In short "For First time, I am witnessing the snow covered mountains, thrilled at the edge of the valley, pleasant surroundings and a Turquoise color river with a pure in quality is flowing through the valleys added a pleasant feeling towards the journey . I am mesmerized by the view it has given to me and by the friends I have made through out the trip"
Salem -------TRAIN-------> Chennai.
We booked over night train (9.45PM) and we will reach Chennai by next day morning 3.30AM . Then our flight was @7.45AM to Jolly Grant Airport, Dehradun.
Chennai ----> Flight ----> Jolly Grant Airport, Dehradun (through connecting flight in Bangalore)
There is only cab/taxi are available in airport and that are too expensive. So we have to walk around 2KM to reach Rishikesh - Haridwar bypass road. From there we can get transport(bus/cab) to Rishikesh or Haridwar.
Jolly Grant Airport ----walk(2KM)----> Rishikesh-Haridwar Bypass ----share auto/bus (Rs.15/ppl)-----> Bhaniyawala ----cab (Rs.100/ppl)----> Haridwar
After reaching Haridwar, booked a room near bus stand for Rs.300/day for 2ppl. Then also booked tickets to Sonprayag (Last bus stop for Kedarnath) for Rs.650/ppl.
Then refreshed ourselves and spent rest of the evening by visiting Manasa devi temple & Ganga Temple (Ganga Aarati).
Located at the top of Bilwa Parvat, this temple is dedicated to Goddess Mansa Devi. Temple can be reached by either 3 km steep trek from Haridwar or by Ropeway.
Har Ki Pauri, is believed to be the exit point of River Ganges from the mountains and entry into the plains. According to a popular belief, it is said that a dip in the holy water of this ghat relieves a person of all his sins. In addition, the place is also a venue for performing several religious rituals such as 'upanayan', 'mundan', 'asthi visarjan' and 'shraddha', which are carried throughout the year. The other thing that is extremely famous here is the Ganga Aarti, which takes place in the evening. It usually takes place around 6.00 pm, and multiple priests gather together with balls of fire, diyas, temple bells, and chants to pay tribute to the holy river.
Already it was late at night, so started back to our room. While on the way we finished our dinner at a shop in the street. We have to wake up next day morning a little early to catch our bus at 5 AM to Sonprayag.
Haridwar -------Bus-----> Sonprayag.
Usually Bus services will be from around 4am to 6am, after that there wont be any buses to Sonprayag because the travel covers almost 8hrs. The ghat road is bad and there may be landslides too. So bus services are limited and only on morning times.
we have got our bus on time (5 AM) and also got our seats for experience Uttarakhand through our window.
The route is scenic & a visual treat to our eyes.
"When you ride a bus, you learn more about people."
We met many kind and nice people throughout our journey. As we don't know hindi, they helped us in many places and become our travel partners. Travel teaches us there is no barrier between people, We can always find wonderful people around us.
We reached Sonprayag around 12.30PM, we are 3hrs ahead of our estimated time to reach).
Haridwar ----> Sonprayag ---> Gaurikund
Immediately we packed light for our trek & then placed our luggage's in Cloak room in Sonprayag and reached Gaurikund (Kedarnath base and trek starting point) by Jeep. Had our meal (Roti) in Gaurikund and started our Journey to Dev Bhoomi around 1.30PM.
Kedarnath one way is 22KM (Other options are Heli services around @Rs.2400/ppl for one-way & Horse services around @2K one way or Doli services)
We started our Journey by trek to the Kedarnath Temple. There is proper path till the temple and the trek is moderate level. We have seen many children's and ladies on the way and they look more energic than us. The entire trek is filled with many views, valleys & waterfalls.
Mandakini River, a tributary of the River Alaknanda originates from the Charabari glacier. The river, after being fed by the River Vasukiganga at Sonprayag, meets River Alaknanda at Rudraprayag, and finally merges into Bhagirathi in Devprayag to form the holy River Ganga.
We have reached the temple around night 11.00PM and immediately searched for accommodation. We got a shared tent stay there for 600/ppl for a night.
Kedarnath Temple is a Hindu temple roughly 1200 years old dedicated to Shiva. The temple is located on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river, in the state of Uttarakhand, India.
We started our day very early around 5AM and went to temple for Darshan.
View around the temple
At a distance of 500 m from Kedarnath Temple, Bhairavnath Temple is situated on a hillock towards northern side of the Kedarnath Temple. Bhairav Nath is considered the guardian deity of Kedarnath temple. According to legend, Bhairavnath was blessed by Vaishno Devi that he would be offered respects by everyone who come to visit her holy abode.
We walked around the area and relaxed by watching Himalayas.
Then we planned to return from the temple. Started our way back to Gaurikund by horse and booked room here for Rs.800/night for two people.
Tip : Avoid Horse ride, we got more back pain. I felt trekking we have done while climbing is better than horse ride.
Sonprayag -------> Badrinath in Bus
We met two more people and they also travelling to Badrinath. In that one of the person knows Tamil, Hindi & English. He helped us to get a bus from here to reach Badrinath & we all boarded our bus at 1PM and it reached Badrinath at 11PM as the roads was very worst & more possibility of landslides. Try to get window seat as the views are breathtaking. In Badrinath, we booked Room @Rs.1800/night for four people.
Badrinath or Badrinarayana Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu. It is situated in the town of Badrinath in Uttarakhand, India. The temple is also one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu - holy shrines for Vaishnavas - who is worshipped as Badrinath.
After temple visit those two friends were leaving back to their hometown. As we both planned to visit Mana village (last Indian village). Here we met one family & we are all together shared a cab to reach Mana from Badrinath.
Mana is a village in the district of Chamoli in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, located at an altitude of 3,200 meters. This beautiful hamlet is 24 km from the Indo-China border, making it the last village of India.
Saraswati River is a tributary of Alaknanda River flowing in Uttarakhand State, India. It joins Alaknanda River at Keshav Prayag, near Mana village, Badrinath.
Here there is a dedicated Temple to Goddess Saraswathi.
After a full day visit, we started back to Badrinath and booked a room for Rs.600/night for two people for rest. Also booked bus to Rishikesh from here (We can book offline tickets in Badrinath bus stands).
We started our day @5AM from Badrinath to Rishkesh. Its a full day travel.
We reached Rishikesh by evening around 4PM and searched for accommodation. Then we booked a room for 1200/2ppl for two days. We booked rooms backside to bus stand and also share auto are available nearby room to roam around.
Rishikesh is on the backdrop of the Himalayas and with the pristine Ganga flowing through it, the ancient town of Rishikesh is one of the major tourist and pilgrimage hubs in northern India, where people from across the world arrive in search of peace. Rishikesh is commonly referred to as the ‘yoga capital of the world’ and rightly so. The destination is abuzz with visitors, who come here to learn yoga and meditation.
We planned to explore Rishikesh by walk (one full day around 20KM walk)
We started our walk from, Laxman Jhula --> Tera Manzil Temple --> Ram Jhula --> Triveni Ghat
Today first half we went for Shopping at Rishikesh and packed our luggage for return to home. We are physically ready for our return journey and keeping our soul in Dev Bhoomi.
We tried various street foods on our journey.
By Afternoon we have reached room and got an auto to Jolly Grant Airport from Rishikesh (we paid Rs.400/ for auto to shop inside airport).
Jolly Grant Airport -------------> Bangalore Airport ----------------> Hometown
Trip Info Overview :
Places Travelled : Salem --> Chennai --> Dehradun --> Haridwar ---> Kedarnath --> Badrinath --> Rishikesh --> Bangalore --> Salem
Mode of transport : Train, Flight, Buses, Auto, Cab, Trekking, Horse, Cable Car or Rope-car & Walk
No of Days : 10 Days
Cost per Person : Rs.25000/- including Transport, Room & Food
Cloak Room : Kedarnath Trek - Available in Sonprayag & Gaurikund (Rs.150 for 2 days)
Food : Mostly Roti & Maggi on Kedarnath and rest of the places have some options
Trek : Kedarnath one way - 22KM (Other options Heli services around @Rs.2400/ppl for one-way & Horse services around @2K one way or Doli services)
Temperature : lowest we have experienced is -10 in Kedarnath & Badrinath
Clothes Must required : Winter wear Jacket (withstand -10 at least is required), Gloves, Neck warmer, Winter Knit Cap & shoe is important