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Trekking from Govindghat to Ghangaria

Govindghat to Ghangaria – Day 4

You can go through the previous day’s journey here.
So we began our 13 KM hike at around 9:30 AM. 13 KM was not a problem. The first 2 Kilometers is steep and arduous climb. After that….. well, after that you start getting used to it and submit to your fate. 🙂

helicopter to ghangaria @lemonicks.com

Once in a while the chopping of the chopper could be heard and seen. We had the whole day to reach Ghangharia and I guess that made two of us over confident. We started it slow enjoying the breathtaking beauty of the mountains, the valley, and the river flowing below, talking to fellow trekkers and of course clicking photos.

trek to ghangaria @lemonicks.com

Village women drying clothes by the river

trek to ghangaria @lemonicks.com

Roadside shop selling fruits & cold drinks.

We were so engrossed in our own world that we forgot to keep a tab on time & distance. Suddenly it started pouring; what do you expect in a monsoon season? We had to take shelter in a small shop and that’s when I looked at my watch. Gosh! 2 hours for only 3 KMS!! Not done. We desperately waited for rain to subside so that we could speed up.

Although termed as low season, there were a lot of people on the way, mostly pilgrims wishing to seek blessings at Hemkunt Sahib. In fact I met an old Sardarji who has been coming to Hemkunt Sahib every year for the last 25 years and has never once visited Valley of Flowers!

trek to ghangaria @lemonicks.com

The long 13 KM trudging path.

The trek is made more difficult in both directions by the ponies and their poo. The ponies have an uncanny ability to push you towards the valley side and itself walking along the safer hillside. Some of the ponies were not carrying anyone or anything. On enquiry we found these were returning from Ghangaria to service people who may decide to take a pony half way thru. They said they make the trip in about 5 hours from Govindghat to Ghangaria and about 3.5 hours on the return leg.

At around 4KM mark is a place called “Jungle Chatty” from then on the route is less steep. In fact at places it was going downhill too and also along the river. Beautiful!

trek to ghangaria @lemonicks.com

The river was our constant companion.

On the route we stopped at a couple of places to eat and drink and other places to just rest. We decided to have our lunch at this place near the bridge at the 10KM mark past Byundar village. The last 3 Kilometers are again pretty steep. The river was a ferocious and it was raining heavily too. It was already past 3:00 PM. We bought ourselves the local rain coat, which is nothing but a big polythene bag with a hood and sleeves available at most shops for Rs 50.

We had to literally drag ourselves to our feet to continue our journey.
What kept us going were the motivation provided by the continuous traffic of pilgrims who, despite age, physical disabilities and weather conditions were walking with just one thing in their mind…to reach and pray at Hemkunt Sahib Gurudwara.

trek to ghangaria @lemonicks.com

Many of them were bare feet.

It was past 6 PM. We had been walking for nine hours (including breaks)! Phew made it at last ! The porter had reached earlier and was not even puffing! Shame on us. After checking out a couple of hotels we checked into Kuber Hotel, the one right opposite the Gobind dham Gurudwara. It was all the better as there were some martial arts shows by young Sikhs which we could watch just by walking across. I made a mental to have Langar food one of these days.

It had been raining heavily the whole day. We hoped the next day would give us some respite.
Next stop. Valley of flowers. Stay tuned. 🙂

Below you can read all related posts.
Train journey to Haridwar
Haridwar to Rishikesh
Rishikesh to Joshimath and
Joshimath to Govindghat
How many days to reach Valley of Flowers?

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11 thoughts on “Trekking from Govindghat to Ghangaria”

  1. Its always a wonderful experience to walk with pilgrims, isnt it? their complete devotion and faith is stunning, and makes you feel bad about even the slightest complaining…. looking forward to pics of the valley..

  2. Niranjan,
    Thanks.

    Anu,
    Absolutely! They slap us with their devotion & determination to make it & we get irritated by slightest of discomforts. 🙂

  3. Team Square,
    Yeah, had it not been raining, we would have completed a bit earlier but yes, we wasted too much time in first 2 hours admiring the natural beauty. 😀

  4. PNS,
    Most of them were bare feet irrespective of their age. It’s sheer their devotion towards the God which helps them pass thru it.

    After reaching at that height, Langar food was the most awesome thing to happen. Simple yet delicious. 😀

  5. Your post rewind memories when I trek from Govindghat to Ghangaria and a night stay. Then next day 7 km steep trek to Hemkund Sahib – 15,000+ feet above sea level. It was one of the best trek I did till-date. Though, what I miss is trek to Vallery of Flowers and Kagbhusandi Lake trek, which is in-between. Never visited. Maybe soon will visit for sure one day.
    Keep travelling, keep writing. Best Wishes always!

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