Saharanpur to Panchacholi base camp gone wrong.

Spending whole night traveling was tiring but my adrenaline rush got me through it. Around 5 am, the bus left for Pithoragarh. Trust me guys, your whole journey on one side and Tanakpur to Pithoragarh on the other. It is a very tiring and long journey. Currently, there is not a stretch of 2 km where you can get clear road. The hills are cut down and the roads are filled with the rocks. Sometimes it can get so narrow that only one vehicle can barely pass through it.

Finally, I reached Pithoragarh at 12 noon. There is only one bike rental there 360 hills rider in Pandey gaon, I rented a bike from there. After lunch at around 3 I left for Dharchula. The road takes you through valleys with river on your side. The views and the vibes of this place are just amazing. Panchacholi is visible from the way. There are many small villages. One can see local people doing their day to day activities. And how they live in such a remote area.

I reached Dharchula at 5 pm which is 92 km away from Pithoragarh. I wanted to make it to Dugtu on the same day, the next 32 km from Dharchula are very tough. Though I made it to Tawaghat which is around 16 km from Dharchula. Tawaghat has a diversion, one way goes to Dugtu and the other heads for Vyas valley. By the time I reached here it was dark already, and there were no hotels and restaurants for staying. Unfortunately, I had to come back to Dharchula.

I was continuously traveling for 2 days and one night, I was pretty much exhausted. After landing in the hotel and having a perfect dinner, it was time to just enjoy the place. I got up to my hotel's roof. As it was Diwali the previous day, Whole town was glittering in lights which was  mesmerizing. The Chilly night, river sound, clear skies, sparkling lights made all my stress vanish.

Another thing that makes Dharchula interesting is that it is separated from Nepal by the river ( Kali nadi ). This river acts as natural border line with Nepal. And this is a very unique thing about this place. You can also enter Nepal from here.

After spending night, I got up at 7 and left for Dugtu at 8 am. I reached Tawaghat at picked up the wrong path. I traveled on the Vyas valley route for about 10 km. Trust me guys, Remember this Tawaghat, you can easily miss the route to Dugtu without even knowing it. Make sure you are on the right path.

The roads after Tawaghat are rocky and narrow. These are just the barren mud roads and are difficult to pass . This short stretch to Dugtu village takes about 4 hours.  After riding for an hour again, I was just around 12 km away from Dugtu, I had to stop.

Because of the heavy rainfalls in October, there have been multiple landslide at various places due to which there were no roads at all to continue traveling. The roads were under construction. I also met locals, they told me that people got stuck up there and were rescued by Helicopter by Indian army.

I also met an uncle who was a resident of Dugtu village and just came down from there. He said that the migration has started and people up there are coming down to low altitudes for the winters. These people come down in winters that is from November till March and head back again in April.

Sadly, I had to stop there and turn back. Usually in these type of situations, I never quit.  But there was no other option left. At first it was heartbreaking but then again No trip is more important than your life. I made the right decision of taking no risk that puts my life in danger. Maybe it was not my time to visit Panchacholi base camp yet. There is always a next day and I will be there one day.. So I decided to turn back. I then drove back to Pithoragarh and reached there at 3 pm.

Most important thing if you are traveling by public transport, the last bus that leaves Pithoragarh is at 2 pm. And if you miss you had to stay one more night there. That just happened with me and I stayed back. Don't take taxi, After talking to 10 - 15 different local, not a single person advised me to travel by taxi.
It is very dangerous and risky. As the taxi driver will leave you in the middle of nowhere and might even rob you.

Also this Kumaon region borders are closed from 8 pm to 6 am in the morning. No one is allowed to leave or enter, not even from Haldwani side. Plan your trip accordingly.

Yes I didn't make it to Panchacholi but it taught me many things. I learned how to survive alone, and take right decisions, properly analysing the situation, when to Stop, and more importantly how to handle things when they don't happen as you plan them.

I waited for this trip for about a year. Asked my friends to come along but they all were having other priorities. I made my mind and did solo for the very first time. I traveled 600 kms and yet had to return without touching the Panchacholi base camp.

One thing that got me through this is, It was never about the destination, it was the journey.
My journey was very beautiful and I was satisfied, happy and ready to face the daily Lethal routine with head on.

After all It was one hell of a trip

Expenses -

Bus fare Saharanpur to Haridwar  Rs. 113 ( one side)
Bus Fare Haridwar to Pithoragarh. Rs. 705 (one side) Bike Rental from Pithoragarh Rs. 1200 per day ( Bullet standard)
Petrol Rs. 800
Hotel stays for two nights Rs. 800
Food expenses Rs 1000 for the whole trip.
Had the best biryani of Pithoragarh. It is a must try on at Royal Biryani center. This guy Rehan is a gem and a very helping person. Tell him my name that you are Asad's viewer.

Total - 5436

For any queries related to this trip Get in touch personally with me :-

https://www.instagram.com/paper_into_ashes/