Introduction
Kedarnath is literally a dream destination of almost every pilgrim in India and the divine trek makes the journey actually much more special. The pristine location, beautiful mountains all around, the lovely river that flows all on the entire trek, the chants makes this destination much more interesting. Also the temple is open only for 6 months and that makes it much more special to the pilgrims.
Kedarnath Plan
Our dream came true on our trip to Uttarakhand in October 2023. They say that you can’t visit the lord whenever we want, but he decides when you will visit him and it’s absolutely true in our case. We reached Sonprayag first and then couldn’t visit the lord, headed to Chopta and then came back to Kedarnath and this time we were successful in getting the darshan.
Reaching Sonprayag
Continuing our previous journey, we reached Sonprayag by 11 AM and then went back to the same hotel. As mentioned before, make sure you take a small bag and carry only whatever is needed to the trek like necessary clothes, medicines, charger, electronics, etc. We freshened up and headed towards the jeep stand to Gaurikund. It was actually very crowded and we somehow got a jeep, reached the base camp.
The Trek from Gaurikund
We were scared because what if we aren’t allowed to trek again today, but by god’s grace we continued ahead peacefully and started the trek chanting Hara Hara Mahadev. We went ahead and it started raining slowly and we bought raincoats for such a situation and would recommend the same to everyone. You need not carry it from home, you can easily get it on the way or before the trek.
The Beautiful Trek
We didn’t face any issue while trekking because we already had trekked on the previous day to Chopta and hence were in great form. We took 1-2 small breaks to drink water and click the pictures and went ahead. Most trekkers were descending as they had left after the morning darshan, the ideal plan for Kedarnath. There are few waterfalls on the way, one can spend time there as well. Also there are many small streams flowing, one can keep a water bottle and fill in on the way.
Troubles during the Trek
The most irritating thing on the trek is the Ponies. You find them all the way to the temple and they come very close to you both from behind and ahead as well. Also they make the whole way dirty, so it stinks too much as well. So be ready to face all this and be careful because they can hit you very hard and can cause a serious injury as well. Also the pony riders fall atleast 3-4 times in the entire duration of the trek.
We reach Bheem Bali and there you cross a large bridge, you can also see a clear picture of the 2013 floods how it caused huge damage to the surrounding area due to the river flow, which is actually a terrifying picture. We went to a small shop, had good food and hot tea. The rain had stopped and as our clothes were a bit wet, we started feeling too cold.
The Later Part of the Trek with Shortcuts
We had almost reached half of the journey and the time was around 7PM. So it was dark all around and hence we couldn’t take any shortcuts due to the lack of lights. Though the shortcuts seem very small, be careful it increases a lot of stress on our knees. Also the shortcuts consist of steps and stones, there are very high chances of injury.
As time passed, the number of pilgrims were reducing and we barely met anyone who was trekking up to the temple. All the shops were closing and asking us if we were to stay in their tents. We had planned to stay right near the temple as we wanted to attend the morning aarti. So we continued the trek without any other thoughts.
Our Trek Experience
Though we lived totally in an urban lifestyle without much exposure to physical fitness, we had that grit in our mind and didn’t take a single break after the break at Bheem Bali. The next break we actually took was when we reached the temple itself. As we were 2, we were just trekking chanting Hara Hara Mahadev, discussing various things and having an amazing time.
Reaching The Temple
We finally reached the base camp before the temple where it’s the last point for all the ponies. The later journey is smaller and not uphill, so wouldn’t be a great task. We finally reached our dream destiny and actually I myself couldn’t believe my eyes, standing right in front of the gorgeous Kedarnath Temple.
We couldn’t trek on the first day, hence were very disappointed about that. We were anxious because what if the plan fails again and we go back without darshan. Also the pilgrims in Sonprayag after the trek said they needed 14-16 hours as there was heavy snowfall, hence the trek would be very difficult and people were coming back due to bad weather.
Roaming around the Temple
Despite all these challenges, we actually made it with the blessings of the lord and offered prayers later. The temple was closed, but the exterior of the temple was shining, in the moonlight and all the Saints were around the temple. It was totally an amazing experience, in this devotional place.
We then went to Bhimshila, the only reason why Kedarnath temple is intact even after a huge incident. We offered prayers again. We met and sat with saints, who narrated their experiences of 2013 floods and regarding their life in winters as they stay here itself the entire year.
Conclusion
As we were very tired after getting up early, after a long bus journey and a massive trek, we searched for rooms and found various options. It was freaking cold though there was no snowfall. The wind was very heavy and the temperature was almost -2C. Few dorms were there near the temple, which were expensive, but we went with the decathlon tents to have a unique experience. Though it was too cold, it was an amazing experience.
We took almost 6 hours to complete the trek from Gaurikund to the temple, where people usually take more than 10 hours. It was really an amazing experience and we took a good rest as we had to get up early, take darshan and start the return trek, to reach by evening, as we had planned to reach Badrinath soon. The latter day would be covered in the next blog
