Introducing the perfect hike to explore the Himalayas — Rani Sui LakeOne of the coolest parts about volunteering with ILP in India is that you have many opportunities to hike through the world famous Himalayan mountains. ILP volunteers are actually living at the base of the mountains during your trip, so it's a must-have bucket list item that is easy to check off.
There are a ton of hikes you could check out, but ... our pick? The Trek to Rani Sui Lake definitely takes the cake as one of the most memorable hikes you could do.
Wanting to find other hikes to do within the Himalayas?
Check out this helpful blog post to get started
We asked some of our ILP Volunteers to give us the inside scoop of what exactly trekking up to Rani Sui Lake is like, and what our future mountaineers should know before they start their own exciting journeys.
- What Is Rani Sui Lake
- How Long Is The Hike
- What Do/ Don't I Pack
- What Food Do We Eat
- What To Do At Rani Sui
- Tips To Be Prepared
What Is Rani Sui Lake
The trek to Rani Sui Lake, also known as the "Saurkundi Trek" is a three-night, five-day excursion into the middle of the Dhauladhar and Pir Panjal mountain ranges, eventually reaching your destination to one of the less commonly visited lakes in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh — Rani Sui Lake.
Rani Sui Lake lies at one of the hightest altitudes in the Kullu, India Valley: 11,154 feet. For reference for our volunteers from Utah, that's about 500 feet lower than the top of Mount Timpanogos found in Orem.
There are many beautiful sights that you can admire on this lovely hike, ranging from the eagles-eye view of one of our favorite towns in northern India: Manali, to the surrounding rolling hills scattered with wildflowers!
Don't forget to keep an eye out for the Gaddi shepherds! These trails are most commonly used by these shepherds when they are transporting their animals from Kullu to the Kangra Valley. If you're lucky, you may get to stumble upon these shepherds and their precious herds of sheep and goats.
How Long Is The Hike
The Trek to Rani Sui Lake will take ILP volunteers three days and two nights to complete, and you will climb about 6,000 feet in elevation. Since this hike is split up into multiple days, you will be able to acclimate to the raising altitude, and rather than hike up the whole mountain and back in one day, you get to do it in reasonable chunks.
The hike will take as long as it takes your group to make it to the destinations. In the past the volunteers have spent around four to five hours everyday hiking, and the rest of the time is spent setting up camp, hanging out at the lake, sitting around the fire, exploring, or sleeping!
How Many Miles Of Hiking
The hike is split up into three days. Each day ranging between four to six miles.
- Day 1: Start in Manali and begin your six mile hike up to the first base camp.
- Day 2: Continue up the mountain and hike about two to four miles to Rani Sui Lake, then hike anywhere from two to four miles down the mountain to your second base camp.
- Day 3: Finish hiking two to four miles down the mountain back to Manali.
How Challenging Is The Hike
If you wouldn't typically label hiking as one of your hobbies, no worries! This hike is labeled for beginner to moderate hikers. If you don't have any health issues, you should be able to complete this hike.
With that being said, we asked a few of our ILP volunteers who have completed this hike on what they would rate its difficulty out 10, and all of them rated it a 7/10. One even mentioned that "this hike isn't for the faint of heart".
Now don't let that scare you away! The hiking experience caters to its groups needs, and if you need to slow down or take a break, there will be people (and other volunteers) that will gladly take a minute to sit back and enjoy the scenery with you.
What Do/ Don't I Pack
One of our favorite parts about this hike (for ILP volunteers) is that your tour guide will have almost everything covered, including carrying your bags for you. We've heard of glamping, but is there a word for glamourous hiking yet? Because this would be it!
ILP volunteers are lucky because we already have a guide that we have been working with who will hook you right up. But if you aren't an ILP volunteer, here's a tour you can check out if you'd like to book a guide.
What's Provided
Our volunteers have said they truly felt like royalty with how well they were treated on this trek. Here's a list of all of the things that they were not only given to use, but would also be set up for them once they arrived at their camp sites! One volunteer said "I felt like we had a full crew of 15 workers making our food, setting up our tents, and making sure we were comfortable. It was crazy!"
- - Tents
- Games (like spike ball)
- Sleeping bags
- Blankets
- Pillows
- Meals and snacks (more below)
Things YOU Need To Pack
As you can see, most of the essential things are provided for you, so don't worry about packing a sleeping bag into your carry-on when you're packing for your ILP trip to India! We'd much rather you fill up that space with school supplies. There are some things you will want to make sure to bring on this trek that the travel company won't have covered:
- - Multiple layers of clothes (thermals, leggings, sweatpants, socks)
- - Gloves
- - Hats
- - Hiking shoes
- - One larger backpack
- - One small hiking backpack
- - Waterbottle
- - Camera
- - Portable Charger
Oh and just so you know, we're an Amazon Affiliate so we do receive a small commission if you shop Amazon links from our page. We only share things that we think you'll really love, thanks for the support!
Packhorses
Your hiking group just grew in size — meet your packhorses! These little guides are going to be your saving grace throughout this trek. They will be hauling almost everything up right alongside you guys, saving your shoulders and your back some grief. Thank you horses!
When you are packing for this excursion, you will have two bags. One bag is the bag you will wear while you hike. In this bag, make sure to have a water bottle, some snacks, any medicine, your camera, and some room to put the extra layers you may take off such as beanies or gloves. Keep it light.
The second bag is where you will have everything else. Remember that this bag is going to be held by the horses, so don't overpack, because these lovely animals will also be carrying up the sleeping bags, blankets, tents, etc.
*The volunteers do not ride the horses up the mountain.*
What Food Do We Eat
Three meals a day are not only provided to you but also prepared for you. Good news according to our volunteers, "we were fed really well!"
In the past, for breakfast volunteers were given things like eggs, fruit, toast, oatmeal, and coffee. For lunch you can expect to see things like a chicken salad sandwich. For dinner our volunteers mentioned that they got some classic Indian meals like potatos and curry, and some ramen.
Our volunteers mentioned that they had plenty of snacks to choose from throughout their trek, from Snickers, to Craisins, and chips. They also were given lots of drinks and supplies to make smore's at night! If you're lucky (and don't forget to request) you may even be able to get your tour guides to purchase you some Starburts to roast over the fire.
Take note that all of these food items aren't promised, and every semester and excursion will be a little different. These specifics are to give you an idea of what to generally expect. It is always a safe bet to have some emergency snacks from home like protein bars, just in case you aren't rocking with the provided meals that day.
What To Do At Rani Sui Lake
Depending on the time of year, there are different things that Rani Sui Lake will have to offer you. Luckily, one of the best parts about hiking to Rani Sui Lake is that the journey to get there will come with its own adventure, silly stories, and unforgettable memories.
Repelling
If you're lucky, your tour guides might just surprise your group with the opportunity to repel down some of the rock formations that you will stumble upon during your hike. Don't worry, they have plenty of experience with this kind of stuff.
Cold Plunge
Now Rani Sui Lake has never been named one of the warmest lakes in the world... or at all. It's pretty cold, especially if you trek to it during the colder seasons. In the winter, it might actually be almost completely frozen over when you get to it! But don't let that turn you away from taking a dip.
Many of our volunteers love to take on the challenge of honing in on their inner Wim Hof and doing a cold plunge! This might be the perfect thing your body needs after working up a sweat after the steep hike up the mountains. Show Rani Sui who is boss!
Take In The Scenery
You finally made it to the top! Sit back, take a look around, and look at your accomplishment. It's all downhill from here (in the best way possible)!
There are many things to admire once you mark Rani Sui Lake off of your To-Do list. Our personal favorite is the unbeatable views of the Dhauldhar and Pir Panjal mountain ranges. You seriously will not be able to take enough pictures, even though they never seem to do them justice.
You can also look down below and see how far you've ventured from the town of Manali down below. You and your group can challenge each other to see if you recognize anything from that high above.
Then, of course, you can also look at the one and only Rani Sui Lake. Tucked in between some rolling hills, it is the perfect place to journal, take pictures, meditate, take a snack break, have a snowball fight, or whatever else may feel right.
Tips To Be Prepared
There are a few extra tips that our volunteers wanted to share for future volunteers that will help them be prepared for when they take on the one and only Rani Sui Lake. The best thing you can do for this hike is to come prepared.
Weather
This hike is one of the only hikes in Himachel Pradesh that is open for all four seasons of the year! This also means that dependng on the time of year you go, you may want to pack a little differently. We will say, it is a lot easier to take off extra layers when you are hot than it is to freeze because you didn't pack enough.
If you are going to be hiking Rani Sui Lake in the summer, you should still expect the cold, especially at night. The Farenheit can range from 32ºF to 68ºF throughout night to day. This will probably sound like a relief once you are there, because it gets HOT in Himachel Pradesh in the summer!
If you are going to be hiking Rani Sui Lake in the winter, you already know that it's going to be chilly. The Farenheit can range from 14ºF to 50ºF. So pack warm, and don't forget to purchase thermals from town if you don't bring them from home!
Altitude Sickness
Altitude sickness oftentimes happens when your body has a hard time getting its needed oxygen levels because of a quick raise in elevation. The less serious symptoms can be things like a headache, nausea, and a lack of appetite. If you are noticing any symptoms, make sure to communicate with others and keep an eye on your health!
Because you will be rising 6,000+ feet in elevation, the possibility of experiencing altitude sickness is something to consider. Luckily, this trek is split up into multiple days, so you will have some time to acclimate, but it is important to stay aware of how your body is feeling and take a break if necessary. Communicate with the people around you if things feel off.
There are some altitude sickness medications that you can look into bringing with you if you want to be extra precautionary, but know that these medicines can oftentimes be a placebo effect, or give you supplements like electrolytes that can help tend to the side effects. Most volunteers have been fine without it, and have found that rest is the best "cure".
Bathrooms
Surprise! You aren't going to have access to fully functioning bathrooms while you are trekking up the Himalayas... but here's what our volunteers did instead.
When you are at camp, your guides will set up a portable bathroom. Basically, after digging deep a hole into the ground, they set up a a tent for you to give you some privacy. In India, you will find that many bathrooms are squatters... but not this one! You'll have a chair to sit on. Living lavishly, right?
While hiking, or if you would rather not use the portable bathroom, you will instead find a spot in the woods and go make your mark over there.
Want To See India As A Volunteer?
International Language Programs (that's us) sends college-aged volunteers to teach English fpr 3-4 months in India, along with many other countries. It's such a cool way to embrace a new culture and to genuinely "live like a local". Come experience India with us!
