This trek takes us to famous Gangotri range of mountains and is considered basic for any trekker on the route.
Day1
Trek starts from Gangotri, One has to reach Uttarkashi before 2PM (after that there are very few buses/jeeps to Gangotri) and catch bus/cab from here to Gangotri.
Gangotri, is one of the char-dham in Uttrakhand and a important pilgrimage for Hindus. Beautiful temple built near the Ganges attract devotees from around the world. Ganga ji’s arti takes place twice in a day Morning 6:00AM , Evening 6:45 PM at river side and 8:00PM at temple. Lots of people keep visiting the place so food & accommodation is not a issue here.Years ago, Gangotri glacier use to start from here.Due to melting , it has gone till Gaumukh
Day2
Trek starts by entering Gangotri-Gaumukh forest range. Permission for the entrance need to be taken at Kankhu post, it is 2 Km from Gangotri.
Next stop on the way is Chidwasa , it is 7Km from Kanku checkpost and takes about 2:30 to 3 hour time. There is small tea shop which is open in season (May/June) while in rains there is no guarantee.After covering further distance of 5Km , one will reach Bhojbasa. Bhojbasa has GMVN and baba ashram. Baba ashram provide food&accommodation both. One can spend night here before visiting Gaumukh next day.
Day 3
Gaumukh is 4Km from Bhojbasa, trek should start early in the morning.Gaumukh is the place where Ganga starts its 2640Km journey to Bay of Bengal. Environmentalists have done wonderful work here, earlier there use to lot of small shops around which were polluting the glacier ice.
After spending some time here , one can head back to Bhojbasa and rest for next day trek.
Day 4
After having good sleep, it is time to start trekking to Tapovan. It is 5Km little steep trek, it is again advisable to start trek early in the morning.Tapovan mean Tapasaya (spiritual practice) + Van (Jungle), Earlier times Maharishis & sadhus use to come here to practice Yoga and Tapasya of supreme power. There is Bengali baba ashram (inside a cave), one can stay here for night.
However advisable is to go to Bhojbasa for night stay.
Day 5
Start your trek early may be around 6AM, if you want to catch cab to Uttarkashi on the same day .It will take around 3-4 hours to reach Gangotri.
Day 6
It will be day full of travel, catch a bus/cab to Uttarkashi and then further way down till Rishikesh.
Note:
This trek was not been done by me, i have gathered all this information on way to Kalindhi Pass trek.It is advisable to hire a guide/porter on this route. Due to continuous melting of glacier and rains, route after bhojbasa have changed over years and their is not well defined trail after bhojbasa.
