Ali Bedni Bugyal Trek

Unique Experiences

The main high point of this trek is the Bedni Kund Mirror. This glacial body of water located in the middle of Bedni Bugyal has an unevenly balanced visual symmetry that no other place the world can produce. On a calm, clear morning you can see your face and the massive face of Mount Trishul reflected in the waters of the lake, creating the Double Trishul, just as you've seen it captured in some photographs, as if there were two Mount Trishul's; one in heaven and one in the Earth. In addition, you can experience the tree line burst by coming out of the dark, enclosed oak forest and into the light, bright, and open pasture fields; it is a wow moment for trekkers that they will remember for a lifetime.

Adventure and Difficulty Level

This trek has been rated as a moderate trek due to its significant change in elevation. Because of this, you will gain almost 1,200 meters in one day on the trek from Didna to Ali Bugyal; therefore, this will be a challenge both for your cardiovascular fitness and for your ability to acclimatize. There is no technical difficulty in the trek however, there are considerable challenges from a physical perspective related to the environment. Because the meadows are open, you will be exposed to strong winds and high levels of ultraviolet radiation. The trek is ideal for those who want to move on from an easy weekend trek and experience a more serious trekking adventure in the low-oxygen environment of the Himalayas.

Flora & Fauna

The trek is a region that shows immense diversity in both vegetation and wildlife, and is representative of several different climatic zones.

• Flora: You begin your trek through a prehistoric type of forest that contains Ancient Brown Oak trees and Rhododendron bushes; as you ascend in altitude, the trees begin to diminish and you will start to see various shaped alpine shrubs, as well as some of the highest quality medicinal herbs found on earth. In addition there will be numerous varieties of Anemone and the Himalayan Cinquefoil growing in the meadows.
• Fauna: The mountain's forest ecosystem consists of an iridescent Himalayan monal (a type of pheasant), yellow-throated marten, and red fox, which can all be found in the shadow of the Himalayas. The bharal (or blue sheep) can be found grazing on the steep cliffs above the meadows in the higher rocky terrain that leads to the snow line.

Cultural & Village Life

The trek offers a unique way to explore the living cultural corridor of this region. The trek begins at Lohajung and passes through Didna and Wan, which are two examples of how traditional architecture has been preserved within the Garhwal region the architecture of these villages consists of houses built out of interlocking stones and are topped with thick slate roofs designed to handle the weight of heavy snowpacks. Along the way you will meet and speak with members of the Bhotia and Garhwali communities, who have lived their entire lives in the mountains, and share a strong spiritual relationship with the mountains upon which they rely. Part of the significance of this trek is that it is also a sacred path to the Nanda Devi Raj Jat Yatra, a demanding pilgrimage that occurs only once every 12 years, covering a distance of 280 km; by walking on this historical path you will be trekking in the footsteps of those who have trekked before you, passing by small stone shrines (devasthals) and meeting local shepherds who have used the same grazing area as long as anyone can remember.

Best Season & Seasonal Beauty

• Green Monsoon (July – August): This is the time of the year that contains life, as the meadows bloom into one lush, botanical blanket made up of all the shades of green you can possibly imagine. The flowers that bloom in the meadows during this time include both the sacred Brahma Kamal and blue poppies.
• Golden Autumn (September – October): After the monsoon rains subsided, the grass would cure into a luminous burnt orange and bronze hue. This creates an effect referred to as a Golden Sea. The atmosphere during this time becomes extremely stable and dry, and visibility becomes drastically enhanced to the point where you can see every crease and divide on snow-covered mountain peaks, or, when at night, see the core of the milky way from earth.
• White Winter (December – February): If you’re trekking, the meadows transform into a bright white desert. The lush grass is covered with 4-5 feet of snow, creating one of the difficult places for snow trekking, where the absolute silence is uneasy and the landscape appears to be stark and monochromatic.

Summit Experience

Although it's not technically a summit trek to an actual point (like a peak) as most of the other trekking routes do, the Ali Viewpoint and the upper sections of the Mughu ridge can be considered summits. We were blessed to see some really amazing sunrises from these areas. Being able to see the Trishul for the first time at sunrise was unbelievable. The first time the sun touched the three crowns of the Trishul, the mountains were transformed from a cool shade of blue to a warm, molten gold colour. When you are on top of a ridge, you are standing at eye level with the base of the glaciers and you are not looking up at the mountains. The experience at Ali Viewpoint and the Mughu Ridge is defined by what I refer to as the Theatrical Burst a moment of epiphany when you realise how small you are, and yet how massive everything around you is as you stand between two extraordinary things: the vast deep zone of the Wan Valley, and the enormous and incomprehensibly high walls of the Greater Himalayas.

Scenic Beauty & Landscapes

The scenery of Ali and Bedni Bugyal represents an example of the variety found within the Himalayas. The trek features rolling high-altitude, grassy plateaus where trees are unable to grow anymore due to their height and therefore, the grass here is described as velvet, which covers thousands of acres. In fact, this area is one of the few places in Central Asia where one can see the Infinity Meadow effect with no rocks or trees in between. Because the sheer size of the area is so large from a distance, those trekkers trekking along the ridges will look like mere dots against the green grass. The horizontal distance of the trek is also amazingly framed by the vertical massifs of Mount Trishul and Nanda Ghunti that rise almost straight up out of the valley floor and provide a stadium effect, dominating one's peripheral view throughout the entire range of ridges.