Day 1 : Chandigarh to Narkanda Meadow Camp

We leave Chandigarh and climb into the hills. The road rises through pine forests and apple orchards until Narkanda opens up at 2,700 metres — a ridge-town in the thick of its October harvest. But we don't stop in town. We take a 4x4 track up onto the meadow above — a lush green plateau that most people passing through Narkanda never find. Views of the snow line on a clear day. Apple trees heavy with fruit on both sides of the track. Camp here for the night.

Day 2 - Narkanda to Ani - Khanag

We descend from Narkanda through Luhri and into the Ani valley — a quiet, largely unvisited corridor of terraced fields and apple orchards most Himachal travellers have never heard of. The road follows the river down through small villages before climbing back into the hills toward Ani. We stop when something is worth stopping for a riverbank picnic, an orchard, a view that earns a pause.

Day 3 - Khanag to Sarhan - into Sainj Valley via Jalori

The road out of Ani climbs steeply through Khanag — a small village with a famous British-era rest house and the last stretch of forgiving road before things get serious. From Khanag, the final 6km to Jalori Pass are rough, narrow, and steep through dense oak and rhododendron forest on a track that requires 4x4 in low gear. That's the point. At 3,120 metres, Jalori Pass has a small temple, views across both valleys, and the particular satisfaction of a road that not everyone gets to drive.

We descend into Sainj Valley on the other side — into the buffer zone of the Great Himalayan National Park. 400-year-old deodar forests. The Sainj River coming into view below. A valley that belongs to the National Park more than it belongs to tourism.

We settle into our Sainj Valley homestay as the light fades.

Day 4 - Deep into Sainj Valley - Pundrik Rishi Lake 

We go deeper into the valley — forest tracks, river crossings, the kind of roads that reward curiosity.

Mid-morning, we walk up to Pundrik Rishi Lake - called Dalogi Sar locally. A sacred alpine lake near Sarahan that almost no one outside the valley knows about. Very different from the well-known Serolsar Lake on the Jalori tourist circuit. Quieter, older, more remote.

Day 5 - Sari Kanda Trek into GHNP

Early start. We walk the Sari Kanda trail — a short morning trek from Sarahan through pine and oak forest into open meadow, with views across the Great Himalayan National Park ranges. Beginner-friendly, around 2 hours up and back.

The kind of walk that earns the drive home.

Day 6 - Sainj Valley to Chandigarh

The terrain softens into barley fields and riverside villages. By midday we reach Purne. After lunch, we ride to Phuktal Monastery - a 2,500-year-old cave monastery carved directly into a cliffside.

The approach is narrow, the view is unlike anything in India. Return to Purne for the night.