panch kedar trek

can somebody throw light on Panch kedar trek. trek itinerary , where to source guides, porters and experiences etc .
is it moderate or tough ? i heard it is spiritually rewarding besides offering ample scope of a good trek.

thanks in advance

I can throw some light on Kedarnath and Madhyamaheshwar.

Kedarnath : starting point Gourikund, can be reached in one day from haridwar/rishikesh. better to stay in a place called Rampur just below gourikund (1-2hr drive). no need of guide. Kedar is 16km steep uphill from Gourikund via a stome paved road. avoid rush of pilgrims in June-July. there are ample lodges in kedarnath (may not be ample in June-july).
For trekking enthusiast there are two lakes near kedarnath viz. chorabarital (2-3hr go & back...can be done on the day of return) and Vasukital (5-6hrs go & back)

Madhyamaheshwar : starting point is Ukhimath, guide cum porter available @Rs200-300 perday, contact....
Vijay Prakash Nautial
Vill:Mangoli
Post: Ukhimath
Zila:Rudraprayag
State: Uttaranchal;
PIN-246469
Ukhimath can be reached by Bus/Car in a day from Haridwar/Rishikesh. starting from Ukhimath car goes to Jugasu/Uniana from where trek starts. Night stop shud be in Bantoli (13-14km). next day its steep uphill through picturesque path to Madyamaheshwar(10km). stay there at temple commitee guest house and next morning go to Budamaheshwar Top for a magnificent view of Chowkhamba and Mandani pk. while returning stay at Ransi (16km from madmaheshwar) and next day reach ukhimath in afternoon.

for write up of our trip go to this link...
http://www.webmania.co.za/travelmani...aheshwar.shtml

Out of the Panch kedar, Rudranath is the toughest. It is advisable to climb from Saggar instead of Mandal / Ansuya. Tunganath is a short but very steep climb. And usually there is rain after 12 in the afternoon. Nights can get very very cold. It is also advisable for Madhya Maheshwar trek to take the climb with a halt in one of the villages enroute. The return can be in one day. Kalpeshwar is easy and very comfortable. The temple however does nto match the splendour of the other Kedars. One wonders why this neglect.

Enjoy the trek.

Panch kedar trek 2006


Day 1 : Kerala - Delhi

Day 2 : Delhi - Rishikesh - Rudraprayag .
Day 3 : Rudraprayag – Gaurikund
Day 4 : Gaurikund - Kedar Nath
Day 5 : Kedar - Gaurikund - Guptkashi ( 40km )
Day 6 : Guptkashj - Gaundhar Village 17 km
Day 7 : Gaundhar - madhmaheswar (3289m) 10 km
Day 8: Madhmaheswar – Gaundhar 10km
Day 9 : Gaundhar - Jugasu trek 12 km - road Ukhimath 16km
Day 10 : Ukhimath – Chopta 35km road , Chpta – Tunganath Trek 4Km
Day 11 : Tunganath - Chandrasila – Tunganath - Chopta
Day 12,13 : Chopta - Sagar 30 km Road - trek to Rudranath
Day 14 : Rudranath – Dumuk trek 18 km
Day 15 : Dumuck – Urgam 14 km trek - Kalpeswar
Day 16 : Kalpeswar – Urgam – Helang 9km trek , helang – Karnprayag 70km road
Helang - Joshimath – Badri dham
Day 17 : Badrinath
Day 18 : Badri - Rishikesh
Day 19 : Rishikesh - Delhi
Day 20 : Delhi - Kerala


x'tra places , x'tra days

Kedarnath -> Vasuki tal
Ukhimath -> Deoria Tal - 8km from Ukhimath
Rudranath -> Vaitarani River , Surya Kund , Chandra Kund, Manas Kund, Tara kund

COMMENTS / MODIFICATIONS EXPECTED

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nice one.....
3 modifications I would like

1. in madmaheshwar..go to bantoli while going (1km from gaundaar) and while returning come down to ransi.

2. better not to stay at gaurikund..stay at Rampur some km below gaurikund... better accomodation @ cheaper rate.

3. you can surely include deoria tal from ukhimatth and chorabarital (start from kedarnath in early morning and in the same day come back to rampur via gourikund )from kedarnath in your itinerary... adding vasuki tal will consume one more day.

happy trekking...share your photo and travelogue...

Chorabari Tal trek can be done in 4-5 hours from Kedarnath(both side) . There is a proper trail that starts from Kedarnath to Chorabari Tal. There is a beautiful waterfall enroute which you need to cross to reach Chorabari Ral.

If you reach there, then take the razor thin and rocky trail from Chorabari Tal to next Ridge and that leads to Bramha Gupha (An ice Cave).

Vasuki Tal is a steep climb from Kedarnath and its difficult to do it in a single day unless you are physically in very good shape.

why i like the panch kedar trek is because it provides multiple destinations , religious places, tough trekking , different scenaries. do not know if i can spare 20 days.

will be satisfying from many points of view rather than visiting a single destination like a lake / pass. looks like a cross country trekking.

I AM NOWHERE NEAR THIS QUALITY=> my ultimate aim is to survive in a forest /mountain with the lightest baggage containing the most essential items only and a knife . solo survival . a commando training/survival training will teach us , those who are not natural mountain dwellers, how to live out of natural local resources and survive with good knowledge of plants/geography. Sometimes I get the primitive urge to be a nagabond(!!) / vagabond / gypsey.

Does anybody share the feeling from inside ?

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visit
http://community.webshots.com/user/sheineshk

panch kedar sept - 2008

1.

my intention to trek Madhmaheshwar - Tunganath leg thru deoria tal. any short cuts with directions / time ? .

( the regular path is Madhmaheswar -10km Gaundhar- 12km Jugasu-16km drive Ukhimat - 35km drive to Chopta - 4 km trek Tunganath , reachable in 3 days )

2.
which is the difficult leg

3.
any known guides / any specific info welcome

I guess you can read your own thread from last year where a lot of floks have given really useful info already :-)..

cheers

Hi,
After Gaundhar the 09 km climb to the Madhmaheshwar starts.
Well there is a good route and so you do not require a guide. There are places where you will get food and place to stay.
Tungnath and beyond Chandrasilla is a must for one of the best views of Himalaya.

is there any need of permits at any stage of panchkedar trek?

can any one give me information pertaining to guide cum poter with detail address and phone nos. ? i am planing to trek pancha kedar yatra with my wife and son (10) years from kolkata in the month of june 2010 starting from kolkata , risikesh, helang, kalpeshwar, dumak, toli, rudranath, anusuadevi, mondal, chopta, tunganath, ukhimath, uniana, gaundhar, madamaheswar, ransi, kalimath, gourikunda, kedarnath, gourikunda, haridwar, back to kolkata. any info? pl share.
regards
anirban

Hi,
You may contact Indra Singh Rawat at 09410933169. He shall help you have a good trek.

My suggestion is as follows:
1. Start from Kedar and finish at Kalpeshwar - for two reasons as the legend goes after completing the Panchkedar you should go to Badrinath to take Vishnu as your witness of having completed the PanchKedar. This story is left to ones faith so I will not expound any further. Secondly, logistically, Kedar is long but has the best facilities, so it will be good to test you and your family. I dont want to discourage you but it may be a stretch for all of you
2. After Kedar go to Kalimath but start the trek to Madhmaheshwar from Ransi - take a vehilce from Kalimath to Ukhimath- Ransi.
3. Next would be Chopta, this very short trek but this will test your acclimitisation to altitude
4. If by this time you are still ok then you have two options, climb to Rudranath (this is by far the toughest) from either Mandal or Sagar. If you really want to go to Kalpeshwar via dumak from Rudranth then you should test yourself on the Mandal-Anusuya- rudranth route. My reco would be unless your family is very fit to do a short trek to Anusuya and come down to Mandal. Take the road from mandal to Saggar from where you can climb Rudranath via Panar
5. I would also recommend not trying the Rundranth-Kalpeshwar route but to comedown to Sagar and try Kalpeshwar from Helang
5. Overall you dont need a single guide and porter for the entire journey. Get a porter at Kedarnath and leave him there
6. You can then get a porter from MM, Tungnath and Rundranath - I had used the services of one Narayan rawat who was very good
7. For Kalpeshwar hire any local lad from Helang
8. Please dont insist on doing this trek in one go. If you can do even Kedaranth and MM in this visit I would say you have done well with a 10 yr old kid

Let me know if you need any more help

This is my rough plan for 4 Kedar trek in mid-June this yr.(excluding Kedarnath as I have been there in 2007 Oct).

Day 1:-Howrah(board Upasana/Haridwar Superfast Exp.@13:50 hrs)
Day 2:-Haridwar(arr@17:00 hrs)
Day 3:-Haridwar->Ukhimath(by bus)
Day 4:-Ukhimath->Unaina(by jeep/bus)->Ransi->Gaundar->Bantoli
Day 5:-Bantoli->Madhyamaheshwar
Day 6:-Madhyamaheshwar(visit Bura Madhyamaheshwar,etc.)
Day 7:-Madhyamaheshwar->Ransi->Unaina(by jeep/bus)->Ukhimath
Day 8:-Ukhimath->Chopta(by bus/car)->Tunganath+Chandrashila
->Chopta
Day 9:-Chopta->Mandal->Anasuya devi
Day 10:-Anasuya devi->Rudranath->Panar
Day 11:-Panar->Dumak
Day 12:-Dumak->Urgam->Kalpeshwar->Urgam
Day 13:-Urgam->Helang->Rudraprayag/Srinagar
Day 14:-Rudraprayag/Srinagar->Haridwar
Day 15:-Haridwar(board Doon exp@21:45 hrs)...entire day acts as a reserve day as the train leaves late at night
Day 16:-(on board)
Day 17:-Howrah(arr@7:00 hrs)


Is the itinerary feasible?


Are there acco. facilities in the halts enroute like Bantoli,Mandal,Anasuya devi,Rudranath,Panar,Dumak,Urg am,Helang,etc.?


Is it possible to do the downhill trek from Madhyamaheshwar to Unaina & return to Ukhimath in a single day?


Is it advisable to carry any tents for the stretch between Mandal to Urgam?


Can we get guides for the Rudranath-Urgam section from Mandal?


One of the member just quoted that the Mandal route to rudranath is tougher than the Gopeshwar-Sagar section...in that case can anyone tell me which of the two route has more to offer in terms of beauty & flora & fauna...if they are basically the same then we can scrap the Mandal route altogether?Which of the two will be quicker in reaching Rudranath?