Kugti Pass Trek_Kugti Village
[Start early from Kugti, cross the village with its two storied wooden houses and brightly painted exteriors. Watch the village come to life with smoke spiraling through the roofs of houses and dew drops hanging on the needle leaves of the pines. Cross the village, a large stream signaling the last house of the village, and start to climb sharply immediately after.
A statue of Hanuman looms menacingly at the end of the short climb. Immediately after the trail turns left sharply and splits into two – with one going higher and the other lower. Stick to the trail going higher and continue your trek through a colourful kaleidoscope of fields. Apple orchards line the sides of the trail and in season apple laden trees are ready for plucking for the eager trekker! The Budhil still continues to rush through a gorge below and you get only an occasional peek of the river. The thick pines on the other side give way to small clearings where Kugti villagers grow their food in a myriad display of colours.
From high above, to your left, a big tributary tumbles down to meet the Budhil, traveling the last few moments through a gorge. Over the gorge through the pines a bridge hangs over the tributary – lonely, isolated and a lifeline for civilization.