Chopta - Tungnath - Chandrashila

jennyg

Has anyone does this trek? What was it like? Also I most likely would be doing it the beginning of March. Will there be lots of snow? Is it very physically challenging? do you get good views from the top? I know a million questions. Thanks

babuchand

hey,
thats a good trek, cool and easy specially from chopta to tunganath. tunganath is the highest temple of garwal....higher than kedarnath. it also probably falls under pach-kedar group of temples.

the chandrashila rised behing the temple......from here its a stiff but short trek(not climb). u need good shoes and some lungs, but no extra mountain geers. but i think in march the snow of prev winter will be there...melting and making your climb difficult.

the chandrashila summit is just next to paradice......u can see almost all the famous peaks of north india(garwal+himachal) in a panoramic view of almost 200 - 240 degrees.

another worry is the route..... to chopta......there is some permit problem....just confirm locally or from gmvnl.... search in google to get to there website and get the ph no of GMVNL office.
only one bus plies in the route ukhimath- chopta..."bhukh hartal"(name of the bus).

so gather some info and plunge into it..... there is no great risk... so enjoy

Babuchand

rajkumar

Hi
I went to Tungnatha and Chandrasila peak in December, 2004. At that time the snow cover was very thin. And I had a great time enjoying the scenary from the top. .
#1. Permits are not required. However you are require to pay park entry fee to Kedarnath wild life sanctuary.
#2. You can reach Chopta by evening, stay in one of the dhabhas and start early in the morning to Tungnath
#3. There is heavy snowfall this year. So check weather conditions before you start. You had better contact GMVN tourist lodge office, Ukhimath. ph. no:
01364-264236
#4. I don't think there will be bus service upto Chopta in March. The roads will be blocked with snow. However you can go upto "Makhu Bend" on local jeeps or an occasional bus" form there you have to trek 7 or 8 km to reach Chota. If the weather is adverse, there won't be anybody in Chopta dhabhas.
So you should have your own tents and food arrangements.

#5. There is one guide by name Murali Singh Negi of saari Village( near Ukhimath) who can guide you to the peak even in heavy snow. ( ask for him in GMVN ukhimath).Be careful and watchout your every step
So theer will be lot of snow walking. If you can walk fast by evening you can come back to Chopta from Tungnath and chandrasila peak, if you start early in the morning. ( In dec. we came back by 12-00PM ) It all depends on your fitness and the snow conditions.

#6. If you are in that region don't miss DEORIA TAL near Saari village on the way to Chopta. You will get exquisite views of Choukhambha, Neelkath and Kedaynath peaks. The scenary of that area is just marvellous beyond words. Again cautioning you check the snow conditions before you start.

#7. there are other places like Ruch mahadev, Kalimath, Kalishila, Mansuna village( on the way to Madmaheswar) worth visiting if you are an avid trekker.

I suggest you wait till April when there will be less snow and the rhododendran trees will be in bloom. And you will enjoy your trip better.
PM me if there are any questions.

Happy Trekking,
Rajkumar

jennyg

I put this under another thread and it got no responses. So I will try here.

How much does it usually cost for a 4 day trek? I am trekking from Rishikesh into the Garwhals for 4 days. They are providing accom, and food and porter. I was quoted $275USD per person for the trek. I had some other quotes at around $220USD. I thought this sounded pricey. Is this the norm? I will pay it if this is the average price. but am just wondering if I am getting over charged? Thanks.

sapta_roy

Jenny the cost depends upon which route u r going. Tougher the route higher the cost. But i guess its a soft trek as it takes only 4 days. usually a tour operator charges 50/60 US$/day/person for a soft or moderate trek. Again the charges depend on the no of persons going. The above standard is based on 4 persons or more. It includes normally accom ( most of the time on twin sharing basis) food, cooks, porters, guides and equipments if needed. The charges can be high as 100 US$ depending such conditions.

Better u can contact the uttaranchal tourism dept name GMVNL ( Garhwal mandal vikas nigam limited). They have the same kind of packages and operates in garhwal/kumaun region.

U can check their website www.gmvnl.com for more details,
Hope this helps
Saptarshi

babuchand

hey u havn't mentioned where are u trekking to.....!!!!
let us know that in first place..... and let u know some facts.... if u r going for a conducted one...cost is always higher than the one managed by yourself.
but even if its higher..... it wont be by more than 20-30 USD for the whole trek.

regards
babuchand

gs_uppal

(babuchand, it is so low if you do that on your own, no cooks no porters no guides.)

tour operators usually charge around Rs 2000 per day per person (USD45) for light treks and Rs2500(USD55) for moderate/difficult treks.
Seeing that USD220 seems fair. But yeah it will be much lesser if anyone does such a trek on their own.
4 day trek in Garhwals will be a light trek. Just tell which route you're going, coz 220USD for Gangotri-Bhojwasa-Gaumukh-Tapovan-Nandanvan kindof trel may seem too high.

babuchand

no no actually i made the point that even if the cost is higher(220USD) it is not by very much...........it would be 200USD atleast.

gs_uppal

u wrote 20USD for the whole trip (by mistake), babuchand

jennyg

Ok yeah I should have said where we are going. we are going toKedarnath, Devriatal, tungnath and to chandrashilla, musk deer sactuary and then we raft down the Ganges to Rishikesh. SO I guess it is reasonable. they are covering the cost of everything.

landoormama

hi , jenny . a reputed trekking agency would charge you any where from Rs 800 to rs 1000/- per day ...also it depends what sort of food he is offering you .. and trust me if you are a first-timer and want to go thro a trekking agency ..get hold of someone who is reputed ,the G.M.V.N-- (THE GARWAHAL MANDAL VIKAS NIGAM) which is run by the state of uttranchal also organises treks in Garwahal.

babuchand

how many days from rishikesh to rishikesh????
but looking at the fixture i think 5-6......am I right????..personally i feel its justified at 220-250USD for the whole tour.....and as landoormama said.....better not to trust anybody else than GMVNL...... http://www.gmvnl.com/ go to this site get the phon number make a call and then decide.
some private agencies will cost less but this is government org and most reliable.

best of luck
bye.

himadventures

Route you mentioned is good and whichever agency you hire-be sure what is included and what's not.

JayBee

We trekked up here in May with Garwhal Himalayan Explorations

http://www.thegarhwalhimalayas.com/

Really enjoyed our four days, we didn't have to lift a finger and the trip was exactly as we'd hoped. Blog and photos are at www.getjealous.com/youngbrown84 if you are interested.

Jay x

cyberhippie

As usual no costs mentioned what did your trek cost jaybee and did thery come through on all thier promises of clean food and porterage etc. etc.

I'm looking for a cheap trip for my dad, who's 59 but been running around the mountains all his life. These guys look good on paper anyway, PM the details as we might be overstepping the mark here on IM??