Chopta Tungnath Winter Trek

We were a group of 7 friends who decided to venture on this trip in January amidst the peak winter. We started our journey from Rishikesh at 6.30 am on 23rd January in an 8 seater Innova which we booked in advance for 3 days for Rs.9000. It is advisable to take medication for motion sickness for those who suffer from it. We reached Sari village at 3.30 pm after stopping a considerable number of times on the way. The trek from Sari to Deoria tal (also known as Devariya tal) is of 2.3 km which we covered in 2 hours. During the trek, we witnesses the moon rise from behind the mountains and it was spectacular. For our night stay by the lake in tents, we had done our booking in advance with Mr Negi for Rs 600 per person. He is a very friendly and helpful man. After providing us with soup and sumptuous dinner by the bonfire, he provided us with sleeping bags and blankets for the night. The sleeping bags were very smelly. Hence, we did not use them. It gets really cold at night. Adequate protection must be taken to beat it. 5 of us huddled and slept in one tent due to the cold. There is no electricity in this place so one must carry his/her own torch. Also, there are no washrooms around. So for all practical purposes, you can go ahead with your nature calls behind any visible bush. The place is very calm but for the sound of leopards heard occasionally when they are roaming nearby in the middle of the night. It is fairly common to have them around at that time. We were expecting to see a lot of snow in that area as seen in the previous years. But there was not much snow this time as the winter wasn't that cold. We were disappointed. Before planning any trip to such places in winter, it should be made a point to find out from the local people about the scenario at that point of time. We spent most of our night talking and having fun. Watching the reflection of peaks slowly turn yellow in the lake water as the sun rises early in the morning is an amazing experience that one must not miss. We had breakfast and trekked down. Due to the not so severe winter, the road to Chopta was completely motorable and the trek till Chandrashila peak was possible. We reached Chopta in 1 hour and started our trek to Tungnath at 1pm. It is always advisable to reach Chopta and start the trek early in the day. Due to shortage of time, unfortunately, we could not trek till Chandrashila as we had to descend down before it got dark.  The trek was enjoyable but very tiring. The view from Tungnath was beautiful. The sun was casting its rays over the mountain slopes covered entirely with snow. The view made sure that the trek was definitely worth the effort. Descending was very easy and we covered half the path by sliding on the snow. It was a lot of fun. Food and water has to be carried as there are no shops on the way during winter. Snow boots are required in winter in order to trek. The permits we had taken at Deoria tal at a cost of Rs.75 per head in order to trek were not checked. We came down by 6.30 pm and started for Ukhimath where we stayed in the GMVN guesthouse. Their room charges ranged from Rs. 550 to 700. The stay was comfortable. Next morning, we visited the Omkareshwar temple which houses the Kedarnath idol in winters. We started back for Rishikesh at 10am and reached at 4pm stopping at the Dhari devi temple in between. The whole trip costed about Rs. 3000 per head. It has been a very memorable trip with a lot of wonderful experiences.