Singhar Pass (Jot) 4350m – journey to the killer pass

 

Singhar Pass, temple and view of Chamba side

After a brief respite once again my friend Ravinder from Tangroti and I headed up to yet another Dhauladhar pass connecting Kangra with Chamba. This time our objective was the dreaded Singhar Pass, which has also been called the killer pass. To my knowledge, this is the only Dhauladhar Pass that even the Gaddis (shepherds) are bit wary of crossing. Hence trekkers crossing this pass is extremely rare. I know of only one instance before us that of two friends of mine, Rijul and Tarun, both seasoned hikers. A brief mention about the pass altitude. Figures vary about its height but according to my altimeter and referring to Army Survey maps I would place the height between 4330 to 4350m hence I would settle for the higher figure of 4350m. The pass ridge is rather long so it depends at which point you cross it. My estimate of 4350m coincides with the lowest point on the ridge, where the temple is located and to which the trail leads. Now I will briefly describe our itinerary with as much details as necessary for you to undertake this hike unguided.

 Word of caution: Singhar is indeed a difficult pass and certainly one of the most dangerous ones that I have crossed anywhere in Himachal. Significant number of people including shepherds and their flocks have either died or severely injured on this pass. Therefore attempt this pass only if you are highly experienced and have a steady head for heights. Else skip it or go with really good guide. There are several highly exposed drops and rock traverses where one tiny slip can have fatal outcomes. Many places it is very difficult to find the trail. Crossing this during monsoon may not be a good idea. Ideal season would be mid September to late October. We did it from 12^th to 15^th October. Since we had already seen the Chamba side of this region, this time we ascended from Kangra side and returned the same way back down. I would recommend that you cross this pass from Kangra to Chamba (not the other way round) as coming down the treacherous trail from the pass to Kangra was even more dangerous and risky than going up, as we realized much to our dismay. Ravinder and I have decades of climbing and hiking experience under very adverse and dangerous conditions so the time durations that I mention in my post is for us. Do not go by it. I would suggest to multiply our timings by a factor of around 1.5 or 2 to arrive at a more practical timeline.

 

Nitya Cafe, it has camping tents 

Day 1 – ideally we should start the hike from the village of Thalla, which you can reach by public bus from Palampur. But if you have your own transport or hire a taxi then it is better to do what we did. My friend Gulshan drove us through Lohna Road along the true left bank of the Neugal Stream right till the Om Hydropower house that also has a rest house near Darklu Village. From there we hiked for fifteen minutes after crossing the stream to Nitya Café, an enchanting eco camp run by Ravinder’s friends Happy and Sandy. We had dinner there and slept the night. The trail begins right behind this café. So if you do take this route then night halt at Nitya would be ideal so you can begin early next morning.

 

Day 2 – we started sharp at 0630hrs after a light breakfast and packed lunch. The trail rises sharply from behind the café straight up to the ridge top, and then turns northwest (right) following the ridge contour, rising steadily. To our right we could see the magnificent cascade of Vindhyavasini Temple waterfall. This cascade tumbles straight down for over 400m and it had half rainbows midway. We met couple of shepherds, then walked through a massive split rock. The dry grass was overgrown so one has to step carefully as there’s a long drop to our right. After an hour or so we reached a massive tree, beyond which there’s a trail to our left that comes from Thalla. 

Soon thereafter we crossed a barbed wire and took the trail dipping slightly to our right. From here begins the forest trail. We were happy to find some shades as by now we both were rather warm from the climb. Around 20 minutes more and we reached at the corner of the ridge where stood a solitary temple. The forest ended here and now we could see the entire span of Khala (shepherd grazing ground with couple of mud huts and a water point). 

At around 2200m it was a superb place to camp and gaze at the towering Dhauladhar up ahead. From Khala the trail heads north, going down slightly till it crosses the Sethunal stream. This stream is so refreshing that we had to drink from the gurgling water. After this the trail heads east through thick forest and begins to climb. We crossed a massive rock cave shelter than a big exposed rock with tiny cracks to place our toes and fingers. Thereafter the dry grass covered trail does several steep switch backs and climbs steeply to Ghas Wali Mata temple (Grass mother temple). The name couldn’t be more apt since the entire face is covered with grass. From the temple the trail climbs up further 100m or so and then continues further northeast till we suddenly came upon Thatri, a massive shepherd camping ground with two temples and few mud-wooden houses and countless boulders the size of three storey buildings. I was surprised at the huge expanse and the flat pasture of Thatri at around 2350m.

 From Nitya Café till Thatri had taken us around 3hrs 20 min. At this time we didn’t find any water point at Thatri. We went further down to the other side where we took a break while gazing up straight at our intended pass. Though we could see the ridge and suspected Singhar to be somewhere up there, we hadn’t a clue exactly where it could be. Everything looked supremely high and steep. But in the mountains one shouldn’t bother too much about the future. We continued down for a bit then the trail starts climbing up keeping to the true right bank of the stream (which was to our right) finally arriving at Nahar, yet another shepherd grazing ground. We had to cross the stream hopping across boulders to reach Nahar, which had plenty of water. We met a group of shepherds there who invited us for some tea. 

Thatri Gaddi shelters

Gaddis at Nahar 2600m

Thatri

We were now at around 2600m. Hearing of our intended journey, they tried to dissuade us from undertaking the journey. In fact they admitted that even they avoided this route since there was another, easier, but longer trail to Singhar. Which of course we ruled out. As Ravinder is a genetic gaddi, I think the shepherds were more worried about me, as my week long white stubble, slight frame and huge backpack brood no confidence in their mind. They repeatedly told Ravinder in their dialect not to take this path. Realizing that we were determined nevertheless, they told him the dangers that lay ahead. As we walked further, I simply blew those cautionary words into the breeze. But I would realize the next day that the shepherds were rather accurate. From Nahar the trail is rather tricky. You simply stay in the middle or right hand side (true left bank) of the stream, plenty of boulders to hop and keep your feet dry. Around half a km up, you will see a landslide slope on your right with bits of pack ice reaching right till the water. Here you must step out of the stream to your right and zig zag through the land slide up and to your left and you will find the trail that climbs rather steeply through grass and trees till it turns to left and traverses all the way to a point where it crosses a side stream. We crossed the stream and found a nice camping ground on the other side. The water was barely 20m from us. We pitched camp at 2850m and decided to go for the pass next day.

 

Our camp next to this waterfall cascade

Chef Ravinder in action

Traverse to the camp at 2850m

Summary – Nitya Café to Thatri – 3hrs 20min. Thatri to Camping at 2850m – 1hr 30min. Water points en route at Khala, the stream beyond Khala, stream before Nahar and at Nahar and at our camping next to the stream.  

 

Day 3 – today being our big day, we woke up at 5 in the darkness and started exactly at 0600hrs. The trail starts climbing pretty much from our tent door. Straight up for the next 1000m or so. This is a very steep climb so better to conserve your energy and be slow and steady. After nearly 100m there is a bit of a traverse across and over two rock faces where you must cross with caution then again goes up, following the ridge center. The two streams (bigger one to our left and the smaller one, next to which we had camped, to our right) kept us company. The ridge slopes are steep hence be very careful to stay right in the middle. At around 3100m we found a water point, basically a ground stream that was falling from above. We filled up our bottle and stomachs as there won’t be any water point from here onwards till the pass and back. Between the two of us we had only one 1 ltr Nalgene water bottle and perhaps 8 to 9 hrs ahead. We accepted that we would get dehydrated and perhaps suffer some headache later. But then such factors are a part of a mountaineer’s life. Beyond the water point the trail gets totally insane. 

Narrow ledges, high boulders, strategically placed blocks of stones resembling steps, highly exposed and near vertical slopes. We had to be very careful. Higher we went the scenery kept on getting more and more exciting and the dangers more and more intense. Then we came to the rock traverse that the shepherds had told us about. It’s basically a 15 to 20m traverse with very little foot or hand hold with a long gaping drop beneath. In wet conditions I don’t think I would dare to cross this section unroped. After this the trail continues to climb steeply as before. In most places we had to use four point climbing techniques. The gradient and the seriousness of the climb did not ease till we topped 3800m and found subsequent ridges on the other side with the pass rising steeply right in front of us. At this point we made a tactical error since there were multiple trails. Instead of staying right at the top of the ridge to our left, we went down and crossed far below soon reaching dead ends or meandering trails. So we had to climb back up and finally rediscovered the trail at around 4000m. 

The dangerous rock traverse

Final trail to the pass

To avoid our mistake this is what you must do: at around 3800m when the trail eases out in gradient, just stick to the ridge top on to your left even though you would see several flat trails beneath you to your right. Do not go down. Keep going up towards the left till you reach a big rock shelter of shepherds with cairns. Here and there you would find rock steps as trails. At around 4000m you would traverse slightly towards your right and you would cross two streams (which we found to be dry at this season), from here you will find the proper trail to the pass. There are further two steep gullys to ascend and two tricky traverses till you start seeing the pass cairns. Stick to the trail and soon you will reach the tiny temple at the pass. We got there at around 1040hrs. By then we had a mini hurricane blowing. It was freezing and we could barely speak. Even though the sun shone brightly into the blue sky, our digits froze in seconds. The tiny temple houses few tridents, bells and a modern looking Shiva, Parvati and Ganesha statue. But the ancient wood carved statues impressed me more. Typical to his belief, Ravinder brought out his prayer paraphernalia and commenced his holy offerings to Lord Shiva. He prayed and I clicked pictures of the Chamba side, where we could see an amazing array of peaks of Lahaul, Bada Bangal, Manali Region, etc. The trail goes down gently on the other side across a boulder ice field next to a lake. We went down a bit to have a look and then returned to the pass temple. True to the shepherd description we found a much gentler trail coming from our east. Lest we freeze, without further ado, we took to heels and started descending. Soon we left the safety of the flattish gradient and started tumbling through the boulders and dry grass. This became truly dangerous. At many points we had no other option but to sit and slide upon the grass as our footwear didn’t find any purchase on the smooth dry grass and shining rocks. Despite our combined experience we had to focus our entire mind and body into each step. Over the next hour I don’t think we exchanged even a single word. Down climbing the exposed rock that the shepherd had cautioned us about was quite dangerous. Thereafter all the big boulders that we had to climb down through made my knees ache. By now we both were dehydrated and a mild headache started. Finally we reached the water point at 3100m and had our fill. Another half an hour and we reached our camp at 1500hrs. Looking back up we both thanked Shiva and our stars for no mishap. As we shook hands, Ravinder observed in his gaddi style wisdom, that if he was to ever cross this pass again then he would go down to Chamba side rather than come back to Kangra side. We cooked a massive helping of rice and dal for dinner.

 

Summary: started at 0600hrs from camping at 2850m. Reached water point at 3100hrs at around 0700hrs. Reached Singhar Pass 4350m at 1040hrs. Started descending at around 1130hrs and back at camp at 1500hrs.

 

Day 4 – today we were relaxed and started at 0800hrs. We were back at Nahar in 40 minutes. The shepherds welcomed us with big smiles. They offered us piping hot goat milk that we drank gratefully. We rested here for over an hour. Three of them were heading to Palampur so they decided to walk back with us. They had to carry two baby goats in their backpacks as they were bit weak. Our return journey was full of gaddi stories and joyful laughter. At a point beyond Khala we found fresh bear pug marks. We finally descended to Nitya Café where we had tea. From here our shepherd friends took us along the irrigation stream channel just above the nullah and in about 30 minutes we reached Bandla Village, from where a well tarred road brought us to the temple complex, from where we hired a taxi to drop us to Palampur bus station. Here we parted company with the three shepherds and two baby goats.

 

Note: I feel our decision to bypass Thalla village altogether was a good one as it shortens the hiking duration for the first day.