TREK TO KALINDI KHAL

After breakfast, we will start for Gangotri. On the way, we will visit the beautiful village of Harsil, famous for its old wooden houses. Harsil is known as the “Butia” village, where people from Tibet settled a few centuries back. After lunch in Harsil, we will drive further to Gangotri and arrive in the late afternoon. We will meet our guides, staff, and porters at Gangotri. In the evening, we will go for an easy walk along the Bhagirathi river and may visit some ashrams and holy men. We will stay overnight at a guesthouse in Gangotri.

After visiting the Gangotri temple and receiving blessings, we have our breakfast and begin our trek to Chidbasa. A leisurely 9-kilometer walk brings us to our first tented camp by the Bhagirathi waters, surrounded by birch trees, at Chidbasa. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Chidbasa.

After breakfast, we proceed to Bhojbhasa. Ahead in the valley, we can see the group of Bhagirathi peaks and get a first glimpse of Shivling. As the trek is relatively short, we may decide to walk further on the trail and return to Bhojbhasa for a late hot lunch. We may also meet some pilgrims visiting Gaumukh or Tapovan – it could be an interesting experience to interact with them. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Bhojbhasa.

We start our trek to Tapovan. After walking for 4 km, we reach Gaumukh (4040m/13,255 ft), the glacier snout where the river Bhagirathi starts. We climb to the Gangotri glacier from the right, cross it, and reach the alpine meadow of Tapovan. A short, easy walk of 20 minutes will take us to the beautiful campsite of Tapovan. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Tapovan.

(Please note, over last few years the trail from Gaumukh to Tapovan has changed a lot due to flash floods, heavy rains and climatic changes).

(Please note, over last few years the trail from Gaumukh to Tapovan has changed a lot due to flash floods, heavy rains and climatic changes).

On this day, we explore the meadows at Tapovan. We can climb to the ridge top for about 1 hour to get some excellent views of the group of Meru peaks and its glacier. From the top, we can also see the wide, vast Gangotri glacier with a group of Bhagirathi peaks across the glacier. In the evening, we can take a short walk towards upper Tapovan. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Tapovan.

After breakfast, we begin our trek to Nandanvan. We will walk to the edge of the Tapovan meadow and descend to the Gangotri glacier. We will cross the entire glacier from the true left to the right before climbing to the alpine meadow of Nandanvan at the base of the Bhagirathi peaks. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Nandanvan.

We explore the meadow of Nandanvan. We can go further along the plateau, following the Gangotri glacier, to get views of peaks within the Gangotri glacier such as Kedarnath, Kedar Dome, and Kharchkund. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Nandanvan.

Today we trek along the Chaturangi Glacier. It is an easy, gentle trail along the edge of the Chaturangi glacier. We can see various shades of colors in the glacier, marked with a few glacier pools with emerald water. At the end, we descend to the side glacier coming from the Bhagirathi peaks. We cross the glacier and climb around 70-80 meters through a narrow, difficult section on the trail before reaching the beautiful lake of Vasukital below Vasuki Parbat. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Vasukital.

After breakfast, we continue to trek along the Chaturangi glacier. After crossing two more side glaciers, we reach the campsite of Kada Pathar. While crossing the side glacier, we get a fabulous view of Satopant. The Kada Pathar camp gets its name from a big rock (pathar) that can be identified from a distance, standing near the campsite. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Khada Pathar.

From the Kada Pathar camp, we start the day by descending onto the glacier. After walking for 5-6 hours on the glacier, we camp on it. The glacier further divides into two parts like a “Y”, and we would camp at this junction. Dinner and overnight stay at the camp in Sweta Glacier.

On this day, we continue walking on the left arm of the glacier to reach the Kalindi Base camp. On a clear day, we can see our goal for the next day, the “Kalindi Khal”. The next day will be a big day, so we need to start early in the morning. We organize and prepare ourselves accordingly. With an early dinner and fingers crossed, we head to the tents, praying for great weather the next day. Dinner and overnight stay at the Base of Kalindi Khal camp.

After an early breakfast around 5:30 am, we start our trek. A slow and steady climb would get us to Kalindi Khal, where we can get a vista of mountains from the pass. The main and prominent peaks would be Kamet, Abi Gamin, Mukut, and Mana. After taking a few pictures and group photos, we start our long descent to arrive at Rajparav camp. Dinner and overnight stay at the Rajparav camp.

After successfully crossing the Kalindi Khal, we can relax, especially since we will be at a relatively lower altitude. The trail continues to descend gradually along the river. We cross a side river and a small glacier before reaching the Arwatal campsite. Dinner and overnight stay at Arwatal camp.

From Arwatal, the trail improves significantly, leaving the moraine and glacier behind us. As we approach the Ghastoli campsite, the landscape becomes greener and the walking becomes easier. One feels happy to be back at lower altitudes with green meadows. Dinner and overnight stay at Ghastoli camp.

If we are lucky, we would get an army truck to take us down to Badrinath; otherwise, we have to walk down to Mana. Overnight stay in a hotel.

After visiting Badrinath temple, we drive to Rudraprayag via Joshimath. Overnight stay at a hotel.

After breakfast, we drive to Dehradun airport to catch our flight back home.