Random Ramblings: Auli Trip, Day 1

Before I start with the trip experience, let me get down to the facts..

Ghaziabad to Auli: 500 Kms

Route: Ghaziabad-Meerut-Roorkee-Haridwar-Rishikesh-Gauchar-Chamoli-Joshimath-Auli

Plan to start by around 1 or 2 AM early morning so that you can reach Rishikesh (250Kms) by dawn. The next 250 kms are treacherous ghat roads which will take atleast 10-12 hrs of travel. So if you start from Rishikesh by 6-7AM, you can reach Joshimath by dusk. Travelling at night on the ghat roads is a strict no-no as the road is prone to landslides and rock falls. It’s better to go in an SUV or any car with good ground clearance. We made a mistake by going in an indica (hatchback) which failed on the way back to Ghaziabad, thanks to the road or the lack of it. :P

Best time to visit: Jan-Mar if you want to see snow and ski; Apr-Jun if you like to trek. If you plan to go in winter, plz carry lots of winter clothing as temperature can go as low as 0 degrees in Joshimath, as we experienced

Food & Stay: We stayed at a hotel Bramh Kamal, which was pretty cheap at 150Rs/day for a 3-bed single room. There was no geyser in the room, but hot water is available for 20Rs/bucket. Rooms with geyser start at 600Rs/day. Regarding food, there’s a marwadi hotel which locals suggested but I dint like it one bit. It was way too spicy (even for me who eats lots of spicy food!) and the items are ridiculously costly for its standard. The hotel which is exactly opposite to it is much better in my opinion. Parathas & Rotis are the staple food available there. Please don’t experiment with Chinese dishes like soup, chowmein etc (like I did) :(

Ok, now coming to the actual trip..

Day 1, 31 Jan 2011:

12.30 AM: We started for Joshimath. After a short tea break at Roorkee, we reached Rishikesh by 6 AM. Since our driver was tired and it was still dark, we let him sleep for 1 hour meanwhile we were out clicking pictures in the freezing cold.

7.30 AM: We started our journey to our next pit stop Rudra Prayag Sangam. This is the place where two rivers, Alaknanda and Mandakini meet. This place is venerated as one of the five sacred confluences or the 'Panch Prayag' (the others being Vishnu Prayag, Nand Prayag, Karn Prayag & Dev Prayag, all on the way to Badrinath). On the way, we had our breakfast in Dev Prayag. By afternoon, we reached Rudra Prayag, but we didn’t stop there. The entire stretch from Rishikesh to Joshimath was absolutely stunning. We could see the river flowing below us while we were climbing mountain after mountain. On the way we were passing through a place called Gauchar, when I saw this weird board that said “Welcome to Gauchar – The place of four seasons in a single day” (Sunny, Cold, Rainy, Spring). I was amused when I read that board. At that time it was sunny and after 5 mins of driving, it suddenly became very cold and then I realized why that board was put up.

2.30 PM: We stopped for lunch at Chamoli, another beautiful place. I noticed the guy who served us lunch was wearing a ‘Save Tibet’ headband. This district is largely inhabited by a Tibetan ethnic group. Incidentally, Chamoli also shares its north boundary with Tibet.

4.30 PM: We reach Joshimath finally, after a tiring journey. The place was very cold in the evening, around 2-5 degrees. We found a decent accommodation, the hotel was on the edge of a cliff and we were like 3000 meters above sea level. From the window, we could see snow capped mountains all around. We were all set for an exciting day tomorrow. With these thoughts in mind, we freshened up and had early dinner and crashed on the bed by 8 PM.