Dayara Bugyal Trek

trekModerateRaithal, Raithal

Six unhurried days from Raithal onto one of the largest high meadows in Garhwal, with short walking days and a single big loop across the bugyal.

Trip details

Dayara Bugyal is a very large alpine meadow on a broad shoulder above the Bhagirathi valley in Uttarkashi district, reached from the villages of Raithal or Barsu. The trek is deliberately gentle. From Raithal the trail climbs through oak, maple and rhododendron to a series of forest and meadow-edge camps at Gui and Chilapada, gaining only a few hundred metres a day over two or three kilometres, and then opens out onto rolling grass with the Gangotri group, Bandarpunch and Srikanth standing along the skyline. The one substantial day is the loop across the meadow to the high point and back, which is nine to twelve kilometres of easy-angled walking at around 3,500 to 3,700 metres. This is genuinely one of the better first Himalayan treks: nothing is exposed, nothing is technical, and the six-day version the operator sells is a full day longer than most competitors run it, which makes the acclimatisation comfortable rather than merely adequate. The meadow is not empty scenery, either. It is grazing land, and in mid-August the villages of Raithal and Barsu hold Anduri Utsav, a butter festival celebrating the cattle's return. In winter the same slopes hold deep, uncomplicated snow, which is what most people come for.

Safety details & FAQ

Is Dayara Bugyal an easy trek?

In June, yes — it's at the easy end of anything sold in Garhwal, and family batches run on it. Two things stop it being simply Easy in general: the opening climb out of Raithal gains about 2,500 ft in 4.5 km, the steepest gain rate on the trek, and the final pull to Dayara Top is steep and, in winter, often on snow several feet deep. The honest label is Easy-Moderate.

When should I go to Dayara Bugyal — for the flowers or the snow?

These are different trips at the same coordinates. The meadow blooms roughly mid-May to late June with warm days and light nights; the snowscape runs late December to March with several feet of snow, five warm layers and microspikes required; September-November gives no flowers and no snow but the clearest mountain views of the year. Decide which trek you want before you pick a month — the kit lists don't overlap.

What permit does Dayara Bugyal need?

A forest entry and trekking permit from the Uttarakhand Forest Department's Uttarkashi Forest Division, normally completed on arrival in Raithal by your operator. It's a standard forest permit rather than a national-park ticket, since Dayara isn't inside a protected park. If you're 50 or over, Uttarkashi district practice also makes a medical fitness certificate mandatory here, even though this is one of the district's easier routes.

Is altitude sickness a concern on Dayara Bugyal?

Low to moderate, and the lowest of the comparable Garhwal winter treks — the high point is under 12,000 ft and you never sleep above 10,515 ft at Chilapada. It's still flagged that the Raithal-to-Gui section, which climbs about 2,478 ft in just 4.5 km, is a fast first-day gain rate where AMS is a real possibility for anyone. Use the short day 3 to Chilapada, including the Barnala Tal side walk, as intended acclimatisation.

What's easy to get wrong packing for Dayara Bugyal?

Carrying a winter kit list in June or a summer kit list in January — the temperature and gear needs here are unusually far apart for one trek. In summer, underestimating water and sun protection is the real hazard: there's no water source on the open meadow, day four is 9.5 km, and sunburn is the most common minor injury on a June departure. In winter, gaiters and microspikes become mandatory as the snow reaches knee depth.

How far is Dayara Bugyal's trailhead from Dehradun?

About 190-200 km to Raithal village, roughly 8-9 hours by road via Dhanaulti or Mussoorie, Chinyalisaur and Uttarkashi. Uttarkashi town, about an hour below Raithal, is the last point with a district hospital and reliable pharmacies, so it's worth treating as your last checkpoint for anything you've forgotten before the mountains.

Why do different sources give such different altitudes for Dayara Bugyal's high point?

Because "the altitude of Dayara Bugyal" gets used for four different things: the meadow surface itself (about 3,500 m), Dayara Top on the standard Raithal itinerary (3,639-3,651 m), and Bakaria Top, a genuinely higher, separate point at about 3,804 m (12,480 ft) that is not on the standard 5- or 6-day route. If you see "12,500 ft" quoted, that's almost certainly Bakaria Top, not the point you'll actually stand on.

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Safety, verified

Safety details last verified 21 Aug 2026 by Madclub.

  • Known hazards

    A featureless open meadow in cloud or fresh snow, where the trail disappears and navigation becomes genuinely non-trivial. This is the specific hazard of Dayara and the reason a local guide matters more here than the easy grade suggests; No shelter of any kind on the bugyal for the whole of the loop day, so a hailstorm or thunderstorm means walking through it; Steep, root-laced forest trail between Raithal and Gui, slippery when wet and hard on knees on the descent; Soft, wet snow on the meadow in March and April that conceals uneven ground and drainage channels; post-holing here twists ankles; Deep unconsolidated snow in January and February that turns the 12 km loop day into a much longer one than the itinerary allows for; Grazing land, so livestock, dogs and shepherd huts along the route; give animals room and do not approach guard dogs; Landslide-prone approach road along the Bhagirathi through Bhatwari, especially in monsoon

  • Best season

    This is close to a year-round trek and each window offers something different. December to February is the snow season, with the meadow under continuous cover, day temperatures around minus two to eight and nights of minus ten to zero; it is the most popular window and the most demanding underfoot. March and April give residual snow on the meadow with a clearing forest below and the rhododendron out, at 10 to 18 C by day and around freezing at night, which is what the operator advertises. May and June are the green-and-flowers window at 15 to 20 C by day with nights above freezing, and are the easiest for a nervous first-timer. September to November, once the monsoon withdraws, gives the clearest views of the Gangotri group and Bandarpunch with cold, dry nights. There is no month that is obviously wrong except the monsoon.

  • Maximum altitude

    12100 ft / 3688 m — Dayara Top, as the operator names it. This is the least well-defined maximum of the four treks in this batch because Dayara is a broad rolling meadow with several named high points rather than a summit. Published figures for the trek's maximum run from 11,181 ft (3,408 m) at Himalayan Hikers and JustWravel, through 11,830 ft and 11,950 ft (3,639 m) at Himalaya Shelter, 12,000 ft (3,658 m) at Explurger, and 12,005 ft (3,660 m) at Bakriya Top per Himalaya Trekkers, up to 12,400 ft (3,780 m) at Bakariya Top per Himalayan Dream Treks and 3,810 m per euttaranchal. Independent ASTER GDEM v3 sampling resolves the picture: the OpenStreetMap node for Dayara Bugyal itself returns 3,484 m (11,430 ft), while a grid across the wider meadow peaks at 3,800 m (12,467 ft) at 30.8228 N, 78.5411 E, which is Bakaria Top. So the meadow proper tops out near 11,400 to 12,000 ft and the separate Bakaria Top summit at roughly 12,400 to 12,500 ft. The operator's 12,100 ft sits between the two.

  • Getting there

    Railhead Dehradun (DDN), approximately 175 to 190 km from Raithal by road, 6 to 8 hours via Mussoorie, Chinyalisaur, Uttarkashi and Bhatwari. euttaranchal gives 192 km to the Barsu side.; airport Jolly Grant, Dehradun (DED), approximately 200 to 218 km from Raithal, 7 to 9 hours by road. The airport is about 25 km from Dehradun city, so add that to any distance quoted from the railway station.

  • Difficulty

    Short days, gradual gradients, a well-defined trail and no exposure anywhere. Three of the four walking days are 3 to 3.5 km. The single demanding day is the 9.5 to 12 km loop from Chilapada across the meadow to the high point and back, which is long but easy-angled. You sleep at roughly 2,900 to 3,200 m and walk to about 3,600 to 3,700 m, so altitude illness is possible but the profile is unusually kind. Independent grades: Easy from Himalaya Trekkers (physicality 5/10) and euttaranchal, Easy to Moderate from Himalaya Shelter, Himalayan Hikers, Himalayan Dream Treks and Explurger. The operator's Easy-Moderate is the consensus label and is fair. Winter changes the effort more than the grade: deep snow on the meadow makes the loop day considerably slower.

  • Safety equipment

    50 to 60 litre backpack with a padded hip belt and a rain cover if you carry your own load, or a 20 to 30 litre daypack if you offload to a mule; Sleeping bag with a comfort rating of about minus 10 C for March and April. Most operators supply one; confirm the comfort rating, not the extreme rating; Sleeping mat with an R-value of 3 or better if you supply your own, and 4 or better if you are going in January; 2 x trekking poles. The descent from Gui to Raithal is the steepest sustained section on the trek and is where knees complain; Microspikes for March and April snow on the meadow, mandatory in deep winter. Himalaya Shelter describes microspikes as essential for winter conditions here; confirm whether the operator supplies them; Headlamp with fresh batteries and a spare set

  • Guide requirement

    [{'name': 'Uttarkashi Forest Division forest entry permit and trail registration', 'issued_by': 'Uttarakhand Forest Department, Uttarkashi Forest Division', 'where': 'Forest check post at Raithal or Barsu, paid in cash on the day', 'who_arranges': 'operator', 'notes': "This is open forest land rather than a national park, and one detailed secondary source states plainly that no formal trekking permit is required for Indian nationals and no Inner Line Permit or district clearance applies. What is required is a forest entry fee, reported at approximately INR 50 to 100 per person per day for Indian nationals and INR 300 to 600 per person per day for foreign nationals in 2026, payable in cash at the check post, plus registration of the group's names, ID, emergency contacts, intended route and campsites, and expected return date. Himalayan Hikers separately reports a foreign-national levy of INR 1,200, which is likely to be a company charge rather than the government tariff. No Forest Department notification could be read directly, so treat these figures as indicative and carry more cash than you expect to need.", 'source': 'https://mountainiax.com/dayara-bugyal-trek-permits-rules-2026/'}, {'name': 'Camping rules and designated campsites', 'issued_by': 'Uttarakhand Forest Department (Uttarkashi Division), under the statewide bugyal orders; three directions of the 2018 High Court order were set aside by the Supreme Court on 20 July 2026', 'where': 'The Dayara meadow and the forest campsites below it', 'who_arranges': 'operator', 'notes': 'Dayara Bugyal was directly named as one of the treks affected by the 2018 Uttarakhand High Court ban on overnight camping on alpine and sub-alpine meadows, and again by the Supreme Court order of 20 July 2026 that set that ban aside along with the 200-visitor cap. Overnight camping on the bugyal and unrestricted visitor numbers are therefore permitted again, while the remaining directions stay in force: no permanent structures, no commercial grazing, waste must be removed, and no new encroachment. Reported permitted campsites are Barnala Tal and the Dayara meadow. Tents must be pitched at least 30 m from any water source, no trenching is allowed, open fires on the meadow are prohibited and cooking must be on gas, and the carry-in carry-out rule is enforced.', 'source': 'https://himalayatrekker.com/trek-updates/bugyal-camping-ban-lifted-in-uttarakhand-2026/'}, {'name': 'Guide requirement', 'issued_by': 'Uttarakhand Forest Department (advisory rather than mandatory)', 'where': 'Raithal / Barsu', 'who_arranges': 'n/a', 'notes': 'Unlike Govind Pashu Vihar on the Sankri side, solo trekking on Dayara is reported as permitted, with a strong advisory that first-time high-altitude trekkers go with a registered operator. Given that the specific hazard on this trek is navigation across a featureless meadow in cloud or fresh snow, that advisory deserves more weight than the Easy grade implies.', 'source': 'https://mountainiax.com/dayara-bugyal-trek-permits-rules-2026/'}]

  • Emergency evacuation

    The best evacuation profile of the four treks in this batch. The highest point on the meadow is roughly 8 to 10 km and about 1,500 m above Raithal, realistically 4 to 6 hours for a walking casualty and a long but feasible day for a carry. From the Gui or Chilapada camps, Raithal is 3.5 to 7 km downhill. Raithal is on a motorable road. The nearest hospital is the community health centre at Bhatwari, about 12 km away, with the District Hospital at Uttarkashi roughly 32 to 45 km depending on which figure you use; Himalayan Hikers gives 45 km. Full trauma and ICU capability means Dehradun, 6 to 8 hours by road. The state ambulance line is 108. Helicopter evacuation is possible in principle from the open meadow, which is one of the few places on any of these treks where a landing site is not the problem, but it remains weather- and daylight-dependent and must be arranged through the district administration or a private operator against payment. Buy insurance that covers trekking and evacuation.

  • Fitness prerequisite

    Build for four weeks, which is less than the other treks in this batch require. A workable target is a 45 minute brisk walk with 300 m of ascent, three times a week, plus one longer walk of 10 to 12 km before you go so that the loop day is not the longest walk of your life. Add stair or hill repeats with a 5 to 8 kg pack. Because three of the four walking days are under 4 km, the limiting factor for most people is the loop day and the steep forest descent, not cardiovascular capacity. This is a reasonable trek for a fit beginner, for older trekkers with medical clearance, and for children of around 10 and up with individual assessment.

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Cancellation policy

Free cancellation terms vary by trip. You'll always see the exact refund amount before you confirm any cancellation.

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