Best Treks Near Guwahati: Nongriat’s Root Bridges, the David Scott Trail, Laitlum and Garbhanga

Hiking near Guwahati means a drive up to the Khasi Hills

Guwahati sits on the Brahmaputra at between about 50 and 680 m, with forested hills inside and around the city, but the treks most people mean when they search “treks near Guwahati” are across the border in Meghalaya. Wikipedia puts Shillong 100 km from Guwahati by road, at 1,495–1,965 m, and the best-known trails start within an hour or two of Shillong: the root bridges below Sohra (Cherrapunji), the David Scott Trail near Mawphlang, and the canyon at Laitlum. All three are walks on stone paths and steps rather than mountain climbs, which makes them good first treks, but the steps are relentless, and the climb back out is where most people struggle.

Getting from Guwahati to the trailheads

Meghalaya Tourism measures its trailheads from Guwahati’s airport at Borjhar, on the city’s western edge, so add or subtract for where you live. The figures it gives make the planning simple: Laitlum is the closest and Nongriat the furthest, and only Laitlum works comfortably as a same-day trip from the city.

• Laitlum: about 121 km from Guwahati airport. Leave by 6 AM, walk down to Rasong and back, and drive home the same evening.
• David Scott Trail (Mawphlang): about 151 km from Guwahati airport. A weekend, with a night in Shillong or near the trail.
• Nongriat (Tyrna): about 177 km from Guwahati airport, via Sohra. Two days at least, three if you want Rainbow Falls without rushing.

Nongriat: the root bridge trek from Tyrna

Nongriat, about 15 km from Sohra, is known for its two-level living root bridge, grown from the roots of rubber fig trees. Meghalaya Tourism describes the walk as a descent from Tyrna village of about 3,500 steps on one page and about 3,000 stone steps on another; either way, every one of them has to be climbed on the way back. Smaller single-root bridges sit along the way, and a short trek beyond the double-decker bridge leads to the turquoise pool at Rainbow Falls. From Sohra, a taxi to Tyrna takes 30–45 minutes.

From Guwahati, Nongriat is best done as an overnight: drive to Sohra, start down from Tyrna early the next morning, and either stay a night in the village or climb back out the same afternoon. The steps are steep and often wet, and Meghalaya Tourism advises going with a local guide or a companion who knows the route and the language. Its recommended season is October to March. In the monsoon, pack rain gear and check forecasts for heavy rain and landslide warnings before you leave Guwahati.

The David Scott Trail: 16 km on a British-era mule track

The David Scott Trail is the gentlest long walk near Shillong. Meghalaya Tourism describes it as a mule track built in the 1800s during British rule, about 16 km long, through open grassland, pine forest and shaded groves, with stretches beside and across streams of the Umiam river on wooden bridges and stepping stones, and an old stone bridge on the way. Its trekking page rates it easy, gives an elevation range of 1,536–1,829 m, and says water is available along the trail and Jio and Airtel phone networks work best.

There is one point to settle before you go: which end to start from. Meghalaya Tourism’s destination page starts the walk at the Sacred Grove at the Mawphlang village entrance, where there is a ticket kiosk, and ends it at Ladmawphlang. Its trekking page recommends the reverse, starting at Ladmawphlang and walking via Laitsohma to Mawphlang, and lays it out as two days with a riverside camp. Mawphlang is about 25 km from Shillong, a 45-minute drive, so from Guwahati it fits a weekend.

Laitlum canyon and the stairway to Rasong

Laitlum, about 25 km from Shillong in the East Khasi Hills, is a ridge over deep green gorges. Most visitors stop at the viewpoint; trekkers take the stone stairway that Meghalaya Tourism says descends thousands of steps into the valley to the village of Rasong. The nearest large village is Smit, about 5 km away and a 15-minute drive from the canyon. The recommended season is October to May, and the advice is the same as elsewhere in the Khasi Hills: go with a local guide or someone who knows the area and the language. Treat the climb back up as the main event, and carry water and food for it.

Guwahati’s own hills: Garbhanga and the city ridges

Closer to home, Garbhanga, on Guwahati’s south-western edge about 15 km from the city, is a forest of about 117 sq km between the Garbhanga and Rani ranges, near Deepor Beel. Wikipedia records 36 mammal, 219 bird and 168 butterfly species there, and a 2022 Assam Gazette notice proposed declaring it a wildlife sanctuary. We found no official forest-department trekking programme there with published routes or fees, and observers have reported clouded leopard and bison there, so don’t walk in alone: go with an organised, guided group or ask the Assam Forest Department first.

Inside the city, the hills that break up Guwahati, Nilachal with the Kamakhya temple among them, give steep road and step climbs that make useful training walks before a Meghalaya trip. They are training ground rather than treks, and early mornings in the dry season are the time to use them.

When to trek near Guwahati and Shillong

The Khasi Hills are among the wettest places in India, and the season matters more than the trail. Shillong’s 1991–2020 averages show about 424 mm of rain in June and 402 mm in July against 13 mm in January, and the hills around Sohra get more. Winter is dry but cold: January averages a high of 15 °C and a low of about 6 °C in Shillong, so carry a warm layer even if Guwahati was mild when you left.

A 6-week plan for Nongriat’s steps, trained in Guwahati

None of these treks needs technical skill. What they need is the ability to go down and then up a few thousand stone steps without your knees or calves giving out, often on the same day. Guwahati’s humid summer and heavy monsoon make indoor and stairwell training the reliable option. The full reasoning is in our guide on how to prepare for a trek; this is the Guwahati version, three or four sessions a week.

1. 1

   Weeks 1–2: legs and lungs

   Two strength sessions (goblet squats, reverse lunges, step-ups, calf raises, 3 sets of 10–12) and two brisk 45-minute walks, early, before the humidity builds.

2. 2

   Weeks 3–4: stairs, up and down

   Climb your building’s stairs for 20–30 minutes continuously, walking down at a controlled pace each time, because the descent is what makes legs sore at Nongriat. Add slow lowering step-downs from a low step, 3 sets of 8 per leg.

3. 3

   Week 5: the dress rehearsal

   A 2–3 hour walk on a city hill in the boots and pack you will use, with 3–5 kg and 2 litres of water. Keep one strength session.

4. 4

   Week 6: ease off

   Halve the volume, keep a short stair session early in the week, and check the weather in Sohra and Shillong before you drive.

Trekking safely in Meghalaya from Guwahati

• Hire a local guide. Meghalaya Tourism advises it for Nongriat, Laitlum and the David Scott Trail, for the route and the language.
• Start early. Steps are slower than you expect, and afternoon cloud and rain are common in the Khasi Hills.
• Wear shoes with grip and take the steps down slowly; wet stone is slippery and a fall on a long staircase is serious.
• Pack for cold and rain together: a warm layer for Shillong’s winter mornings and a rain jacket in any month.
• Check landslide warnings for the Shillong and Sohra roads in the monsoon, as Meghalaya Tourism suggests.
• See a doctor first if you have heart, lung or knee problems, high blood pressure, or are pregnant.

If you have an apartment or college gym, Personal Gym Training in Guwahati puts the same coach on your phone there, and a group of friends heading to Meghalaya can train together with Group Classes in Guwahati from ₹499 each. For low-impact cardio between trips, see cycling in Guwahati, and if you’re also eyeing a race, our guide to the Guwahati marathon calendar. A day on the steps burns plenty; the TDEE calculator helps you eat enough for it, and healthy food in Guwahati covers what to pack. Everything else is on our page for online personal training in Guwahati.