Dunagiri Peak Uttarakhand

Dunagiri peak, with an altitude of 7,066 m is one of the tallest peak in the Chamoli district Himalayas of the Garhwal region in Uttarakhand. Among the ring of peaks surrounding the Nanda Devi and also enclosing the Nanda Devi sanctuary, Dunagiri peak occupies the northwest corner of the Sanctuary Wall.

Not frequented by many explorers, Dunagiri peak is in that way a virgin peak as compared to others lying in the Uttarakhand Himalayas, that are considered by several adventure fanatics for their trekking and peak climbing expedition. Thus, the immense natural beauty of the peak is still intact in its wildest form. Its valley and the climbing path seem completely untouched. Though there are records of the people from all over the word who made history by conquering the Dunagiri peak. The first ascend to the peak was made on 5th July 1939 by the Swiss climbers André Roch, F. Steuri, and D. Zogg, via the southwest ridge. Later in 1978, the first Australian Himalayan expedition by the Australian National University Mountaineering Club made the fourth ascent using the same route. While, in the year 1975, Joe Tasker and Dick Renshaw laid down a milestone for alpine-style climbing that too on a difficult route on the southeast buttress. Hence, the southwest ridge and the southeast buttress are the two route to climb the Dunagiri peak. Out of which, the former one is the easiest.

To start the trek for Dunagiri peak, the holy town of Badrinath in the Chamoli District of Uttarakhand is the nearest place that is accessible through motorable roads. Though, being placed on a height of 3,300 m above the sea level, the connectivity through train and plane till Badrinath is totally nil. Hence, Haridwar act as the nearest railhead to Badrinath. Whereas, Dehradun provides the airplane connectivity to Badrinath.