Our Uttarakhand Chardham family bike trip was planned 6 months in advance. Me, my wife and daughter along with Akshayanand Ji (a long time friend turned Sanyasi currents at Uttarkashi) planned to take two bikes and move around in the Himalayas.
We are always keen to make tours experience and study tours instead of leisure tours. Hence along with riding, we also decided to do reading of a Hindu Scripture as an add on. Resolve Stays alongwith Sanyasis and in Ashrams wherever possible would help gain local feel apart from opportunity to exchange spiritual notes on the journey. With this in backdrop, we agreed with Akshayanand Ji that he will preach a Vedanta scripture called Drig-Drishya-Viveka daily for an hour. This in my view can be called one of it's kind "teerth Yatra" on the Royal Enfield.
We selected 1st Oct to 15th Oct as dates for the journey. Akshayanand Ji basis his experience of Himalayas suggested this to be the best time for travel. Less tourists, lesser cost for everything and more fun. This is ideal for people like us who are homeschooling their kids. Home schooling allows any time as your time provided you study all the time at home. Maitri is lucky one to follow this discipline of education.
Two more couples were inspired of doing the same when they heard about the idea especially regarding the learning of scripture and bike. As the trip came nearer they started backing out for various reasons from the bike journey. They agreed to go by a van though. Against all odds, myself and my wife Archana, kept up the bike ride for Chardham on. My wife drives. The van our friends hired helped carry our luggage which really became big. Akshayanand Ji and Maitri (my daughter) traveled comfortably while we were on the bike. Maitri also got a friend with similar age group called Teerthni in the Van.
We parcelled our thunder bird 350 via railway from Bandra to Haridwar. The experience of parcelling the bike was a bit painful. While the actual cost was RS. 2600, I had to pay RS. 3800 for packing. It was basically for comfort that they shall look after the vehicle till it is loaded in the train. We bought bubble plastic packing for the bike which in my view an innovative idea of my wife. Good part it that we got the bike perfectly safe at Haridwar while we reached there by air travel by 12:45pm in the afternoon on 1st of Oct.
Day 1:
As planned, we directly reached Sahastradhara. This place is around 40kms from the Dehradun Airport. It was already 4:00pm while we reached. We went around at Dron Gupha and the Shiva temple there. It was first day of Navratra while we got incidental opportunity to pray the Devi Amba there in the temple. There were hardly any tourist being October. Gadhwal Mandal guesthouse "Yatri Nivas" was very good location for the stay with proper suit type arrangement and a reasonable RS 950 per night, we could identify at sahatradhar. We cancelled original idea of stay at Masuri as it was 5pm and we wanted to bathe in the Sulphur spring there. The natural Sulphur springs are known for curing all skin and joint diseases.
It's always a great idea to study more about the places to be visited from sources like wikipedia. This will bring that place all the more interesting for you while visiting.
Day 2:
We started at around 8:45am after Aloo Paratha and Chai from Sahastradhar. We decided skip Masoori to drop for some time at Kempty fall, did some shopping and proceeded towards Janki Chatti the base camp for Yamunotri. The travel was almost 100 kms from Kempty falls. Yamuna Ji continuously flows on the sideways on the way in the beautiful valley. Riders need to matured as slopes on upstream and downstream are really steep while the roads are narrow. Good part is vehicle traffic is scanty in these days. To my mind, if one really wants to "be present to the nature", one should drive mindfully.
While travelling from Kempty falls to Yamunotri we witnessed sudden heavy rainfall at around 4:30pm onward. Akshayanand Ji exclaimed that the nature is unpredictable in the evenings, hence evenings needs to be avoided for travelling in this region. Luckily rain stopped in 45 mins while we waited and had Tea at a stall Enroute at Rana Chatti.
While travelling from Kempty falls to Yamunotri we witnessed sudden heavy rainfall at around 4:30pm onward. Akshayanand Ji exclaimed that the nature is unpredictable in the evenings, hence evenings needs to be avoided for travelling in this region. Luckily rain stopped in 45 mins while we waited and had Tea at a stall Enroute at Rana Chatti.
It was already a bit dark at 5:30pm. We started off for Janki Chatti from Rana Chatti. After travelling for around 5kms, we could see beautiful snow clad peaks far away while goddess Yamuna was flowing beneath in her tiny avatar. We finished 160 kms of ride today. We were singing Shiv Mahimna Stotram and could feel the presence of lord Shiva. A spiritual feeling is important to make such trips an experience. Hindus call this as Teertha Yatra, a Yatra for quest and search for transcending to higher self. It surpasses the contemporary leisure trips. Biking tip here was to carry plain white glasses for protection of your eyes instead of coloured ones which are useless in the darker times and there is no sparkling sun to hurt your eyes either in the day time.
Atithi Niwas guesthouse at Janki Chatti was one we got reference from Akshayanand ji's connections was good enough to stay over for two nights. It was on banks of Yamuna and we could here the orchestral Yamuna flow even at night. There is an issue with food all around and Atithi was not an exception, but finished the meals as a ritual. Tip here is to carry things like Dates, Khakra and Gujarati Thepla to the extent possible. You never know when it becomes valuable.
Day 3:
We decided to start from Jankichatti to Yamunotri by around 7am. It's 6km from the base camp. We still wanted to return by 4pm as we didn't want to face rains which are generally due by 4:30pm or 5:00pm in this region. Another thing is, the sunsets by 6:00pm and so it's better be back in the guest house or hotel an hour before that. We took a horse for carrying while all others decided to travel by foot. People with normal fitness till age of around 60 can easily do this to my mind although last couple of kilometres are heavy. Tip is to go slow witnessing the picturesque path. If you ask me journey is more beautiful than destination. Best to avoid horse ride while returning back from Yamnotri as it's painful for your back and legs as horse travels over the slope.
On the way to Yamunotri, Akshayanand Ji explained that stream water in Himalayas is worth consuming. It's clean and full for minerals and contains medical value of the local shrubs to keep you fit in conditions around. We almost filled bottles from these good streams instead of buying any kind of mineral water while on the tour.
We found a lot of Pandas or priest pushing us to offer the prayers or Pooja on way to Yamuna Ji. They were very irritating at first sight. When we had a deep discussion on this, we found them to be very important to keep up our tradition and convey it to the newer generations.
We came back by 4pm with all journey enjoyment & no anxiety of reaching back which is actually tiring to Janaki Chatti hotel. Packed up for next day trip to Uttakashi. We requested the catering guy for out of menu Khichadi which he worked hard on and made available for us.
Day 4
It was an exciting ride. Archana rode more than half of the way almost 80kms. One of the exciting enroute was a stop as Radi Top. We were in midst clouds almost 2256mtrs above. We were surprised to find NO hotels or guest houses but only a couple of tea stalls. The ride in that area was thrilling with completely chilling weather at around 11:30pm in the afternoon. It's worth planning for a stay at this place specially which we couldn't.
We reached Uttarkashi at around 1:45pm after driving for close to 150kms. Had an opportunity to take blessings of Kashi Vishwanath Temple and Shakti mandir wherein a close to 20ft Trishul is worshipped. We had an opportunity to listen the mysterious stories of the Shiva and Shakti temples from the key priest of this temple on Akshayanand ji's request. First day when we found delicious food at a hotel opposite to the door of the Hanuman temple called Patiala hotel. It is really worth making a list of good restaurants as part of planning place by place, for people wanting to tour in this region as I found it to be most difficult to get one here.
Day 5
We started at 7:15am in the morning chanting "Ganga maiya ki Jay" and "Har Har Gange" for Gangotri. The route was beautiful. Ganga Ji glimpse was continues as we saw while travelling to Yamnotri.
We stopped at Ganganani for hot water
springs as per the tradition. It was tempting to take bath but it wouldn't be possible if we wanted to return back to Maneri in the evening. We had "Batata poha" along with Farsan we carried along which is completely unavailable in Uttarakhand to me knowledge but if one cooks it. Akshayanand Ji made the ladies do this right at 5:30am keeping our liking in mind. Kids had Dosa and idli a South Indian all time favourite which we found for first time in entire 4 day journey at Gangnani.
We witnessed Harshil on the way and reached Gangotri with lots of spiritual emotions for Ganga Ji. We were deliberating on how could sages of India connect the whole culture with rivers like Ganga and Yamuna. Isn't it a miracle that, a Hindu, be it anywhere in the world would have emotions about this place!! All Hindu births, marriages and deaths would have Ganga Jal and remembrance of Ganga as an intrinsic ingredient for the ritual.
The roads this time were quiet risky and even have a lot of bad patches with repairs. Lot of land slide prone areas with stones spread everywhere makes one more worried about the safety. The BRO (border road organisation) people were seen working hard all the time for repairs and natural disaster recovery. But that also means a breakthrough enjoyment and thrill. Archana drew almost half the time while I was sitting tight. We reach Gangotri which is 3415m with around 3 degree Celsius above the sea level after riding for almost 85kms from Maneri.
We remembered the Sanskrit verse "नामामि गंगे ताव पादपंकजं..."; offered a pooja at the bank after taking dip in ice cold Ganga flow. It was a personal breakthrough for all of us to dip in the Ganga. Normal temperature during this time here is 6degree Celsius while water would not be more than 1 degree Celsius.
While we finished the Pooja and took lunch at "Ishavasyam Ashram" which is strategically located on bank of Ganga, it was already 2:30pm. In backdrop of the risk of land slide and steep turns along with possible late evening travel, we decided to stay back at the Ishavasyam Ashram tonight which was completely unplanned. It was reasonably clean dormitory type stay with facility to eat here itself and ofcourse a spiritual setup which we were keen to be in. We planned to enjoy Ganga Ji to quench deeper spiritual thirst for remaining hours and leave at 6:00am the next day back to Maneri.
In Akshayanand Ji's guidance we visited Suryakund in Gangotri which. The water of Ganga Ji was flowing from a narrow stone on a Shivlinga like stone with great force creating a pond which is around 50meters deep.
Day 6
We started at around 6:15am from the ashram. It was good light for driving that time. The time zone in this region seems a bit different as mornings and evenings both happen earlier than Mumbai. After reaching to Maneri where we spent one night before Gangotri, we took bath in Ganga Ji. Water was not than chilled and also the sun was shining bright. Both these factors helped take good bath this time.
We did an oil change, some mirror adjustment and air correction for the bike. The guy at the service centre said no need but I knew that this was due as we had done more than 2500 kms after we last changed the oil. The firing changed quiet a bit after this change.
We had a rear disk break issue which was a major one from day 2. The break literally failed for a while and than rejuvenated. This happened almost once every 30kms. This was quiet dangerous. We used the front break when this occurred. We couldn't find a mechanic who understood the issue till Uttarkashi. The mechanics here could diagnose that this is due to failure of the pump which pushed he oil in the disk. But unfortunately he didn't have the pump for changing neither could he repair the same. He told us that there may be a service centre in Rudra Prayag which is enroute Kedaranath. We didn't find even there. Ultimately, we decided to leave with it while keeping up the search.
Overall it was a peaceful day after riding for close to 600kms in the mountains. One should find one such day for rest in an ideal bike ride.
Day 7
We started off again at 6am in the morning for Gupta Kashi. We chose to go by peepal dali to Shrinagar to Rudraprayag to GuptaKashi.
We took heartening darshan of Ganga Ji which was loosing our longstanding sight there after till we were back to Rishikesh.
Roads were bad on the drive for long patches while we were seeing the Tehri lake dam waters all the while deep down the valley. The environment was hotter in the day as compared to Gangotri. Clear sky and Sun shine was witnessed like a boon after almost 6 days. We also observed that the trees, soil and mountains were completely different from what we saw till now. We kept our enthusiasm up on bad roads by singing shiva prayers in Samskrit from Rudrastakam to Shiva Mahimna while riding while cutting 100kms in almost 6 hours.
Roads were better post Peepal Dali and best after Rudra Prayag. We cherished the food at Hotel Vijayraj 2kms before Guptakashi at around 2:30pm.
After Lunch break, we decided to move fast and reach the nearest location to Kedarnath Ji. We could reach Gupta Kashi by 5:30pm and by 6:30pm at fata where in we decided to stay back for the night.
It was a 200kms drive while we were still fresh to have discussions like horse or helicopter for the next days Kedarnath yatra.
The seat area and back had some pain sensation when we went to bed. Tip here for riders is to carry Omni Gel for applying and heating pads for a self massage at night.
Day 8
We decided to take the helicopter ride to and fro as we got a good deal due to off season. We finalised at RS. 5,200 per seat to and fro by UTAIR. It was new for me to understand that one can bargain for this kind of a ride as well.
We reached the helipad after our daily breakfast and drig drishya study by 10:45am. This was first day when we started off so late. The helicopter ride started 11:45am. It was a 7 minute ride to Kedarnath crossing 4 mountain ranges from Fata. It was maiden experience for us thought nothing more descriptive though.
After getting down from the Helicopter, we were at 3553m witnessing snow clad peaks and windy cold atmosphere with drizzling rains.
We decided to put up at Meruth guest house. Many were of view not to stay back due to too much of cold atmosphere but we were firm as per plan to stay over in Kedarnath aura.
The guesthouse guys serves superb Roti, Aloo Sabji and Khichadi to night. We also got Papad in meals for first time at Kedarnath. This kind of quality was not thought of at Rs 100 per plate.
The night was supper cold. The coldest one we faced till date. All the hardwork of carrying thermals, sweater, wind cheater woollen socks and thick woollen gloves seemed "worth it".
Day 9
We took Kedarnath darshan at around 6:30am. The mountains behind even more snow and were sparkling in the day light behind the temple.
After reaching to Fata, we took bath and had breakfast to start for Triyugi Narayan. This is almost 30kms from Fata upstream from Sonprayag. This is know as place of marriage of Shiv with Parvati the daughter of king Himalaya, in presence of Narayan and Laxmi. The temple architecture is similar to Kedarnath temple, a bit smaller though. It is said that the Fire here is up for more than three Yugas.
After this we left for Gupta Kashi where Shiva is said to have hidden from Pandavas to appear directly at Kedarnath where Bheem to locate him.
From Guptakashi, we thought of a break at Chopta which is known to be highest motarable path in this region.
My bike breaks which again failed within 5 kms after starting from Guptakashi. In the down slope, road was bad and we had a minor fall while using he front breaks while the rear was not working. This came like a wake up call to seriously sort this out. Imagine moving in this situation for almost nine days in valley and mountain peaks. When I look back, it looks like a big risk that no one should take.
We just went to another local bike mechanic on the way who looked at the issue without bias about the Royal Enfield. It was a shock when he said that the front break shoe was completely ruined. He luckily had one and we took a call to change it there and than. On our request to open up the rear break assembly, after a disclaimer that he has never done it, he opened the same. He could find that a small part of the break shoe had burnt and was sticking on to the disc, leaving the leaver free without action. He rubbed off that part on the ground and reset the whole assembly back. All was working fine. In addition to this, he instilled confidence that now everything is fine. While thinking about lack of precision of the Royal Enfield and my own mistake of NOT getting the breaks rechecked while going for such a big journey, I just started off. Today, we decided to stay back to Ukhi Math which is just 20kms away from Gupta Kashi on a mountain top though.
We stayed in Anushree Lodge which had basic rooms with hot water on call right on the road. This place seemed happening. We found other biker couples from Dehli for the first time. Also there was a lot of metropolitan crowd around with latest high end cars around. The canteen connected the lodge cooked tasty Khichadi on special request which we all relished.
Tip here for fellow bikers is "show must go on 😉"
Day 10
The plan for the day was to reach Joshi Math to take Darshan of the Badrinath Ji on the next day. Started from Ukhi Math at 8am. After driving for a couple of kilometres, we were happy to note that bike brakes were working fine now. The effort a day before worked fine.
We moved with great confidence over to Chopta to reach by 9:15am. This is really a beautiful place on the mountain top. The atmosphere was windy with snow peaks visible all around. Hot Coffee and biscuits in a road side stall with chairs overlooking the valley was superb.
After a refreshing break at Chopta, we were really enjoying and riding faster. On the way to Peepal Koti, we witnessed forest zone. This is called as Kasturi Mrug wherein musk dears are residing.
We took food at the hotel Badrikedara in the Joshimath by 2:15pm. I fund this to be good as compared to all others in he trip wherein things were available as per the menu. Overall we were feeling the impact of city tourists from Ukhi math onward. Be it quality, variety and rates.
After Joshimath, the roads were worse with a lot of streams flowing over the roads. It was real challenge for the rider. On top of it, there was a bit of rain on the way. Rain again seemed to fit in it's 4pm schedule. We continued to drive as we were worried about the sunset and cold incase of delay. We chanted Shri Ramraksha Stotra and prayed for protection to lord Ram ".....रक्षणाय मम रामलक्ष्मणावग्रत: पथि सदैव गाच्छताम..."
We could see the welcome gate for Badrivishal. Suddenly it was like a city on hilltop. A bus depot, lot of hotels, shops, wide tar roads, etc. After finishing the accommodation arrangements at Govind Guest house, we started for the most awaited Badrinath temple. The temple looked like a beautiful palace with exciting colours and creative wood art. It was well maintained and cleaner as compared to any other we found on our trip as yet. Vishnu Sahasranam chanting was being heard from some distance "...... विशोक शोकनशन:...." when we were crossing the bridge over Alakhnanda river to approach the temple. Even in the freezing cold day around 3 degree Celsius of Badrinath dham the nature had arranged for hot water springs. We planned to take bath in the next day morning at the same though. We prayed lord Badrinath, had food and returned back to the guest house.
Akshayanand Ji explained the finishing part on how to achieve Samadhi of the Drig-drishya-Viveka and requested everyone to start the Sadhana at auspicious occasion of Dashahara at the Badrinath dham itself.
We had a sense of achievement that we could finished the Chardham trip on our own motor cycle. While we deliberated, we were filled with gratitude towards the almighty Bhagwan Badrinath to help us achieve this one. All to his credit... "कृष्णार्पणमस्तु!!" as we said.
Day 11
It was auspicious day of Dashahara today while we were fortunate to be at one of the highest holy places of BHARAT.
As per the plan, we reached at the hot spring kund called Tapta Kund for bath. Even here there was separate close door arrangement of ladies following the Indian culture. There was a lot of crowd being Dashahara here. It was really soothing to be taking bath here.
The temple was crowded with devotees from all over the country and even from the world. This is how our sages have connected whole of the country. Be it by Teerth or holy places, rivers, rituals and Samskrit. This is how they wove "unity in diversity of place, language, clothes, sects and so on. We should be indebted to them all our life. We call it as "ऋषि ऋणम".
We visited the Vyas Gupha, Saraswati Udgam Sthan, Bheem pool, Mana Gaun known to be last village of India before China border. Archana and Maitri my daughter drew the last mile while we all followed in the van for a change. People there as usual were inspired while few were inspiring their wives. Few were taking pictures as well.
We were filled with emotion about the place. We set at both Vyas and Ganesh Gupha for some time and expressed gratitude for Maharshi Vyas who authored 18 Puranas. Mahabharata is said to have been written by Ganesha himself while Vyasa narrated the same.
We were thrilled to see the place of birth of Saraswati river wherein there is Bheem pool. One single rock crossing the river path connecting two mountains. It's said that the Pandavas were keen to move up to Swarg with their earthy body as it is from here.
Filled with Gratitude for the all mighty for timely and effortless completion of Yatra, we proceeded for Joshi math at around 3pm to reach the Jyotir math by 5pm. After Vyasa, we were fortunate to offer salutation to Adi Shankaracharya who established this place around 2500 years before. We also prayed at the AmrutKalpa beneath which Adi Shankaracharya did his penance "Tapa". We decided to stay at the Jyotir Math Dharamshala itself considering it as an opportunity to be in Adi Shankara's aura.
We took our dinner again at Badrikedar restaurant at Joshi Math. Today after 10 days, we had sweet Bundi Ladoo to celebrate successful completion of our Yatra.
Day 12
We started off by 9am in the morning after paying visit to Trotakacharya Gupha (disciple of Adi Shankaracharya) who was the first Mathadheeshwar to setup the Jyotirmath.
On the way, we were witnessing various Prayagas. Prayaga means sangam of two rivers. Nand Prayag, RudraPrayag, Gautami Prayag to reach DevPrayag. At Devprayag, it is Alakhnanda and Bhagirathi meeting. Bhagirathi comes from Gangotri and Alakhnanda from Nandadevi which passes through Barinath Ji.
There was some problem in the bike. We found this due to mixing in the Petrol. The engine was shutting down once chowk is put off. We actually drained out some petrol from the carburettor to see if this helps. Than it was smooth. Another issue was the Petrol went into reserve unexpectedly before time. The mileage felt as low as 20km per litre for a while in the Badri trip to my mind from normal 30 to 35km per litre. Thunder birds fuel gauge doesn't work properly from inception which may cause risk. I don't know why Royal Enfield can have better precision in small things in such a good bike. Even my digital watch in the bike is failing all the time. It's really irritating.
You can see two different colours of two different waters meeting together at the centre point at Devprayag.
Today onward, we witnessed a bit of hot climate. Somewhere in the corner our heart, we were missing the cold of Kedarnath and Badrinath dham, while somewhere we were feeling cosy. We almost removed sweaters, wind cheaters, caps, hand gloves and so on while on the bike itself. I just thought this is confused personality of human being who doesn't know exactly what he wants. In fact all the pain is of craving for something which is not available at that moment. This makes one continuously unhappy.
We were put up at Uma Palace. Place was clean. Charges Rs.500 per night for a two bed apartment. The service in the hotel was not that good though.
Day 13
We started back to Rishikesh at around 9am from Devprayag. It is continuous valley and final travel in the Himalayas of this journey of around 75kms by bike.
We reached Swami Dayanand Ashram (Arsha Vidya Gurukulam) wherein we decided to put up for remaining two nights. Plan was to stay back at this place coolly here itself. This place is serene with Ganga Ji flowing beneath. The ashram has a great library and a book store for all ages to quench the spiritual thirst with Vedanta at backdrop.
At Rishikesh, it is 24 degree Celsius. We moved from 3 degree to 24 degree. This is the first time, we had some sweating in this trip and had to use fan.
We spent maximum time with Akshayanand Ji and Ganga Ji near the Dayand Ashram, as we wanted to maximise the Yatra experience.
When I looked at the bike, we had finished close to 1450kms of travel for this whole Chardham trip. One may be overwhelmed with what we could do with Riding to Chardham, being with Swami Ji and learning Drig-drishya-Vivek.
Sending the bike for railway back to Mumbai
We went to book the bike back to Mumbai. There was one more learning in this. We reached the railway station by 4:45pm. Asked them about the parcel. They said it is on but the delivery shall get closed by 5pm. We started removing the fuel and packing. Archana went for photo copying the license and the RC book. While we went up to the booking office, it was 5:00pm. We had to buy a general ticket for RS. 350 as it was now luguage and not parcel. We also had to pay higher cost RS. 3050 instead of around RS. 2600 which we paid while coming for the freight. Good part was that we had preserved the packing which was used while coming. We could reuse it and pack the bike with the tapes tighter and faster. This saved some packing cost on the way back. We would have first done the booking after coming and could have saved all this as the bike would have gone as parcel instead of passenger language. It is important for the bikers to reach parcel office between 9am to 5pm if they want it to be going separate from their travel.
When I deliberated, I offered salutation to the almighty, parents and Gurus for bestowing us with capability and facility to do this successfully against all odds.
One may write to me on miteshkatira@gmail.com or tweet with @amrutputra for any further comments, suggestions and questions in this regard.
विस्तरेण लिखितं भवता प्रवासवर्णनम्। मनसि असूया भवति यत् अहम् न आगतवान्। बाइकप्रवासः तु साहसमेव। परं साहसे श्रीः प्रतिवसति। अद्भुतस्य निसर्गस्य तथा च अक्षयानन्दस्वामिनः प्रवचनस्य उल्लेखः कृतः परं तस्य वर्णनं न कृतम्। निसर्गं दृष्ट्वा मनसि उद्भूताः कविताः विचाराः वा न लिखिता। तथैव तत्त्वज्ञानस्य शिखरं यत् वेदान्तं तस्य शिखरस्थग्रन्थस्य विमर्शेण मनसि आगताः विचाराः अपि न लिखिताः। तदर्थं प्रतीक्षे।
ReplyDeleteशिरीषः