[sachinayak]

A trek blog, typically starts with a teaser of some amazing and surreal views that one comes across on the trail. But thought of doing something different. Starting off with a tribute to the backbone of any trek - the support crew. The cooks, kitchen staff, helpers, guides and on this particular trek - the porters. To the unsung heroes who made this (and every other) trek possible. Salut !!!





Notes: I clicked and edited all pics on my mobile (Google Pixel 7 and Snapseed - my trusted combo) and in my eagerness over processed them. Realized it a bit too late and now too lazy to reprocess them on my laptop.

[sachinayak]

The Prelude

My trekking journey started late (but better than never). In 2019, starting with the Tarsar Marsar trek, the lure of trekking in the Himalayas has been impossible to resist. I have tried to do a couple of high-altitude treks every year. Beyond recharging the mind and soul, it is a great motivator to stay physically fit. Over the following years, I did Kedarkantha (2019), Sandakphu (2021), Buran Ghati (2021 & 2022), Har-ki-Dun (2022), Mardi Himal (2023) and Kashmir Great Lakes (2023). Each trek was beautiful and offered something unique.

I have always been passionate about photography, and the choice of my trekking destinations have also been driven by this. Some mountains are amazingly photogenic - very unique from the rest. Some of these include - Ama Dablam (on the EBC trail), Matterhorn (Swiss-Italy border), Machhapuchhare (in the Annapurna region of Nepal) and Mt. Shivling (as seen from Tapovan). There is something mystical and alluring about these mountains, that's hard to describe.

I have been planning to do the Gaumukh Tapovan trek for a few years now. The thought was triggered by an amazing video that I came across. The window for this trek is rather small. This trail is a riot of colors towards the end of September. Any earlier, and monsoon could play spoilsport. Any later, and the greens quickly make way for the browns. The spring season is longer and has more snow, but the colors are slightly muted and the skies not so clear.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ye9Ji05EEdY

It started as a casual discussion with friends (a plan that never took off) but this was always at the top in my bucket list. I almost booked this trek in Sept 2023, but a last-minute change of plans had me opt for the Kashmir Great Lakes trek instead. And I rued the missed opportunity. Come Sept 2024, I wasn't going to miss it this time around.

Or so I thought.

[sachinayak]

The twist in the tale !!!

TLDR - skip this entire post

Not everything happens as planned.


In Feb 2024, on one my morning walks, a freak accident resulted in a "Jones" fracture in my right foot. This fracture takes notoriously long to heal (anywhere between 6-12 months). Followed my doctor's advice and gave myself complete rest (no runs/no walks) for almost 6 months. Time was ticking and I had to get myself trek-fit. So slowly resumed my runs. In a couple of weeks was able to complete 5K under 32 mins, giving me the confidence to book my trek.

For this trek, I wanted to go with local trek-operators. Primarily to spend an additional day at Tapovan (an amazing campsite for photography). Shortlisted multiple operators who offered the same, but one-by-one all were ticked off the list. Some would only take private groups (I wasn't trekking with anyone) while others only had dates in October. I booked with an operator, only to be informed a week before departure that it was cancelled as I was the only one in the batch.

My plan A, B and even C had failed. When I casually mentioned it to a friend, she (perhaps) jokingly said this (my accident and my plans getting repeatedly snubbed) was a sign that it just wasn't meant to be. And this thought slowly but surely started playing on my mind.

A week prior to the trek came the sucker punch. A close colleague of my wife (similar age/family profile/trekking background as me) passed away while on a trek in Leh. He was perhaps the only other trekker who my wife knew. His sudden untimely death jolted all of us, real hard. After letting the sad news sink in, I tried analyzing the possible causes (with the limited information I had), I reasoned hard with myself (first) and then my wife and (much against her wishes) decided to continue with my plans. When I left for my trek, instead of the usual "enjoy your trek", I parted with "do not die", "come back alive" good-byes. Mind was already playing games.

I had planned to carry my own backpack, but as soon as I landed in Gangotri, one of the straps on my backpack broke. Immediate thought - is this some sign? The backpack was old, but I had inadvertently left it in my balcony for a couple of months and the harsh sun had left all the straps brittle. I shrugged it off, found a cobbler, and got it fixed. I was ready to put this behind, or so I thought. Right before starting on my trek, the 3 other straps too gave way. With no time to lose, I immediately transferred some important items into my backup day-pack and offloaded my broken backpack. Was this some sign?

Two hours into the trek (on Day 1), soon after we crossed the forest checkpost, the sole on one of my trekking shoes came off. Now, this is not totally unexpected. If you do not use your trekking shoe for long, the adhesive weakens. Almost every trek, I have seen this happen with other trekkers. In preparation, I had started wearing my trekking shoes to work, a month prior. But the sole still gave way. Mind started racing hard - was this some sign? Not to give up so soon, I used some rope (that I carry for some emergency) to tie my shoe and walked more mindfully. Later that day, at the campsite, I found a trashed nylon strap that I used to firmly wrap around my shoe. This provided fantastic support till the end of the trek.

Every day, I paid close attention to my vitals. Thankfully, my trekking pace was good, breathing was normal, SPO2 levels were always in 90s and my heart rate under 70 bpm. I was constantly reminding myself - that I had to stay alive. And now, I can thankfully say, I managed to stay alive - while thoroughly enjoying the beautiful trail amidst majestic views of the Bhagirathi Massif, Mt. Shivling, Mt. Meru, Mt. Kharchakund, Mt. Sudarshan among others.

Now, back to the trek report.

[sachinayak]

The "revised" Plan

Since my original trek booking was cancelled just a week prior to departure, I immediately booked with Trek The Himalayas (TTH). Their dates were perfectly in sync with my flight bookings (flight tickets are costlier than the trek itself) and TTH had an additional acclimatization day at Gangotri (acclimatization is of paramount importance for any high-altitude trek).


The plan was as follows -

• Day 0: Fly to Dehradun (1350 ft)
• Day 1: Drive (arranged by TTH) from Dehradun to Gangotri (10200 ft)
• Day 2: Acclimatization day at Gangotri (10200 ft)
• Day 3: Trek from Gangotri to Chirbasa (11700 ft)
• Day 4: Trek from Chirbasa to Bhojbasa (12500 ft)
• Day 5: Ascend from Bhojbasa to Tapovan (14600 ft)
• Day 6: Descend from Tapovan to Bhojbasa via Gaumukh (13200 ft)
• Day 7: Descend from Bhojbasa to Gangotri
• Day 8: Drive from Gangotri to Dehradun (followed by overnight train to New Delhi)
• Day 9: Fly from New Delhi to Bangalore

The actual trekking days are only 5, but getting there takes a long time, especially in Uttarakhand. But then, trekking is best enjoyed slow and steady.

[sachinayak]

Days 0, 1 & 2

These were quite uneventful, thankfully.

For folks flying into Dehradun (Jolly Grant Airport), please note that the airport is quite away from the city (probably closer to Rishikesh than Dehradun). The cabs to the city are quite expensive and the cab union does not let Ola/Uber operate to the airport. However, there is an electric bus that ferries passengers to the city (costs around 200 bucks) that very few people know about. Alternately, if you are looking for an even cheaper option, walk till the main gate of the airport, take a shared auto (also called sitara) to the main highway and catch any bus that will drop you to ISBT, Dehradun.

TTH had scheduled a pickup from Prince Chowk, Dehradun and that's when I realized there were 2 batches of 20 trekkers each heading on the same trek
The traffic on the trail plays a very big role, especially on this trek (more on that later). Thankfully there weren't any trekking batches of other big operators.






The drive to Gangotri takes you via Mussoorie, New Tehri, Chinyalisaur, Uttarkashi and Harsil. The route is extremely scenic. The road from Uttarkashi to Harsil and then to Gangotri is extremely narrow, but insanely beautiful. The Bhagirathi River, here, flows through an extremely deep gorge. As you pass Harsil, you will also see a lot of apple orchards.





This was not the peak Char-dham season. Thus, the traffic wasn't as crazy. We reached Gangotri by 5pm. This gave us ample time to settle down into our rooms (basic but good accommodation just across the Gangotri temple) and then to witness the Ganga Aarti (done at a much smaller scale but was a very peaceful experience).

On the acclimatization day entire group got to explore Gangotri and basically chill. We did a short hike to the Pandav Gufa. Enroute, we also visited the Suraj Kund and the Tapovanam Hiranygarbha Art Gallery. Afternoon was free, so I spent time in and around the temple. There was no crowd at this hour, so I had a peaceful darshan.








Later that evening, we did all the paperwork, preliminary health checks (Blood Pressure and SPO2) and we were all set to start our trek. I was slightly nervous but also very excited.

[sachinayak]

Day 3: Gangotri to Chirbasa


We started our trek at 9am (unlike most other treks where you start early). The trail from Gangotri to Chirbasa was fairly easy. The ascent was mild, and the valley beautiful. After a steep initial climb to exit Gangotri town, the trail eased out. Just a kilometer into the trail, we reached the forest check post - where our permits were checked. The forest officer requested all trekkers to keep the trail clean, to avoid littering and to stay hydrated to avoid any altitude sickness.

The trail was very well defined. The forest section was beautiful in all its shades of greens and yellows with sparkles of oranges and reds. All along the trail, the Bhagirathi River was flowing right alongside. During the initial part, the snow-capped Sudarshan Parbat was visible right ahead. As we walked further, we got our first glimpse of the Bhagirathi massif (aka Bhagirathi Sisters). This massif has 4 peaks - Bhagirathi 2, Bhagirathi 4, Bhagirathi 3 & Bhagirathi 1 (from left to right) and stays in view right till Tapovan. At one of the water sources, we took a lunch break (we were carrying packed lunch). After crossing a few narrow streams, later that afternoon, we reached our first campsite = Chirbasa. The place gets its name from the Chir (Pine) trees found here.

While the support staff set up the kitchen and dining tents, we setup our own tents. Most operators have now switched to 4 pole / 3 season tents which are much easier to pitch in comparison to the 5 pole / all season tents that were used earlier. Having reached a little earlier than the rest of the group, I helped pitch 3-4 tents. Later we had a cool-down session. We were served snacks & tea, and we layered up before the sun went down. Thus ended our first day on the trail.

[sachinayak]

Day 4: Chirbasa to Bhojbasa


This was to be the shortest day on this trek. We had an elevation gain of merely 800ft, and a distance of 3km to cover. Thus, we again started leisurely, around 9am.





After the initial ascend to get back on the trail, the vegetation on this section became sparse. While we were still below the tree line, there wasn't much of a tree cover here. Around half an hour into the trail, we reached the rock-fall section. Multiple warning signs clearly indicated the potential danger. It was mandatory for all trekkers to wear their helmets. As soon as we got to this rock-fall section, true to its name, we saw multiple boulders rolling off the mountain slope, falling into the river below. It was a little scary. We waited a bit for things to settle and quickly crossed this section (we were instructed to keep an eye out for any falling boulders and keep adequate distance between the trekker ahead to be able to take any evasive action). After crossing this section, the valley opened up and the Bhojbasa camp site was now visible right ahead.






The Bhojbasa campsite was much larger than Chirbasa. There was a GMVN rest-house here, along with dorms setup by the forest department and a couple of ashrams that serve food and provide accommodation. We reached this campsite by noon. This place was buzzing with activity. We were suggested to not pitch tents, but pay a little extra and stay in the dorms instead (more on this later), which we did. The dorms were quite comfortable (and warm). Some trekkers chose to stay at the GMVN rest-house, which too was quite decent. This rest-house also had a canteen and I didn't miss the opportunity to have "pahadon-wali" Maggi amidst the mountains.






There wasn't much to do besides sitting along the banks of the river and watching the magnificent mountains. Later that evening, post snacks/tea, we went on an acclimatization walk on the old trail (which is now closed following a landslide that blocked this route a little ahead). Here we got our first glimpse of the mystical Mt. Shivling.






At dinner, we were briefed on the plan for next day. And it wasn't too encouraging - At Bhojbasa, we were to cross the Bhagirathi River and continue the trail to Tapovan on the other side. The problem, however, was that the only means to cross the river was a trolley, setup by the forest department. This trolley crossing has historically been a nightmare on this trek. It can only ferry 4-5 people in one go and is pulled by porters on either side of the river. The zipline unfortunately is not tight and the effort needed to pull the trolley across is simply unimaginable. Our batch alone had 40 trekkers. In addition, we had porters and support staff, luggage, tents, equipment and more. It would roughly take around 3-4 hours, just for our group to cross the river. We were bracing ourselves for an impending traffic jam in the mountains. Hence, the suggestion to avoid pitching tents at Bhojbasa (to cut down the time required to unpitch tents in the morning) and start very early. After an early dinner, and a quick pic of the Milky Way, we called it a day by 8pm.



The next day was going to be long and tough.

[sachinayak]

Day 5: Bhojbasa to Tapovan


This was supposed to be the toughest day on the trail (and indeed it lived up to the expectation). We had to cover a 4km trail from Bhojbasa to Gaumukh (after crossing the river) and then an extremely steep climb from thereon to Tapovan. But before all this, there was a river to cross and a trolley to get us there. After an early breakfast at 3:30 AM, we queued up for the trolley around 4AM. The other batch (which was marginally slower than ours) were supposed to cross over first, followed by our batch. Then our porters, luggage and other camping equipment. Queuing up this early, in the bitter cold, was really tough. First some porters crossed the river pulling their own trolley across. Then, slowly but surely, they started pulling batches of trekkers across.




After a 3 hour wait, my turn finally came around 7AM. When we got to the other side, we tried helping the porters pull the next batch and that's when we realized what a painful experience it was. Honestly, our entire batch of 20 trekkers together would not be able to pull the trolley (with 5 people on board), even once, end-to-end. It was a ridiculously painstaking process. Kudos to the porters who did it with a smile (only to follow it up by lugging all our bags to the top). While on the trolley, I turned around to see a long line of trekkers queued up behind us. Suddenly, the 4AM start made complete sense.










After crossing over to the other side, we started our trek to Gaumukh. This was roughly a 4 km trail. The ascent was mild, but this section was full of boulders. Walking on boulders can get tricky. While most are stable, occasionally you step on one that is unstable and wobbly and this just scares the shit out of you. Unlike the well-defined trail before the river crossing, the boulder section was more like a DIY. We roughly knew the direction in which we were heading, but we had to find/make our own path. Challenging, but fun all the same. An hour into the trail, we reached the sandy banks of the Bhagirathi River (downstream from Gaumukh). It felt like we were on a beach, but at a high-altitude amidst the tall mountains - a very unique experience.







Right after this, a steady ascent took us right above the Gaumukh Glacier. This is the second longest glacier (~30km) in the country and the source of the River Ganga (from a mythology/religion perspective). Most of us would imagine a glacier as endless body of snow and ice (which in theory it is). But in reality, this glacier (like many others) is completely covered in scree and looks like an extended part of the mountain. Many people end up disappointed - when they witness all the greys and browns, instead of the whites they were expecting. The glacier, unfortunately, has been steadily retreating at an alarming pace. If you see the marks on the sides of the mountain, you can visualize the enormous size of the glacier in the past (and how much it has retreated over decades or perhaps centuries).







At this point, began the most difficult part of the trek. The steep ascent right till Tapovan. The route was quite tricky (even with no rain) with sand, stones and boulders of all sizes. It was very easy to lose your grip here and we had to be very careful at every step. Water sources too very scarce. I took small steps and kept climbing at a steady pace keeping my breaks limited and short. I was focusing on my breathing to ensure I do not overstrain myself. It seemed like eternity. Around 11am we reached the meadow of Tapovan. As soon as you reach Tapovan, you are welcomed by an amazing view of Mt. Shivling and Mt. Meru on your right and the Bharathi massif on your left. Both mountains are so close that they seem in touching distance. And amidst all this lies Tapovan which offers large open vistas - in such a stark contrast to the dusty trail (full of boulders) that we just climbed. All the tiredness of the steep ascent was soon forgotten, such was the impact of the mighty peaks that towered right above us.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=agLI_Dl5p8U

Having reached relatively early (just before noon) - we had the entire day to ourselves. Some just chose to lie down and soak in the sunshine, some trekked up a nearby hill in search of better views while some (including myself) simply sat down awestruck at the magical scenery that nature had painted for us. We felt humbled and blessed at the same time. Later that day, we pitched our tents, did our customary acclimatization walk and took a lot of photos (just innumerable pics).









In the evening, the local guides pointed us to 2 faint dots on the south face of Mt. Shivling. It took us a lot of effort to even see what they were pointing to, but after using maximum zoom on our cameras + zooming into the pic as much we could (God bless technology) we could finally see what their excitement was all about. These were 2 brave mountaineers who were trying to summit Mt. Shivling from the south face. The peak has been summitted multiple times in the past, but never from the south face. This face is a flat vertical wall making it near impossible to climb. A couple of mountaineers attempted it last year and ended up losing their lives (as per the local guides). Another mountaineer attempted it but wasn't successful and had to retreat. She came back this year, determined to climb again and was now camping on the south face with another mountaineer for company. Not sure if they were successful or not but hats off to them.



Based on my homework leading up to the trek, I knew that, weather permitting, Tapovan would provide an incredible opportunity to capture the milky way. Right at dinner time, the milky way was perfectly aligned with Mt. Shivling. I gobbled up my dinner, grabbed my phone and my pocket tripod and walked as far as I could, away from the camp (to minimize light pollution). It was bitter cold and also a little scary, being all alone, but I had to capture the pic I was dreaming off, all through my trek planning. After multiple attempts, I was happy to have captured a few decent clicks.



PS: If you observe closely, you will see the torch lights of the brave mountaineers on the south face of Mt. Shivling. I was so thrilled to have captured that.


The weather soon got cloudy, and we retreated into our tents. We braced ourselves for a cold night. Thankfully, our sleeping bags and liners along with our layers of clothing kept us decently warm. It had been a long but fruitful day.

[sachinayak]

Day 6: Tapovan to Bhojbasa via Gaumukh

We woke up to some incredible views of the massive mountains in our backyard. The experience cannot be expressed in words. It was just so beautiful. All the effort the previous day, in climbing up to Tapovan, was simply worth the view. We were in no rush today. We had a descend to Gaumukh and then back to Bhojbasa, so we took it easy. Everyone just found their own individual spot in the serene Tapovan meadows, and just soaked in the visuals. Many were in tears. Almost everyone (including myself) was endlessly clicking pics. You just could not have enough.








After a sumptuous breakfast, we packed our bags for the descent. There was a batch on the following day, so we did not unpitch our tents (so that they could be reused by them). Around 9:30 AM, we started our descend to Gaumukh. Just before we exited Tapovan, I turned back to soak in the most amazing view of my trek and I can still feel goosebumps as I type this. The descend was quite tricky. The slope is quite steep and the gravel/sand/pebbles/boulders/stones on the trail make it very easy to slip. Again, I packed my trek poles into my backpack and tried to be nimble as I descend (I love descends unlike most trekkers). I was able to do so rather quickly and easily (not bragging) but all the while I was mindful of not being reckless as one wrong step would lead to "instant regret".




By the time we reached Gaumukh, it was quite hot. We spent a good amount of time here, many collecting "Gangajal" in bottles they had carried all along. Since it was quite sandy, I opted to collect at Bhojbasa instead, where the flow of water was much stronger. A closer look at the glacier revealed a lot of cracks and fragmentation on the large slabs of ice and almost always, there is slow disintegration of the same.




After spending almost an hour at Gaumukh, we resumed our descend back to Bhojbasa. We still had a trolley crossing to endure. The descend was quite uneventful. The trail was extremely rough with a lot of boulders. The previous day, our minds were almost completely focused on the climb to Tapovan, that we didn't realize how difficult and rough the prior trail was. While on the trail, we came across a herd of Bharal (Blue Sheep), the only fauna found in this region and it was very exciting.








Around 3:00pm, we reached the end of the trail at Bhojbasa. While we were carrying a packed lunch, we opted to not take a lunch break, but instead wanted to have it at our campsite at Bhojbasa. However, the trolley crossing again proved to be a bottleneck. And now folks were tired from their long walks (from earlier in the day and the previous day). Sadly, it lead to a lot of verbal arguments, fights amongst trekkers and also between groups/organizers. Given the stupid setup in place, this will never get resolved. Our trek leads mentioned that, occasionally, there have been physical fights due to this arrangement. The last thing you would imagine in a holy and serene place.


Sharing a short video that shows how a trolley is pulled across the river. The effort involved is absolutely crazy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2nhmWiN_TY

Over the next couple of hours, our batch crossed over to our campsite. The weather was getting chilly and hence the patience levels were dropping alarmingly. Touchwood, without much untoward incidents, everyone got back to their tents/dorms for the night.




The trek was almost over, and I was still reminding myself to stay alive

[sachinayak]

Day 7: Bhojbasa to Gangotri via Chirbasa

This was the final day of the trek, and somewhere within me, I just wanted to stay behind in the mountains. Wishful thinking.

It would take us around 5-6 hours to trek the 15kms from Bhojbasa to Gangotri. This was the same trail we had taken at the start of the trek, so there were no surprises. The trail was a gradual descent all the way back, with a few river/stream crossings. We also had to cross the rockfall zone, so that needed us to be extra careful.

After breakfast, our trekking group caught up with the support staff and porters and we expressed our gratitude for their support. The team had pooled in some tips that were shared with them, and we took a lot of pics/selfies with them before commencing on our descent a little later. Whilst on the trail, the team (inadvertently) split into two groups (based on walking pace). I positioned myself right between the two groups and walked alone the entire path. Solo trekking is a simply amazing experience, but it is not always possible/practical. On the last day of my trek, I walked alone for most parts - listening to the sound of the river, the rustling of leaves, the chirping of birds enroute. It was absolute bliss.



Unlike most other treks I have been on, if one accidentally falls of the trail here, it could prove to be fatal. The path is much above the river, and it has a near-vertical fall. Note that the trail is not narrow by any means, and we did not encounter any mules enroute. However, you need to be watchful at all times and also stick to the mountain side as much as possible, to avoid being complacent or careless.






We reached Gangotri around 1:30pm (much earlier than expected) without taking a lunch break. Checked into a nearby dhaba (who took our packed lunch and heated it up, added masalas and just spiced it up) and relaxed that afternoon. Later in the day, I got my shoe sole fixed (the sole of my other shoe too was almost out). After a short get-together that evening to share trek experiences, learnings and collect our trek-completion certificates, we called it a day.

The next morning, we left early from Gangotri to Dehradun (reaching by around 5pm). Took an overnight train to Delhi and flew back to Bangalore (was faster and cheaper than a direct flight from Dehradun).

Our trek was sadly over but we carried a lot of beautiful memories to cherish forever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q47LwM0maUE

Came across this video on YouTube captured by a trekker (not from our group) exactly a week later. Thought of sharing it here, as it beautifully captures the essence of the trek.

[graaja]

Moving thread from Assembly Line to Travelogues section.

Thank you for sharing this wonderful experience. The report with beautiful pictures of the grand landscape takes the readers to the lap of Himalayas! Congratulations on completing this trek and wishing you many more.