covering it all around. The beautiful and peaceful haven is where you’d camp for the day.

• On the 5th day of the Parang La Trek, you’d head upstream with the Pare Chu River.

• The trek would take you through the numerous mountain rivers, and finally land you at the Datang Yongma where you’d set up the camp and rest there the whole night.

• During this phase of the Parang La Trekking itinerary you’d proceed to hike early morning after a hot breakfast along the flat trail passing through the Racholamo Valley.

• After passing the valley the route goes downhill considerably, taking you through the grounds of Norbu Sumdo.

• To go beyond Norbu Sumdo you’d cross a river and set yourself on the way to Chumik Shilde.

• You’d reach the destination of Chumik Shilde which is located at an altitude of 14869 feet after a trek of 5 to 6 hours. Here, the camp would be prepared for you.

• On this day of the Parang La Trek, you’d witness the most beautiful scenery on your way from Chumik Shilde to Tso Moriri.

• The trail would be comparatively simpler as well as it would be flat and vast plains.

• On successful completion of the trek you’d finally reach Tso Moriri, a glacial lake located at an altitude of 15,075 feet.

• Around the lake you might see other Himalayan animals like Tibetan wild asses and hordes of migratory birds.

• After enjoying the beautiful sight of the lake you’d be transferred back to the campsite.

• Slowly descend from the Tso Moriri to Korzok while walking along the shores.

• Korzok village, which is located at an altitude of 14850 feet is the perfect spot to click pictures of the snow-clad peaks of the Ladakh Mountain ranges.

• At the village you can even pay a visit to the Korzok Monastery which has very marvellous intricate wall paintings of numerous Buddhist deities.

• After the long 6-7 hours long trek, you’ll be transferred to your campsite.

• You’d travel from Korzok to Leh by road to finally conclude the Parang La Trek .

• Afterwards you can either choose to explore the town or travel further to Srinagar or Manali and board a flight to Delhi.

Additional Essentials

• Keep a light toilet kit with you consisting of a toothbrush, a roll on deodorant, moisturiser for skin, lip balm toilet roll and toothpaste. Make sure that you carry miniature size products and don’t overload on shampoos or soaps as you won’t be able to take a bath on the trek.

• A personal medical kit is advisable to be carried by the trekkers, it should contain the most readily available medicines like Dolo 650 mg, Avomine, Combiflam, Digene, ORS, Knee brace. Take advice from your trek leader before taking any medicines.

• Don’t forget to put essential documents- original photo identity card like aadhar, voter id, etc. At the trek all foreign nationals are required to share their passport and visa details during registration as well as upon arrival.

The adventurous journey at the Parang La Trek would begin at Kaza in Spiti Valley, Himachal Pradesh. Therefore, all the interested mountaineers are required to reach Kaza.

By Air: You can book direct flights to Bhuntar Airport, Kullu from Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bangalore. Kaza is located 250 km away from the airport, you can take a taxi or bus to cover the distance.

By Road: There is a direct route via Delhi ( 740 km) via NH 44, Chandigarh (482 km) via NH3, Ambala (514km) via NH505 and Dhedradun (632 km) via NH505. You can drive upto destination by yourself or can catch a bus which runs regularly to Manali from the mentioned cities and for further journeys to Kaza catch a taxi or bus.

By Train: Jogindernagar railway station near Kasol is the nearest railway station to Kaza. The Town of Kaza, is further 350 kms aways from the railway station you can take a taxi or bus for the journey further.

The best time to plan Parang La Trek is during the months between July to September. It’s the time when the Parang La summit is snow-clad, and the challenging trek which passes through the beautiful villages make it a great experience for snow-lovers and mountaineers. The Parang La Trekking during the months of April-May and September-November is recommended since the weather is pleasant and clear, making it convenient for trekking and enjoying the bloom of flowers in the meadows. Between June to August, at the summit along with greenery and snow you’d experience rainfalls/ snowfalls which would make the steep and rocky paths even more challenging to cover. During the winter season of December to February it gets highly risky to plan a trek as the routes are covered with 6 inch deep snow. During the recommended months for the visit between April to November the temperature between day and night varies greatly. During the day, temperature might shoot up to 5 degree Celsius to 10 degree while dropping to -1 degree to -2 degrees at night.

- Kaza to Dumla- Arrive at Kaza in Spiti Valley which is the beginning point of the Parang La trek and trek a good distance of 18 km in 4 hours to Ki and further to Dumbla.

- Dumla to Thaltak Meadow- Continue your trekking from Dumbla to Thaltak Meadow and stay there overnight, enjoying a peaceful campsite.

- Thaltak Meadow to Bongrojen via Jagtha- Passing through the beautiful Thaltak Meadow trek for a good long time of 7 hours and arrive Bongrojen located at an altitude of 16,780 while passing through Jaghta.

- Bongrojen to Dak Karzong via Parang La - Finally, mark your journey through the Parang La mountain pass. From the elevation of 18,290 feet, enjoy the views of Spiti Valley and descend along Pare Chu River to Dak Karzong.

- Dak Karzong to Datang Yongma- Move to Datang Yongma with a 5 hour long trek following the passage along the Pare Chu River.

- Datang Youngma to Chumik Shilde- Proceeding from Datang Yongma trek upto Chumik Shilde which is located at a height of 14,869 feets above sea level.

- Chumik Shilde to Tso Moriri - The glacier lake of Tso Moriri is a 5 hour long trek further from the Chumik Shilde.

- Tso Moriri to Korzok - Enjoy the snow-clad mountains of Ladakh as you move from Tso Moriri to Korzok.

- Korzok to Leh - Finally, call the journey at Parang La Summit at an end and move to Leh from where you can either continue your expedition journey or return to your native place.