When the summer starts, the scorching heat asks you to go out for a small vacation, maybe a small road trip and peaceful evening watching sun settling down behind beautiful mountains. Yes! I am talking about mountains.
Being an avid traveler, mountain lover and a member of travel enthusiast friend’s gang, we decided to cover two short treks Deoria Tal and Chandrashila peak near Chopta in Uttarakhand in a crisp and short stay of 3 days (you can ease up according to your schedule) to capture every fun. I know it’s a year back thing, so, let me walk down my memory lane, sing Rocky mountain high and scribble down the quick travel itinerary for you.
Day 0
We started our journey around 11.30 PM from Kaushambi Metro Station (Delhi-UP Border, where we all gathered) for Chopta in a tempo traveller with the group of 9 friends; loaded with fun, food, and music (don’t forget to carry warm clothes and an umbrella, you never know when you might need it).
Day 01 (Delhi – Haridwar – Sari Village – Deoria Tal)
We woke up early in the morning to capture the first ray of sun at Haridwar and to have a holy dip in river Ganga. After getting some snacks (keep it light to avoid puking, there is a long stretched hill journey afterwards) we left Haridwar around 8.30 AM.
Average time to spend – 1.5 hours
The amazing breathtaking view of Alaknanda and Bhagirathi in Devprayag surely win your heart and calls you to stay. 7 hours’ drive to your destination will leave you speechless and your camera loaded with a dozen of awestruck photos. Roadways are the only option to reach there since the nearest Railway station is Rishikesh (170 kms from Chopta). Well, we reached Saari village at 2.30 PM afternoon. We managed to find a food stall running by a local family and relieved our hunger with Daal Chawal (world’s best, at least for that moment). And then we started our first trek to Deoria tal.
A short 3 kilometers uphill trek gives us mesmerizing views of the valley. It’s a small amidst lake surrounded by mountains. The lush green valley welcomes you with open arm, loaded with natural beauty and serene lake gives you a picturesque for a perfect selfie. You can camp there for a night, there is camping facility provided by various local guides. You can also set up your own camp by paying a nominal fee to the respective authority there.
We spent a couple of hours there relaxing and witnessing the sun sets behind the mountains, and then decided to step down to our local resort in Chopta. (Bring a torch for sure, its dense dark while coming back). At last, we reached our milestone, the resort manager was so helpful that made our bonfire, dance, and fun; a perfect starry and peaceful night to remember.
Day 2 (Chopta – Tungnath – Chandrashila Trek)
Our morning started early with chirping birds & breeze around 6:30 am as we were scheduled to start our trekking to Chopta. I remember that our half an hour drive to Chopta village from resort help us get a curving breakfast because of beautiful mountain road (it was so fun to make a sandwich on the curving road where you can’t even stay still).
Before you start your 4 km trek towards Tungnath, you have to register yourself with the local police or forest security (you don’t have to run anywhere; you will find forest officer at your starting point of the trek with a payable fee of Rs. 150).
It was a very steep trek lush with green forest, fauna, and grassland, the picturesque is so dreamy that you will forget from where are you coming from. Some people hail horses for the trek however if you want to enjoy every bit of it, go for the walk, I know it’s tedious but worth to take.
Tungnath is the highest Shiva temple and one of the Panch Kedars; a must visit temple if you love discovering temples of the mountain.
Average time to spend – 1.5 hours
Later, we started our trek towards Chandrashila peak. It was just a kilometer yet thrilling trek due to the narrow path and thin air and I am sure that will accelerate your blood pressure, however, the long range of mountains and breathtaking view with ease your pressure. I would suggest you to spend at least 2-3 hours to relax; just lay down there and leave yourself enjoying the cool breeze that takes all your life tensions and worries.
Average time to spend – 2-3 hours
As the clock start ticking and sun slowing down, we started our trek back to the base camp at Chopta village.
Day 3 (Chopta – Rudrapryag – Rishikesh – Delhi)
We loaded ourselves in tempo traveller and headed back to Rishikesh. It’s an amidst point if you are returning back from Chopta.
While returning we spent some time at confluence of Alaknanda and Mandakini in Rudraprayag. It is definitely an unexplored place and surprisingly you will find more foreign tourists than Indians there.
Average time to spend – 1 hour
We reached Rishikesh around 9 PM with extreme hunger and this time if you have not visited “Chotiwala” then you have not tasted good food in Rishikesh; just kidding. We left Rishikesh around 10:30PM and reached Delhi at 4AM.
These 3 days went so fast that we hardly got time to think about office pressure & deadlines, and left us with endless memories.
Expenditure: Rs. 5000 (what we spent per head)
A Few Travel Tips:
- Schedule your trip with buffer time, so that you don’t have to rush.
- Carry dry snacks/food from home (you will save a lot of money, trust me).
- Carry water bottles with you, so that you can refill.
- Keep your luggage minimum; the more you carry, the more you hassle.
- Rain coat
- Glucose, biscuits and juice.
- PowerBank
- Bluetooth Speaker (to add more fun)
Login with Facebook
Login with Google