Phulara Ridge Trek

Phulara Ridge shares its trailhead with Kedarkantha, but the two treks diverge quickly once the walking begins, and the drive up from Dehradun is where guides usually start setting that distinction. The road itself follows the standard arc through Mussoorie and down into the Yamuna valley, past the orchard belt near Barkot and on through Naugaon and Purola, where the terrain narrows and the Tons river takes over as the drive's constant companion. What makes this drive distinct in briefing terms is the emphasis on open ridge walking rather than a single summit push, since Phulara's defining feature is a long, exposed traverse along a high alpine ridgeline rather than one dramatic peak. Guides often use the journey to explain how this route was, for years, treated purely as a shepherd trail connecting a string of high pastures, only recently developed into an organised trekking itinerary distinct from its far more famous neighbour. Netwar's forest checkpoint, where permits for the Govind Pashu Vihar Wildlife Sanctuary are processed, marks the practical transition into trekking territory, and the paperwork here covers the specific camps this route uses, all different from the Kedarkantha trail despite starting from the same village. Sankri, reached by late afternoon, feels familiar to anyone who has read about Kedarkantha, but the itinerary from here heads in a different direction entirely, toward Chilapada rather than Juda Ka Talab. The evening briefing focuses heavily on weather and wind exposure, since a multi-day ridge walk carries different risks than a single forested summit day, and gear discussions lean toward windproof layers and sun protection given the amount of time the group will spend on open, shadeless terrain over the coming days.

Leaving Sankri toward Chilapada, the trail climbs in a direction distinct from the Kedarkantha route, angling instead toward a shoulder of forest that leads eventually onto the Phulara ridgeline itself. The forest here mixes oak and pine in fairly even measure, and the trail, considerably quieter than the well-worn Kedarkantha path, has an unhurried, half-forgotten quality that comes from being genuinely less trafficked. Occasional clearings break the tree cover at intervals, each offering a slightly different framing of the Tons valley below, and by the middle stretch of the day, faint outlines of the Har Ki Dun ridge system begin appearing through gaps in the canopy toward the north. Underfoot, the trail is a mix of leaf litter, exposed roots, and rockier patches nearer the top, and the climb, while steady, rewards a measured pace rather than a rushed one given the sustained nature of the gradient. Chilapada itself is a modest forest clearing rather than a dramatic viewpoint, chosen for its flat ground and proximity to a reliable water source rather than scenery, though the surrounding pine cover does thin enough by camp to offer glimpses of the ridge that tomorrow's walk will properly join. Local shepherd families occasionally use this same route to move livestock toward higher pastures through the summer months, and their simple stone-and-tarpaulin shelters are sometimes visible just off the main trail, a quiet reminder that this route long predates its recent adoption as a trekking itinerary. The evening at Chilapada is notably calmer than a typical Kedarkantha basecamp night, without the crowd of other groups often found on that busier trail, and guides use the relative quiet to explain the ridge walk's structure over the coming two days, emphasising pacing over any single dramatic push.