Kareri Lake — Attraction in Himachal Pradesh

Note: I have visited this place on 17th October, 2020. If you are reading the google reviews, then you have already read a lot about this place on social media and surfed many videos on YouTube.

Yes, this is the Lake for which you have to travel 13-14 Kms(claimed) from the Nolli Bridge.

How to reach: (from Dharamshala Bus Stand) You have to take the Chambi road which is going down through the Dharamshala bus stand. You need to travel until ‘Maitty’, and from ‘Maitty’ you need to take a right turn to Ghera road. This is a congested road and it will guide you towards Kareri village. From Kareri village, you need to travel a distance of 2-3 kms more to reach Nolli Bridge from where the actual trek towards the Lake starts. The patch between the Nolli Bridge and Kareri Village is a bit rough, the roads are under construction, so you need to drive carefully to reach the bridge. At the bridge, you will find some small shops. From these shops you can hire a guide or tents and other trekking essentials on rent. They also provide snacks and beverages. Note: Don’t start your trek from anywhere else.

What to Bring: you can bring anything you want to, but remember that you have to carry it also while climbing the mountain. You can rent tents, sleeping bags and other essentials from the shops at Nolli bridge. At the top, tents are also available. There are plenty of cafes in between the trek (8-9 cafes during my time), so there is no problem of food. Some people opt to drink the water from the river itself, but I suggest you not to drink from there and carry your own drinking water.

About the trek: the trek starts immediately with steep climbs and will test your will-power at the very early stage. The whole path towards the Lake is a steep climb and sometimes it’s hard to keep it going. So, I suggest you to climb slowly and take rest in between as it might take around 6-7 hrs for a normal human being(unless you are physically fit) to reach at the top. The whole trek is along the side of Niyud river, so there might be a very less chance of diverting from the path and getting lost in the forest, unless or until you are a complete Noob. There are almost 8-9 cafes in between the trek from where you can have you refreshments (Note: the prices for each product is high for the obvious reasons, so try to inculcate the sense of hardships through which the local people have gone through to bring the materials from down towards the mountains). During the night, the mercury tends to fall very low, so be prepared for the chilly breeze and clod dew. Don’t worry too much about the food. There are plenty of cafes and the cafes at the top is functional throughout the very late night. This trek will offer you a magnificent view of mountains as well as a Lake whose crystal clear water is as cold as ice.

Suggestion: this is a purely magical place with a spiritual context attached to it. So, this is your fundamental duty to keep the area clean and green. Don’t litter here and there or anywhere. Keep a separate bag for all your garbage. Leave your footprints, not your garage. Be polite with the other people and localities. Motivated and keep pushing others also.

P.S : the weather condition is normal in my case, it might vary...

To tell the the truth the place is beautiful . The journey to the lake is nice with beautiful ways and trees around. Seems like a paradise journey. That is the good part which is true and all of us travellers would like to hear. The reality is , the 7km approx path to the place is very steep . The first 1.5 -2 km are the most hardest. The later part is not as hard but it is hard though. It took me around 5 hours to reach the top. When you come here don’t ask the guides or locals about the time left or the km. They have no ideas . When we inquired about the place they said that it is just a 2 hours simple hill ride. It is not true, for me of all the small treks that I have done. This is the hardest one. It is a pure climb to the top and tests you, something like a never ending staircase. The path is well maintained and you will walk on rocks for most part of the journey And if you plan , do stay for a night otherwise coming and going in a single day is fruitless and remember, coming down is more harder. For an average fitness person like me , coming back on the same day cost me 2 days of bed rest because the legs were painful. Also I do not enjoy the view and the starry nights. You will get facility for tent or night stay from the local guide here. When we enquired about that the cost we ₹1000 for a night stay for a single person including food and tent. Or ₹400 for stay only. Best of luck for the journey . Do some fitness exercise for at least two weeks before coming so that the legs can bear the journey . Trust me you will enjoy the journey through a different level. Otherwise it will be a pain nothing else. The local guides are smart here. They will take the money for sleeping bags or tents and the good thing is you will have to carry those , if uiu are not careful. So be smart and aware while dealing with them. Don’t get caught in there sweet words. To inform again one side us approx 7km with elevation gain of more than 1 km from...

Detailed review:

If you have a package through any sites, it's going to be lot more expensive than it looks, Price ranges for cab Dharamshala to burnet = 700rs Burnet to Kareri village = 400rs Kareri village to trek start point = 400rs

Since there is a monopoly of few drivers of Kareri village, they will charge anything from you and since you have no other option so you have to pay it, so from Dharamshala bus stand to trek start point is 3000rs(max 4 people).

The trek is a moderate one and is not for beginners, its for people who have already done one or two, the path is very steep and full climbing stairs rock size, your thighs and calves should be prepared for this one..

The scenic views during the trek are much better than those of Kheerganga, triund, Jogini falls, but the lake is dull, there is just hype for this lake, you will find nothing on the top but a ground fill with water full of fungus which you might assume is clean drinkable water but it is not.. The sunset was pretty good though.

There are no alpine tents so you are going to shiver in cold at nights and also one thing to remember that you can't have tents beside the lake so it's going to be a disappointment, all the pictures are fake(trust me all the tour packages assures this but camping is not allowed by government only)

My experience is that if you really want to try this trek then carry the least weight, keep clean water with you as the bisleri bottle at top is 100 bucks, the food is abysmal, guides are pathetic here so don't really rely on them.. carry a torch, warm clothes for night and try to leave as early as possible in the morning to avoid sunlight.., if you feel you can't do it, then stop in mid at 'Rioti' and camp there, it's much better place than top.

"Must get...