Teen Dham (Yamnotri, Gangotri, and Kedarnath) 2024

Yamunotri, Gangotri, and Kedarnath

We were a group of three friends and decided to do two dham yatra. But as we all know that when boys start the trip it is next to impossible that the trip will end up in the same direction. The same happened with us. Kedarnath, Tungnath, and Badrinath were planned initially but as we united in Haridwar a day before the start of our journey, the plan took a U-turn. I started my journey from Delhi and boarded the Dehradoon Shatabdi express from New Delhi Railway Station.

The historical pic when we decided to change our plan in the middle of the night :-)

We decided to visit Gangotri first, followed by Kedarnath as Helicopter bookings were yet to be confirmed. The twist does not end here. We started for Gangotri at 5:00 am from Haridwar. However, as we were reaching closer, we found the sign boards of Yamunotri which was 20 Kms lesser than Gangotri. That is when we decided that we should go there first, before we should go to Gangotri. Even the driver seemed perplexed but we had already decided to do something different from what we had planned.

On the way, during lunch time we stopped at a local food joint for tasting some local food. We had Rajma and Pahadi Saag with roti which was quite amazing in taste.

The food was really tasty and light and we continued our journey from there. Finally, we reached Janki Chatti by 4:00 pm same day and started our trek to the top for Yamunotri.

Outside our hotel in Yamnotri

The Trek to the Yamunotri temple can be completed by foot or by hiring ponies. It is 4 kms with a medium difficulty level. We decided to do it on ponies as it was already 4;30 pm and the temple on the top closes by 8 pm. We wanted to reach as early as possible so that we can see the beautiful hilltop views as well as spend more time in the temple compound.

Below are some of the pictures captured enroute to the top. There were some shelters made on the way and the pathway was also laid out. We could see most of the people coming down and very few going uphill. This is possibly because pilgrims take the trip during the day and come back before sunset. We were more excited now as this would mean lesser crowd in the temple.

It took us around 2 hours to reach the top. We were correct in our approach as the crowd was really not there. We could see not more than 10-15 devotees in the temple compound. Also, it was worth hiring ponies as the trek was steep at some places. We had negotiated for Rs 5,000 in total for up and downside but since we wanted to spend more time at our leisure, we decided to come back by foot and paid them around Rs 1,000 per person one way. We decided to spend more time in the temple due to lack of crowd.

The trio of Deepak, Rajesh, and self enjoying after having the peaceful darshan

I must say that our decision to spend time in the temple premises was correct. There were a few places to see, in addition to the main temple. We were fortunate to attend the aarti at 8:00 pm. It was a fulfilling and peaceful experience to be a part of the evening aarti. There were places like Surya Kund, hot water spring, place to take bath, idol of Sun God to be visited.

Main Idol of the Yamuna Maa in the Yamunotri Complex

Yamuna Maa prayed to Sun at this place and this is why there is hot water spring here, which makes the entire place quite warm and comfortable. No one goes hungry from here and can bring raw food which can be easily cooked in this extremely hot water, the source of which is unknown till date.

All this lies in the main temple complex - Yamunotri

Surya Kund is a popular hot water spring where rice is cooked in hot water and offered to devotees as Prasad to take back home.

There is a popular background to this. Yamuna was the daughter of Sun and did bhakti here. When Sun was happy and asked what Yamuna wanted, she asked that any devotee who visits this place should never go hungry.

Captured after attending Aarti at 8:00 pm, could not have asked for more on our first Dham visit

We had a great sleep that night as we drove from Haridwar to Yamnotri, did a trek of 4 kms, came back by foot and reached our hotel by around 11:00 pm in the night. The city was closed and we had to push the shutters of the hotel to enter our room. Next day morning, we started for Gangotri at around 6:30 am. The following picture was taken just before we were about to start our journey to Gangotri from Janki Chatti.

On the way, we stopped at a road-side eatery for our morning tea. There were not many options frankly and hence we stopped at a place which was relatively cleaner and could offer a place to sit. It was a nice break as we were driving since last two hours. We felt refreshed and started our onward journey.

Our next stop was a famous Shiv Gufa which is popularly known as Shri Prakateshwar Panchanan Mahadev Shiv Temple. There were around 300+ stairs to the Gufa. Rajesh was the active amongst the three of us and visited the Gufa from inside. It is believed that Lord Shiva himself was seen at this place at one point of time and hence this place has its religious significance.

We had some local juice from here which refreshed us. There are lot of vendors offering light snacks and lemon juice. We also tasted some apples which were delicious. After getting recharged, we continued our journey towards Gangotri till we saw a beautiful waterfall or we can say water flowing at a tremendous speed. I guess there was a dam which controlled the flow and then pushed it through this point.

This spot was not less than Niagra falls as the water droplets were coming on the road due to the speed of the flowing water. Lot of vehicles stopped on the road to enjoy this beautiful place.

On the way to Gangotri, we crossed Uttar Kashi. This place has a historical significance and is popularly known as Kashi of the North (Uttar Kashi). The place has same significance as that of Kashi and it is said that the same idol of Lord Shiva exists here was it is in Kashi.

We had a bath in hot water spring on the way - "Gangnani", which was relaxing and surprising at the same time since on one side there was extremely cold water while on the other there was hot water which was difficult to touch with bare hands. There was an entry fee of just Rs 10 per person with some 50 steps to climb.

We grabbed the offer and happily paid Rs 30. I am not sharing pictures as we were barely wearing anything while taking shower since this was a surprise stop which we were not aware of. This is a definitely visit stop as it gives a full relaxation. We were almost sleepy for the rest of the day as our muscles were relaxed and we felt so cozy, despite the cool breeze.

Gangotri

Finally we reached Gangotri by around 7:30 pm, rushed to get a hotel so that we can shift our luggage and move to the temple for Darshan before 8:00 pm. We were almost on time but the temple had closed by the time we reached the temple compound. We could click pictures and go around seeing other temples and Bhargirathi river ghat, waiting for the morning so that we can complete our darshan.

Next day morning, we woke up early and again went to the temple premises. There was a Shiv Temple and also the place where Bhagirathi did the prayer for years so that River Ganga to come on earth.

Main temple picture has been sharing in the pic below. It was a delight to the eyes as river ganga (bhagirathi) was flowing on the left side while temple was in the front and we could witness the sun rays falling on the mountains in the background.

Next place of significant importance in Gangotri Dham was the Surya Kund. It is a waterfall located around 500 meters from the main temple. It is believed that Goddess Parvati used to pay homage to the God Sun from this place. It is also believed that there is a Shivling below this waterfall which can be seen when the water level is less.

Next, we went to Pandu caves. It is believed that Pandavs visited this place. We did find six water tanks created which might have been used for taking bath by the Pandavs and Draupadi. It is believed that there is an old monk which continues to stay and meditate in the caves but we could not find anyone there.

On the way to exploring Pandu Gufa, our friend Rajesh was eager and energetic as he climbed the mountains in a jiffy. He explored the entire area which was around 2 - 2.5 Kms from the temple and there was no trace of human on the way. Infact, there was no path as well but we were surprised to see the ponds created which might have been dug during the time of Mahabharata.

After exploring Gangotri, we started for our next destination which was Kedarnath. Today we had to reach Phata from where we had to take the helicoptor the very next day which will drop up to Kedarnath. We were excited and started at around 8:00 am. On the way, we came across some nice sculptures and had a short stop to grab some pictures.

We had to cover more than 300 Kms today to reach Phata. We tried to take shorter breaks to ensure that we can reach our destination within the same day. Our first stop was for our breakfast, where we had the food which is loved by one and all in the mountains - "Pahadon-wali Maggi". I must admit that it was magical, though we usually do not have it as the first meal of the day but on that day we found it heavenly as there were not many breakfast options anyways on the way. What prompted us to stop was this shop having a nice window which had lovely view of the mountains.

After spending some 30 minutes here, we were ready to continue our journey. We decided that we will now stop only in the night but as we have done from the beginning i.e. never stick to the plan, we decided to take a lunch break around 4:00 pm.

We again tried some local food along with stuffed paranthas and it was quite tasty. One thing we must admit is that at all the places we stopped we realized that the tea is quite strong. I am a big tea lover and need tea after every meal. While Deepak and Rajesh would have just one or two cups a day, I would have at least 7-8 cups. I decided to request putting less tea leaves (make it lighter) thereon at every place we stop for having tea and I must say it was just perfect from thereafter. We enjoyed the road trip thereon and wanted to reach before sunset, which would never happen.

We reached Phata by around 10:00 pm that day. It was a long day but this ensured that we can catch our flight next day morning and reach Kedarnath Temple premises on time for darshan. We had dinner at the hotel. Next day morning, we got up a bit late around 7:00 am as we had to just go to the helipad which was barely 1 km from the hotel we were staying in. We were excited for our helicopter ride and reached on time. After waiting patiently, we got our boarding passes and were ready to fly.

This picture was captured just before the Helicopter ride as we were waiting at the Phata Helipad. We were excited a captured a few pictures before and after the helicopter ride. We three could not get seating in the same ride and had to fly in two different helicopters. Deepak flew first, followed by Rajesh and self in the next one.

Some great pictures captured by Deepak as we landed at the Kedarnath Temple Helipad.

Once we walked 1-2 Kms towards the temple, we could not believe our eyes. We saw the temple, Kedarnath Temple, which we usually see in the reels. It is much more beautiful than what we see in the reels. We kept on seeing it till we realized that we have to search a place for us to stay in the night.

The main temple and the idol of Lord Shiva which is in the form of back of a bull.

The background to the story is that in Mahabharata after the Pandavas killed their relatives, they wanted to wash their sins and prayed to Lord Shiva. However, Lord Shiva appeared in the form of a bull and when Bheem recognized Lord Shiva, He tried to immerse in the ground. Bheem could get hold the back of the bull and that is why this Shivling in the form of a hump-shaped stone.

We were fortunate to attend the aarti at 6:00 pm and then meet the senior priest. We also had special abhishek pooja at 9:00 pm. There are several interesting places to visit in the vicinity of the temple. The first thing to notice is the Bheem Shila which is just behind the temple. It is believed that this stone came from the mountains and saved the temple from being destroyed during the time of floods as it helped in diverting the water.

The Shankaracharya Statue in the vicinity of Kedarnath Campus is just behind the temple with around 200 meters away. It is a beautiful place to visit during the day. By the time we visited it was dark. However, there was a beautiful view of the sky and the stars when seen from next to the Shankaracharya statue.

There is another place between the temple and the helipad. This small water reservoir is magical as there are bubbles popping up as soon as any words related to Lord Shiva are chanted such as Om Siv, Bam Bam Bole, Jai Shiv Shankar. But the same does not happen if anything else is chanted. It is around 1.5 Kms from the temple compound.

Bhairav Baba Temple - It is believed that after visiting the Kedarnath Temple, devotees should visit the Bhairav baba temple to complete the journey. It is considered as the protector of Kedarnath. There is a trek of around 1 kms one side. The views from the top are amazing.

We enjoyed the weather and the surroundings. Rajesh was getting naughty and took the basket on the back while I was occupied getting the mountains in in the background.

Views from Kedarnath

Evening pic near Kedarnath Temple premises

The above pics were captured near Bheem Shila at Kedarnath campus. After our darshan, we got up early next day and took the first flight from Kedarnath and reached Phata by 6:30 am.

We started for Haridwar by around 6:30 am itself. While on the way back to Haridwar, we saw the famous Dhari Devi Temple. She is called the protector of Char Dhams and devotees pay a tribute to Her before visiting the Char Dham. It is a structure made in the middle of a river. It is believed that Dhari Devi changes her face three times a day i.e. in morning, afternoon, and evening.

We reached Haridwar on Day 5 and spent some time in the evening eating and roaming around. We eat pooris from the famous "Mathura Walon ki pracheen dukaan" and Kanji vada from "Jain Chat Bandaar". We dipped our feet in river Ganga and sat there chatting and remembering our last five days journey and how these days went so early.