Animal Pass Trek

Distance: 6 km
Time: 6 hours
Altitude: 3,470 m (11,385 ft)

We will be trekking to Sharam Thatch today. From Budhaban, the trail gradually ascends into the forest cover and out in the meadows. As move higher today, you’ll notice the forest cover lessening. There are several waterfalls on this trail as well. On your right, the Tosh Nala is accompanying you. You can see the confluence of Tichu Nala into the Tosh Nala.

The Sharam Thatch is a beautiful meadow amidst the raw mountains. Here, the forest cover has almost disappeared. You are in high altitude zone. There are several boulders at this campsite so you try bouldering. We’ll camp at Sharam Thatch for the night.

Distance: 4 km
Time: 5 hours
Altitude: 3,850 m (12,631 ft)

We will be trekking to Shamsi Thatch today. Shamsi Thatch is in the same valley ahead. We will be trekking along the Tosh Nala. The Tosh Nala is comparatively quiet and calm now as we near its origin i.e. Tosh Glacier.

Shamsi Thatch is a high-altitude meadow before the moraines and the glacier starts to show themselves. As we reach the campsite, the Animal Pass is on your left but you won’t be able to see it from here. But you can see the Sara Umga Pass (5,050 m) up ahead in the valley in the backdrop of the Tosh Glacier. 

At the Shamsi campsite, there is a small lake on the right-hand side at the base of the valley. We may be able to explore the area if the water level in the Tosh Nala is low enough to cross. We’ll go for a small acclimatization walk.

Rest and camp here for the night. 

Distance: 12 km
Time: 10 hours
Altitude: 4,750 m (15,584 ft)

Animal Pass is to the left of the Shamsi Thatch campsite. It is a steep trek to reach the Animal Pass but the views of the surrounding mountains make it worth your effort. The landscape of the trek will be contrasting to the green valleys. We will be trekking through moraines and raw mountains. 

When you reach the base of a beautiful lake, you can see the top of the pass. We’ll be trekking along the right side of the lake. Once you reach the end, it’s a steep trek to reach the top of the top. As you’re trekking, the views on the opposite side start to reveal themselves. Once you reach the top, you can see that there are two more frozen lakes on the other side of the pass. 

Don’t miss out on the views behind you. You can see the entire mountain range ranging from Lalana, Devachan, Papsura, Dharmsura, Angdu Ri, Shingrila, SnowDome, etc. We’ll spend some time at the top of the pass and start retracing our steps. You can also descend on the other side of the pass but the descend on the other side is risky and steep.

We’ll descend back to the Shamsi Thatch, and rest for the night.

Distance: 14 km
Time: 7 hours
Altitude: 1,580 m (5,184 ft)

This is the last day of your Animal Pass Trek. We’ll be trekking back to the Tosh village. We’ll start early because the complete descend is long and will be hard on your knees. 

Pro Tip: Get a Knee Support to protect your knees. 

We’ll be descending through the same valley and retracing our steps. Once we reach Tosh, you can either choose to stay here and explore more of the other valleys or you can board our vehicles and travel back to Kasol. You can also get off at Manikaran gurdwara to take a bath in the hot springs.

Taking a bath in the hot springs after a trek is one of the best feelings in the world! Your body and muscles will be thankful. You can say goodbye to us at Manikaran or at Kasol.