Tue Nov 25, 2008 5:05 pm India - Gangotri and the Source of the Ganges 10/3-10/6/08
This is the fourth of five reports describing some hikes I made during a month-long trip to the Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand state in northern India:
We left Rishikesh about 7 a.m. for the 12-hour journey to Gangotri (254 km/158 miles), our third temple of the Char Dham pilgrimage. Overall, the road was in much better shape than the one to Joshimath. We stopped for lunch in Uttarkashi about 1 p.m. at the GMVN hotel, where we also enquired about trekking permits. They sent us to the Forestry Office, which is located off the main road up a steep, narrow and obscure track near Uttarkashi. We got permission for a 3-day trek beyond Gangotri to Gaumukh and Tapovan for Rs 100 ($2) but found out later that this permit only allowed us to buy the actual trekking permit when we entered Gangotri National Park. The park is a first-come-first-served zone restricted to 150 people per day.
The road after Uttarkashi was very muddy and bumpy due to construction. It climbed to a viewpoint overlooking the braided Bhagirathi River, then dropped down and crossed it shortly before Harsil. At one point we saw an old bridge in the river with a gigantic boulder on top of it. Climbing through beautiful pine forests, past deep rocky gorges, we arrived in Gangotri after dark. We were only 32 mountainous kilometers (20 miles) from Kedarnath, but traveled 482 kilometers (300 miles) to get there via Rishikesh. Most of the hotels were full but our driver found us a typical one-star room with an "English" toilet for Rs 550 ($11).
10/4/08 – Gangotri to Bhojbasa
Gangotri (3048m/10,000ft) lies near the source of the Ganges, or Ganga as it is called in India, hence the name. It is where the Goddess Ganga descended from Heaven in the form of a river and resided in the coils of Shiva's hair. King Bhagirath prayed to appease Shiva and Ganga fell to earth as the Bhagirathi River to wash away the sins of his ancestors. (It's a complicated story.) The actual source of the river is farther up the valley where it issues from the terminus of the Gangotri Glacier at Gaumukh, or the "Cow's Mouth". The Bhagirathi joins the Alaknanda River at Devaprayag to become the Ganga.
We set off about 7 a.m. for the short walk through town to the temple, which is a fairly simple structure. After quick look inside, we started up the wrong trail towards Bhojbasa.
From the temple, we followed the river, but soon realized our mistake and climbed some steps up to the proper trail, which skirts the hillside on the north side of the valley. It was a very pleasant hike along a nice, shady trail through pine and birch. The trees were starting to change color. Twenty minutes up the trail we arrived at the entrance to Gangotri National Park, where we paid Rs 300 for a two-day entry permit, plus another Rs 200 for our cameras. Although we had permission for three days, we could only get a permit for two, yet they allowed us three days providing we paid a "late fee" when we came out. It seemed like a pretty screwy permit system.
The scenery was much like the Sierra Nevada in California, with huge white walls of granite. One section of the trail was carved out of the rocky hillside, reminiscent of the Kendall Katwalk, only much longer and more exposed. We reached Chirbasa (3600m/11,800ft) about 10:30 to find it deserted. It normally has numerous dhabas but the pilgrimage season was winding down and they had already packed up the tea stalls for the coming winter. It looked like a nice place to camp.
Beyond Chirbasa the trail climbed to about 3800m/12,500ft and traversed nasty loose hillsides. There are lots of huge boulders waiting to come down and sweep hapless hikers into the river far below. There are also some incredible views of impossible-looking peaks. We arrived at Bhojbasa (3792m/12,440ft) just after noon after 14 kilometers (9 miles) of hiking. There were no rooms available at the derelict GMVN Tourist Rest House but they had tents with bunks for Rs 250 ($5) each, which seemed overpriced.
After lunch and a nap, I went for a stroll a little farther up the trail for views of the Bhagirathi Peaks (6860m/22,500ft) and Shivling (6543m/21,467ft). I passed the resident ibex herd on the way and circled back along the river. The Bhagirathi Peaks were lit up beautifully by the sunset at 5:30, before the clouds rolled in. Soon after, a generator was placed on the front porch and fired up. It chugged away for most of the night. We would have been better off sleeping in our bivy sacks down by the river.
10/5/08 – Gaumukh, Nandanban and Tapovan
It was a beautiful morning as we set off about 6 a.m. for the trek to Tapovan, where we planned to camp that night. It took an hour to hike the 5 kilometers (3 miles) to Gaumukh (3892m/12,769ft), the Cow's Mouth, where the sacred Ganga starts its long journey to the sea. Nearby there is a small shrine and a temple dedicated to Shiva. The "temple" is a crude stone wall bedecked with flags and bells encircling an image of Shiva and other religious ornaments.
We climbed above Gaumukh onto the Gangotri Glacier and followed a rough path along the north lateral moraine for quite a while. In fact, we followed it too far, missing the obscure trail across the glacier to Tapovan, and continuing all the way up to where it petered out near Nandanban at about 4250m/14,000ft. Tapovan was famous for its high-altitude meadows but all we could see were piles of rubble, so we had obviously gone wrong somewhere. Back in Bhojbasa we had assured everyone that we did not need a guide. Well, perhaps we did. Or perhaps not, for had we had one, we would have missed the spectacular sight of Shivling rising on the far side of the glacier. We met several people heading down the trail near Nandanban, one of whom indicated through sign language that the path to Tapovan was way down at the foot of the glacier near Gaumukh.
We turned around about noon and followed the easy trail back down the lateral moraine, intending to keep going past Bhojbasa and camp at Chirbasa amongst the trees. However, above Gaumukh we noticed some people on the glacier and saw the faint path to Tapovan threading through huge blocks of rock on top of the glacial ice. Tired as we were, I talked Kim into going for it. I figured it was very unlikely we would ever come this way again, so we might as well do it.
It took a couple of hours to cross the Gangotri Glacier and climb the very steep trail on the far side up the south lateral moraine. At the top we were greeted by a sadhu who invited us to his cave/hut for tea. He has a large parabolic reflector which he uses to boil his kettle -- most people mistake it for a satellite dish!
We walked a short distance to the campground at Tapovan (4460m/14,630ft). More friendly Indians offered us rice, dhal, and pakoras, which were welcome additions to our meager supply of crackers, cookies and granola bars. We set up our bivy sacks near the camp but later moved them when the neighbors got too noisy. A herd of ibex wandered through our little camp. Meanwhile, an American expedition returned from nearby Meru Peak after spending three weeks climbing it -- they looked exhausted. It clouded up again near sunset but cleared up later for a brilliant star display.
Note: My GPS put Tapovan at 4300m/14,100ft
10/6/08 – Tapovan to Gangotri
It was extremely cold last night. Kim woke me up as it was just getting light. We packed up our frozen gear and left at exactly 6 a.m. Our plan was to hike the 23 kilometers (14 miles) back to Gangotri in one day. Shivling was shining in the pre-dawn light as we walked passed sleeping tents. Then it was down the steep, rocky, loose, "trail" to the glacier. The route across the Gangotri Glacier was marked with cairns but was still a little tricky to follow. Since it is mostly over rocks, a rope is not needed. We were across by 7 a.m. A little below Gaumukh we went down to the river, dipped our hands in the water and showered our heads to show our respect for Mother Ganga. We continued down the trail and reached Bhojbasa at 8:30. Knowledge of our idiotic detour to Nandanban without a guide had already reached this place. However, we did gain some credit for our perseverance by climbing to Tapovan the same day.
After a quick breakfast of tea and Kit Kats at Bhojbasa, we continued on our way. We survived another passage through the slide area before Chirbasa and along the cat-walk beyond, arriving in Gangotri about noon to find our driver waiting for us.
Overwhelming and spectacular (all an understatement)! Kudos for the TR and photo journal. The late day shots are terrific...heck, it is all terrific! Shivling is an ultra-awesome peak! Altogether, magnificent presentation!
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