TREK TO VALLEY OF FLOWERS, UTTARANCHAL
August 11th to 19th, 2007
Valley of Flowers had been eluding us for many years, owing primarily to the best time recommended for visit, which is July 15th to August 15th. Normally, this is the time school/ college terms have just begun and it is difficult to take leave. This year, Vinita agreed to take 2 days off and combine with the weekend and we decided to take off as soon as the convocation at IITD got over. Only Priya could not join us. The Kavariyas who had held commuters to ransom in several parts of North India, would also be home by the 11th, which was the designated Immersion Day/ Shivratri. So we thought but they continued to be seen walking along our route till the 19th! In the beginning of the journey we were ever so watchful and the moment someone spotted saffron robes in the distance, we would go into a huddle!
There are several ways one can go. The Uttarakhand Tourism organises 7 day tour by 2*2 seater buses twice a week ex- Rishikesh (tariff: Rs.5,600/-) and 8 day tour once a week ex- Delhi (tariff: Rs. 8100/-). The tour includes side trips to Badrinath and Auli, as well as accommodation at Joshimath, Ghanghariya, Badrinath and Partha of oktatabyebye.com had organised the trip (10th to 15th ex-Delhi) by train to Haridwar and by Qualis for the rest of the journey (estimated cost Rs.5000/-). Cost of food was not included in the tariff for both the tours. We finally did the trip by Qualis and ponies and it worked out to Rs.4200/- per head including food!
After picking up Madhu Bua at IITD and Savita from her residence we finally left NOIDA at 3 pm on the 11th of August.
Thanks to Police picketing on the Ghaziabad- Meerut road due to the kavariyas we took the road to Dabri, Hapur (43 km), Meerut (42km), Bijnor (50km), Najibabad (34km), through Rajaji National Park to Haridwar. It was dark when we were driving through the Park and I was reminded of the night safari in Singapore zoo. We only sighted a couple of buffalows blocking the way dangerously! At Rishikesh, we filled the diesel tank, purchased 3 raincoats at Rs.15 apiece and located the ISKON temple, all before 9 pm. Good AC rooms with a view of the Ganges and we sat and had puri-aloo and achar for dinner. At 5.30 next morning, we got darshan of Radha- Krishna and drove off to Srinagar, via the diverted route past the Glass Cottage, Kaudiyala and several langars organised by the local gurudwaras. We got a view of mist covered Alaknanda at 8.30 am at Srinagar. After breakfast we left for Joshimath hoping to reach there by lunch. Enroute, the sky was cloudy and we passed ‘Live’ landslides at Gauchar. After Karnaprayag, Rudraprayag and Ratura, where the Shankaracharya Health Center is located, we reached Pipalkoti by 2pm where were stopped by a landslide. After lunch we received news that a bus had fallen over and the road had been cleared. So we rushed to Joshimath still hoping to reach Govindghat and start the trek on the same afternoon. The one-way gate system opened for traffic only at 4.30 pm and it was raining heavily. One felt cold inside the car. The Policeman at the Gate, stopped us and advised us to stay at Joshimath for the night as the road was not safe in the rain and Govindghat did not have a decent place to stay. We made an about turn and were lucky to spot the IBEX TCP. Madhu Bua used her army connection and arranged for rooms at the Officers Mess. Providential as rain became torrential and the whole night we were treated to the staccato noise on the tin roof.
By 9.30 next morning, we were ready to leave for Govindghat. Col.Sohy informed us that he had also booked rooms for us at Ghanghariya, at the helipad, which is 1 km before the village centre. The road was truly treacherous, slippery and stones were still rolling down the hillside.
We reached the parking lot on the right bank of Alaknanda at 11 and paid Rs.250/- for the 3-day halt. We discovered that an NGO had organised the porters (pitthoos) and pony owners. So no haggling, one got a receipt for the Rs.340 one paid for the porter and retained the ID card with oneself until the journey got over. We discovered that the same NGO (ECO) was also involved in scavenging and eco-friendly disposal of waste on the trek route. ECO publishes brochures, calendars, CDs, provides guides and organises informative film shows on the Valley of Flowers. The gradient was discouraging to Vinita, but Siddharth carried on undaunted. Rest of us fell between the two in terms of endurance. Trudging, stopping, enquiring from others if the way ahead was any better, cool drinks, cups of tea, lunch and Bisleri for 8 hours reached us to Ghanghariya. Our raincoats stood us in good stead. Chants of “Vahe Guru”, “Sat Sri Akal” and “Jai Bole So Nihal” rent through the rarified air. Scenery was gorgeous. Innumerable water falls, greenery covered hills, silver oak (Bhoj Patra), Mulberry gave way to pines and devdars. Gushing waters of the Lakshman Ganga through the narrow gorges, hair-pin bends and cascades added to the din of cicadas and the chirpy