Valley of Flowers & H Sahib with a 2 yr Old Kid

Dilliwala

kc,

Looks very good - great if u can make it to Joshimath in 1 day. If it looks like there'll be delays en route or anyone has acclimatisation probs, u can always take a spot decision to break journey at one of the places I mentioned in my previous post - accom is unlikely to be a prob. Joshimath is really not that high - it's the distance, and the consequent tiredness of a long journey which might bring on some probs, that shud be of concern. If everyone's fine no point to break journey early - just keep an eye out for signs of wear and tear after the half-way point.
Scorpio is the best choice poss, as I mentioned earlier. No idea about costs though.

Dilliwala

What about:
Self
F-i-l
Maid

himadventures

I do not think that taking up 2 yrs. old to H.Kund is fine. This is high altitude and much of the trail is of stone steps- this means you will be carrying the kid to top as he/she will not be able to walk up.

This is too much for a small kid to go through. I think-this will not be safe. If you have to do this-then let her/him stay back at GHANGRIA with someone. Upto GHANGRIA- this is fine and no problem should be there.

k_cborty

Hi!

After so much of planning our trip stands cancelled.

Just hrs before my F-in-law was to arrive in Delhi there was a death in our family and simultaneously my daughter was taken ill with cough and severe cold (today was her 2nd Birthday)

Guess everything happens for good.

We now plan to start next week but will try and avoid the VOF and Hemkund strech with the kid.

Will hopefully touch Rudraprayag,Auli,Badrinath,Man a,Chopta.

Need to be a bit milder in our approach with the kids present condition.
Suggestions for an interesting trip with the present constraints are welcomed.

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saajan_20

there is no such need to have a 4wd and even a sumo qualis or scorpoio will fit the bill i did it in an ambassador that too 7 yrs ago !!! u will go to govind ghat and the valley of flower s is trek all the way but seriously are u really a fan of flora and fauna do u like them flowers and all that so much ??

abut the child being taking to such an isolated place i would think about it again !! where there is such less oxygen on heights !!!

nyraghu

I am sorry that the trek had to be cancelled. I hope your daughter is better now.

We have already discussed Garson Bugiyal, and Chatra Lake, near Auli. On the way from Auli to Garson Bugiyal, one passes the Padiyar Devta Temple, a small and peaceful temple in a jungle clearing. Another walk which I liked was the one to Charan Paduka, above Badrinath. When the weather is clear, one gets amazingly close views of Nilkanth on that walk. There is some more information on all this in a previous posting.

Yet another thing you could do is to visit Lata village, near Joshimath. If I had more time in Joshimath last time, I would have done that. I have read that there is a Nanda Devi Temple there, and that the village was an important place for expeditions into the Nanda Devi Sanctuary. It appears that one can drive 25 kms from Joshimath to Lata Roadhead, and walk 1.5 kms from there to the village --- the experts here will, I am sure, be able to tell you more about it. You can find some photographs of the village at the Nanda Devi Campaign Web site, http://nandadevi.prayaga.org/photos.html

HTH,
Raghu.

hill_man

I have seen so many small kids during my trip last month, some of them walking, some on ponies, some on pittus and in some cases, parents actually carrying the infants in their arms! Almost all of them were going to Hemkund (alt: 14,200ft). I did not see any emergency situation there. I think what is important is to get acclimatized at Ghangaria (approx 10000ft). Ideally you should hire a pittu man to carry your kid.

capt_mahajan

Slightly offtopic, but this was a pristine untouched area in the 70's and early 80's, when I went there.

The Chipko movement was the reason. It started in Chamoli, and the women here were often the frontrunner activists. Gaura Devi came from Lata.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipko_movement
http://nandadevi.prayaga.org/chipko.html

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ks_bluechip

I agree ... during my July-07 visit to VoF, I found quite a few kids accompanying there parents ... smaller kids (2-7 year olds) carried in Doli (Chair-like-Baskets made of Cane) and several 8-15 year olds even walking the trails.

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himadventures

Yes , Raghu is right. Do not worry much...only thing to take care is that all transportations leave early in morning. Traffic starts well in dark..some vehicles even starts at 4.0 AM !!

k_cborty

We have drawn our alternate plan....

14th Sept (Fri)-Leaving for Hardwar via Jan Shatabdi (O/N Hardwar)
15th Sept Sat)-Hardwar to Rudraprayag (O/N Rudraprayag)
16th Sept (Sun)-Rudraprayag to Auli (O/N Auli)
17th Sept(Mon)-Treks around Auli(Garson Bugiyal)(O/N Auli)
18th Sept(Tues)-Auli to Badrinath-temple visit (O/N Badrinath)
19th Sept(Wed)- Trek to Mana & Vasudhara (O/N Badrinath)
20th Sept(Thurs)-Badrinath to Chopta (O/N Chopta)
21st Sept (Fri)-Trek to Tungnath (O/N Chopta)
22nd Sept (Sat)-Deoriyatal trek and back (O/N Chopta)
23rd Sept (Sun)- Chopta to Hardwar (O/N Hardwar)
24th Sept (Mon)-Train to Delhi

Suggestions needed....

1.Distance and time between Badrinath and Chopta
2.Where to stay in Chopta
3.Can Deoriyatal trek be done in a day (I'm ready to take Pony-(if available)
4.Overall is the plan ok.

capt_mahajan

Looks good, though I can't comment on the 22nd September trek

1. Badrinath Chopta is about 155km
2. Ukhimath GMVNL place 30 km away may be a better option.

himadventures

Dilliwala and infinion along with capt. Mahajan are right. But infinion, you suggested the most romantic thing which can happen in this travel. He has booked Scorpio- I think this is fine but travel is long and jerky.

Indica is good car and can be taken to any road like HIGHWAY like this without major problem. But he has done good planning.

I think rates are fine and weather is good these days...no problem. Wish if he could stay at infinion places !!

Sadanand Kamath

1. The distance between Badrinath-Chopta is around 135 kms.
2. At Chopta you may stay in guest houses which have only basic facilities.
3. Deoriyatal trek can be done in a day. But I will suggest that you consider staying at Ukhimath( There is a GMVN Rest House) after completion of Deoriayatal trek, instead of going back to Chopta. Next day, after visiting the Ukhimath temple, you can travel to Haridwar via Kund-Chandrapuri-Rudraprayag. The distance between Ukhimath and Haridwar is about 225 kms, whereas the distance between Chopta and Haridwar (via Gopeshwar-Chamoli) is about 265 kms. You may re-check on the distances.
4. The overall plan is good.

Happy trekking

Sadanand

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k_cborty

hanks all for all the inputs and suussestions.

Can someone suggest the exact route to be taken from Badrinath to Chopta.