An ideal beginners trek in the Garhwal Himalayas. The trek includes camping alongside the beautiful Dodital ( Dodi Lake) before traversing the Darwa Pass. The pass affords impressive views of the mighty Bandarpunch(link) and the snowy ridges of the Dhaula Dhar as well as the forested ridges and meadows leading down to Hanuman Chatti a famous pilgrim town. There are interesting side trips, including a foray to Yamunotri and the the Bandarpunch Base Camp from this trek.
Destinations Covered in the Dodital Trek :.Uttarkashi,- Shangam Chatti – Agoda – Dodital – Darwa Top
Short Dodital Trek Itinerary :
Day 1: Arrival At Uttarkashi. Trek from Sangamchatti to Bhevra (Bebra)
Day 2: Trekking from Bhevra (Bebra) to Dodital Lake
Day 3: Day excursion from Dodital Lake to Darwa Pass top and return.
Day 4: Trek from Dodital Lake to Bhevra.
Day 5: Trek from Bhevra (Bebra) to road head and drive back to Uttarkashi or Haridwar
The very first day we will meet at Uttarkashi in the morning and leave for our journey to Sangamchatti. Today’s journey from Uttarkashi to Sangamchatti is about 16 kms long and will take us around 2 hours. In Sangamchatti you can roam around the village play with the cattle, check out the Hydro Powered atta chakki , spot the birds with our guide. The initial trek to Bevra is a gradual ascent through villages and paddy fields. Initially you will meet lot of villagers on the trail as this Dodital trek goes through various villages like Bhevra, Aghoda (Agoda) etc. The Villagers we come across are extremely helpful and you can greet and talk to them but avoid giving the children chocolates or toffees. On reaching Bhevra we will camp for the night on a lovely campsite surrounded by oak trees.There is a lovely stream next to the campsite where you can take a dip to refresh yourself.
After a few stretching exercises and a Yoga session have a sumptuous breakfast and get ready. After breakfast your trek leader will brief you about today’s trek schedule. Today will trek for around 16 kms to Dodital Lake which should take us around 7 hours. The trek from Bhevra (Bebra) to Dodital is easy and there is a well laid path through Rhodendron, Pine and Oak trees. We will stop for our packed lunch at Manjhi a beautiful campsite.A few shops are open on this route to Dodital during the peak season of June. A further 2 hour trek from Manjhi will take us to our destination, the scenic lake called Dodital which is famous for its beauty and The Himalayan Trout fish. Dodital is a sacred lake and as per Hindu mythology this is the place where Lord Ganesh was born.The other name of this lake is Dhundital meaning Ganeshji’s Lake. Please note that fishing is not allowed in this lake but you can take a round of Dodital Lake and enjoy feeding the Himalayan trout fish.
On Day 3 we will go trekking to Darwa Pass top(4150m) and have a packed breakfast on the way.We will trek to Darwa Pass with daypacks containing our packed lunch, a water bottle and Jackets. Darwa Pass top is around 5kms and takes around 3 hours to reach. Darwa pass trek starts beside the stream which feed’s Dodital lake. After few hours the route bifurcates into two, the left one leads to Darwa Pass top and the other one leads to basecamp of Bandarpunch Peak (Monkey’s Tail). From the Darwa Pass top one can get a breath-taking view of the Bandarpunch and Swargarohini ranges. After spending quality time at the Darwa Pass top absorbing the almost 360 degree view of Himalayan ranges we trek down and reach Dodital Lake where a scrumptious hot lunch awaits us.
After having breakfast we trek downhill through the same route to Bhevra (Bebra) which takes around 6 hours. Enjoy the scrumptious dinner and savour local delicacies like Jhangora Ki Kheer or Gahat Rasmi Badi (Kofta).
On our last day after breakfast we get ready for a small downhill trek and drive back to Uttarkashi which will take us around 2 hours. Our adventure ends here with a collection of beautiful memories to keep you company.
