Nafran Valley Trek

Altitude: 2,400 m/ 7,950 ft.
Drive Distance: 112 km | 4 hrs.
Stay in tents (twin-sharing).

This is our first day of trekking and today we will trek from Aru to Gagad Pathri. The trek starts with a gentle uphill climb and after walking for about 800 meters, you will enter a forested zone. Continue walking and after some time the trek forks into two. The left trail leads to a clearing with a vantage point. It takes about 3 hrs to reach. The right path, on the other hand, leads us to our campsite.

Follow the trail on the right which will lead you to a muddy patch. There’s also a higher road that can be taken during the rainy days when there is too much mud but it is not accessible most of the time. Once you reach the muddy patch, it’s a steep uphill climb of about 500 meters at the end of which you will reach a shepherd settlement called Geerwad. From here on, you will walk on grasslands and forest covers all the way to a small riverside clearing. This is Gagad Pathri, your campsite for the night.

We will find a suitable location to pitch the camps. The mountain stream serves as the water source, however, the water is a little milky color. Using chlorine tablets is recommended here.

After a hearty dinner, you will retire to your tents to rest for the night and wake up refreshed the next day for the trek.

Today we will start our trek by crossing a wooden plank bridge to get on the right side of the river followed by another crossing that will again take you to the left side of the river. Here, you will observe a couple of mud huts that serve as the summer dwellings of the shepherds. This clearing is called Kansal Pathri. Keep walking uphill along the ridge on your left towards Aaram Pathri.

Once we reach Aaram Pathri, you have to take another ridge to your right side to arrive at Nafran Valley. While the trails start out a little steep but become gradual eventually and the climb to Nafran Valley is a mix of steep and gradual ascends through huge boulders and rocks. Proceed with caution here as some sections can be a little slippery. This section makes the trek a little difficult. But after the climb is over, you arrive at a small meadow with a beautiful stream running through it. This is where Nafran Valley starts.

Walking past the meadows of the valley we will climb further ahead and after climbing for a few spurs, the trail opens into a gorgeous meadow with beautiful rock formations and a gurgling stream running through it. This is where we will camp for the night. The campsite is surrounded by big mountains on three sides making it a wonderful location to camp. Soak in the scenery of the beautiful Nafran Valley and retire in the tents for the night.

Today we will trek from Nafran Valley to Harnag Lake via Harnag Pass and back to Nafran Valley. We will stay another night for acclimatization purposes since you have gained a significant amount of altitude.

Today’s trek is fairly easy compared to the previous day. You have done the toughest part of your trek, now you will descend back along the beautiful meadows, all the way to Aaram Pathri. We will camp at Aaram Pathri at night.

Enjoy your walk along the beautiful meadows and occasionally stop by to capture the beauty of nature all around. The walk down is going to be pretty mild on your legs. Aaram Pathri Campsite is a beautiful campsite on a large meadow that offers a splendid presentation of natural beauty. The sunset over the Bhoj and Deodar trees makes the golden hour look absolutely magical here. Rest well after a delicious dinner at the campsite.

Today we will trek from the Aram Pathri campsite to the Bhaj Margi campsite. From your campsite, head towards the ridge on the south and climb on it. The trail here is steep and goes through shrubbery and trees and there are patches of loose soil, gravel, and jagged rocks here and there before you reach the top of the ridge. You get to see a stunning view of the valley below.

From here on the trail becomes downhill towards a meadow. Follow down the sloped meadows heading in a southwest direction and then along a ridge that heads towards the southeast direction and this will lead you to your next campsite Bhaj Margi. Bhaj Margi is yet another vast meadow like Aaram Pathri that has shepherd huts scattered all across it. On the southeastern side of your campsite, there is a small stream and a larger one in the far east corner. Both of these can be used as water sources.

We will find a suitable spot to pitch our tents for an overnight stay.

This is the last day of trekking in the mountain and also the last day of this beautiful journey. Today we will trek back from Bhaj Margi to Aru and drive back to Srinagar. From the campsite, the trail keeps going southwest until you reach a large wooden gate, which marks the end of the trail. You will now follow a muddy path through a forest cover all the way down to a small shepherd settlement called Shul Margi.

From Shul Margi, you will have to cross a small stream to move further downwards and then again you will have to cross a bigger stream and enter into a forested zone. The forest runs parallel to the road that leads you to Aru. But we will continue on this forested trail and it will lead us into a big clearing that offers a stunning view of Pahalgam.

From here, it is a short descent to Mondlan village situated beside a small mountain stream. Mondlan is 8 km away from Aru and it takes a drive of about 20 minutes to reach Aru. We will have lunch after reaching Aru and then head on towards Srinagar. From Aru is a 112 km distance to Srinagar and we will again drive through the same scenic route that we came on the first day to reach Srinagar. You can expect to reach Srinagar by 8:00 PM.