Trek to Kanamo Peak August 2014

The trek to Kanamo Peak is quite an uncommon one and not many trekking groups offer
it. The only trek I had heard about to an altitude of 6000 mt. without a technical climb
was Stok Kangri. So I was delighted when I stumbled upon this one on GIOs website.
Although it is a 7 day itinerary , this is essentially a 3 day trek trek to base camp,
summit and return from base camp to Kibber. However to make it a well rounded
itinerary, Chandratal has been added, which is a bonus. We did this trek from Batal
Kunzum la Chandratal Kibber Kanamo base camp Kanamo peak summit Kanamo
base camp - Kibber Kaza. But it can also be done from Kaza Kibber Kanamo base
camp Summit base camp Kibber Kaza, wherein one can drive all the way upto
Kibber. And the driving time from Manali is almost similar to Batal or Kaza about 8
hours.

Day 1: Manali (2035 metres) to Batal (3907 metres) temp. about 18 0 200 and
50 at night
This day is crucial from the point of view of mountain sickness, as the ascent is quite
steep. We drove out of Manali, and towards Batal via Rohtang pass on the Manali Leh
Highway. The road is not too good and bumpy all through but our drive deftly navigated
it. We passed by villages like Gramphu, Pagmo on the way to Batal. From Gramphu we
took a diversion towards the Gramphu- Batal-Kaza road. We stopped briefly at Grampho
and then at Pagmo for lunch. We reached the campsite at Batal at about 5 pm since we
were held up for about 3 hours near Pagmo where another vehicle got stuck. The
campsite is just behind the mountains quite unnoticeable as we approach from the
road. We immediately went on a short acclimatization hike, which was fun. The GIO team
consisted of three persons Rajan- the trek guide, Mukesh aka Mukibhai the provisions
man and Surendra the cook from Osla (who was incidentally also a trained
mountaineer from NIMS, Uttar Kashi). All three had been working for GIO for almost 10
years. We were impressed with the arrangements and were pampered with delicious
food cooked by Surendra day after day during the trek.
On our first night of camping we had the company of countless sheep and the
shepherds. As the weather gets cold in Spiti valley, shepherds move to lower villages
along with their sheep and cattle. At night we were treated to the symphony of neighing
of horses and the barking of dogs. As I walked out of the tent at night I found myself
staring into countless stars white, green and yellow. I could not believe my eyes at first
but then realized that the glistening eyes of the migrating sheep had merged with the

stars above. And to trump it all, as I flashed my torch to find the way to toilet tent, the
ferocious dogs barked at me!! It was suspicious of me trying to hurt its ward the sheep!

Day 2: Batal (3907 metres) to Chandrataal (4300 metres) back to Batal:

temp. about 160 180 and 40 at night
We camped at Batal for two nights since the trek from Chandrataal to Kibber is too long.
The first trekking day we trekked to Chandrataal at an altitude of 4300 mts. We left the
camp in our SUV and crossed the Chandra river and ascended for about an hour to reach
Kunzum la the pass to enter Spiti valley from Lahaul region at an altitude of 4600 mt. It
started snowing heavily at the pass and continued to hail throughout the trek. From
Kunzum la, we trekked to Chandrataal a distance of about 9 km comprising of gradual
descent followed by ascents and then some straight walking. We had our packed lunch in
a shelter of stones created by the shepherds to shield them from bad weather. You also
need to carry water as it is only available closer to Chandrataal.
Seeing the heavenly lake was a long cherished dream come true. Chandrataal is a wet
land sanctuary due to its rich flora and fauna. We saw birds and flowers of multiple hues
and colours around Chandrataal. And we were fortunate to have a slightly clear weather
for about an hour when we could click the blue waters of the lake!

We then trekked back to Kunzum la from

where the car would drive us back to the
camp. The return trek was a bit tough as
it was all uphill. This night we slept
peacefully as the sheep had left for their
destination and we did not have their
safeguarding dogs barking all night!
Day 3: Batal (3907 metres) to Kibber
(4300 metres) temp. about 180 200
and 30 at night
Next morning we drove to Kibber. This
route was through the real Spiti valley
quaint little villages, tucked away in the
mountains. We stopped at Losar after
Kunzum la, which is kind of a check post.
We even bough the prayer flags from
here to tie at the Kanamo peak. The
entire route from here is as if straight
from a picture postcard. Tiny villages with
mud houses and roofs covered with grass,
windows in red and blue colour. Arid
mountains dotted with green and yellow patches that are fields of green peas and barley.
Kibber is supposed to be the highest inhabited village in the world, at an altitude of 4300
mt., but as we hiked above Kibber later in the day, we saw a village called Chicham
which looked much higher, but well, the records said it differently. We were treated to
delicious green peas as we hiked in the evening on reaching Kibber. We camped on an
open ground next to a school in Kibber, surrounded by houses on all sides, and of course,
the mountains! Kibber is one of the large villages in Spiti valley with about 80 houses. All
the houses in Spiti valley follow the same design and a set of colours. It all looked picture
postcard like, and at night the bulbs in the houses competed with the stars above.

Day 4: Kibber (4300 metres) to Kanamo Base camp (4800 metres) temp.
about 150 180 and 30 at night
Next morning we started the trek to
Kanamo
base
camp
with
limited
provisions loaded on 3 donkeys. Our
troop also increased in number due to the
donkey owners joining us.
Trek from Kibber to Kanamo base camp is
a continuous ascent for about 6 7 hours.
We go upto 4800 metres from 4300
metres. The trek starts with a steep
ascent for the first 3 4 hours, which
eases out later. There is some level walk
and then gradual ascent. Initially, soon after leaving the village, one crosses numerous
fields growing green peas. Since this was the harvest season, we were offered delicious
green peas by the locals. On the way we came across two lakes, one of which supplies
water to Kaza town. The last 2 hours of the trek was particularly picturesque with smaller
varieties of Brahma Kamal and multiple types of flowers strewn all across. Look out for
interesting stones in this stretch as many of them are likely to be plant or animal fossils.
The trek guides know to identify these, if you have not seen one earlier. The region in a
radius of about 1 km from the Kanamo base camp is a repository of fossils of all types.

We even collected some!! We reached the base camp late in the afternoon and set up
tents. After an early dinner we retired in our tents for the well deserved rest before the
all important day of summit.
Day 5: Kanamo base camp (4800 metres) to Kanamo peak (5960 metres) back
to base camp
Next morning or rather midnight (3 am), we started our trek to the summit after a cup of
hot tea. We started trekking in the light of torchlights and the moon above. By the time
we crossed the first shoulder in the mountain, it was dawn. The far off mountain ranges
looked divine as the sky changed colours. It was quite cold and I was feeling cold inspite
of the hiking! Two of our friends returned back to the camp from here as they started
experiencing some difficulty in breathing. After a 5 10 minute rest, I and my friend
started hiking up again towards the second shoulder in the mountain. It was getting
increasingly cold and the chilled wind was biting. I had not brought bacalava , which is a
must at this altitude, since early morning breeze or rather wind is ice cold. I started

shivering with cold and desperately sought a sunny patch to warm myself. I had to sit in
the sun for at least 10 minutes before my teeth stopped rattling and I could walk again.
We had been already walking for 4 hours by now. Now was the last leg of the climb a
steep ascent of about 800on the scree slopes. It didnt look as tough as it turned out to
be. The entire ascent was on scree from here and the feet never got terra ferma to
support. We slipped down each time we took a step up. It was difficult to maintain small
steps - so crucial at this altitude. We had to take large strides to navigate the scree.
Each one of us was accompanied by a guide during the last leg of the hike, to avoid a
fall. I was famished by now, and had not carried much to eat due to the strenuous climb.
Since the weather usually changes around 10 11 am in the mountains, we had no
option but to reach the summit and then come down and think of eating!! Well, so the
only energy I had with me was of the mind! After 3 and a half hours of arduous climbing I
finally reached the summit. The view from the top is breathtaking. An astounding 360 0
view of the greater Himalayas is all you can ask for as a reward for the torturous climb.
One can see the Parang La pass leading to Ladakh, Pin Parvati pass leading to Kullu
valley, ranges of Kinnaur, Lahaul and Spiti from the summit.The back side of the peak
was a huge glacier. Kanamo is actually a twin peak with its sister peak Shila next to it.
Surprisingly Shila was covered with snow, whereas there was only a small patch of snow
on the Kanamo summit.

The weather gods had been kind to us and it was sunny even at 10:30 am. The first thing
I did was take pictures of the stunning panorama around me, lest the weather turn bad.
Then I fell on my knees, thanked God and prayed. After about half an hour, my friend
also reached the top and together we tied the prayer flag to mark our victory. We spent
15- 20 more minutes reveling in the
majesty of nature and then started our
journey back as we were really famished. It
took about an hour to descend down the
scree after which we stopped to have the
packed lunch and a 15 minute power nap
at an altitude of 19000 ft. with the sun
above us and greater Himalayas all around
us!
Feeling happier and stronger after the
summit and food, but exhausted, we slowly
made our way back to the base camp in
about 2 hours. I had a bad cold nose and eyes all red and had caught fever. So I slept in
the tent after some jubilation and a hot cup of tea with some French fries (yes, we had
French fries at an altitude of 16800 ft. all thanks to GIO team)
Day 6: Kanamo base camp (4800 metres) to Kaza (3600 metres) via Kibber
(4300 metres)
Next day we trekked back to Kibber, where the vehicles were waiting for us. The trek was
really picturesque as the Spiti valley invited us as we looked ahead and the majestic
mountains beckoned when we looked back. We had lunch in a local restaurant at Kibber
and drove to Kaza. Soon after leaving Kibber we headed towards Key monastery one of
the large monasteries in this region. On the way we saw many lovely villages of Spiti
valley Chicham which is connected to the road by a pulley operated trolley (picture at
the right), Hikkim which has the worlds highest post office. We took a slight detour and
specially drove upto Hikkim and posted letters to self and our near and dear ones from
the worlds highest post office. The post office was nothing but a small box with stamps
and files in a mud house the house of the post master of the village. (picture below)

After visiting Hikkim the drive to Kaza was one of the most beautiful drives with deep
gorge and the silver coloured Spiti river on one side and sharp, rugged mountains on the

other. Across the Spiti river we could see cute villages like Rangrik with a huge Buddha
statue atop a mountain, Pagmo etc. The roads were quite narrow but the local drivers
and buses deftly navigated these. We reached Kaza at about 6 pm and landed in a
comfortable guest house next to a beautiful monastery. After a much required hot water
shower, we had a grand dinner feasting on local Spitian dishes specially cooked for us.
Day 7: Kaza (3600 metres) to Manali (2035 metres)
And the next morning we started our journey back to Manali at 4 am since we wanted to
reach in time to catch our bus to Delhi. The return journey was quite nostalgic as we
drove through familiar terrain, said our silent goodbyes to the roads, rivers and
mountains of Spiti. It started raining as we neared Manali. The Solan valley before Manali
looked lovely dressed up in bright green and grey mist due to the rain. I have never
found Manali so beautiful in my earlier trips. And finally it is end of the trip. We hop on to
our bus for Delhi after feasting on an early dinner cooked by Tapan Kumar at the guest
house and celebrating with some wine at the Johnsons caf.