Bagini Glacier Trek

The Bagini Glacier trek is an 8-day private walk from Auli that ends at Changabang base camp (4,600 m), on the edge of the Nanda Devi Sanctuary. After the drive to Auli, you leave the Niti-Malari highway at Jumma, cross the Rishi Ganga on a hanging bridge and walk an easy stretch to Ruing.

From Ruing the trail climbs through oak and bhoj-patra forest and across a landslide zone to Dronagiri (3,700 m), an old stone village. Above it you cross the open meadow of Langartolli, then step onto the lateral moraine of the Bagini glacier and camp at Lower Bagini base camp (4,200 m) and Upper Bagini base camp (4,400 m), with Rishi Pahar and Saf Minal over the ice. A pre-dawn walk takes you to Changabang base camp for first light on the peak, and you walk back down to Dronagiri, then out to Ruing and a hotel in Joshimath or Auli.

The trek is not about a pass or a summit. It is about walking up a glacier basin on the edge of the sanctuary, with time to look at it. The sleeping heights stay mostly around 4,000 m or a little above, and the route rewards steady walkers more than fast ones.

• Days: 8 days, 7 nights, Rishikesh to Rishikesh. Hotels on days 1 and 7, camping in between.
• Grade: moderate. Walking days run 3 to 7 hours.
• Best months: May and June, and late September to October.
• Getting there: from Dehradun airport or Rishikesh and back, pickup and drop included.

The ground above Langartolli is loose moraine, not a trail to hurry. We go slowly, and the height comes in steps: 2,700 m, 3,700 m, 4,200 m, then 4,400 m.

It is a remote route, and evacuation is possible from most camps but not all, so we keep groups small and private. Newer to altitude? The Kuari Pass trek is another Joshimath-side walk worth doing first.

• Changabang base camp at 4,600 m: A pre-dawn walk from Upper Bagini base camp to see the first sun strike Changabang (6,864 m), on the rim of the Nanda Devi Sanctuary.
• Walking up the Bagini glacier: Two days along the lateral moraine, past glacial tarns, to Lower (4,200 m) and Upper (4,400 m) Bagini base camps.
• Dronagiri village: A remote stone village at about 3,700 m, the highest settlement in the Nanda Devi reserve area in season. You pass through it twice, going up and coming back.
• Jumma to Ruing on foot: A hanging bridge over the Rishi Ganga and a 3 km walk beside the river. A road runs to Ruing, but we walk it to start acclimatising.
• Oak and bhoj-patra forest: The climb from Ruing to Dronagiri runs through dense forest with the river below, before a landslide zone and the last ascent to the village.
• Langartolli meadow: An open meadow at about 4,000 m, the first place the glacial moraine comes into view.
• Peaks of the sanctuary rim: Rishi Pahar (6,997 m), Saf Minal (6,911 m), Changabang and Dunagiri East (6,421 m) rise over the upper camps.
• An exploration day on the glacier: Day 5 is a walk up from Lower to Upper Bagini base camp, with time in the moraine and tarns rather than a rush to the top.
• Hot shower on day 7: After five nights in tents, the walk out ends at a hotel in Joshimath or Auli.
• Private and unhurried: Your own group, usually 2 to 10, with a local team and waste carried down.

The Bagini Glacier trek reaches its high point on day 6, at Changabang base camp (4,600 m). The day starts at Upper Bagini base camp (4,400 m), well before sunrise, with a walk up the glacier's edge. The aim is to be there when the first light touches Changabang, one of the steepest peaks of the Garhwal, on the rim of the Nanda Devi Sanctuary.

You then spend the morning around the base camp, and start the long descent. The route goes back the way you came, mostly downhill, ending at Dronagiri (3,700 m), where the tents are pitched for the night. It is a big day, so we plan the whole of it around the early start and a steady return.

Changabang, 6,864 m. The peak stands beside Dunagiri (7,066 m), Hardeol (7,151 m), Rishi Pahar (6,997 m) and Saf Minal (6,911 m) on the rim of the sanctuary. Climbers know it for its steep granite walls. You are not climbing here: this is a trek to the foot of the mountain, and the reward is the view of it.

Light on Changabang is best in the first hour of the day, which is why the day starts in the dark. Bring a good headlamp and warm layers for the wait at the top.

Why the order of days matters. By day 6 you have slept at 4,200 m and 4,400 m, so the walk to 4,600 m is a small step up, not a jump. Day 5, from Lower to Upper Bagini base camp, is the exploration day that sets this up.

The sun and the temperature change quickly at this height. Temperatures along the route range from about 2 to 20 °C, and mornings at the base camps are the coldest part of any day.

If you want a summit rather than a base camp, look at the Pangarchula Peak trek. Tell us your dates and how you walk at height, and we will say whether Changabang base camp suits you.

Most of this trek is spent on the edge of the Bagini glacier, and it is the terrain, more than the distance, that sets the pace. The page lists the ground as meadow trail, alpine meadow, moraine, scree, boulder zone and glacier, and the days above Dronagiri use nearly all of it.

Day 4: Dronagiri to Lower Bagini base camp. You walk through the narrow concrete paths of the village, then climb above the houses. About 2.5 hours later you reach Langartolli, a meadow at around 4,000 m. This is where the glacial moraine first comes into view. From there the trail crosses loose rock and debris on the lateral moraine of the Bagini glacier, to the camp at 4,200 m. The day is 5 to 7 hours and 10 km.

Day 5: Lower to Upper Bagini base camp. The walk is 5 to 6 hours and 8 km, up to 4,400 m. The terrain is a chaos of big moraine ridges, cracks and frozen debris, with glacial tarns between the rocks. This is the day the horizon fills: Rishi Pahar and Saf Minal stand over the glacier. We treat it as an exploration day, with time to look, not just to arrive.

What to expect underfoot.

• Loose rock: moraine shifts, so we place feet carefully and keep the group close.
• Uneven humps: the moraine rises and falls, so a short distance can take a long time.
• Cold and sound: you may hear distant avalanches off the granite walls, and the camps by the ice get cold at night.

Trekking poles help on the moraine and on the long descent. A grade of moderate means no technical climbing, but it does mean steady work on rough ground at 4,000 m and above.

The glacier is also the source of the Rishi Ganga, the river you cross at Jumma on day 2. The trek follows it from the highway upstream towards where it comes from.

Season and the glacier. In May and June there is more snow on the upper ground and the meadows come into flower. From late September to October the moraine is open and the skies clearer. Both seasons work.

The first half of the Bagini Glacier trek is a valley walk, and it is worth as much as the glacier. It starts a long way below the ice, on the Niti-Malari highway.

Day 1: Rishikesh to Auli. About 270 km and 8 to 9 hours by road through the Panch Prayag, the confluences along the Alaknanda, via Chamoli and Joshimath. You sleep in a hotel at Auli, at about 2,600 m. This is the first step of acclimatisation, and we keep the day relaxed.

Day 2: Auli to Ruing. After breakfast you drive about two hours to Jumma (2,550 m). Here the walk starts, over a hanging bridge across the Rishi Ganga. A road runs all the way to Ruing, but we walk the 3 km section on a wide trail with views of the river and the highway on the other side. It is short on purpose: a gentle first walk to get used to the height. Ruing is at 2,700 m, and in the evening there is time to look around the small settlement.

Day 3: Ruing to Dronagiri. This is 9 km and 4 to 6 hours, climbing about 1,000 m to Dronagiri (3,700 m). The trail goes up through oak and bhoj-patra forest with views of the river, then crosses a barren landslide zone, where we go carefully, before the last ascent to the village. Dronagiri is described as the highest inhabited settlement in the Nanda Devi reserve area in season, and its beauty lies in its stone architecture, not in views; the high peaks are hidden from the village itself. The village is also known for a story about Hanuman, and your guide can tell it.

You camp at Dronagiri on day 3 and again on day 6, on the way back. We walk through villages quietly and carry out all our waste.

On day 7 you retrace the forest trail to Ruing and drive on to Joshimath or Auli. You can pick either: Auli for the views and quiet, Joshimath for convenience. Day 8 is the drive back to Rishikesh, 250 km and 8 to 9 hours, and the trip ends at Rishikesh or Dehradun airport.

The Bagini Glacier trek is graded moderate. The walking days run from about 3 to 7 hours, and a few are steep. The top of the trek is 4,600 m at Changabang base camp, and you sleep at 4,400 m on the night before. It asks for good fitness, and regular cardio in the weeks before is the right preparation.

What it asks of you

• Legs for climbing: day 3 gains about 1,000 m from Ruing to Dronagiri, and day 6 is a long day with the descent to the village.
• Comfort on rough ground: moraine, scree and boulders from Langartolli onwards.
• Comfort with remoteness: the route is remote, and evacuation is possible from most camps but not all.
• Patience with weather and cold: the camps near the glacier are cold, and the day starts before dawn on day 6.

What it does not ask. There is no pass to cross, no technical climbing and no snow gear to bring. The effort is in steady height and rough ground.

When to go. May and June, and again from late September to October. In the early season more snow lies on the upper ground, and the meadows around Langartolli come into flower. In autumn the moraine is clearer and the skies are cleaner. The monsoon is not a trekking season here.

Compared with the neighbours.

• Kuari Pass: a good first walk from the same base if you haven't slept high before.
• Valley of Flowers and Hemkund: a 6-day option from the same Auli base.
• Kagbhushandi Tal: 11 days with two passes, for those who want more days and more height.
• Roopkund, Kuari Pass and Pangarchula: a longer combination for walkers who want a summit in the plan.

Tell us what you have walked and how you cope at 4,000 m, and we will say plainly whether this trek, or one of these, should come first.

The Bagini Glacier trek takes 8 days and 7 nights from Rishikesh and back, with pickup and drop included. There is no rest day built in, so the climb is shaped by the day plan and the pace.

• Day 1: the drive from Rishikesh to Auli (2,600 m), a hotel night.
• Day 2: a short drive to Jumma and a 3 km walk to Ruing (2,700 m). It is easy by design, to acclimatise before the first real climb.
• Day 3: Ruing to Dronagiri (3,700 m), 4 to 6 hours.
• Day 4: Dronagiri to Lower Bagini base camp (4,200 m), 5 to 7 hours.
• Day 5: Lower to Upper Bagini base camp (4,400 m), an exploration day of 5 to 6 hours.
• Day 6: Changabang base camp (4,600 m) at first light, then down to Dronagiri.
• Days 7 and 8: down to Ruing, drive to Joshimath or Auli, then back to Rishikesh.

The nights climb in steps, and the trek leader checks everyone's health each day. Drink well, report headaches early and say so if you feel off. If the group is not ready to go higher, we decide that on the ground and not by the calendar.

Camps and food. From Ruing you camp, and meals are cooked by our team: breakfast, lunch, dinner, evening snacks and hot drinks, with tea in the morning. Hotels bookend the trek, so the first and last nights are comfortable.

The team. A local crew, paid fairly. Across our treks we have had zero fatalities and zero injuries since inception, kept by discipline and not by luck. That discipline includes turning back when it is the right call.

Who it suits. Walkers who like a small private group (usually 2 to 10), an unhurried pace and a guide who decides by conditions. If you want a fast schedule or a large group, this is not that trek.

Tell us your dates, your trekking experience and how you walk at height, and we will shape the days around you.