Spend 80 days immersing yourself in the beautiful landscape and unique culture of the Indian Himalayas. From towering peaks to the rushing waters of the Kali River, you’ll challenge yourself and grow as a leader while developing outdoor and intercultural skills. If you’re seeking an experience beyond the tourist track, this semester is for you.

Your journey begins in New York City where you’ll meet your instructor and fellow students and travel to the NOLS India base in Ranikhet. At an altitude of about 6,150 feet, Ranikhet is a quiet, wooded town to which you’ll occasionally return during the semester to transition between course sections.

You’ll then dive into a 3-day Wilderness First Aid certification, preparing you to respond to emergencies in remote environments. From there, you’ll hike for 12 days through the Pindari Valley, passing through remote villages on ancient cobbled trails where cattle-powered agriculture is still the main way of life.

Next, you’ll spend 18 days rafting the Kali River, which forms the border between India and Nepal. Traveling by paddle raft and oar rig, you’ll learn to scout rapids, evaluate hazards, and practice rescue techniques while floating past terraced farms, thick tropical jungle, and sandy beaches.

Photo credit: Clare Jurczak

Then you’ll move into your cultural homestay, where you’ll pair up with a coursemate and live with a local family for 12 days in the village of Majkhali. You’ll engage in domestic chores and eat meals with your host family, and learn about daily life in rural India through classes on natural history, farming, and alpine ecology.

Photo credit: Oscar Manguy

The final 32 days take you backpacking 85-110 miles through elevations from 6,000 to 15,500 feet in the soaring Himalayas. You’ll scramble across boulder fields, and travel over steep slopes of snow and loose rock through territory home to Himalayan black bear, tahr, and blue sheep. Temperatures fluctuate from 100°F in the valleys to 0°F at altitude. You’ll learn foundational backpacking skills—camping, cooking, navigation, Leave No Trace techniques—and as you build competence, may travel in student-led groups, culminating in a multi-day independent expedition.

You’ll return transformed—with outdoor skills tested in one of the world’s most demanding environments, cross-cultural understanding earned through living with local families, and friendships that will last a lifetime.

Photo credit: NOLS India