Stok Kangri Trek
Tour Itinerary
Day 01:Arrive at Leh
The best option to get to Leh is via air. To reach there via road is
in itself a trek, as it takes many days and drains out your energy.
All major airlines provide flight services from Indira Gandhi
International Airport, New Delhi to Leh. Flights to Leh are scheduled
to reach before noon or latest by 3pm. While you enter Ladakh, do not
forget to look down to one of the most astonishing views of the
landscape. The breathtakingly stunning view from the aircraft window
is just the beginning; there are many surprises left in the box. The
huge Himalayan mountains are taller than any other mountain ranges on
the planet. With deep valleys and gorges, Ladakh has all the bounties
and miracles of nature. When you land at the Ladakh airport, the
sudden drop in temperature will take you by surprise and send a chill
running down your spine. The average temperature in Leh stays around
the 10 degree C mark, and during winters it can drop down to a bone
chilling -20 degrees C or even lower. The air has a distinct freshness
and crispiness in it and you will feel like breathing pure air. The
chill in the air provides slight indication about the temperatures
during the trek to Stok Kangri.
Take a stroll through the Leh market, there are various shops selling
many different kind of stuff. Few of them will even have things that
are required for the trek, thus making last minute shopping a good
idea in Leh. The night will be spent in a warm and cozy guest house
located in the main city of Leh. Here, you can meet your fellow
trekkers, the guide and support staff. People in Leh mostly eat
vegetarian food, so it is difficult to get non vegetarian food in the
area. Dinner provided will be specially rustled to keep you warm and
healthy. Go to bed early as next day you will have to be ready for the
acclimatization day, necessary for the trek.
Day 02: Leh (Acclimatization day)
Stok Kangri is the tallest mountain in the area, and there is no place
in Leh, from where it is not visible. There is no ignoring the huge
mountain of Stok Kangri, the final destination of the trek.
The morning hot tea is served, which does adds a lot of antioxidants
to our body, but most importantly gives motivation to wake up. After a
healthy breakfast, the day calls for acclimatization to the harsh and
extreme temperature and environmental conditions that will prevail for
the rest of the trek. Today you can enjoy the natural and cultural
beauty of Leh and its surroundings. You can consider this day to get
accustomed with the place and its rich culture and heritage. It is
vital to have your first acclimatization night after arriving at
altitudes of more than 3000 mts, before you venture out to higher
altitudes. Altitude sickness is a common illness among trekkers. This
is so serious that trekkers may have to return without completing the
trek. All overnight stays are not planned, and during emergency
situations like snowfall, blizzards and snow storms, altitude sickness
can happen to anyone. For getting used to such altitudes, start off
with a little bit of exercise and stretches, as cold tends to slow
down your body movements. Explore the city on foot, enjoy the most
beautiful mornings ever, the sun rays feels like heaven on our body.
For people in their mid-40s and 50s, carrying an oxygen cylinder is a
good idea. Go for a visit to Alchi, which is lower than Leh, this will
help you to know the terrain better. There are around 10 monasteries
and few ancient temples that you can visit.
The Leh marketplace is a good place to spend the day, with shops and
stalls open to serve you. Most of them serve a few local dishes which
will keep you warm.
Day 03: Leh to Chang Ma via Stok Village
Today is the actual start of the trek. Deciding to trek in Leh is for
many like a dream come true, an experience which is highly valued and
rare. Only a slight percentage of the trekkers is actually able to
accomplish these treks and people who do are one of the most
adventurous. Trekking in this part of the country requires strength
and serious courage. After breakfast, your guide will give you
briefing on the activities ahead. The trekking starts with a drive to
Stok village through a paved road. Before you start, always recheck
that you have all the required stuff and supplies for the trek. As the
drive starts from Leh, you will come across many beautiful and exotic
scenes. The drive to the Stok Village is quite adventurous and has
bounties of nature never before experienced. Full of lush green,
silver birch trees and colourful flowers, there is no better ride. The
weather is perfect during summers and roaming around is very peaceful.
Stok Village is situated to the south of Leh and is well known for its
royal palace and the King of Ladakh who resides here. If time permits
do visit the grand palace and the museum attached to it. The museum
hosts many religious and historic artefacts, which depict the history
of Ladakh and its ancient rulers.
Stok Kangri is not a camping site, but the place where you start your
walk to Chang Ma. As it is just beginning, the trek might be a bit
difficult to start off. Experience the immense joy of trekking on snow
and open up huge possibilities, for moving ahead. After a trek of
around 4 hours, the destination for the day arrives. Chang Ma is a
popular spot for camping, a firm open ground where tents can easily be
placed. You will spend the night here, have your dinner quickly and go
for an early sleep; the next day awaits many surprises.
Day 04: Chang Ma (13087 ft.) to Mankorma (14200 ft.)
Today the trek is to Mankorma, at an altitude of 14200 ft. The day's
trek will involve some climb. The walk will traverse through the rough
and barren landscape of Ladakh. The landscape is astonishingly
beautiful, and the huge mountains add glory to it. It is crucial to
maintain a healthy rhythm between your trek mates. There will not be
any trees on the trek. But this is the actual beauty of Ladakh; grey
barren lands make Ladakh the highest cold desert on the planet. The
winds are quite strong and gusty and might even sway you from side to
side. Do look forward to seeing valleys and vast barren lands. You
will have to pass many small streams, and putting your legs into the
icy cold water is thrilling. The days trek is fairly easy, and
Mankorma will arrive in little more than 3 hours.
There might be instances where you might feel symptoms of altitude
sickness. Talk to your trek leader frankly and express your concerns.
All our trek leaders are Certified Wilderness First Aid Responder and
they will decide what's best for you. You will enjoy the overnight
stay in camps.
Day 05: Mankorma (14200 ft.) to Base camp (16300 ft.)
Day 05 will take you to the Stok Kangri Base Camp. At an altitude of
5000m the base camp will be the starting point for the summit. The
base campsite is a place where you can enjoy to the fullest. It takes
roughly 5 hours to reach the campsite, and the trek is beautiful in
its own way. The area has many water bodies around it, and when the
sun rays fall on it, they sparkle like diamonds. The air becomes
considerably thinner as you climb. When you reach the base camp you
have to try hard to breathe. The temperature here is considerably less
than the other places in the trek. After having lunch and an hour of
rest, go to the nearby mountain peaks of Gulap Kangri, Parcha Kangri
and many others. This is surely going to make your day and prepare you
for the final expedition. Take some rest in the base camp, to assure
that everyone is ready for the extreme days ahead. Having fun is
always necessary for any trek; one game that can be played everywhere
is cards. Enjoy a few intense games of cards to refresh your mind and
team up with fellow trekkers. In the coming days, you will find a
drastic change in the climatic conditions and even lack of oxygen is
going to affect.
For the final climb, adjust your equipments and trekking gear. As the
evening falls, your sleeping bags will start calling you. After having
dinner, go to bed early, as the day ahead is saved for training.
Day 06: Rest day + training day
The day will be easy for trekkers. Today is specially meant to know
the place and the route to the summit in detail. You can enjoy your
time by visiting nearby areas and knowing the place to a much better
extent. But don't take this rest day to sit inside your camp and take
naps. It is very crucial to know all aspects of team work and the
techniques involved in climbing a peak filled with snow. Your trek
leader and guide will train you for the upcoming climb and tell you
about all the challenges and possibilities involved. You need to have
enough knowledge about the terrain, depth of snow and other
environmental aspects before you start climbing Stok Kangri. The most
exciting as well as terrifying part is when your legs will sink into
the snow, the snow being very soft and fresh, won't be able to take
your weight. Snow trekking boots are an absolute necessity as it is
slippery on the outside and lets you plough through the snow with
ease. Know the surroundings very well and the weather forecast for the
next few days.
Your guide will brief you about the trek plan for the next few days,
remember it clearly. At the end of the training period, you will have
enough time to take proper rest so that you are prepared for the next
day. The upcoming excursion will surely be highly challenging, but
will provide immense joy and self-confidence when you make it to the
top. The overnight stay as usual will be in camps, but the difference
this time is the camps being kneeled onto the snowy ground. Before
sleep, you should be in a situation, to take on the summit with a big
heart and might. By now, you should be quite familiar with the
conditions prevailing during the day and as well as the drastic
weather changes during the night.
Day 07: Base camp to Stok Kangri and back to base camp
The big day has arrived, to reach to the summit. At the base camp
there will be many trekking groups, you can talk to them about their
journey to top; it gives an immense boost to confidence. The group
will be extremely excited about it, and there will be a buzz around
the campsite. Waking up early is crucial for determining the start
time, so make sure that everyone in your group is ready as early as
possible. The route goes through glaciers, then through a gradual
period of ascent and descent and finally comes to the steep slope to
the Stok Kangri ridge. Avoid drinking too much of water and take a
light breakfast; this is because during the climb venturing out for
answer nature's calls can be potentially dangerous.
The route will start off with a steep and quite tall ascent, and then
the slope will change gradually till the time you reach the glacier.
The first couple of hours will be tough and extremely demanding. Team
members should stay close by and a certain rhythm should be
maintained. Encouragement from the guide and other fellow members is
of immense help. Techniques such as setting up small targets or
checkpoints on the way will motivate you to reach faster. After 3
hours of trekking, you will finally reach the glacier. Take some rest
at this point and don't forget to take pictures. The scene around is
wonderful and feels as if you are in nature's lap. The glacier is the
point where the actual climb to the summit ridge starts. Slow climbers
may take some more time to reach this point, don't worry if you can't
see them. Keep motivating your fellow trekkers and team mates, the
stretch will take 2 to 3 hours to complete depending upon the speed.
To walk safely on the thick snow, use your crampons to get a firm grip
and avoid slipping. One excellent way is to fix each and every
teammate with a rope; this ensures that even if the situation worsens,
everyone is secured. On the way to the ridge, you will have a feeling
of self-motivation, and this will help you overcome all the
difficulties. After a slow and tiring climb, you will finally touch
the ridge. Stand up and see how it feels to watch the world from such
a height. Don't confuse the ridge with the summit; do realize that the
real ascent only begins after this point.
You can actually very well see that the highest point is still a 2
hour climb away, and the only access to it is via the south shoulder.
The shoulder is extremely tough and challenging to traverse. It is
very steep at almost 75 degrees and is made up of a narrow channel of
rocks. Climb on all fours, any mistake can lead to a fatal fall. After
an hour of gruelling climb and tussling with the rocks, the shoulder
will ease its way to a much more gradual slope where you can easily
walk. Now you can see the summit and the prayer flags that it clearly.
The extremely thin air and lack of oxygen will make every step
difficult. After a short hike up, you will finally reach the Stok
Kangri Summit, the highest trek-able summit in the Indian
subcontinent. Celebrate as much as you like; take snaps and do pay
respects to the prayer flags. The world looks so different from this
place; the clouds feel as if they will touch you. The summit offers a
great view of the area, the Karakoram Range and the Saser Kangri
dominates the north, whereas the Zanskar ranges in the south. The
memories captured here are unforgettable.
The return to the base camp follows the same route, but you should be
extremely cautious and extra careful this time. When you go down, the
gravity also pulls you; this might lead to slipping and a fall. After
reaching the base camp, take some time to settle down and immerse in
the memories. The day ends at a very high note.
Day 08: Base Camp to Leh
This is the final day of your fantastic trekking vacation; the
unbelievable journey which had all the elements of a high altitude
trekking will be over after this day. The first hand mountaineering
and expedition experience it provides is comparable to none.
Today the return to Leh will let you enjoy the snow clad mountains and
breathtaking views. Ladakh is known for the black and white beauty
with a touch of grey that it provides to its visitors. The joy of
trekking can be rejuvenated at this location. The trek back to Leh is
exciting and a bit challenging. You will tend to lose balance if you
descend very soon, so be careful. Today the walk involved is more than
12 Kms as you need to walk to Stok Village by foot. From there, a
drive back to Leh. 5 days continuously on foot will make you nostalgic
and devoid of the fun involved with climbs. When you reach Leh, take a
hot water bath, it will lessen the pain and tiredness of the trek. The
guest house bed will feel very comfortable; that you will never know
when you went to sleep.
Day 09: Departure From Leh
With memories to cherish throughout your life and with happiness from deep within, you leave for Delhi. The Stok Kangri trek has been captured by your footprints.
