Alcohol

This makes you feel warm but it is actually bringing the temperature of your body down, sending a direct invitation to Hypothermia which decreases the breathing rate, heart beat, blood pressure affecting the nervous system directly. Also to mention, alcohol brings down the water level of the body resulting in dehydration making you prone to Acute Mountain Sickness(AMS). You must avoid alcohol one week prior and post to your trekking expedition to be on the safer side.

Home size Toiletries
Pack less, pack smart should be the underlying slogan of the Chadar Trek. Understanding that the load you pack is the load you’ll be carrying all through your journey is very crucial for the ones who wish to complete the challenging Chadar Trek.
Sunscreen, toothpaste, cold creams and other essentials are to be kept while packing but make sure you pack only the amount apt for the journey.
Contact Lenses

Contact lenses on Chadar Trek are advised to be avoided on higher altitude because of the lack of hygiene maintenance during the high altitude adventures making it prone to infections. Eyes being the most sensitive sensory organs cannot be taken for granted at all.
The contact lenses make the eyes more sensitive to glare in the daytime and difficult to adjust to the mountaineering setting at night. The lens solution also freezes because of the extreme temperature, rendering one more reason to avoid wearing contact lenses on Chadar Trek. You can wear spectacles underneath the round UV protected sunglasses to protect your eyes from snow blindness.
Cotton Gear
Cotton is a fabric that should be completely off your list of essentials to the Chadar Trek. The basic requirement of the cotton is to absorb the sweat and make you feel cooler. You don’t want that, right?
Also it would make walking through the water absolutely impossible as it would let water seep in and be absorbed by the fabric, making it heavy and difficult to walk in. You must go for things that do not retain water and is insulating in nature.
Plastic Ware

Are you planning to carry the low maintenance light-weighted plastic bottles on the Chadar Trek? Well, not a good plan at all! The cold weather didn’t spare the enormous Zanskar River, what will it do the water in the petty plastic bottle.
Hence it is preferred to carry water in the insulated thermos flask to keep it from freezing. With plastic wares strictly prohibited in the area, it is better not to include in your packing list.
Denims

Adventure thrills can only triumph if you are in comfortable attire. Denims are good for casual adventures but trekking in temperatures below zero is a serious deal. The way to survive the drastic weather conditions is to wear layers of clothes and not let any skin exposed to the cold.
This is not possible in case of denims as they become stiff in the extreme weather conditions, hence making it completely beyond the bounds of possibility to wear something over it. Also to mention jeans become really heavy when wet and require a lot of time to dry. Make sure you wear something comfortable to focus on the journey and avoid these distracting hurdles.
Heavy Sweater

It is advisable to avoid heavy sweaters and stick to the thin yet body warming thermals as they take up a lot of space also add unnecessary weight to your backpack. It is better to carry warmers and jackets rather than numerous sweaters to add unwanted misery.
Wet Wipes

Wet wipes something that is completely off logic to keep. With the water in the river Zanskar already frozen, the wet wipes would definitely not withstand the subzero temperatures. It definitely would be something you would regret keeping in your backpack.