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| Majestic Mt Kedarnath at Chopta |
Sometimes a generous discount in airfare could make a huge difference in a trip planning. We were planning for a weeklong trip to Gahrwal, including Rudraprayag, Auli and Haridwar. We badly wanted to add a day for Chopta, but could not quite squeeze it into our itinerary. But miracles do happen! Just 15 days prior to the trip the airline giants got involved into an unprecedented fare war, and started offering great discount. We pounced on that opportunity, cancelled the 30 hour long Kolkata Haridwar train journey, and bought ourselves a ticket in a Kolkata Delhi evening flight. From Delhi we boarded the Dehradun AC express at 23.55 p.m., which reaches Haridwar by 4 a.m. A day was saved, and to everyone’s delight Chopta got included on the plan.
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| Confluence @Rudraprayag |
The next 6 hour bus journey from Haridwar to Rudraprayag was tiring to say the least. We dropped off most of the time, except for a sumptuous breakfast at Devaprayag. Some tasty alu paratha and a cup of hot tea at a very reasonable price made us feel energetic. We reached Rudraprayag at around 11 a.m. and checked into the GMVN. The location of GMVN is superb; all the rooms have a view of the confluence of Alakanadaa and Mandakini. We were saving energy for the next few days for our activities in Chopta and Auli. So we mostly spent the day, sitting at the balcony overlooking the languid Alakanadaa and the cascading Mandakini.
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| Emerald Mandakini River at GMVN Chandrapuri |
The next day we started early for Chopta. There were no bus services from Rudraprayag to Chopta, so we booked a car for the entire day. From Rudraprayag we took the route that goes to Gaurikund. The road condition was quite smooth. Our car purred its way alongside the emerald Mandakini. We went past Tilwara, Augustmuni and reached Chandrapuri in an hour. At Chandrapuri for the first time we got a glimpse of the mighty Himalayan snow peaks. Mt Kedarnath and Mt Chaukhamba were towering over the river valley. GMVN has a nicely located accommodation at Chandrapuri by the riverside. We went to the GMVN restaurant, for breakfast. The emerald water of Mandakini was really tempting. We sat by the riverside for a while, and enjoyed the lyrical Mandakini till our breakfast got ready.
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| Omkareshwar Temple Ukhimath |
Chopta was another 45 Km. from Chandrapuri. After Chandrapuri the road started to deteriorate a bit. At Kund we took a diversion from the Gaurikund route, and took a right turn towards Ukhimath. Ukhimath was ravaged by a devastating cloudburst on September 2012. Signs of that destruction is still prominent everywhere. The road from Kund to Ukhimath was almost nonexistent. We somehow negotiated that horrific 5 Kim stretch, and reached the Omkareshwar temple at Ukhimath in half an hour. It is the winter seat of Lord Kedarnath and Lord Madmaheshwar. The temple structure is century old, and has an aura within it. The temple courtyard was serene, peaceful. The priest greeted us, narrated the history of the temple, and showed us the deity of lord Omkareshwar, Lord Kedarnath and Lord Madmaheshwar. We paid our homage to the almighty, and then continued our journey towards Chopta.
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| The snowy mountains of Chopta at distance |
Soon after crossing Ukhimath, we entered the region of Kedarnath musk deer sanctuary. The forest was deep, silent. On the distance we could see the snowy mountains of Chopta. Chopta is almost at a height of 9,500 ft from sea level. The 28k.m road from Ukhimath gradually climbed its way through the forested slopes of Kedarnath musk deer sanctuary. In another half an hour we reached Duggalbhitta, the last settlement, before Chopta. From here we once again got a great view of Mt Kedarnath and Chaukhamba. Both were looking tantalizingly close, and sparkling like silver against a clear blue sky. We stopped here for a tea break in a road side dhaba, to enjoy the nature. It was early spring, bloom time for rhododendron – the state flower of Uttarakhand. The hill slopes around Duggalbhitta was full of red rhododendrons. The locals said, they will be abundant in Chopta. In fact at this time of the year, Chopta becomes a valley of rhododendrons.
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| Spring at Chopta |
The last stretch of our journey from Duggalbhitta to Chopta was magical. As we climbed up, the rhododendrons grew in number. They changed in colour as well. On the lower altitude, we mostly saw the red ones, but now we could see a profusion of pink. The road was almost covered with their pink petals; it felt like Mother Nature has laid a pink carpet in welcoming us.
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| Chopta full of snow |
On first look Chopta looked like a fairy tale hamlet. Covered with snow, and dotted with clumps of bright pink rhododendron. There were hardly any tourists, and except for a couple of dhabas all other shops were deserted. It looked like the place is yet to come out of its hibernation. From the top we got a mesmerizing unobstructed view of the Himalayan snow peaks. Kedarnath, Bhrigupanth, Chaukhamba, all appeared at their majestic best. We saw the abandoned GMVN tourist rest house, which was shut down in the 90’s due to environmental issues, and wished, if it was operational! It could have been the perfect base for enjoying the beauty of Chopta.
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| Rhododendrons at Chopta |
We spent couple of hours in Chopta, played with the snow, rambled around the forested hill slopes clicking photos in frenzy. Chopta is the gateway for Tunganath – the highest of the Panchakedars. A steep 3.5 kms trek from Chopta market, will take you to Tunganath. The route looked really enticing, full of thick woods and colourful rhododendrons. We started on that route, but soon realised, there was too much snow, and it could not be climbed without proper shoes. So we decided to come back.
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| Green vallley at Chopta |
We were done with all the activities, but still didn’t feel like leaving Chopta. So we sat on the edge of the mountain, and enjoyed the valley down below. The air was chilly, but a bright sunshine on our shoulders, kept us warm. Some horses were grazing lazily at the valley, looking at them, my wife commented on her IT terminology – ‘They are currently in bench!’ I replied –‘But they won’t be for long’. Indeed Chopta will be busy in a month’s time, when Tunganath temple will reopen, on the holy day of Akshaya Tritiya. Pilgrims will once again flock here from every corner, and Chopta will come out of its sleep. The horses will be busy again too, carrying pilgrims on their back on the way to Tunganath. Till then we left it at its surreal best, and started our journey back to Rudraprayag.
