Ralam Glacier Trek: Height, Route, Distance and Best Time

What the Ralam Glacier trek is

Uttarakhand Tourism names Munsiyari as the base for treks to the Ralam and Milam glaciers and Nanda Devi. (uttarakhandtourism.gov.in)

• The Pithoragarh district glacier table lists the Ralam glacier in two parts: upper, with 8.5 sq km of ice in a 26 sq km catchment, and lower, with 8.0 sq km in 22 sq km. (pithoragarh.nic.in)
• The Ralam valley lies between the Milam valley to the west and the Lassar Yankti valley to the east. Its glaciers are Kalabaland, Sankalp and Yankchari Dhura. Inner Line rules kept it closed to foreign climbers until 2002. A 2003 expedition walked from Munsiyari via Paton, Liungrani, Kiltam and Ralam. (publications.americanalpineclub.org)
• Heights disagree. Munsiyari Treks & Tours and Infinite Adventure Club give the glacier day 3,900 m, while Danu Adventure gives the glacier 5,360 m and 15 km long. No official height was found. (infiniteadventureclub.com)
• Satellite images show the Kalabaland glacier, the biggest feeder of the Ralam ice, pulled back about 250 m between 2000 and 2012. The joint snout is called Shunkalpa. (glacierchange.blog, 23 Dec 2013)
• A 1989 expedition walked from Paton past Sapa cave, crossed the Ralam river on a wooden bridge, and reached Ralam village above the tree line on 23 May. They were the village's first visitors that season. (himalayanclub.org)

The route, stage by stage

From Lilam the trail goes by Paton, Lingurani, Killadum and Ralam village, and on to Ralam Glacier snout. The km are the sources' own, each linked; trails shift with landslides and new road, so treat them as close, not exact.

1. Munsiyari to Paton7 km

   per Munsiyari Treks & Tours; taxi to Lilam, then walk; it gives 2,290 m down to 1,850 m (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)

2. Paton to Lingurani11 km

   per Munsiyari Treks & Tours; 1,850 m to 2,300 m (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)

3. Lingurani to Killadum10 km

   per Munsiyari Treks & Tours; up to 3,290 m (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)

4. Killadum to Ralam village8 km

   per Munsiyari Treks & Tours; Ralam village 3,640 m (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)

5. Ralam village to Ralam Glacier and back9 km

   per Munsiyari Treks & Tours; Infinite Adventure Club gives 10 km return (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)

When to go

Per Munsiyari Treks & Tours, go April to June or September to November. (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)

• Per Danu Adventure, the windows are the last week of April to the last week of June, and the first week of September to the first week of November. (danuadventure.in)

Permits and fees

• Pithoragarh's 2026 rule makes every trekker register before starting, and it names Ralam among the covered routes. Trekkers email their name, address, mobile number, age and Aadhaar number to the district tourism office; operators of unregistered trekkers face legal action if something goes wrong. (haldwanilive.com, 22 May 2026)

How hard it is

• Per Munsiyari Treks & Tours, the trek is moderate to difficult. (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)

Where you sleep, food and water

• Per Munsiyari Treks & Tours, nights after Paton are in tents at Lingurani, Killadum and Ralam village. (munsiyaritreksandtours.com)
• Per Himalaya Trekker, you must camp to finish the route. Paton and Ralam have camps or tea houses, but these are seasonal and the old villages are mostly empty. (himalayatrekker.com, 24 Apr 2023)

Getting to the start

The trek starts at Lilam. By road it is 21 km from Munsiyari, 131 km from Pithoragarh, 144 km from Bageshwar, 211 km from Almora, 297 km from Kathgodam to the start, measured on OpenStreetMap.

• Lilam, on the Munsiyari-Milam road. The Ralam trail crosses the Gori Ganga here and climbs to Paton. Per Himalaya Trekker (2023) the road reached almost to Lilam; per Himalayan Dream Treks the Lilam parking at Seolikote is an 18.7 km drive from Munsiyari. (openstreetmap.org)
• Per Himalaya Trekker (2023), drive about 18 km to the road end, walk 3 km to Lilam, cross the Gori Ganga bridge and climb to Paton (2,150 m), 8 km in all from Lilam. Then Paton to Sapo Udiar is 15 km (3,015 m) and Sapo Udiar to Ralam is 16 km (3,650 m). (himalayatrekker.com, 24 Apr 2023)
• The Kumaon division site says Ralam Glacier is 12 km from Bagudyar (Bugdiyar). Operators instead route the trek from Lilam via Paton. (kumaon.gov.in)

The nearest railway station is Tanakpur (280 km by road); the nearest airport, Pithoragarh Airport (130 km). The road to Munsiyari, town by town: from Dehradun, from Lucknow, from Rishikesh, from Bareilly, from Haridwar, from Moradabad, from Tanakpur and from Delhi, Kathgodam and Haldwani.

Stays near the start

• Rajula Home Stay, homestay, 6.2 km from the start as the crow flies
• SamathaStay, homestay, 7.4 km from the start as the crow flies
• InVocation Stay, homestay, 7.7 km from the start as the crow flies
• Dhana Homestay, homestay, 7.8 km from the start as the crow flies
• RaahStay, homestay, 7.9 km from the start as the crow flies
• Shiva Homestay, homestay, 7.9 km from the start as the crow flies
• Basanti Rawat Home Stay (Rosemary Home Stay), homestay, 7.9 km from the start as the crow flies
• Munsyari Eco Homestay, homestay, 7.9 km from the start as the crow flies

All 62 stays in Munsiyari, each on the map with the peaks in view and a link to book.

Good to know

• OpenStreetMap places Ralam village at 30.3101, 80.2853 but flags the spot as approximate; Paton is mapped at 30.1588, 80.2562. No source opened gives coordinates for the glacier snout. (openstreetmap.org)
• Per Himalaya Trekker, a harder variant crosses the Brij Ganga Dhura pass (4,665 m) from Ralam to Tola and on to Martoli and Milam, about 130 km in 12 to 14 trekking days. It is graded difficult and needs earlier multi-day high-altitude treks. (himalayatrekker.com, 24 Apr 2023)