Accessible for tourists for about 20 years now, Dzuko valley is central to the beauty of the northeast. Located on the borders of Manipur and Nagaland, Dzuko valley trek is a must-visit. The trek tasks about 4 to 6 hours depending on your skills. The trek has 2 different routes from the Vishwema side of Nagaland. Both of them have steep climbs via steps covering ~2kms and then the 4km walk along the grasslands. Once you are through the steps the grasslands get easier to walk. The ideal way is to spend a night or two at the Dzuko valley.
Staying for a night at the valley will allow you to descend from your stay to the actual valley. This will easily add another 3kms of the steep hike. Most people go only to the homestay and do not descend to the valley. But thankfully I had a few crazy ones who never miss these experiences. They made sure to drag my lazy ass as well. The accommodation at Dzuko valley is maintained by the youth of the Angami tribe. The most popular tribe of the 16 officially recognized tribes of Nagaland. Accommodation and services are basic and suitable only for those who wouldn't mind campsites. With increasing travelers may be the facilities will improve but for now, it's as close as you can be to nature.
We were 5 of us and we did a few crazy things. We were too naive. We didn't take a guide, we took our cars halfway through the trek, it got dark and we couldn't continue our trek and halted midway in the night, with no food for almost 24 hours, and then the magic happened. Witnessed a star-studded night with shooting stars constantly firing from 2 AM. We reached Dzuko valley the next day and decided to spend the night there. We were provided some basic food since we hadn't pre-booked. The camps were getting extremely cold on December nights but thankfully the fire, stars, blankets, and 4 of us in cramped one bed kept us going for the night. The next day after a plate of maggie we descended to the valley. Below is a panoramic view of the valley.
You are not allowed to camp in the valley and everyone descending down is expected to get back to the camp. We spent about 2 hours in the valley and then started our trek back to Vishwema.
Tip: The place gets extremely cold at night. Book a guide, if you need proper accommodation and food.
The magnificence of Dzuko valley will stay with me forever ❤️🙏