May 2013: Yamunotri, Gangotri, Gaumukh and Panch Badri - Part 2

Our timing was good as Tirumanjanam was going on at Shree Venkateswara Swamy Vari Temple. Post gulping idli/vada/dosa, we were all set to move. It was already 10:00 am.

Ready to roll from Rishikesh

We found Tehri mentioned everywhere, but only  boulders here:

Getting out of Rishikesh

Our driver then realized that we need extra Tarpaulin and had to fix his rear view mirror (driver side) which was duly done taking some more time and finally our trip started only at 11:00 am. This was way behind schedule, which became the norm pretty much during the trip.

Once, started we hit the first check post. Throughout the trip, vehicle movements were recorded.

First of several check post stops

We had quite a distance to cover. Sometimes covering 15 km in an hour was difficult.

First sign board

We followed the signboard sincerely.

Start of the ascent

First sign that we have started going up.

Valley view

Plenty of well wishes for the journey ahead

It was 1:45 pm and the effect twists and turns started its toll. We had to stop as the youngest in the party started throwing and his entire breakfast was out on the street. He managed tell upfront and luckily we had some poly bags handy.

Loaded poly bag!

It was already close to 3:00 pm and we have still almost 170 kms to cover. To make it more difficult, it started drizzling again. By now, the enthusiasm of travel on the hill has changed and I was being asked as to when will we reach the destination.

Still a long way to go!

It was close to 4:00 pm, when we finally decided to have our LUNCH! It was a road side dhabha. Luckily the food was good without being too spicy. It was phulka, rice, kadhi, and horsegram. First real non-south Indian meal, but somehow everyone liked it.

Lunch and bio break in the drizzle

In spite of the drizzle, we could still get a glimpse of Tehri dam.

We got very nice views of Tehri

 Good lunch did not really work out, as half of the party started throwing up and it meant another halt delaying our progress. I started having my doubts about reaching our destination for the day.

Forced halt - lunch effect!

Close to 6 pm and it was dark and drizzling

Somehow, we managed to reach Syanachatti only to find that hotels were full and plenty of crowd already in. There was no power either. Managed to get a hotel who promised generator power till 10:30 pm. There was one dhabha for a bunch of 5 hotels in one location. We managed some rice/roti and wanted to hit the bed. Just then we realized that the drizzle has managed to creep through the tarpaulin covers and some of our luggage have become wet. Being the first day of the season, the rooms were damp. Finally, we ordered some hot water for next day morning and hit the bed. Incidentally, the guys at the lodge would not make any entries or take money till May 13 (the next day), as before Yamunotri ji opens, they will not make any transactions! Same was not true with food/drinks though :-)

May 2013: Yamunotri, Gangotri, Gaumukh and Panch Badri - Part 1

It has been quite sometime that the thoughts of visiting Panch Badri and Gaumukh have been flashing. Finally,  after some soul and net searching and with the help of learned souls from Indiamike, the following plan got hatched:

Constraints:
1. Be at Yamunotri on opening day - May 13.
2. Return to Bangalore by May 26th Sunday, before the schools re-open for kids.
3. Not to compromise on Gaumukh and Panch Badri.

Pancha Badris:

Bhavishya Badri

Vridhdha Badri

Yogadhyana Badri

Badri Vishal

Adhi Badri

Once decided, I had to test the waters at home as well as office front. As it turned out, my parents-in-laws decided to join and then one of my BIL with family as well. This made it a party of nine. By the time the party got finalized, no GMVN rooms were available! Hence, decided to hire a vehicle through an agent from Haridwar to Haridwar for 12 days (May 12 to May 23). That took care of the transport. I decided to manage the accommodation on the fly. Here is the plan that I finalized:

May 11 - Reach Haridwar and stay
May 12 - Haridwar to Syanachatti
May 13 - Syanachatti to Yamunotri and back
May 14 - Syanachatti to Uttarkashi
May 15 - Uttarkashi to Gangotri
May 16 - Gangotri to Bhojwaba to Gaumukh to Bhojwasa
May 17 - Bhojwasa to Gangotri
May 18 - Gangotri to Ukhimath
May 19 - Ukhimath to Badrinath
May 20 - Badrinath & Mana
May 21 - Badrinath to Joshimath to Tapovan to Bhavishyabadri to Joshimath
May 22 - Joshimath to Karnaprayag to Aadi Badri to Rudraprayag
May 23 - Rudraprayag to Haridwar and start for Delhi for the return journey

Preparations were slow and not taking off. On 7th morning the team Madurai arrived for the trip, and suddenly, things started to shape up! Basically, there were three families - Self (yours truly, VP and our two sons), Parents-in-law (age 70+ and 60+) and my youngest BIL (himself with wife and 3yr old son). For some of them, Kodaikanal is the highest hill station visited so far. There were issues with food as well. So, they decided to carry cooking utensils, rice, dal and spices making up 3 additional luggage. On 9th evening when we started, I counted 19 bags! Only 4 of us can carry any luggage and my kids managing to carry an odd piece. I was not sure of the challenges ahead - will it be managing the luggage, health, food, OR accommodation? In any case, it was a point of no return and we started on 9th evening, with a confirmed reservation in Karnataka Express (sleeper class, though, as nothing else could be managed). With chit-chats, we reached New Delhi on 11th at 11:30 am (about an hour behind schedule). It was hot and steaming. While everyone waited, along with my BIL, went out to Sagar Ratna at Connaught Circus and bought South Indian meals. Luckily, my favourite Nirula's was next door and bought some Manhattan Mania as well. Post lunch, we moved our luggage from platform 7 to 9 to catch Janshatabdi to Haridwar to leave at 3:30 pm. Train to Haridwar was very good and we reached Haridwar on time at 7:30 pm. We got off with welcome bouquet and greetings from the Vaanara sena. After some scouting around, found a decent deal with a local hotel near Shivmurti. For less than a KM the shared autowala charged Rs. 80/- to carry the luggage and 2 passengers. This is the first of several dadagiri faced on the trip. At night 10 pm, we managed to go for a dip at Hari-ki-Pauri and went to bed after a home cooked dinner well past mid-night. In the meantime, I had contacted the driver for the trip, who promised to come and pick us at 7:30 am on 12th May. He did come on time, came with him consistent drizzle out of nowhere! Yet, we managed to load about a dozen bags on the carrier-top. We started our trip with a visit to TTD temple at Rishikesh.

TTD Temple at Rishikesh

There are couple of hotels next offering decent Idli/Dosa/Vada