Jammu and Kashmir is home to a place often described as Heaven on Earth – Kashmir. With its verdant valleys, undulating meadows, lush forests and pristine lakes, it is a surreal experience to be in Kashmir.

We offer you an opportunity to experience all this first hand and that too in close quarters, with the Tarsar Marsar Trek. This moderate level trek, over a period of 7 days, takes you to the very enchanting Tarsar Lake and Pass in the heart of this beautiful land. You witness nature at her very best, passing through orchards, forests, valleys, camping by riversides, experiencing something new at every turn.

Tarsar Marsar Trek is a must do for every trekking and adventure enthusiast. It encompasses two stunning lakes – Tarsar and Marsar, with the Kolahi Peaks all around. This trek takes you to an altitude of 13500 feet and anyone wanting to witness the beauty of Kashmir can take this trek.

Detailed Itinerary:

DAY 1: ARRIVE AT SRINAGAR. DEPART SRINAGAR BY 2 PM AND DRIVE TO ARU BASE CAMP
Post arrival in Srinagar, we drive down to Pahalgam, which is about 100 kms and would take approximately 3 hours to cover. We aim at leaving Srinagar by 2 PM so that we reach our camp before dusk. After reaching Pahalgam, we further drive towards Aru Camp, which is our destination for the day for the Tarsar Marsar Trek and is about 12 kms, taking and hour and a half to reach. We pass through the Bijbhera trail, which is dotted with picturesque scenery consisting of apple orchards, walnut and apricot trees. Post reaching Aru, we would take accommodation in cottages.

DAY 2: ARU TO LIDDERWAT (7998 FT – 9124 FT)
Today is when our trek starts and we would cover a distance of about 9-10 kms in roughly 5-6 hours. This is an uphill climb, but an easy and pleasant one. Initially we trek along the Lidder River which connects to the village uphill. We have a choice of either camping by riverside or lodge at the Pahalgam District Authority (PDA) buildings. Once we are settled in, we can stroll along the river and then return to the lodging to rest for the night.

DAY 3: LIDDERWAT TO SHEKIWAS (9124 FT TO 10699 FT)
On day 3 of the Tarsar Marsar Trek we would have a lot of climbing up to do wherein we will cover a distance of approximately 6-7 kms and it would take roughly 5 hours. We will start our trek from PDA huts, alongside the Lidder River that will take us to the pine forest. There will also be the thrill of river crossing on this day. We will make a pit stop at the Gujjar huts and enjoy some tea and snacks before continuing on the trek. The last leg for the day’s trek would be a steeper ascent as we gain altitude and enter a silver birch forest.
We will be camping at Shekiwas for the night, which is a verdant meadow land. Rest here for the night to rejuvenate for the next day.

DAY 4: SHEKIWAS TO TARSAR (10699 FT TO 12398 FT)
Today we ascend 5 kms in roughly 5 hours starting from Shekiwas meadow. The trail will take us through lush grasslands before reaching Sumbal. From here the path will lead us to a ridge on a stream that will further take us to Tarsar.
After a couple of hours we will reach a spectacular conical hill top that will offer breath-taking views of the almond shaped Tarsar Lake. The walk up to the lake will fill you with thrill and excitement as you cross a stream through rocks and boulders, before reaching the Tarsar grassland, which is also our campsite for the night.

DAY 5: TARSAR TO SUNDARESAR, VISIT TO MARSAR (OPTIONAL) (12398 FT TO 12998 FT)
This would be the most challenging and exciting day of the trek as we would cross the Tarsar Pass at an altitude of 13,500 feet. We would be covering a distance of 5 kms in approximately 5-6 hours. It would start with a steep descent followed by a steady descent and then a gentle ascent.

An optional activity for the day can be to climb one of the passes or ridges and get a full view of the Marsar Lake. Marsar Lake is not suitable for climbing and also not as picturesque. Again we camp for the night at Tarsar campsite

DAY 6: SUNDARSAR TO MARSAR AND BACK TO SONMASTI (12,800 FT TO 13,170 FT)
Today we would start with a steady ascent to Marsar and then descend back to the base camp. We would cover approximately 7-8 kms today in about 5-6 hours. Our camping ground for the day would be at Sonmasti which is close to Gujjar huts at the end of the valley. It is an extremely beautiful location with the verdant valley spread out before us and water falls at the back.

DAY 7: SONMASTI TO SUMBAL; DRIVE TO SRINAGAR
On the last day of the Tarsar Marsar Trek we would start the day early and descend to 6500 feet. We will climb down to Sumbal from Sonmasti and then drive to Srinagar, aiming at reaching before it gets dark.