Deoriatal-Chandrashila Peak Trek Day 7 and Day 8: Chopta /drive to rishikesh and back home

With the ascent completed it was time to bid adeiu to the peak. We were given our certificates on completing a success trek. Packing our bags we headed to chopta where our vehicles were parked.

Road to chopta

Half hour to 45 min later we were at chopta thus ending a wonderful trek, where we got to scale a 13000 ft mountain, meet lot of interesting people and have lot of fun.

It was an extended break after we got down and we boarded the vehicles that was arranged for us to take us back to Haridwar/Rishikesh. After 8 hours of journey with couple of breaks to stretch our tired legs myself and srikanth got down at Rishikesh and bid adieu to our friends. A half hour to 45 min of walking via lakshman jukla got us to the hotel which was booked earlier. I took couple of photos of the ganga from the bridge and we reached the hotel by sundown

River Ganga @Rishikesh

Temple

The next day we headed to dehradun airport after checking out early to catch our flight to delhi. A flight delay in delhi saw us land in Bangalore around 11-11.30 at night and another hour of driving back saw me reach me thus concluding a wonderful trek

Snaps can be found here

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Deoriatal-Chandrashila Peak Trek Day 6: Chandrashila Peak

It was D-day today as chandrashila was meant to be conquered today. Everyone woke up at 3 and were raring to go to the peak. The necessary gear including gaitors , ice tractions , etc were packed the previous day itself.

At 3 in the morning, we were woken with tea and we started the trek to the peak at 4.30. The way to chandrashila peak starts from bhujgali or from chopta which is two kms from bhujgali and goes via tugnath temple which is one the highest shiva temples in the world.

On the way to tunganth temple

There is a straight path from bhujgali to tungnath which is well paved. As we climbed higher we could see snow and everyone began to play in the snow by making snow balls. Slipping and sliding a little we reached the temple

Tungnath Temple

Resting for a while and taking photos, we continued the ascent towards chandrashila peak. The guides were there to help us as the snow and ice made the path slippery in couple of places. Soon we reached the final ascent where we had to wear tractions due to the deep snow. Some of us tried walking in snow but we find it difficult to walk and were slipping and sliding

Peak @ Touching distance

Progress was much smoother once we got the tractions on and soon we were on the peak., It was a joyful moment for everyone and we were busy with photoshoots (group snaps/solos) etc.

The team @ The Summit

It was time to get down after spending some wonderful moments it was time to head back to the base camp. Tractions were put on and couple of hours later we were down.

Deoriatal – Chandrashila Peak Trek Day 5: The climb to Bhujgali

The climb to bhujgali starts immediately from Rohini bugyal and then descends steeply all the way to the river from where we need to climb all the way up to the grasslands.

After the inital climb, it was a smooth descent to the river where we took an extended break to enjoy the cold waters. We spend some time indulging in photo sessions. Spending about an hour at the river, we packed our bags and started the climb towards bhujgali.

Photo Sessions @ river

Climbing for couple of hours we reached a stone settlement with fantastic views of the mountains. The flat grassland also had a small stream flowing which served as a good point to pit for lunch. A short seista and we again began the final climb to the campsite which was an hour away.

Lunch point

Tents were already up and we settled into the tents. We were lucky to get a clear sky and after a couple of group photo sessions and some sunset photos, Rushish called us for another briefing where we were shown the use of gaitors and ice tractions for the ascent to chandrashila peak.

Sunset @ Bhujgali

Group snaps

Dinner was served early and we retired to our tents as we had a very early start the next day. The ascent to chandrashila peak due the next day and every one was excited

Deoriatal – Chandrashila Peak Trek Day 4: Deoriatal to Rohini Bugyal

Day 4 of the trek started early as we had a lot of ground to cover. We were greeted with a clear morning after the rains the previous evening.

The day started with some light warmup exercises and after spending some time cleaning the camp site as part of the Green Trail initiative launched by Indiahikes to keep the hiking trails clean, we started the trek to Rohini Bugyal after another briefing about the route to the camp.

Briefing

The trek path goes through the rodhendron forest. As we climbed higher the scenary became more amazing as we saw lush green and snow clad mountains the distance. The mountains would be in the background throughout the trek.

Path to rohini bugyal

Greenary everywhere

The path took us through some long climbs through the forest littered with loose stones. One needs to be careful when stepping on these as one wrong step can sprain your leg and ruin the trek. Karthik and I reached the top soon and found a flag present at the top. Resting for sometime there and clicking photos we waited for others to join. Soon the entire group reached the top and took a break for a short while.

The trek continued and soon it was time for lunch. We stopped at a relatively flat area and had lunch which was packed before leaving in the morning.

After a good rest we reached the final climb which was a short distance away and this took us to the camp site. As the previous day, there was a mild shower and the rest of the day was sunny. We spent the time chit chatting about various matters.

View from the tent

Dinner was served and we hit the sleeping bags. The climb to bhujgali was to be tackled the next day.

Deoriatal – Chandrashila Peak Trek Day 3: Trek to deoriatal lake

A clear morning sky and weather awaited us when we woke up the next day. With a good night rest, everyone was charged for the trek. It was a slow start for the day as everyone woke up late after a long drive yesterday. With breakfast done , myself and few others headed for a small walk around sari. The trek to deoriatal lake starts couple of meters from the campsite.

Campsite@Sari

We found a small map showing the route to deoriatal lake and further on to tungnath temple and to chandrashila peak. A quick snap of the map for reference and we headed back to the camp.

Map to chandrashila

Getting ready for the trek

Rushish assembled everyone and we were given a briefing about how to pack our backpacks to mountain ettiquttes. Those who were new to trekking were taught how to use the trekking pole along with its Do’s and Dont’s. With the briefing done it was time to start the trek.

Briefing

The route to the lake is a straight one from the camp and its a well paved path all the way to the lake.

Route to lake

Couple of final snaps of the peak and we set off for the trek.

Chandrashila at a distance

The trek group consisted of a mix of young kids as old as 12 to grown ups. Being the first day of the trek, body was not fully used to trekking with a big load. With a little huffing and puffing we reached a temple after an hour of trekking for a short break.

Temple

Couple of minutes of rest and we continued towards the lake. The lake is frequented by locals as well as trekkers and we found quite a few locals heading towards the lake. It was a slow march to the lake with breaks in between and finally around 1 in the afternoon we all reached the lake.

Deoriatal Lake

The lake as such is quite small and we found other trekkers already there with their tents pitched up. We were expecting a big lake and we were a bit disappointed to see the size of the lake. We relaxed for a while and took few photos of the lake before it began to rain.

The lake is faced with a huge mountain range comprising of peaks such as chokamba, kailashdome etc. Rushish gave us the names for the list of peaks.

Peaks near Deoriatal

Sunset

It was raining intermittently and by evening the rain had stopped. We spent the rest of the evening photographing the peaks. The sun had come out briefly and soon the temperature went down along with the sun and it was time to head back to the tents. Dinner was soon served and we hit the sleeping bags as we had a long trek to rohini bugyal the next day

Deoriatal – Chandrashila Peak Trek Day 2: Drive to basecamp

With a delay of an hour our train reached haridwar railway station. The other members of the trek were already present and after a quick round of introductions and shake hands we boarded the cabs towards sari where our basecamp was located.

It was a 8-10 hour drive and as we had almost a whole day, we began to socialize with our cab mates. Various topics from the trek everyone had done, to new routes which can be explored were discussed. We were total of 20 members which was divided into 5 cabs. During stops for lunch the members from the other cabs would join us for discussions.

The lush green mountains looked inviting and during breaks, we took couple of photos of them before heading on.

Lush green mountains

The drive continued and we reached the basecamp at sari by dusk. We were greeted by the trek leader Rushish and we got to relax for a while. The rain had began to fall by the time we reached sari. Jackets and warm clothes were soon out to make ourselves warm.

We could see chandrashila peak from the basecamp and after a short photo shoot we gave our medical certificates, disclaimers and other documents required for the trek.

Chandrashila from the basecamp

Mountains everywhere

After a cup of hot tea and dinner some time later we retired to our rooms for a good night sleep. The trek to deoriatal (devariatal) lake was coming up the next day

Deoriatal – Chandrashila Peak Trek Day 1: Off to haridwar

It had been 2 years since I had been to a himalayan trek with Stok Kangri last done in 2012. The lure of the mountains was getting irresistible  and it was time to head to the himalayan mountain ranges again.

Srikanth was having the same feeling and we decided to head for another trek in the himalayas. Indiahikes was chosen by default as with the previous two treks. With so many treks being conducted we had to choose which one to do as we had to balance our holidays. There were few treks which were in the pipeline and we finally zeored in on Deoriatal to chandrashila peak trek which would fit our schedule perfectly. The trek was a new one which was announced by Indiahikes and not too difficult.This would serve as a nice trek to get back in the groove.

With the trek confirmed, payments were made and tickets were booked for haridwar which is pickup point for the trek. Things were going smoothly, with mails from Indiahikes asking us to fill up the details in a XLS and another mail asking us to get the required stuff for the trek when the recent devastating earthquake in Nepal and its surrounding areas in India, caused some minor panic. We were informed by Indiahikes they are in touch with the basecamp and Uttrakhand where the trek is, has not been affected by the earthquake. This gave us some relief and with the final preparations done, Me and Srikanth headed to Delhi and then to haridwar to meet our fellow trekkers.