Kali Sarda Rafting
16 days / November - April
Pricing: Pricing is based on group size and seasonality, please check with us to secure the best pricing.
Highlights:
• Take a bicycle tour through the pristine ecosystems of Rajaji National Park.
• Enjoy several days of Class III and Class IV white-water rafting on the Kali Sarda and Ganges, two of the most beautiful and important rivers in the world.
• Discover the beauty and mystery of Corbett National Park, home to a variety of flora and fauna, including Royal Bengal tigers, leopards, and Asian elephants.
• Take a walking tour through Rishikesh, the spiritual birthplace of yoga, meditation, and Ayurveda. This is where The Beatles came to stay with their guru, the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, back in the 1960s.
Start Map
Day 1: ARRIVE IN DELHI
You are met upon your arrival in Delhi and escorted to your hotel.
Day 2: DELHI
Spend the morning recovering from jetlag before an afternoon guided tour of the city.
Day 3: DELHI TO AGRA TO DELHI
In the early morning, take the Shatabdi Express Train to Agra where you will be your personal guide. Take a tour of the deserted city of Fatehpur Sikri, built by Emperor Akbar in 1569 as the new capital of his kingdom before being abandoned due to scarcity of water. The tour includes some truly impressive buildings: the Jama Masjid, the Tomb of Salim Chisti, Panch Mahal, and several Palaces. After lunch, tour Agra Fort and the stunning Taj Mahal. The historic Agra Fort, built along the Yamuna River, offers a glimpse into the world of the 16th-century Mughals. Emperor Shah Jahan, who built the Taj, was imprisoned by his son, Aurangzeb, at the Agra Fort in a room where he had a clear view of the building he had made in the memory of his wife. Shah Jahan is said to have eventually died in this room in the Agra Fort. Built by Shah Jahan, the Taj Mahal is a white marble memorial to his beautiful wife Mumtaz Mahal. This stunning monument, designed by Persian architect Ustad Isa, is noted for its elegant domes, intricately carved screens, and some of the world’s most magnificent inlay work. Return to your hotel in Delhi by train.
Day 4: DELHI TO HARIDWAR TO SHIVPURI
In the morning, take the Dehradun Shatabdi Express train to Haridwar, then drive to your camp in Shivpuri. After lunch and a briefing by the camp manager, trek to a typical Garhwali village. Return to camp.
Day 5: CAMP AT SHIVPURI
Enjoy a yoga session before breakfast. Then have your first taste of rafting on the Ganges. After lunch in camp, take a walking tour of the fascinating town of Rishikesh, the spiritual birthplace of yoga, meditation, and Ayurveda.
Day 6: CAMP AT SHIVPURI
After an early-morning breakfast, we will drive to Kunjapuri temple for a day hike. Set amidst lush green forests, the Temple offers fantastic views of the legendary Himalayan peaks like Bandarpoonch, Chaukhamba, Nanda Devi, and Trishul. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Durga and visited annually by thousands of pilgrims.
Day 7: CAMP, HARDIWAR
Spend the day paddling through three of the Ganges’s big rapids: “Return to Sender,” “Roller Coaster,” (Class III) and “Golf Course” (Class IV). We conclude our paddling at on an isolated beach near Rishikesh where we will change our clothes and then drive to camp for lunch. After we settle in and eat lunch, we leave for an exciting cycling session on forest trails in the buffer zone of the Rajaji National Park. The cycling trail takes you through several of the park’s pristine ecosystems. The park is home to more than 40 species of mammals including elephants, tigers, leopards, deer, and ghurals, as well as more than 315 species of birds. In the evening, enjoy a talk on the flora and fauna of the surrounding areas from our resident naturalist.
Day 8: HARIDWAR TO KATHGODAM
Before breakfast, take an early morning bird watching walk in the forest with our naturalist. After breakfast, enjoy a jeep safari into Rajaji National Park and a discussion on elephant behavior. After lunch, you can relax or take a walk to the nearby river. After a campfire dinner, you’ll board the Dehradun Kathgodam Express Train for an overnight trip to Kathgodam.
Day 9: KATHGODAM TO PITHORAGARH
You will disembark from the train early in the morning, before driving to Pitthoragarh.
Day 10: PITHORAGARH TO JHULAGHAT TO PANCHESHWAR
After a post-breakfast drive to Jhulaghat, we begin the expedition on River Kali Sarda. At Jhulaghat the entire river squeezes through a five-meter cleft. A small suspension bridge over this cleft connects the Indian town with Nepal. We will spend the day tackling some stunning Class III and Class Iv rapids that will take us past beautiful waterfalls and lovely scenery. We can also visit some villages en route and talk to the people, who are extremely friendly and warm. We finish the day’s rafting at Pancheshwar, a famous spot for Mahaseer fishing and set up our camp on an isolated beach by the river.
Day 11: PANCHESHWAR
During this rest day, we will visit a temple at the confluence of the Kali and Saryu rivers and try our hand at fishing.
Day 12: ON THE RIVER
After Pancheshwar, we leave behind the villages and instead pass thickly forested hillsides, abounding in wild life and birds. The river picks up force and there are two big Class III rapids. We’ll set up camp on the beach.
Day 13: KALADHUNGA
This is the best white-water day of the trip. Today we get plenty of flat-water paddling as also a number of big and bouncy rapids, including a big Class IV+ section near a village named Chuka. We will explore the forest area around Kaladhunga.
Day 14: BRAMDEO TO CORBETT NATIONAL PARK
We will spend our morning tackling six big Class III rapids until we reach the Bramdeo Forest rest house, just above Tanakpur. After lunch, we drive to Jim Corbett National Park. Once a popular British hunting ground, this park is named in honor of Jim Corbett, a legendary hunter turned-naturalist, author and photographer. It is home to a variety of flora and fauna, including Royal Bengal Tigers, leopards, and Asian elephants. It’s also India’s first Project Tiger sanctuary.
Day 15: CORBETT NATIONAL PARK
Before breakfast, enjoy a jeep safari into the park, then rest and relax between breakfast and lunch. The afternoon and evening will include another jeep safari.
Day 16: CORBETT NATIONAL PARK TO DELHI AND DEPARTURE
After breakfast, we drive back to Delhi with packed lunch. Wash and change in your hotel before boarding your return plane.
Our partner in India has always taken an eco-sensible approach to tourism – “Leave nothing but foot prints, take nothing but photographs”. In fact, they are the first company to have organized the “Carbon-Positive Adventure Challenge” in 2008 for British Gas in India.