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Published: June 19th 2008
Whilst this blog seeks to entertain its main purpose is to be informative for those thinking of heading up to Ganagotri to trek to Gamukh and further beyond. There is a few things worth knowing that are not in the guide books before that might influence your decision as to how to do it, where to stay and whether to use guides and porters. The trek itself is lovely and fairly straight forward, passing following the Ganga valley's sheer rock faces towering above, right up to the source of the Ganga - the Gamukh glacier. The sound of the raging torrent of this great river itself is always with you, and the emptiness created by new permit rules restricting numbers to just 150 people a day makes the walk very peaceful in this hectic country. My experience was almost ruined by a dishonest and unfriendly guide who I hired because I was on my own, but then saved by a lovely man I met towards the end, also a guide but with vastly different ethics, who helped me get back to Uttrakashi and ended up inviting me to his home.
Permits
The most important thing to know is that from 2008 a permit to enter is required which MUST be obtained in Uttrakashi, which is a five hour bus ride south of Gangotri, the trail head. Why they do not administer this permit in Gangotri I know not - I was lucky in that I happened to be stopping in Uttrakashi on the way up to break my journey and discovered this fact from a fellow traveller on the bus, but a German fellow I met in Gangotri was not so fortunate and had to make the gruelling trip back just to get his permit. You have to go to the Forestry Commission office a few kilometers north of Uttrakashi - it's a taxi ride as it is not easy to find, though I did it on the back of my guide's motorbike - a hair-raising spin through the countryside to get the permit. A guide through a recognised travel agency can be useful here in speeding up the application - I certainly seemed to be prioritised as my permit was issued whilst several other people who were there when I arrived were still waiting when I departed. My guide claimed that I was given a permit to trek the following day despite the fact that they had already run out due to the 'special relationship' his agency has with the forestry commission.
Travel to Gangotri
The trip up from Uttrakashi is spectacular, following the Ganga all the way and climbing up hair-pin bends then diving back down to the river, there are some great views and worrying moments as jeeps and buses stack up and vie for position in the road trying to get past each other on the narrow roads with long steep drops directly off the sometimes very poor condition roads. Buses are possible earlier in the day for 80 rupees, but I departed after noon and had to get a share jeep, which was 150 although I think my guide ripped me off for 60 rupees since on the way back I paid 120 (I also had to pay my guides transport fares, which I agreed in advance). If possible, try and get a window seat in the 4-person row behind the driver rather than the back seats, like I did!. Or even better if you are flush pay the 360 rupees for the front seat as this way you'll have space and great views of the dramatic countryside. 4 people are crammed into the back seat and it is not comfortable for the four hour trip. Especially when the four hour trip turns out to be a six-hour trip. Especially when the driver stops to pick up another 2 people for the back seat and they cram in for a good hour of the journey and promptly fall asleep, spreading themselves out in the process. My newly acquired Buddhist detachment skills were being tested to the limit...
Gangotri
On arrival in Gangotri you will be besieged by porters offering to take your bags and hotel touts offering you rooms for 700 rupees. It it possible to get much cheaper rooms if you are on a budget though. Mine cost 200 but I don't know how much of that went to my guide in commission for taking me to 'his brother's place'. The room was basic with no hot water and not the cleanest in the world, but I was heading out next morning so I did mind and I had my sleeping bag to slip into. I rather liked Gangotri. After the kilometer or so of jeeps and buses, the noisy traffic gives way to a pedestrian only friendly market, save for the odd motorbike of course... The market sells items designed for Indian pilgrims rather than western travellers. Warm hats costing just 50 rupees and coats, scarves and cheap waterproofs. Ridiculously cheap trinkets and jewellry such as rings for 10 rupees which are really really naff but everyone buys it because it has come from Gangroti and is therefore 'holy'. I acquired a little brass vessel for collecting holy water from the source of the Ganga - up at Gamukh. Trekking snacks such as fruit, nuts, raisins, chocolate and biscuits are all available at low cost, and needed to snack on because there is nowhere to get food en route for the first 16km of the trek. There is a bustle and excitement about the place as well as a devotional atmosphere. There are saddhu's everywhere clothed in orange and pilgrims getting ready for the trek. After the market is a lovely temple that holds special prayers at sunset and is prettily lit, but is worth visiting at any time of day. My guide was becoming a little weird by this point, sitting down with me at dinner and then disappearing off again with no explanation, and with no attempt to engage me in conversation whatsoever.
Trekking
The path ascends steeply right out of the middle of the market and leads up to the gate where you will need to hand in your permit and passport and hand over the 350 rupees entry fee which covers you for 2 days in the national park. I also had to fork out 50 rupees for my guide, again agreed in advance. After this the trek begins proper and you are in the wilderness with a small number of fellow travellers, pilgrims and saddhus all plodding their way up the easy trail to Bhojbasa, the site for overnight accomodation. Keep your eyes peeled for waterfalls and there is even a mini-glacier soon after the entry gate. It really is stunning with sheer rock faces either side and the Ganga raging down below. I met a Canadian lady called Laura who had done the Yamonutri trek the week before - another pilgrim route in the area. She said that it was rammed with mules, porters and pilgrims, and the worst of it was larger pilgrims being actually carried up by porters on plush seats. This route was heaven in comparison, thanks to the new permit rules restricting the number off entrants each day. In the main the route is flat or a gentle incline and very easy, though I did feel the affects of the altitude in that any steep slope (which were mercifully few in number) left me breathless and I had to take very slowly. It may be worth considering an acclimatisation day in Gangotri before starting out to counter this kind of problem, but make sure when you get the permit that it starts a day later as you have to enter the trek on the day stated on the permit.
Overnight in Bhojbasa
After 16km and about 6 hours walking there are a few options for an overnight stay. You can bring your own camping and cooking gear or hire porters and cooks in Uttrakashi, but this is an expensive option as you need 3 porters to lug all the gear required. But there is also a guest house and an ashram you can stay in. The guest house is apparently expensive but I went for the ashram, which provides basic rooms and breakfast, dinner and hot tea for only 200 rupees. This is definitely recommended as it is cheap and you get to mix with pilgrims and saddhus all wanting to know where you are from and where you are going. Dinner is an event, with prayers being sang by the charismatic leader of the ashram as 50 or so people are served a basic but tasty Thali, all seated in a U-shape on the floor of the dining hall. You will not go hungry as re-fills are plentiful! The only thing that threw me a little was that when I was relaxing in my small, cell like room with a tiny window, I was suddenly joined by an older Indian guy who I was told I would be sharing with. There was plenty of space though, but it took a while to adjust to sharing with someone who made all the same bodily functional noises as myself, including snoring and, well lets just say that there were plenty of chickpeas in the dinner!
On to Gamukh
I had a hideous nights sleep, maybe influenced by the company I unexpectedly had and maybe altitude influenced as well, and I needed a couple of hours extra sleep in the morning which my guide, who I was starting to get angry with, seemed slightly bemused. All the previous day he would walk on a few hundred metres in advance and never once tried to strike up a conversation, his answers to any questions being brief, curt and unfriendly. At times I was glad to not have him around, but there were a few planks across streams-type crossings where I would have been glad to have someone around as I negotiated the slippery crossings. As a result of the bad nights sleep I decided there and then to only go to Gamukh and not trek on to Tapovan, a further 10km round trip after Gamukh before returning back to Bhojbasa to stay again. The walk to Gamukh was again fairly easy and completed in less than 2 hours, still with the steeper slopes being difficult for me. The glacier is amazing, a sheer wall of ice rising up from the stream, a good 40 meters high and 15 meters across. It was not the pristine white that I had in mind since it was boulder strewn from landslides and surrounding rubble, but still beautiful, and I spent a good couple of hours gazing and taking photos. Huge blocks of ice would break off the glacier and tumble down the Ganga, and although this was the source of the river it was still wide and loud with strong currents. There was a small temple which pilgrims would come and pray and offer pooja. At one point a sight to behold - a saddhu, old and gnarly with long grey hair and an even longer white beard, turned up and stripped off everything but for a small thong and took a dip in the freezing water. I had put my feet in - for all of three seconds and that was enough to experience the freezing temperatures.
After Gamukh
You can go on after Gamukh up to Tapovan and beyond, which as said I did not do. Apparently though a guide is essential for this part of the trip as it is necessary to cross over the glacier. The route is dangerous and slippery and there are several large crevasses in the changing glacier-scape. It is not just my guide who told me a guide was essential - other pilgrims solemnly declared this a necessity too. I will not comment anymore on this since I did not do it, but I was told that there is another ashram up at Tapovan where you can overnight if you do not want to do the whole porter-tent-food carrying business. I trekked back to Bhojbasa and stayed at the ashram another night (this time with a room to myself!!) and then made the easy 4 hour trek back to Gangroti the next day.
It is perfectly possible to do this trek in two days rather than the three I took, and this is indeed what most pilgrims do. I was happy to spend a couple of nights in thoe mountains though. The scenery at Bhojbasa is breathtaking with several snowy peaks visible if it is not too cloudy. I only saw these peaks on one day however so staying the extra night maximised the chances of some great views, and I experienced one sublime sunset (and one rainy, totally cloudy one too!). Be aware that if you spend more than two days trekking you have to pay extra fees of 175 rupees per day.
Taking a Guide
A guide can make or break a trip like this and you are probably appreciating I was not overly happy with mine. For the actual trip I did, a guide is not strictly necessary, though he did help with my getting my permit easily and securing jeep ransport up there, although this can be part of the fun of travelling. Having said that I would not want to do this trip on my own, simply because trekking at altitude is not really a good idea solo. Anything can happen and one never knows who may suffer from altitude sickness and need help. If I was going with another traveller though a guide would not have been necessary and I would have preferred not to use when, but I felt I had no option. Mine stung me for a further 500 rupees at the end for 'expenses' such as food and accommodation, which I was not expecting. But I was so keen to be rid of him I did not complain, and obviously did not tip.
In an attempt to sell you a camping trip with guide, cook and three porters, the travel agents in Uttrakashi may well tell you that the accommodation at Bhojbasa is very expensive or even not available - they did not even mention the ashram to me (which to his credit my guide did tell me). This is simply not true and the ashram was a great experience. By the way my guide was called Anil and he may approach you in Uttrakashi - I would advise to give him a wide berth. Early charm soon gives way to curtness, unfriendliness and a poor service.
On the flip side I met a guide up there called Jagat who is everything a guide should be. We ended up sharing a jeep back down to Uttrakashi. He told me loads of stories about the ancient myths of the Ganga and was extremely friendly, had good english and a pleasant, jokey manner. He also told me that he had just been guiding four Russians visitors with another guide to Tapovan. One of them was suffering from altitude sickness at Gamukh, which was so bad she had turned blue with cold and suffering a fever. Jagat carried her down two hours to Bhojbasa on his back and lent her all his outer clothing, whilst the others went on up to Tapovan with the other guide. She gave him all her remaining money he had and cried when they got back down, saying that he had saved her life. I firmly believe this story as I had seen her not looking to good on the way up as I descended from Gamukh. After spending time with Jagat, he was an honourable, honest man. When we returned to Uttrakashi he invited me to his home the next day. I was given food and met his lovely family, and he spent the rest of the day showing me the sights around the town, for which he made clear he wanted no guide fees from the outset. He was doing this as a result of the friendship we struck up on the way down from Gangotri. I can forward you his number if you leave me a message or comment on this blog if you want to employ his services. You will not be disappointed.
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Leela
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Gangotri
I enjoyed reading the description.I visited Gangotri few years back, but did not go to Gaumukh, as we were discuraged.People said the treak is not good.But after reading ,I feel like visitng the the place again and complete my trip till last.You have really described the place so well,that while reading all the seces were comeing alive in front of my eyes.I am happy that you enjpyed your trip,and had the courage to travel alone all the away up !