After the weather related events of June 2013, in Uttarkhand, and the havoc wrought on the hapless pilgrim, on the route and road, there has been concerted worry in the minds of the local and travelling public, the administration, and the transporter on making arrangements for the Char Dham Yatra in a manner without disruption, so that the public are not left in the wilderness, without any facilities. As that event of 2013 happened in Mid-June due to combination of western disturbance which limits itself generally to Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh with southern winds coming from Indian peninsula and local factors, pilgrims thereafter want to complete the Char Dham Yatra by at least say the 10th of June to avoid possible weather related problems due to rains and in the process swelled the Yatra ranks to unprecedented levels in the current season, making it a record, which added to the pressure on the road, resources and facilities. There was a debate preceding the Yatra on when to commence the Yatra with some suggesting around 1st May 2018 to avoid higher temperatures and some presenting data on low and late season snowfalls on 22nd Dec 2017, 23rd Jan 2018, to state the possibility of temple road routes likely to be affected and possibly blocked by snowfall in early May consequently. The sporadic low snowfall continued in subsequent winter months also on 25 Feb 2018, 24th March 2018 and 27th April 2018 respectively in a way forewarning of possible disruption at winter season end at higher heights in early May 2018, in hindsight. It is a matter of great significance to our trip that before our trip significant snowfall and rain with hailstorm on 6th May 2018 and after return on 25th May 2018 caused significant disruptions landslides and stranding at Badrinath and Kedarnath with several thousand pilgrims affected and possibly missing darshan. That the by and large lesser disruptions during the yatra was a heavenly and providential blessing; that can be counted as worthy of recall.
Amidst a series of concerns to less expose the aged and retired citizens along with their better half’s, to concerns from altitude, weather etc, the weather in the North of India from Delhi to Uttarakhand itself deteriorated rapidly during the week preceding the start of the Yatra with considerable people killed, in huge gigantic high speed storms. High temperatures along with high humidity set of violent thunder storms, squalls with speeds over 100 kms which were unprecedented in recent memory and were worrying the administration to a level that even schools were closed. As luck would have it in similar vein the violent dust storms, squalls, thunderstorms, which had disrupted route traffic in many places due to falling of trees, had their say and action before and after our journey, making it again truly a divine blessing.
After reaching Haridwar on the early morning of 11th May 2018 after journey from Delhi, the group got into three tempo travellers which were ready and went for their morning ablution and tea to Umeshwar Dham and thereafter proceeded to bathing in fast flowing Ganges with its cool waters soothing the mind and body, followed by the ritual Puri eating which many people follow, at Haridwar. Constraints placed on travel by the Uttarakhand Government to get vehicles cleared with a green permit, to reduce accident from unfit vehicles, education for drivers on everything from parking to clearance for handling of jams, strike at Rishikesh RTO Depot due to local agitation and the squalls mentioned in the preceding with approach roads closed, contributed to delaying the process of obtaining green registration, delaying the return of vehicles till evening. As journey beyond 9 pm may have led to difficulties like Police stopping the travel, the group stayed at Sursinghdhar a beautiful pine hillock with cottages and landscaped gardens with a variety of flowers and bees which toasts the exquisite niche of Bollywood stars who flock there for a peaceful tryst with nature; far from the crowd. Alas such an experience would have been missed otherwise, as it was not on the itinerary and came by chance. The group tasted rhodendron drink on reaching as a welcome drink and after breakfast next day had group photographs and left to Barkot by first going from the Tehri river area to Bhagirathi area valley and thereafter to Yamuna valley at Barkot which is neater and cleaner with higher wooded content leading to lesser silt production. At Barkot the availabilities are somewhat limited and still Hotel Dev Bhoomi is rated high by Trip Advisor at 4.7 as other Hotels do not have even these facilities in the area.
Early next morning the group left for Janakichetty wherein they had packed breakfast and started climbing to the Yamunotri shrine by horses, dolis etc. The poor horsemen and doli carriers who eagerly look for clients were falling over each other to clinch the deal, as a swarm around the group. The charm of the place is like a pristine valley with a shining Yamuna sparkling white when it hits the rocks. At Yamunotri one takes dips in the hot water pond where temperatures are tolerable and thereafter undertakes small puja at the temple nearby. During descent, the crowds had swelled making return journey back in inches with jostling and pushing and added to it the rains, sleet, hailstorm, snow set in depending on the height one occupied with greater impact found at higher heights. The Yamuna valley from Yamunotri to Jankaichetty alone was covered in thick cloud restricting the spreading of the rain and weather influence to other areas as though the valley had captured it, and the impact was coming from the North West with not much intensity which gave us a sigh of relief as the rains stopped even before we reached the bus to board to Uttarkashi. This also ensured that there was no eastward movement of the rain to torment the Char Dham journey at that juncture. The glacier at Yamunotri may stretch from top of the hill to Bandar Poonch Peak, White peak which will be more than 10 kms and cannot be envisioned from lesser heights, but suffice to say that a massive glacier supports the Yamuna River. Thus we had overcome the difficulty caused by the delay on first day due to vagaries explained to be back in the schedule, by proceeding straight to Uttarkashi, for the night.
At Uttarkashi the group stayed on the Banks of the Bhagirathi in Hotel Shivlinga with excellent views of the nearby areas, hills and river banks and the Hotel has a rating of 4/5 from Trip Advisor. The group left for Gangotri through a dense foliage and breathe taking scenery and halted at Harsil with huge pine trees all around called as the Little Switzerland of India and clicked photos with the soldiers on duty there.
The waters in Gangotri reached after walking over a kilometre from the Parking can be freezing with inability of the body to bear staying in the cold beyond 15 to 20 seconds with chill running through your head to the body and after you have had the holy dip you feel freshened to see the swirling waters; once body temperature stabilises. Prolonged exposure can lead to hypothermia and further all places may not be safe for bathing with huge speeds and rapids which can leave best of swimmers without a chance to survive. With dams built at various places the pilgrims are advised to avoid going near the river as sudden water release has killed many. At Gangotri many group members took bath in the, in the cold waters of the Bhagirathi River and many were trembling from the icy cold waters. After the bath one heads to the Gangotri temple which was built by Nepalese General Thapa and according to Hindu mythology, Goddess Ganga took the form of a river to absolve the sins of King Bhagiratha’s predecessors, following his severe penance of several centuries, by him and his lineage.
After the visit to Gangotri the group stopped at the hot water springs at Gangnani for hot bath by few and tea and witnessed a held up of over one and half hours due to two vehicles coming from opposite sides getting stuck, showing how even small incidents could cost time until traffic staff came to pull them out. Whereas bull dozers and earth removing equipment are kept every few kilometres to clear the roads there are always surprises, of the unknown kind.
After breakfast on the next day we left for Kund which is at the base of the route going to Kedarnath, but reached late in the night due to hold up on the way, due to having to retrieve left over property and goods. The world’s largest travel and restaurant advisory company Trip Advisor with over 600+ million unbiased reviews and over 315 million members and having headquarters in Massachusetts USA has rated the Kund property as 5/5 on the rating list, with 85% giving Excellent and 13% very good and average 2% with travellers talking about River Mandakini, amazing experience and special care. Given the late arrival, the planning for next day to Kedarnath continued well into midnight.
Early next morning we left for Gaurikund with two traffic diversions and breaks at Sonaprayag and Sitapur, where one has to walk around 4 kms with a fallen tree also adding to the difficulty in reaching the destination. Whereas in the entire last year Kedarnath witnessed around 4.70 lakhs pilgrims this May alone saw over 4.80 lakh pilgrims swelling the daily intake of pilgrims by almost 15 times, on a daily basis. Given the difficult route some chose not to take the risk and for some even dolis where not available given the huge rush with dolis filled up even before early dawn. Unlike Amarnath and Vaishno Devi where Government had mandated online Helicopter booking, the online portal for Kedarnath is expected to be inaugurated only by July, making no single point booking. Further with the Green Tribunal at New Delhi abruptly cancelling the Helicopter yatra last year the Helicopter companies which had been reduced to 9 from 14 for this year had not repaid the monies received last year from the travel agents who reportedly fleeced with exorbitant charges inspite of warnings from DM Rudraprayag. It was also directed by the authorities that booking must be done only with the approved operating companies authorised by the Government and not with the brokers and others in view of safety considerations. Thus inspite of willingness by many pilgrims given the huge rush the airline Helicopter companies were adjusting their old unpaid dues and not offering any new seats in May 2018 and this was the refrain with many a pilgrim and this may see a change once an online portal is set in place.
After all this around two thirds of the group ventured up the almost 12 km trek on horseback with having another three kilometres on additional walk, making the new route to add distance by 4 km compared to the past. On the way one saw settlements like Rambara which have vanished from the earth with possible casualties in thousands on the banks of the Mandakini. Given the huge rush even temple entry after traversing the distance became a day dream and took several hours of standing in the queue patiently, with darshan from the slightly outer court of the inner sanctorum. Suddenly with heavy winds visibility got reduced in the Kedarnath valley with dark cloud and rain descending on the valley and many decided to halt at Kedarnath given the absence of light and the group stayed put at Kedarnath and sent word to the people staying at Kund about their wellbeing. A brief rain spell also threatened to escalate but wind direction dispersed it. The worsening climate at Kedarnath brought out initial anxiety, but luckily it soon passed given the absence of northern or southern disturbances or wind pattern and improvements were visible from early morning of the next day. One or two pilgrims did face breathing problems at Kedarnath and in one case doctor administered oxygen but given the stable blood pressure reasoned that it was more tiresomeness rather than acute altitude sickness. Timely intervention ensured that there was no consequential damage and everybody stayed spirited. Early morning by 4 am onwards many in the group got outstanding and unbelievable darshan inside the garbha griha by some even able to touch the Kedarnath linga and this brought enormous fulfilment. The glistening mountain tops showing the Kedarnath dome and the mist looked like a shining crown on the top of the Kedarnath temple. When an entire mountain came down in 2013; that huge boulders stopped just behind the temple was a sight to believe in the powers of the supernatural and that the opportunity to blend with nature at these heights was truly transcendental, with a great fulfilment of the earthly journey. The trek back to Kund almost took time till evening for the entire group given the most difficult part of the journey, with tiresomeness writ on all faces.
The next day without staying in Swiss tents at Chalkot as originally proposed having 5 rating as an exquisite spot from Trip advisor, due to spill over of time at Kedarnath due to weather, the group went to chopta which is called as the unknown Switzerland of India and due to shortage of time skipped the trek to Tungnath the highest Shiva temple in the world. On the way the group stopped at Ukhimath the winter seat of Kedarnath and spoke in Kannada with the priests and enjoyed the place where the grandson of Lord Krishna got married. After Chopta the group went to Joshimath and saw the Narsingh temple there which is one of 108 divya desams in the country where the alwars of Tamil origin have sung hymns. After it the group went to Auli to their rooms surrounded by coniferous oak and pine forests, with a panoramic view of the peaks of the Himalayas on a 360 degree basis. Out of the 57 ratings by Trip advisor for this property as many as 38 are excellent and 17 are very good making the place heavenly, with a touch of breath taking beauty as the main compliment and Trip advisor has given a rating of 4.5/5. The place brought out additional charm with the birthday of Shri Muniyappa and Shri Dinesh Gusain the tour guide wherein the beloved wife of Shri Muniyappa fed him the cake, followed by camp fire with spirits exuberating with the fraternal warmth of the participants, with wild hullaballoo. The journeys in the vehicles were also interesting with interesting jokes, anecdotes and memories of former colleagues enlivening the journey and each of the vehicles seemed to enjoy and with the cake cutting coming after these small talks the camaraderie was visible to make FIBRE proud of its contributions.
The road to Badrinath is having the longest patch of landslide area and luckily the group traversed through and came to see the majesty of the temple amidst the background of the Nar and Narain mountain and the roaring Alaknanda gushing through. The group went through the darshan process and came to enjoy lunch thereafter but found it difficult to reach Mana village due to heavy congestion of vehicles which could have led to participants walking considerably from the parking spot. Many in the group were tired and desired to head back should the vehicle jams result in getting stranded. On the return the group went to the Kalpataru tree under which Adi Shankara as a boy of 11 meditated at Joshimath and thereafter retreated to Auli.
Next morning after breakfast the group went to Auli top and had a panoramic view of the central Himalayas showing ranges, peaks and mainly the Nanda Devi peak, the second highest peak in India. From end to end and also in circular motion one saw the peaks at heights over 5000 to 8000 meters making it as a Himalayan odyssey oof unbelievable splendour. The group went on ski lifts to the ski area which in winter is filled with snow and gives panoramic views around the year. Thereafter the group had to undertake the long journey back to Haridwar wherein the group stayed at Hotel Lakshya which has a rating of 4.7/5 of Trip advisor, with a certificate of excellence. The food and ambience was good with a spread of cuisine to cater to people from various parts of India.
The next morning people went to Kankhal, wherein Parvati jumped in the Havan Kund and found many roads closed due to heavy rush and the group did not proceed to Sivananda Ashram at Rishikesh as envisaged as temperatures were searing. In the late afternoon the entire group assembled on the Banks of the Ganga at Haridwar and got a mesmerising view of the entire of the faith and devotion of the people in the Ganga Aarti and thereafter left for the Hotel.
The ratings given by the world trusted and internationally renowned Trip advisor for the hotels stayed during the journey; which emphasises on recent reviews; ranging from 4 at Uttarkashi, to 4.5 for Sursinhdhar and Auli, 4.7 for Barkot and Haridwar, and 5 at Kund speaks volumes of how much care has gone to make the group members comfortable. Apart from ratings the travel industry also expects comfortable pricing and the comparative premium packages for Char Dham from groups like SOTC, Hello Travel, Big Breaks are costlier by around 20 to 30 % with no high rating hotels included in their itinerary. Thus the group truly had best value with good ratings is the generated conclusion and with value comes abundant satisfaction.
The next day the group embarked back to Delhi and on the way many spoke in appreciation in the bus about the Yatra after Mr Kathiresan initiated the process, with his touching on significant aspects, including planning and information on may connected aspects. For onward and return stay arrangements in Delhi at modest costs had been made.
The group was feted by the Zonal Manager Delhi, though he was held up elsewhere and the dinner meeting showed how good camaraderie can be built. Mr B.Natarajan was periodically following up the movements as well-wisher right through the journey and as an initiator had brought out excellent opportunity merriment with the families, in the post retirement spread.
The takeaways are good post retirement inter relationships can be built and that the exertions could keep members away from the Doctor for at least one year,as the exertions build support walls. Finally great cheers to the 80 year old participant Sh Prabhakar, who showed in sterling manner how confidences can be built, for the entire group. That the environment was tough but the homely stays which are complimented herein helped to make journey comfortable. The drivers took up with no accidents on sharp bends making the journey memorable.
article by T.Ramasamy
