Trek or trekking is a long journey undertaken on foot

Walking

Walking is one of the main gaits of locomotion among legged animals, and is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults over the stiff limb or limbs with each step...

 in areas where common means of transport

Transport

Transport or transportation is the movement of people, cattle, animals and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, rail, road, water, cable, pipeline, and space. The field can be divided into infrastructure, vehicles, and operations...

 is generally not available. Trekking is not mountaineering

Mountaineering

Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...

; it is days of walking along with adventure.

Etymology

The term derived from the South African Dutch

Afrikaans

Afrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...

 word trek (noun), trekken (verb), (literally meaning to "pull, travel"), became a word in English language

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 in mid 19th century, and means a long arduous journey, typically on foot.

Trekking in the Himalayas

The Himalayan

Himalayas

The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...

 routes are famous for attracting a large number of trekkers. Typical trekking regions in Nepal

Nepal

Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...

 are Annapurna

Annapurna

Annapurna is a section of the Himalayas in north-central Nepal that includes Annapurna I, thirteen additional peaks over and 16 more over ....

, Dolpo

Dolpo

Dolpo is a high-altitude culturally Tibetan region in the upper part of the Dolpa District of western Nepal, bordered in the north by the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Part of the region lies in Shey Phoksundo National Park...

, Langtang

Langtang

Langtang is a region in Nepal to the north of Kathmandu and bordering Tibet. It is protected as Langtang National Park and has a number of high peaks including Langtang Lirung . As of 2010, the entrance ticket to the park cost 2400 Nepali Rupees for foreigners.About 4,500 people live inside the...

, and Mount Everest

Mount Everest

Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...

. Other popular trekking routes in India include Chandra Taal

Chandra Taal

Chandra Taal , or Chandra Tal, is situated at an altitude of about in the Himalayas. Mountains of scree overlook the lake on one side, and a magnificent cirque presents a view on the other. The name of the lake originates from its crescent shape...

, Gomukh

Gomukh

Gomukh, the terminus or snout of the Gangotri Glacier, from where Bhagirathi River originates. The place is situated at a height of 11,500 ft. It is one of the largest in the Himalayas with an estimated volume of over 27 cubic kilometers....

, Hemkund

Hemkund

Hemkunt Sahib or Hemkund Sahib is a pilgrimage site for Sikhs in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, India. With a setting of a glacial lake surrounded by seven mountain peaks and each peak is adorned by a Nishan Sahib on its cliff, it is located in the Himalayas at an elevation of 15,200 ft as...

, Kafni Glacier

Kafni Glacier

The Kafni Glacier is located in the upper reaches of the Kumaon Himalayas, to the southeast of Nanda Devi. The glacier gives rise to the Kafni River, which is a tributary of the Pindar River. The Pinder River is a tributary to Alaknanda River, which eventually is one of the two headstreams of the...

, Kangchenjunga

Kangchenjunga

Kangchenjunga is the third highest mountain of the world with an elevation of and located along the India-Nepal border in the Himalayas.Kangchenjunga is also the name of the section of the Himalayas and means "The Five Treasures of Snows", as it contains five peaks, four of them over...

, Kedarnath, Kedartal

Kedartal

Kedartal is a glacial lake situated at an altitude of 4,750m in the Garhwal region of the Himalayas in India...

, Manaslu

Manaslu

Manaslu , also known as Kutang) is the eighth highest mountain in the world, and is located in the Mansiri Himal, part of the Nepalese Himalayas, in the west-central part of Nepal. Its name, which means "Mountain of the Spirit", comes from the Sanskrit word Manasa, meaning "intellect" or "soul"...

, Milam Glacier

Milam Glacier

Milam Glacier is a major glacier of the Kumaon Himalaya. It is located in the tehsil of Munsiyari, part of the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand, India, about northeast of Nanda Devi. It ranges in elevation from about to about at its snout. It covers around and is long.Milam Glacier is...

, Nanda Devi Sanctuary

Nanda Devi National Park

The Nanda Devi National Park is a national park situated around the peak of Nanda Devi, , in the state of Uttarakhand in northern India. It was established as national park in 1982. Along with the adjoining Valley of Flowers National Park to the northwest, it was inscribed a World Heritage Site by...

, Pindari Glacier

Pindari Glacier

The Pindari Glacier is a glacier found in the upper reaches of the Kumaon Himalayas, to the southeast of Nanda Devi, Nanda Kot. The glacier flows to the south for a short distance of about and gives rise to the Pindari River which meets the Alakananda at Karnaprayag in the Garhwal district.The...

, Richenpong

Richenpong

Rinchenpong is a town in West Sikkim, India. It is situated in West Sikkim, about 125 km from Gangtok, at an altitude of 5576 feet above sea level amidst a heavily forested area. It is famous for the Rigsum monastery and trekking routes....

, Roopkund

Roopkund

Roopkund is a glacial lake in Uttarakhand state of India famous due to more than five hundred human skeletons found at the edge of a lake...

, Sar Pass

Sar Pass Trek

The Sar Pass is in Parvati Valley of Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh, a state of India. This trek is being organised every year by Youth Hostels Association of India. One batch of 40 to 50 persons starts everyday from 1 May to 31 May. This is one of the most challenging and difficult treks...

, Satopanth Tal

Satopanth tal

Satopanth Tal is a lake in Uttarakhand, India, located in the midst of snow-capped peaks at an altitude of above sea-level. The lake is considered to be of religious significance to the local people; residents of Mana village throw the ashes of the dead in the lake.There is a saint known as Moni...

, Saurkundi Pass

Saurkundi Pass Trek

The Saurkundi Pass Trek is a hiking trail in the Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh. The trek is a 11-day program and participants hike every day during the period. The groups range from 40 to 50 persons...

, Singalila Ridge

Singalila Ridge

The Singalila Ridge is a North - South running mountain ridge in Northwestern West Bengal, India.The district of Ilam falls on the western part of this ridge and the northern ridge ends up in Sikkim Part of the Himalayas, it separates other mountain ranges of West Bengal from other Himalayan...

, and Valley of Flowers.