Trekking in India is one of the finest in the world. Not only do we
boast of the highest range of mountains offering even professional
trekkers a challenge but some of routes are easily accessible by even
amateurs and first time trekkers. Most of these 'easy' treks are located
in the northern state of Uttrakhand often starting from the town of
Rishikesh, which other than being an idle base camp is also known for
rafting on Ganga and its tributaries. Rishikesh is 256km by road from
Delhi and can be approach by taxi/bus (8 hours) or train (4 and half
hours). There is a flight from Delhi to Dehradun which takes an hour
only. Uttrakhand has been a source of spiritual inspiration and the
scene of countless of Hindu pilgrimages since the time of the early
Aryan settlers. The various sources of the Ganges- Yamunotri, Gangotri,
Kedarnath and Badrinath- are still visited by many thousands of Hindi
devotees each year. With its gorges, deep valleys and lofty mountains
the geography of this land is idle. Nanda Devi- the highest mountain
situated completely in India is situated in this state. Zanskar range
forming a divide between Tibet and India is present to the north and in
the south the various tributaries of Ganga and Kali River form rugged
gorges ultimately dwindling down to the Siwalik range of the Himalayas
which hardly exceeds 3000m in height. The trekking season here is from
April to June, and after the monsoons, from September to mid- November
before the roads close due to snowfall.
