DRIVE FROM RISHIKESH TO GHAT: 9-10  hours: Drive to Nandaprayag and to Ghat and then to Chefna (the starting point  of the trek). We camp for the night at Chefna.

TREK FROM CHEFNA TO GHUNI: 3-4  hours: Finish with breakfast and then devour on this nice walk next to the  river followed by an ascent through coniferous and mixed forests. The walk by a  wooded ridge takes us to a village called Ramni (2550m). It is a typical  Garhwal village with friendly people and attractive houses with heavy slate  roofs and paved alleys surrounded by fertile fields. It is very commendable to  see that this entire village is mainly run on solar power. Night stay and meals  at camp at Ghuni.

TREK FROM GHUNI TO SEMKHERK MEADOW  (2,600 mtrs) 5-6 hrs: This is a long but  rewarding day. From the campsite you climb steeply for 1,000ft/300m on a  zigzagging track to emerge on open, grassy, grazing meadows. Snow peaks begin  to emerge above the forest to the north. The path continues up through forests  of rhododendron, pines and oaks with more pastures for summer grazing with  shepherds huts. Flocks of sheep and goats are there to keep you company as keep  moving along the track.  The highest  point, reached in 2¼ hours from the camp, at 3,064m/10,053ft, is the Ramni  Pass, also called Binayak Top. From here it is possible to make out the Kauri  Pass, which we will cross on Day 8. From now on there may be a chance to see  the multi-coloured monal pheasant but they are very shy, being hunted by the  locals for pot. The trek is now gentle, mainly through open pastures into  forests of horse chestnuts and walnut trees complete with fairy tale  waterfalls.

TREK FROM SEMKHERK TO PANA (2700m  approx.) 6 hours: Day starts with a descent  to the colourful village of Jhinjhi. The trail carries on down past small farms,  through some woods to the spectacular suspension bridge at 1,840m/6,037ft  across the Birehi Gorge, which currently is inhabited by a large number of  monkeys!  From here however it’s a very  steep climb up to 7,382ft/2,250m, where the track eases only after arduous  ascent of 1 ½ hour.

TREK FROM PANA TO DHAKWANI VIA SARTOLI (11,000ft/3353m approx.) 5-6 hours: This is another long but  spectacular day. The route traverses above the village and then starts a steep  climb up into a rhododendron forest. It is a broad, well made track and after a  number of small summits a Col is reached at 9,842ft/3,000m. The path now  descends gently, traversing along the valley to open meadows with views across  to the Kuari Pass. We continue downhill through the valley along several  streams, before it plunges down a very steep and loose section, much of which  has been washed away by the monsoons. At the bottom, you will see that the  river has cut through a deep rocky, dramatic gorge to your right showing just how naturally scalped the entire region is. From the river, it is a very steep  climb of about 3,000 feet (900 m) with a small break about half the way up to  cross a large stream. A final climb brings you above the tree-line to the  campsite on the large pastures where sheep and goats graze in summer, with the  Kauri Pass towering above. Camp overnight.

TREK AROSS KUARI PASS (12,000ft/3,658m) TO TALI - 5-6 hours. it is a short day today meaning that you have enough time to take breaks  on the pass to simply stare at awe at your surroundings. The thrill of standing  at such a height, with the cold wind hitting you across the face is a feeling  that cannot be surpassed. We aim to cross this pass today so that you will have  the benefit of the clear early morning the following day. For this we have to  walk a bit more to gain more height, with the highest point of the trail being  at a cool 4000 m high and is just half an hour from the Tali Pass ahead. Once,  we have had our fill of the mountain view (which is highly unlikely) we walk  down to our camp which has been set up for you across a small stream.

TREK FROM TALI TO AULI (8,250ft/2,500m/) AND DRIVE TO JOSHIMATH: Most of summer treks  finish in Auli and early summer/early winter treks finish in Tapovan because of  the icy conditions on the trail to Auli. It is a 3-4-hr walk to either place.  It is a gradual descent to Auli down through woods and pastures and we meet our  car waiting for us at Auli to drive us to Joshimat. Auli, although having none  of the elegance of its sister hill resorts, does have a charm and beauty of its  own. It is the site where the famous Adiguru Shankaracharya attained  enlightenment before beginning his campaign for the unification of India and  the revitalization of Hinduism. There is a temple here called the Na Singh  where the statue of Na Singh involves a legend that when the arm of the idol  finally breaks, the road to Badrinath will be blocked. Interestingly, the  statue’s arm has been getting smaller every year. Auli is also the centre of  the Indian ski scene, and the cable car up to the resort of Auli starts in the  middle of Joshimath.

DRIVE JOSHIMATH TO DEVPRAYAG AND RAFT DOWN TO AMARASU: A  normal trekking expedition would get over at this point and would result in you  driving back to Rishikesh from Joshimath but this combo trip we instead drive  till Devprayag where we will meet our rafting team which will prepare both us  and our gear as we start our way downstream.  The rapids are few and of low grade giving you an opportunity to simply swim,  body surf or sing while oaring your raft. In a span of 1 ½ hour we reach  Amarasyu where we camp at the beach for the night.

RAFT DOWN TO KODIYALA: Again an easy day for rafting where we negotiate a few  small rapids on our 30 km way to our beach camp at Kodiala.

RAFT DOWN TO RISHIKESH: Kodiala is a very popular area for rafting and you get to cross some fine grade III rapids such  as “Daniel Dip”, “The Wall”, “Three Blind Mice”, “Crossfire”, and the “Body Surfing rapid”. Covering 35 Km to reach Rishikesh where after lunch we make our  way across a few more exciting rapids such as “Roller Coaster” and “Golf  Course” to make it an appropriate and exciting end to a grand adventure. The  trip ends at the arrival at Rishikesh.