It had been a while since my last trek, and I was yearning for a truly satisfying trail—something that would take me deep into the hills of Uttarakhand. I began asking around, exploring possible trails, hoping to find one trek that would match perfectly with my desire for a true mountain adventure. Each time I zeroed in on a trail and started preparing—checking on permits, arranging for a guide, sorting out gear, managing leave, and weather conditions—the response was the same: “The trekking window will open only from mid-May onwards, there’s still a lot of snow and the permits are not being issued at the moment.”

Khait Parvat trek had been on our radar for quite a while but had somehow slipped into the background of our to-do list for the year. With concerns around snow and permit availability in the upper reaches of Uttarakhand, we decided to take this intriguing trail nestled in the upper bounds of Tehri district – not too far a drive from Dehradun and perfectly fitting the box of a quick, short weekend hike. One fine morning, with the sun yet to rise over the horizon, we commenced our drive to Bhatwara village, roughly 150 kms away. I always relish the early morning drive – the cool breeze, the fresh oxygen, the chirping of avian species, the deep silence devoid of any traces of human-induced noise, all of this makes the journey on the winding zigzag roads fun-filled. Just ahead of Gaja town, enroute to Chamba, I stumbled upon a giant Jacaranda tree. It looked magnificent, its branches stretched wide, completely covered in thick purple blooms.

Beyond Chamba, the road snakes down toward Tehri Lake, and then flattens out, running level with the lake’s surface – breathtaking views indeed. Soon after, we crossed-over the Tehri dam site, and entered the Bhilangana valley, and about 20 kms ahead, we crossed the river via the Peepal Daali bridge. The narrow road – though in good condition- ascends gradually, offering stunning views of the Tehri Lake reservoir and the surrounding hills, including the Tehri district headquarters on the opposite side.

At Rajakhet village, a decent sized village by hill standards, 2 road diverged: the one on the right heading towards Bhatwara village (the starting point of our trek) and the other leading to Pratapnagar / Lambgoan and onwards to Uttarkashi. We made enquiries about the trek from the locals, and just as we were about to inch ahead, the smells of morning preparation wafted from a way-side eatery. The craving couldn’t be subdued. We rushed inside the shack and satiated our tummies with a sumptuous aloo-parantha and some pudine ki chutney. Another 5 km drive and about 15 minutes later, we arrived at Bhatwara village and clearly witnessed the summit of Khait Parvat that lay almost vertically above us – the tip of the peak touching the sky and brushing against the gathering morsels of white plumes.

Bhatwara village (Altitude: 1280 metres) – Google map location (Click here)  | Trek distance to Summit – 5 kms | Time taken 2 – 2.5 hours  

We make a final set of enquiries with the village locals, broadly tracing our path with fingers running over the thick forest cover – arriving at a saddle between 2 peaks, and then a rightward path that would eventually take us to the top of Khait Parvat. The path was a steep incline all through and was devoid of any human settlement. On our entire journey, we did not meet a single person. The constant muffled tone of the flowing wind, the gentle chatter of birds, the barking of a deer hidden somewhere in the thick forests around, the heavy sound of our breathing, and the rhythmic impact of our boots hammering the ground and crushing dried leaves – all of it blended together. The resultant effect was pure bliss, motivating us to continue on our journey into the wild.

At every 1-1.5 kms, we found a resting place – temporary slabs made for travellers. As we gained altitude, the vistas that unfolded were magnificent. The Tehri Lake reservoir appeared small like a tiny spectacle, and we marvelled at the sheer beauty nature laid out before us. This was late April, but closer to our summit, I was surprised to see Rhododendrons still in bloom (the red ones). I also spotted a few shrubs of St. John’s Wort in full bloom. Its flower is a bright yellow, with 5 fixed petals and a bunch of stamens protrude upwards from the centre. You can find this flower referenced in many books by the resident writer of Mussoorie, Ruskin Bond.

All along the trail, we came across these stone-slab-covered structures with idols placed inside. God is everywhere around here – indeed, one of the reasons why Uttarakhand is called Devbhoomi (the land of Gods). Beyond the saddle (with roughly 65-70% of the distance covered by now), the path continued to wind upward, but the views visible on both sides of the ridge ushered in a deep sense of satisfaction. Any lingering fatigue vanished away like a tracer bullet.

Soon we arrived at the temple that houses a giant idol of Goddess Durga. The temple priest, a young sadhu named Devyani Giri – resides here. She helped us pay our obeisance to the Goddess and shared stories tied to this sacred place.

Over the course of the 5 km trek, we gained nearly 1,000 metres in elevation, with the summit perched at around 2,290 metres above sea level.

This area is known as the Tapobhoomi – a sacred land of meditation and spiritual practice – of apsaras, the celestial beings said to wander its hills and slopes. It is also therefore, is called the “land of fairies”. Another story shared by the priest says that during the Dwaparyug, when Dwarkapuri was submerged, Krishna came here to establish a new kingdom – hence the name Uttari Dwarka for the entire region.

A further tale speaks of two asuras (demons), Madhu and Kaitabh, who once stole the Vedas from Brahma. Brahma sought Vishnu’s help, and Vishnu ultimately slew both the demons. According to the legend, this hill is where Kaitabh was vanquished, with the temple atop said to stand on the head of the slain demon.

We spent some-time absorbing the electric atmosphere here. 360-degree views were visible from the point. It was a bit hazy, which obscured our views of the Garhwal Himalayas that otherwise lay in front of us towards the northern direction. We spent about an hour here and learnt that every year, a fair is held at the temple in the month of May or June for a period of 9 days.

The wind was faster now, clouds spreading their cover, and we had to roll-down the hill, walk another 5 kms to our base at Bhatwara. So, we bid adieu to the temple, to this land of fairies, and cantered down the hill. It took us about 1.5 hours on the return journey.

The trek can also be attempted from Khat village, which is ahead of Bhatwara village. The distance from Khat to the summit is roughly 3 kms, but we wanted some more adventure, and we did not regret it.

We come to the end of the post, and I hope you enjoyed this journey to Khait Parvat.