Winch Camp

Winch Camp is situated at an altitude of 8,000 feet (2,400 m). The height of the peak is near about 8,800 feet (2,700 m). It can be reached on riding through Haulage way car or by trekking which may take 4 hours and is a bit tiring. The haulage way car reaches here nearby 10AM after leaving off at 8:30AM at the base station at Buffer stop in Shanan Power house. On the way to Winch camp there are thick forests of Rhododendron (Burans or locally known as Brah ka fool) from which people prepare delicious sauce having a great medicinal use. One needs to pack himself sufficiently with food as it is not available since no restaurant or shops are near around. One rest-house is also available for higher officials visiting Winch Camp free of cost. A govt. owned rest-house is under construction near the village of Fooladhar which is half kilometre from this site. From this place one is able to see kilometres of distance including Beas River, Mandi Hills, Kangra district and Hamirpur boundaries. In winter season there is heavy snowfall over these mountains which sometimes even scales up to 2 feet (0.61 m) or above. At this time local people, tourists, students from schools and colleges step onto these marvelous mountains for having the gorgeous pleasure of snowfall on their feet. On the other side of the mountain is Headgear, the next haulage way station at an altitude of 8,300 feet (2,500 m). This spot packs outstanding scenery of Himalayan ranges, including Dhauladhar, which are about 16,000 feet (4,900 m) or above from the sea level. From Headgear haulage way car descends the steep hill having a large gradient. This steep hill is known as ‘Khooni Ghati’ literally meaning to ‘Valley of death’ as it is locally considered dangerous. Further coming station is Katheru set up at an altitude of 7,000 feet (2,100 m) above sea level. The next short journey track is called as Zero Point at 6,050 feet (1,840 m).