'Rudranath ki Chadai, German ki Ladai'

Trek to Rudranath Temple

October 2008

The planning that started in August was on its full flow in the first week of October, 2008. Our next destination was the holy Rudranath Temple, 4^th of the Panch Kedar temples of Lord Shiva. Bhupi, Saini, my brother Deepak, his colleague Aseem were all set for another adventure. Wait a minute, I forgot to mention myself, but if I am writing this blog post, it only means that I joined them too ;-). After doing enough research about the destination and its nearby places we finalised the date to depart from Delhi. The meeting point was McDonalds of ISBT Kashmiri Gate. Because of the unbearable traffic jam that particular day, we had to change our route and travel half the distance by Delhi Metro. All of us gathered with our backpacks and jumped on to the burgers, at least for a week we can’t expect any good junk food. We took a bus to Rishikesh and reached somewhere around 4 in the morning. 

In order to save time we wanted to leave Rishikesh ASAP and move ahead, luckily a minibus from Rishikesh was ready to leave for Srinagar. My friend Monty was supposed to join us for the trip from Srinagar, so we decided to have our breakfast there. Even though we were hungry and the route from Rishikesh to Srinagar was of 4hours duration. I managed to control my hunger, but last night’s burgers started giving me hallucinations. We ordered Chai and paranthas at a restaurant in Srinagar, and greeted Monty. 6 of us took a bus to Gopeshwar and reached there around 2 o’ clock in the afternoon, had a good lunch there in Shangri La restaurant. Situated 5kms from Gopeshwar, Saggar is the starting point of the trek to Rudranath Mandir. It’s strange that instead of taking a jeep we planned to walk these 5kms, kind of warm up for the next day battle of 20kms trek. We reached Saggar and stayed at a small and affordable home stay run by a retired Army person. 

Me, Bhupi, Saini & Deepak (Standing)

Aseem and Monty

Karnaprayag

Women at work

That 5kms walk

Bhupi, Saini and Aseem went to a small ancient temple of the village, where Ramlila was being performed. Rest of us stayed and even felt glad with our decision when the three muskeeters returned totally exhausted climbing up the 300stairs that took them down to the temple. We called home informing that we have safely reached upto Saggar, and that the adventure was to begin the next day. Some of us took the advantage of amenities like hot water and took a bath in the cold temperature of Saggar. People who skip such activities in hot and sultry conditions of Delhi, usually perform these activities outside :P. We had our dinner, discussed a few issues as if we give any shit about it and went to sleep after setting 4am alarm on all 6 phones. We woke up next morning bundled our stuff, left a few things back that were not required and packed aloo paranthas with achaar. ‘Om Namah Shivaye’ and we commenced our trek to Rudranath. The trek to Rudranath is considered as the toughest amongst all the Panch Kedar temples. Initially we were planning to take a guide with us but later we dropped the idea, a thought strike up my mind that very moment and I jotted it down.

‘The path that is followed by self instinct takes you to the desired destination, no matter how the journey may be’, the destination can be counted as one of the explorations, but what stays close is the essence of the journey made. 

Temple at Saggar

the 3 muskeeters

all set for adventure. retired army person in red tracksuit

the Gang

The route from Saggar to Puu was quite tiring. Yes you got me right that place was named as Puu, a small meadow where we rested for a while. Saini bhaiya left a sign of existence at this place in the form of shit :P. We pulled up our socks and head towards the dense forest which ends at Lyuti Bugyal. Next 6-7kms were completely covered with dense forest and cascades. A group of 4 boys and 2 girls from a nearby town were behind us, but they followed different route. We were not sure that who was going wrong, and we weren’t worried either.

Puu

'Python, Cheetu (leopard) and Ballu (Bear) aaja beta kab tak chupega', these were the words we rhymed throughout the jungle hike. We all knew that one glimpse of any of these was capable enough of making us run madly in different directions. But the truth is that animals don’t like surprises, if you pop into them accidentally, it might piss them off. So, it is important to show your presence by making sounds. But however, if you are desperate enough to watch them live and bear the risk then go quiet. The vivid green colours and sound of numerous cascades added to the exhilarating experience of the jungle walk. The route was getting steeper and exhausting. Lyuti Bugyal was visible and a cottage was also there. We had tea, Maggi, another glass of tea, rested for a while and then started trekking again. Fatigued by the 2km vertical climb from Lyuti Bugyal, we finally managed to reach Panar. The sight was stupendous, depicting vistas of nature. The clouds were playing hide and seek with the mountains, and at that instance I memorized the Misty Mountains of the Lord of The Rings. 12kms journey upto Panar was completed, and we sensed an achievement, but what lay ahead of us was another 8kms trek to be covered the same day.

into the wild

Lyuti Bugyal

Monty, totally exhausted

on the way to panar

The local people told us that the route is difficult only upto Panar, and that rest of the route is easy. At Saggar the board tells that Rudranath is at a distance of 18kms, but my legs have passed a signal to my brain to mention that the trek is no less than 20kms. After clicking pictures on the edge of a precipice we head towards the Rudranath Temple. The mountain breeze soon turned out to be harsh and the route was covered with mist and clouds. We could barely see around 20-30mts of the rocky route, the feeling was like Frodo and Sam walking the Secret Stairs into Mondor. Enough with my Lord of the Rings locations, but it somewhat resembled. The walk seemed to be never ending and it felt like Lord Shiva was examining our devotion. Even an atheist will change his/her opinions after visiting such beautiful places which are difficult to reach.

Cottage at Panar

View from Panar

on the edge of a precipice

We crossed a ridge named Pitrodhar, the highest point of the trek. The only thought disturbing our confidence level was the very truth that we had to trudge back every step that we were taking. A glimpse of the beautiful Himalayan Monal on our way boosted us with energy, and we madly ran after the bird in the bunch of rhododendron trees. The sun was about to set, so we started walking again without wasting the time. After constantly hearing the sound of the wind, it was hard to believe that the valley also rejoices with the other melodious tunes, 'the ringing of temple bells'. We finally made it, Rudranath temple was visible and the temple bells were calling us. After keeping bags in a cottage, some 100mts before the temple, me and Saini went to the temple. The evening Aarti at the temple along with the constant ringing of bells was very pleasant to hear in this quiet and remote place. After reaching Rudranath, we started believing in the quote said by the locals, 'Rudranath ki Chadai, German ki Ladai'. Because the trek is as tough as fighting Germans in World War II.

Misty Mountains

May be its Bear Skull

Rudranath at far end

We returned to the cottage and started checking that whether our knees are in place or not. I could hear my legs abusing me because of the cruelty that I performed on them. The group that I mentioned about in the beginning reached in the dark, they wouldn’t have made it without torch. While checking the pictures in the digicam, we came to know that the words used by Aseem to define his camera were exaggerated. Bhupi bhaiya also had limited batteries and the continuous drizzling most of the time, prevented us from clicking lots of photographs. I washed my hands after dinner and by chance I looked above at the sky. I wasn’t able to believe what I was actually seeing – the stars, they were countless. I never saw these much in my life, and it felt as if I had telescopic eyes. Yet another discussion started about the existence of god, some sticked to their thoughts whereas some contradicted. No matter what we discussed, everyone sensed the positive vibes at Rudranath.

Every individual with a bottle of water was preparing to sit alone and attend the natures call. It was sheer pleasure to behold the beautiful sunrise from Rudranath. The alpine meadows, snow capped peaks, ancient temple, clear sky and pure environment makes Rudranath special. We visited the sacred temple of Rudranath, where the pandit was about to start the Shringaar Aarti. Twenty minutes of aarti at the temple revitalized and purified my soul to unfold a new beginning. After clicking a few pictures on auto mode we returned back to our cottage to have breakfast. We kept on gazing at the unparalleled beauty of the region and wished the place goodbye, with a promise to return back someday. Without showing least bit of pity towards our crying legs, the gang started trekking back to Saggar. Panar was easily accessible and a few climbs were to be crossed, the clouds again came in our way toughening the journey. The mist was stunning to watch in the beginning but later it was pretty annoying because we couldn’t get a good look of Panar - Too much of something, sooner or later will definitely exasperate. Tea, Maggi and drizzling was a treat at Lyuti Bugyal. The person who runs that small dhaba lives all alone there. It feels great to meet such people who live in the isolated places, only to serve the avid travellers like us. It is my desire to live at least for 2weeks all alone in a remote place, where I can hear the sound of the breeze & chirping of birds, where I can see the panoramas of nature and experience total solitude.

the enchanting sunrise

Himalayan Range

Rudranath Mandir

We trekked back through the most unlikely shortcuts where our legs were going through the durability test. Finally after the struggle of hours, we returned back to Saggar, and left for Rishikesh next morning. Exploring the streets of Rishikesh, Ram Jhula, Laxman Jhula in the evening was a good experience. One advice, dine in German Bakery near Lakshman Jhula, if you want to see beautiful foreigners (quite expensive) ;-). Some shopping in Rishikesh and we left for Delhi.

For mythological information about Rudranath: http://www.euttaranchal.com/tourism/pilgrimage/rudranath.php

Accommodation Options is available from May to October End

Saggar (available)

Lyuti Bugyal (available - hut)

Panar (available – hut)

Rudranath (available – hut and dharamshala)

Love at first sight with the Himalayas

Chopta - Tungnath - Chandrashila
Date: 29 December 2006

I was always passionate about travelling, especially in the unknown and unnamed mountains. But never got a chance to evoke the adventurer side of me. The beauty of nature has always inspired me and I feel pity for its destruction being done by human beings. My brother, Deepak and a bunch of friends planned a trip to escape the hectic schedule of Delhi so as to celebrate New Year in peace. People usually go to places like Shimla and Mussoorie as a weekend trip but we all knew which places are worth visiting to get a break from city dreams. We planned a trip to Chopta and Tungnath Temple in Uttarakhand state. I happily agreed, when I was offered to join the group for the trip. Later, I thought that I will get bored with bhai and his friends because of the age difference. But none of this happened, and the company was to die for.

We booked Tata Sumo Deluxe and our journey started from Delhi in the chilling night of 29^th December. There were 6 of us in the cab me, Deepak, Bhupi, Saini, Bhuwnesh and last but obviously not the least, our driver. He was not driver actually, he owned the cab. The driver played a very crucial part in our trip to Chopta. He taught us many things like 'things not to do stuff' in your first trip, you will soon get to know what exactly I am talking about.

So finally our journey commenced with the words “jai bholenath”, we crossed the Delhi border and it was damn freezing night. Thanks to mother that she packed a blanket in our bag (in our absence). It was a relief as soon as we covered ourselves in the blanket. People who are addicted to travelling hardly sleep during the journey, we followed the same ritual.  

Tata sumo

first encounter with the himalayas

Every moment of the journey consists of those special moments which you will cherish even after decades. While traveling you are on your own; free to do anything, go anywhere, and do whatever you want (but don’t hurt the privacy of others). That night was the foggiest night I had ever seen as we could barely see around 2-3 meters ahead. We stopped somewhere around 80kms before Haridwar. There were three reasons that stop by:

• it was very foggy
• one of our Sumo’s headlight stopped working
• another was awfully dim

So we had to stop in order to avoid any accident as trucks were preparing for F1 Race.

We started driving again at 4 o clock in the morning, had a cup of tea at Haridwar and breakfast in Srinagar (Uttarakhand). After having breakfast we took the cab to a car repair shop where the mechanic took nearly 2hours to repair the headlight which still wasn’t perfectly working. We travelled nonstop upto Chopta and carried a few packets of chips, juice, Glucon –D, and chocolates with us. Always carry glucon – d and chocolates whenever you are going for a hike as it provides energy to the body. The sun was setting and we were about to reach Chopta. Travelling on the road 2,500mts above sea level, was an adventure in itself, snow capped Himalayan peaks were distinctly visible. This was my first encounter with the mighty Himalayas. The sun was about to set and our cab got stuck on an icy road 2km before Chopta. Somehow after a few attempts we managed to cross that snow covered curve (a curve to remember). 

the curve

Finally we reached the Mini Switzerland of India – Chopta. It was the most beautiful place I ever saw with my naked eyes till date. 

(Me, Deepak, Bhuwnesh, Saini and Bhupi in black jacket)

Two guys were running a Dhaba in Chopta and took care of accommodation facility. Dying with hunger, we ordered dinner as soon as we reached. The Dhabha owner told us that one married couple in the late 30’s was also staying in another cottage. They came all the way from Kolkata to this remote place and that too in winters, hats off to their guts and adventurous spirit. In front of the bonfire, we had our dinner. The night was freezing and hauntingly beautiful. After seeing an undying interest for traveling in the soul of that Bengali couple, I made a resolution to visit the Himalayas at least once, every year. Rather than luxury beach resorts or naked sun bath in Goa, I seek peace, beauty and adventure in the splendid Himalayan range.

The trip to Chopta and Tungnath Mandir brought many surprises for me some were god gift and other were by our legendary driver and his Dhanno (Cab).

It was hard to get a good sleep because of the harsh winter, and even the most childish thoughts were coming into my mind like “what if the two dhabha owners and the Bengali couple are ghost or dacoits”. I laughed on my stupidity and went to sleep. We woke up early in the morning to capture the spectacular sunrise of the Himalayan range. We cocooned ourselves in good warm clothes but were still shivering with cold. The sunrays were kissing the cliffs of the snow capped peaks; we clicked some snaps while walking down the road because we dare not miss that. I instantly fell in love with the Himalayas, it was love at first sight. While looking down the forest I saw a fox, searching for food I guess. I called Bhupi Bhaiya to click its picture, but maybe I was too loud to make him run away. He might have sensed danger after hearing the tiger’s voice (mine), lolz. 

early morning view from Chopta

The mighty Himalayan range and me

Chopta - Mini Switzerland

Each and every animal respect god’s best creation and is afraid of him, which is human. Only in most strange circumstances animals attack humans. It was great adventure watching the fox free to roam anywhere. You might be wondering “why is this guy feeling so exhilarated over just a fox”. Let me explain when you see animals in a zoo your expression is like “wow I am so much near to them” and you are able to see many animals at one place. But when you see any animal in real roaming with a free spirit, the feeling is completely different and one senses amazement in his/her heart. It is like when you watch a movie in a theater and when you watch the shooting of the movie. When you watch a movie you get to know the whole story, see different characters and locations and it’s a great experience. But when you watch a shooting of a movie you are able to see just one or two shots yet you feel amazed and share it with your friends and families about it for a long time.

 (driver bhaiya on extreme left)

We had breakfast and packed lunch for the trek to Tungnath Mandir from Chopta. We packed our bags with necessary items and started trekking to Tungnath. Our driver also wanted to join, we told him that although it is just 4km trek but quite steep. He joined us and we were also accompanied by a local bhutia dog, after we fed him some biscuits. The Dhabha owner said that the dog normally goes with people right up to the Tungnath Mandir and it was great to have him with us. So finally we commenced our trek by ringing the bell at the commencement point of the trek. The trekking trail was surrounded by oak, deodar and rhododendron trees. After trekking 1km we encountered the snow on the path. It was the first time I saw natural snow. 


The driver got tired after trekking 2km and returned, we told him to take a good sleep because we were to leave after reaching back down to Chopta. Now there were 5 companions and a dog on a mission to walk the snow-covered path to reach the new heights. Nature can be harsh at any moment at such altitude. We were like pandavas and a dog was also walking with us, what we were missing was draupadi ;-). The entire trek was steep and we started taking rest at regular intervals. Last 1½ km was totally covered with 2-3 feet snow. We didn’t carried too much of water with us and biscuits made us thirsty so we fed the dog with most of the biscuits (do carry enough water with you). Initially it was fun walking on the snow but later on it became quite tough for us but believe me it was an unforgettable experience. “When we go through tough circumstances the taste of achievement is priceless”. A person finds the true meaning of life and himself while trekking because when you're trekking your mind is clear and free from all confusions. You have focus, target and powerful presence of life in the form of natural beauty.

the trail to Tungnath temple

At last we reached the highest temple of Lord Shiva Tungnath Mandir set at an elevation of 3,684mts above sea level. Tungnath Mandir is third of Panch kedar, rest are Kedarnath, Madhmaheshwar, Rudranath and Kalpeshwar. Sixth kedar is situated in Nepal by the name of Pashupatinath. The temple was empty and all houses around it were covered with snow. Even though the town was lonely, it depicted sheer beauty. 

Tungnath Temple

The locals stay at Tungnath only from May to October and they usually come down when the gates of the temple are closed. The view of the Himalayan range from Tungnath Mandir was enchanting. We took off our shoes and walked barefooted in the premises of the temple “bhakti jaag gayi thi yaar”. The ancient stones lying there were as freezing as the ice slab. I saw a beautiful brown mouse running behind those rocks and told everyone to take a look at it but they were not able to take a good sight of him, I encountered him twice and was happy, but my brother who didn’t got a glimpse of that mouse said to me that ”it’s no big deal”. 


After wearing our shoes on we started trekking to Chandrashila the summit of the mountain situated at 4000mts above sea level. Chandrashila offers 270 degree view of the Himalayan range. I was leading and mistakenly we picked up the wrong route, the dog didn’t accompany us further and returned. I forgot to tell you but we named him as ‘sheru’. The climb was getting steeper with every step we took. We wondered if we are following the correct path or not, but then the famous quote crossed my mind; 'I chose the path less travelled by'. 


We didn’t bothered to return and head towards the summit, but soon we realized that it wasn’t path, it was a slope of the mountain. The steep climb was dangerous; we gathered all our fears and dumped it with every step we took. After trekking on the thick blanket of snow for 1km we finally saw a yellow flag playing with the wind, it was the Chandrashila peak. We didn’t utter a word after reaching the summit and enjoyed the fascinating views of the Himalayas. This was the moment when I totally fell in love with the mountains, it was an affair to remember. We were standing on the highest point around. You might not find luxury, crowd, and facilities at Chopta like you get in places like Shimla, Mussoorie etc. but the beauteousness of nature from Tungnath and Chandrashila is worth watching at least once in a lifetime. 


After getting allured and praising the beauty of nature we trekked back fast to Chopta as we were supposed to depart the same day. While trekking back, we rolled down the snow slopes. As soon as we reached down to Chopta, a baba asked us how weather was and we told him that the sky was as blue as the ocean. He asked whether anyone saw a mouse at the temple. I was amazed with his question and I gave him a “how did you know” look. “Yes I saw it twice”, I replied quickly in order to solve the mystery. Then the baba told me something that I am not going to forget ever, his words were 'samajh lo Ganesh ji ke darshan ho gaye'. It was wonderful to hear those words from him. 


We had lunch there and started the cab to return so that we could reach Delhi by the morning of 1^st January. The driver bhaiya said, “ab toh new year Delhi mein hi banaoge naa, pahuncha dun raat tak Delhi”, we said – thik hai. He drove the cab like one driving on Jaipur Highway. We told him to slow down a little, because when driving in the mountains you never get second chance to prevent the accident. Some 30kms before Rudraprayag both the headlights of the cab stopped working and we were left in middle of nowhere. We repaired the headlights after reaching Rudraprayag. Wanna know how we covered those deadly 30kms in darkness?? - By following other trucks and we were able to see the road by the tail light of the trucks. Those 30kms were the longest 30kms of my life. But on an all these are the things from which one gets to learn and so as to prevent it from re occurring in future. “While travelling, do focus on the destination but remember it is the journey which is taking you there” so enjoy your trip and learn from it. We drove back to Delhi after the headlight was repaired. 

the empty town of Tungnath

route to chandrashila

chandrashila

rolling stones

Tips:

·         Before booking a cab do confirm that if the cab is properly working and well maintained or not, else your precious time will be wasted.

·         Respect nature and do not harm natural beauty.

·         Bring back plastic bags with you if you are carrying any while trekking

·         Do carry a torch, lighter and match box.

For detailed information about Chopta: http://www.euttaranchal.com/tourism/chopta.php