Kulé kuléZanskar
The Tsarap river running wide between autumn-coloured banks east of Phuktal

Trekking · 8 days

Phuktal to Tsokmichik

Where most journeys end, this one begins — east into the upper Tsarap, over two passes, to the forest at Tsokmichik.

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Duration
8 days
Walking days
6 + 2 transfer
Difficulty
4 of 4 — Serious
On foot
≈ 90 km
Highest point
≈ 5,143 m
Season
June – September
Group
2 – 10 people
Nights
Camping, one village day

Distances and altitudes on this route come from the guides' own route description and have not yet been checked against a GPS track. Record the route once and replace these figures.

In one paragraph

Most people reach Phuktal Monastery and turn around. This route starts there. It follows the Tsarap east into a valley with a handful of settlements, climbs to a base camp at 4,260 metres, crosses two passes in a single day — the higher of them at about 5,143 metres — and comes down through old fields and forest to Tsokmichik. Six walking days, two transfer days, and very few other walkers.

Is this route for you?

It suits you if

  • You have trekked at altitude before and know how your body reacts above 4,500 m.
  • You can walk seven to eight hours on a long day.
  • You are comfortable with a week in a tent and no phone signal.
  • You want terrain rather than sights.

It does not suit you if

  • It would be your first multi-day trek.
  • You need a shower or a bed.
  • You want a guarantee that the itinerary will not change.
  • You are travelling with children under about fourteen.

Many people walk this straight on from Zangla to Phuktal, which makes a two-week journey and solves the acclimatisation question completely. It also works as a standalone route starting at the monastery.

Day by day

  1. A row of whitewashed chortens against a bare mountainside
    Day 1

    Padum → Phuktal

    • Transfer day
    • ≈ 53 km by road
    • Final approach on foot

    The drive south from Padum along the Lungnak, with the Bardan monastery on its rock on the way, as far as the road goes. The last section to Phuktal is on foot along the Tsarap. Arriving at the monastery on the first day sets the tone for everything that follows.

  2. A walker and a loaded pack horse on a green trail beside the river
    Day 2

    Phuktal → Thanthak

    • 22 km
    • 7–8 hours
    • Camp

    The long day that opens the route. The trail follows the Tsarap east through a remote valley section, with the river as a constant on your right. Raw, open country, and no settlements for most of it. Camp near Thanthak.

  3. Low stone houses and enclosures of an old settlement on a dry slope
    Day 3

    Thanthak → Shadey → Thanthak

    • 14 km
    • Out and back
    • Same camp

    A quieter day, walking out to the isolated village of Shadey and back to the same camp. Less altitude, more people: this is the cultural day of the route, and it also gives the body a measured step before the climb to base camp.

  4. Walkers moving up a broad hillside with cloud coming over the ridge
    Day 4

    Thanthak → Nyalokuntse base camp

    • 10 km
    • To 4,260 m
    • Camp

    A modest distance and a real gain. The route climbs out of the river valley into open alpine terrain and settles at a base camp below the passes. From here on, the route is committed.

  5. A high ridge line under deep blue sky with a single walker on the skyline
    Day 5

    Base camp → Hormochey

    • 15 km
    • Two passes
    • 4,827 m and 5,143 m

    The defining day. Nyalokuntse pass at around 4,827 metres, then Gothungtukla at around 5,143 metres, then a long descent towards Hormochey and the Tsarap. High, dry and silent, and the reason people choose this route over the other one.

  6. A whitewashed chorten hung with prayer flags above a green meadow
    Day 6

    Hormochey → Tsatsak

    • 14 km
    • Zara river crossing
    • Camp

    Down out of the high ground into broader valley terrain, with the crossing of the Zara river as the main event of the day. Camp near the old village of Tsatsak, among abandoned fields.

  7. A stone village house with a wooden window frame and brushwood on the roof
    Day 7

    Tsatsak → Tsokmichik

    • 15 km
    • Greener valley
    • Forest camp

    The last walking day, and the softest. The valley greens as you descend, with sections of real trees — something you will not have seen for a week. Camp in the forest near Tsokmichik.

  8. A brown mountainside dropping to a river with the line of a track along it
    Day 8

    Tsokmichik → Leh

    • 2.5 hours on foot
    • ≈ 4 hours by road
    • Two passes by car

    A short walk out to meet the vehicle, then the drive to Leh across two passes and through Tibetan nomad country. After a week without a road, the return is gradual rather than abrupt.

What it is like

The walking

Longer days than the Phuktal route and more exposure. The base camp day and the double-pass day are the two that decide whether this route suits you. River crossings, including the Zara, are a real part of the route rather than an incident.

The nights

Camping throughout, with one night in or beside a village. The base camp night at 4,260 m is the cold one; a sleeping bag rated to −10 °C is not optional here.

The food

The same as on our other routes: cooked fresh by our own crew, mostly vegetarian, and a lot of it.

Who guides it

Chotak and Lhamath, with a cook and horsemen from the valley.

What is included

Included

  • Guiding, cook and crew for the whole route
  • Camping equipment and camp logistics
  • All meals during the trek
  • Luggage transport by pack horse
  • Permits and route arrangements
  • First-aid support

Not included

  • Flights and transport to Leh
  • Hotel and meals in Leh
  • Transfers Padum / Phuktal and Tsokmichik / Leh (arranged by us, quoted separately)
  • Travel insurance covering trekking above 5,000 m
  • Sleeping bag and personal equipment

Price

Price per person by group size for this route, plus the transfer costs from Padum and back from Tsokmichik.

Before you come

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