Triund- The crown jewel of Dharamsala

In the serene state of Himachal Pradesh lies a hamlet by the name of McLeodganj and via this town a trek, 9 kilometres long named Triund, beckons you. 2 kms from McLeodganj the trail begins from Tushita road above the main square. The hike will take you through a beautiful forest of oakwood, deodar and rhododendron trees. It will give you a fantastic view of the Kangra valley on one side and the Dhauladhar Mountains on the other.

If you are not accustomed to trekking and are a beginner then it will take you about 4-5 hours to reach the summit. There are various tea stalls serving snacks to hikers which makes the arduous journey a fairly easy one as you can enjoy the view of the stunning landscapes while resting on your way up. Carrying heavy luggage is not advised as it will only make your journey harder.

During the trek you will have some remarkable experiences- from surreal scenery to scenic views of a lush green valley to that astounding feeling of breathing in the cold breeze to the realization of the fact that how dependent we have become on our day to day conveyances and what we have been missing out on all these days living in the cities.  

And if you are planning on staying the night at Triund, you can either book a complete package for the trek which usually includes a guide, food and sleeping arrangements at the summit, or you can book your tents from any of the cafes at the dharamkot village (which is a place you should totally visit!) or you can just buy a tent when you reach the top although there might be shortage of tents when large crowds are coming at the mountaintop which is usually on the weekends so keep that in mind .

In my personal opinion one should go for a night stay at Triund as it gives plenty of time to summit the peak and then the next day one can also go for Lakha glacier (not advised to go without a guide, by the way] which is another 3 hours from Triund and then you can directly hike back to Dharamkot village by the sun set and then stay there for the night at any of the guest houses.

And if you want to complete the whole trek in one day then it is advisable to start your trek early in the morning so that you have sufficient time to enjoy at the peak.

If you have been planning to go on a trip to the mountains to have a time of your life do some soul searching then Triund is a place you must stay in and give yourself a chance to know you better. Or if you have been planning to go on a trek but are not sure of what will be in your way then you should start your journey from Triund as it will mentally prepare you for other more difficult treks and once you start, someday you will be able to summit the tallest peak in he world (well that escalated quickly!)
And if you are the expert trekker then you can also go for the 32 day trek from Triund to Leh, (locals will be able to better guide you on this)
All the best!

-Karanveer Monga

Edited by Mrinaal Datt

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