Carry 2 pair of synthetic track pants. Track pants are light and when things get cold you can wear one over the other.

Carry 2 Full sleeve tees with collar.

Fleece jacket - sweaters are highly discouraged.

A full sleeve thick jacket.

Carry 4 pairs of undergarments.

Get 2 pairs of thermal inners.

Carry 2 pairs of sports socks. 2 pairs of woolen socks.

Woolen monkey cap/balaclava that cover the ear.

Woolen hand gloves + synthetic glove (water proof). If you dont have synthetic gloves, get two pairs of woolen gloves and a surgical glove.

Hot water bottle/Bag - available at any medical store.

Sun glasses, branded company with 100% UV protection. Curved ones will cover your eyes well. Sunglasses prevent snow blindness. Sunglasses are mandatory for this trek.

Gumboot, if not purchased from Leh.

Backpack (55 - 65 L) with sturdy straps and supporting frame. Daypack (20 L) is required only if you wish to offload your backpack to our support team. If you don't want to carry your backpack you can give it to porter, but you have to inform us in advance and charges would be Rs. 3750/- extra for 5 trek days per bag. Please also do inform us about this at least 15 days in advance.

Trekking shoes: Good standard trekking shoes are sufficient for the trek. On Chadar, which is solid ice or a slight cover of snow on slippery ice, trekkers have found to their amazement that a simple gumboot finally is the best for Chadar. Most of the outside agencies in order to impress tell about crampons. In my years of experience in Ladakh and on Chadar too, I can absolutely say that crampons are quite dicey - quite a few trekkers have injured themselves or worse broken their ankle while a crampon get stuck on the fine cracks in the ice. Gumboot is available in Leh hardware shop and can be purchased here itself. If your shoe size is 9-10, getting a pair might be tough..so start searching as soon as you land in Leh. Sports shoes are not allowed. You need traction on snow and sport shoes with their PVC soles are hardly the choice. Ensure the shoes are well broken in before the trek. Trekkers will soon learn and modify their trek to the "penguin walk" style on seeing from the porters and guide! It is a kind of dragging your foot and not lifting much.

People who wear spectacles, choose one of these: i. Use contact lenses. ii.

Photochromatic glasses.

If either of the above is not possible, wear your spectacles and carry a big sunglass that can be worn over your spectacles.

A woolen head-scarf or muffler.

Trekking pole is mandatory.

Light towel (should be thin, quick drying kind).

Chapstick or lip balm.

Cold cream and sun screen lotion (SPF 40+). While sun screen help prevent sun burns, a better option is to stay covered.

2 Water bottles (1 L each). The insulated water bottles are good but even normal water bottles will suffice.

Personal medicine kit containing:Crocin - 6 tablets/Avomine - 4 tablets/Avil 25mg - 4 tablets/Combiflam -5 tablets/Disprin - 10 tablets/Norflox - 10 tablets/Crepe bandage - 3 to 5 meters/Band aid - 10 strips/Digene - 10 tablets/Gauze cloth - 1 small role/Leukoplast - 1 small roll/Cotton - 1 small roll/ORS - 5 packets/Betadine or any antiseptic cream/Volini or Moov or Relispray/Diamox - 10 tablets (to be taken only if required and but not as preventive medicine/Any other medicine that you take.

Personal toilet kit (minimal) and toilet paper.

LED Torch with extra set of cells (head lamps are much more preferable).

Small repair kit consisting of safety pins, needle, thread and string (mandatory).

Camera, memory-cards, batteries etc (carry enough spare batteries. Electricity is not available)

While packing, use plastic bags to compartmentalize things and carry few extra plastic bags for wet clothes

Snacks, colas, alcohol and personal food – No need to overburden yourself with food. Do not carry any disposable plastic bottles like (Bisleri, Aquafina), plastic wrapped/packaged items. Do not bring any non bio degradable material.

After packing, weigh your gear. It should be in the range of 8-10 kg – preferably on the lighter side. Anything heavier, you will need to iterate and remove what is not essential.

Carry light and what is essential. As an example, toothpaste should be bought in small size (that can last you 10 days).

Some general advice about clothing: To protect yourself from cold, dressing in layers is the mantra. Two T-shirts worn one over the other is warmer than a Tshirt that is thick. 3 T-shirts worn one over the other is as good as a full sweater. This is just a guideline. If you are prone to cold carry extra warm clothing.