LakeModerate risk

Sissu Lake

Sissu village, Lahaul · Himachal Pradesh

An easy lake by Sissu village in Lahaul, a short drive through the Atal Tunnel from Manali.

Visit-safety grade
Moderate

Manageable with care. The biggest factor is altitude / ams: 3120 m — high altitude. Est. SpO₂ ≈ 89% arriving unacclimatised. AMS becomes common if you ascend too fast. Acclimatisation rules start here.

Altitude / AMS16 pts
3120 m — high altitude. Est. SpO₂ ≈ 89% arriving unacclimatised. AMS becomes common if you ascend too fast. Acclimatisation rules start here.
Remoteness / rescue5 pts
A town and basic help are not far off.
Water3 pts
Still water; standard boating and slippery-edge caution.

At 3120 m, altitude is the quiet risk. Arriving from low elevation in a single day gives your body no time to adjust — pace the climb where you can, and learn the early signs of AMS.

Score 24/100, re-derived from the site’s real characteristics — never a marketing grade. A higher number is not “don’t go”; it is “go informed.”

Know before you go
  • mild AMS possible for those driving up quickly from Manali through the tunnel
  • cold water and cold winds off the Chandra valley
  • icy paths and slush in winter and early spring
The safety code · lakes
  • If it sits high, the thin air — not the water — is the real risk; don't race up from the plains, and learn the signs of AMS.
  • Alpine water and weather turn dangerously cold fast, even in summer — carry warm layers.
  • Remote shores mean slow rescue; share your plan and turn back with time to spare.
When to go
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Prime windowShoulderOff-season
Photos

Photos via Wikimedia Commons — full attribution on the credits page.

The essentials
Nearest town
Sissu / Keylong
Elevation
3,120 m
Visit
Short walk
Approach
≈0.5 km each way · 20 m climb
Season
May–Oct (year-round via Atal Tunnel, winter snow)
Permits
2 to arrange (Himachal Pradesh)
How to reach
Starting point
Sissu / Keylong
Himachal Pradesh
By air
  • Kullu (KUU)~67 km
  • Dharamshala (Kangra) (DHM)~88 km
By rail
  • Joginder Nagar~63 km
  • Una Himachal~137 km
By road

Drive to the roadhead Sissu / Keylong. From Joginder Nagar (Mandi) (~63 km) shared taxis and state buses run the last leg to Sissu Lake.

Distances are straight-line (as the crow flies), computed from the coordinates. Real road distance and driving time in the mountains are longer — confirm current road status and the last motorable point with your operator, especially in monsoon and winter.

Right now
−4°, clear skies· wind 1 km/h

Live from Open-Meteo at this spot, adjusted to 3,120 m. Mountain weather turns fast — treat this as a hint, not a promise.

Altitude & air
High altitude
Elevation
3,120 m
Oxygen vs sea level
~68%
Est. SpO₂ (unacclimatised)
~89%
Air pressure
529 mmHg

AMS becomes common if you ascend too fast. Acclimatisation rules start here.

Where it is
3D replay

See it in 3D

A Google-Earth-style flyby that drops in from orbit and traces the real approach trail up to Sissu Lake(where it’s mapped in OpenStreetMap), over real satellite terrain — so you can read the climb and the lie of the land before you go.

More lakes
Serious
Pangong Tso
Ladakh
Serious
Chandratal Lake
Himachal Pradesh
Low
Loktak Lake
Manipur

Coordinates, heights and depths are approximate, curated from public sources — good enough to plan and to gauge risk, not surveyed. The safety grade is a deterministic guide, not a guarantee; conditions change with weather, water level and crowds.