Brahmatal Trek

Trek to a high-altitude lake in Mt Trishul's shadow

Winter snow has arrived at Brahmatal. Need help with planning your winter trek? Speak to our expert Trek Advisors

It has started snowing in Brahmatal. If you are planning for a Winter Trek, our expert team of Trek Advisors can help you choose the right one. So if you have questions like, "Can I do this trek?" or "Will I get to see snow in this trek?", please get in touch.Talk to our Trek Advisors

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TREK DIFFICULTY

Easy Moderate

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TREK DURATION

6 days

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HIGHEST ALTITUDE

12,250 ft

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TOTAL TREK DISTANCE

22 kms

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BASECAMP

Lohajung

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ACCOMMODATION TYPE

Tents

Trek to a high altitude lake in Mt Trishul's shadow

Some of our top treks are favourites because of the mountain views they offer. Think of Chaukhambha from Deoriatal Chandrashila or Bandarpoonch from Dayara Bugyal. It is difficult to find such magnified views of big mountains like these. However, Brahmatal is a trek that takes the cake. It has a view that beats all of these!

Here is why. Right on your second day, you climb out of the beautiful rhododendron and oak forest to see a white wall of the Trishul massif. And these views only come closer as you traverse the ridge towards Jhandi Top.

At Jhandi top, you are almost at the center of the mountain views. To your right rises the massive Mt Trishul and to your left stands Mt Nanda Ghunti. You even see the Ronti Saddle, the ridge that connects Mt Trishul and Mt Nanda Ghunti!

Brahmatal Trek Videos
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Brahmatal Trek - Complete Information

We have always wanted trekkers to be well-informed before they go on a Himalayan trek. Knowledge is the difference between a safe trek and a dangerous one. It’s also the difference between a wholesome experience and a superficial experience.

Use this section to learn about the Brahmatal trek. It has in-depth information about each day of the trek, what to expect, and how you need to prepare for it. Many years of expertise have gone into this content. Trekkers find that extremely useful.

Read More on the Brahmatal Trek

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Life Lessons From Brahmatal Trek

Here’s an essay by the resilient and thoughtful Stuti Paul, who trekked to Brahmatal in the winter of 2020. It was cold and snowing in Uttarakhand. An...

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Brahmatal - Photo Story Of A Spectacular Himalayan Winter Trek

Brahmatal is a peak winter trek. What sets it apart from other winter treks is that you can actually do this in the months of January and February, wh...

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The Different Shades of Brahmatal Trek

Brahmatal trek offers a heady combination of landscape. While one day you are camping in the dense jungle, the other day you are on a windy ridge, sle...

Expert Speak

Sandhya UC, Co-Founder, COO

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Sandhya UC, Co-Founder, COO

Sandhya is a founding partner at Indiahikes. Over the past ten years, she has explored and put on the map a few of the greatest Himalayan treks in India, including Kashmir Great Lakes and Kedarkantha. She is a TedX Speaker and has been awarded the "Women of Worth" Award by Outlook Business in 2017. She believes in sustainable living just as she believes in sustainable trekking.

Here’s Sandhya talking about one of the well-known treks in our country.

What I Like About the Brahmatal Trek

What I Like About the Brahmatal Trek

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Sandhya UC, Co-Founder, COO

Sandhya is a founding partner at Indiahikes. Over the past ten years, she has explored and put on the map a few of the greatest Himalayan treks in India, including Kashmir Great Lakes and Kedarkantha. She is a TedX Speaker and has been awarded the "Women of Worth" Award by Outlook Business in 2017. She believes in sustainable living just as she believes in sustainable trekking. Here’s Sandhya talking about one of the well-known treks in our country.

1. The Rhododendron forest from Lohajung to Bekaltal

Brahmatal has mesmerising forest walks. You get to walk through the centuries-old forests of Oaks and Rhododendrons. What particularly stays with me is the dedicated section on Rhododendrons! Just out of Bekaltal, you get a demarcated section of Rhododendron forests.

The Rhodo forests are a treat to the eyes. The trunks twist and turn in shapes and forms. The trunks are usually bare and smooth wooded. The trees are not too tall and form a nice canopy at the top. They are close enough to form a perfect green roof over your head.

This is what you see throughout the year. If you come here during March and April, you get a pink flowery roof. If you come here during winters, you get a white snowy carpet

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A lone rhododendron tree in bloom at Lohajung, the base camp of the Brahmatal trek.
Picture by Jothiranjan.

2. The ridge meadow walk from Tilandi to Jhandi Top

On the second day, you climb out of Bekaltal trekking up through some of the most beautiful rhododendron and oak forests. As you near the top, you are curious and impatient to see what lies outside the tree line.

You enter the meadow on the mountain top and in front of you is a wall of white mountains. Having climbed all the way up to the ridge (which runs parallel to Ali Bugyal of the Roopkund trek), you see grand views of the Trishul range.

You know you are climbing to the top but the enormity of the mountain ranges so up close is something very special to Brahmatal.

Starting there, all the way to Jhandi top is one of the best ridges walks you will do in our mountains. On one side you have the mighty Trishul range fanning out and on the other side opens up to layers and layers of mountain ranges arranging themselves in height order going down all the way to Deval and Tharali.

These are the villages that you drove through to reach the base camp. To your right below the Trishul, the range spreads out the entire Roopkund trek. Every landmark, every campsite, and every climb on the Roopkund trek is seen from the Brahmatal ridge. I have never stood on one trek and gone through another trek, that too perhaps the most iconic trek in its entirety like this.

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An adventurous ridge walk to the Jhandi top. Picture from Indiahikes Archive

3. The Gujreni Campsite

The Gujreni campsite enclosed by forest but in grassy clearings, with commanding views of mountain tops, I think I could fall in love with these camps.

They are secluded, with plenty of space to stretch your legs, walkabout, or take a peek in the forests, yet, you can just sit in one corner taking in the views. I have done lots of treks and have loved lots of camps, but if you ask me about Brahmatal, then I think it has some of the better campsites.

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The picture-perfect Gujreni Campsite. Picture by Avijit Jamloki

Trek Trivia

Things Nobody Tells You About Brahmatal

The Arrowheads of Bekal Tal

In the neighbouring areas of Bekal Tal, people can be seen wearing or carrying arrowheads. These are used as lockets, some are displayed in homes, and some are attached to peoples’ walking sticks among other such ornamentations. These arrowheads have a couple of stories behind them. 

Uttarakhand is known as dev bhumi (divine or holy land) as Mahabharat is said to have taken place in parts of it. It is said that the arrowheads are from the days of the grand epic when they were used in battles. These arrowheads can be found stuck on trees in the forests as well today too. However, most of them have been removed and are being used by the locals.

There's also another story related to Lord Curzon linked to the arrowheads. It's often hard to verify what is fact and what isn't, but they're good stories to listen to. Make sure you ask your guide or the locals about it.

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Tale of the Bekal Naag Devta and the Pundit

There are stories of a local pundit who would come to pray to this Naag Devta regularly. Pleased with his steady devotion and service, the God once invited him down to his golden temple at the depths of the lake. The pundit is said to have seen a stunning sight. That of an underwater city of snakes, with the Naag Devta presiding over them in his temple. 

The story takes a sad turn when the pundit defies the snake god. However, the myth brings forth interesting elements in the region. Not only is the Bekal Tal a sight of this myth, but the Ratgaon water source appears like the meandering body of a snake, as seen from Tilandi. Mythology tells us that Bekal Naag Devta left the lake through that route, leaving the Ratgaon water body in this snake-like figure. 

Even the water from Bekal Tal is said to have seeped down along with him and appeared in the Ratgaon source.

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FAQs