Trek from Gangotri to the source of the River Ganges

Written: Oct 18, 2002
Location: Gangotri Glacier, Uttaranchal, Northern India

This entry describes a three day trek from Gangotri to Gaumukh the source of the Ganges River in Uttaranchal, Northern India. The Ganges is formed from a glacier in the mountains above Gangotri some 20km’s distance. The river is called the Bhagirathi here; it does not become the Ganges until it reaches a point near Rishikesh where it joins forces with another river.
 
Gangotri is a small village 200km North of Rishikesh in the Garwhal Himalaya. It took 11 hours by bus to get there. I met two Frenchmen Mark and Dominic on the way. They were climbers from the Alps and had all the latest high tech. trekking gear; they even had an ice axe.

At Gangotri we stayed at the Garwhal Mountaineering Guesthouse. It was freezing cold. My hands hurt just putting them in water so I tended to avoid washing. Dinner was an expensive meal of Alu Matter (Potato and Peas). Mark talked about travel in South America; it sounded good; I would like to go sometime.

Next morning I had breakfast with the Frenchmen and bade them farewell as they set of on their trek. I was staying a day in Gangotri to acclimatise and would depart the following day.

I moved to a guesthouse along the main thoroughfare in Gangotri village with a view overlooking the river. It was hot in the morning sun and I sat out on the balcony relaxing.

In the afternoon I wandered around the village, a single lane with small buildings either side set among the rocks and trees. On the other side of the river there were a few ashrams and Dharamsala.

Bhagirathi river, Gangotri

The Bhagirathi River is very narrow at this point, perhaps 30 feet across. Large boulders are scattered along the riverbed, the water has creating strange shapes in the rocks as they have been moulded by the water over thousands of years. I saw a huge boulder that the water funnelled through like a teapot pouring down into a pool thirty feet below. The noise from the river could clearly be heard inside my hotel room.

Hindu temple, Gangotri

I found the temple that the Hindu devotees visit on the Char Dham pilgrimage. The four sacred sites: Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedernath and Badrinath are located at the start of the four sacred rivers of India: the Ganges, Yamuna, Mandakini and Alaknanda. All devout Hindus follow this pilgrimage at least once in their lives.

The temple is painted silver and blends in with the surrounding mountains. I didn’t bother going inside; it was too cold to take off my boots.

There is nothing much to do in Gangotri after dark except eat, read and sleep, which I did.

Next morning after breakfast I set off on the trek. I had left a bag of stuff at the hotel and my pack felt much lighter. I had a heavy cold, which did not help matters but I was not thinking of this as I set off. The path was not that steep and passed through woods of fir, pine and silver birch. The woods reminded me of England in the autumn, my favourite time of year. Far below to my left the Bhagirathi River twisted and turned through the valley.

View towards Ganges source, from the trail

Towering crags and peaks flanked each side of the valley. At first it was hot in the sunlight but higher up the sun disappeared behind clouds and it got quite cold. For some reason I had the songs from Joni Mitchell’s Hejira album in my head. I think it was the wooded valley that reminded me of the album cover, featuring an ice skater on a lake surrounded by trees.

I intended to stay the night at Bhojbasa; a small village which I thought was only 11 km up the valley. It was actually 14 km. I strolled along fairly slowly until at 1pm I learned from a tourist that Bhojbasa was some five hours away. I increased my pace and became quite worried, as I did not want to be out on the trail after dark.

At a dhaba (roadside café) I wolfed down rice and dhal in about five minutes and didn’t even feel that I had eaten anything. Later on I stopped at another dhaba and met the Frenchmen coming down. They told me I was only two and half-hours from Bhojbasa which was good as I knew I would get there before nightfall.

I relaxed and enjoyed the walk. The valley got wilder and wilder and quieter and quieter the higher I went. My head seemed to clear as it does in wild places; thoughts arose unhindered, rather like the effect achieved through meditation. Quite a few Indian pilgrims went past me on horses. Four hundred Rupees for the ride but I preferred to walk; it would feel like cheating to be carried up. Many people were on their way down with varying levels of tiredness on their faces.

I reached the hill overlooking the small settlement of Bhojbasa at 4pm. I was ready for a chai and was buoyed by the view of Shivling peak partially shrouded in mist at the head of the valley.

I stayed in a dorm at the government rest house sharing with an Indian Brahmin called Virendra. It was extremely cold and the facilities were basic. There was no running water; just a couple of small sinks in the main hallway with pales of water next to them. The altitude affected my bowels and I had to make several rapid dashes to the toilet.

Next morning on opening the doors at 7 am I was greeted by heavy snow. The Indian pilgrims were playing with snowballs and taking photographs. I never expected to see snow but it was nice to experience the full range of weather conditions in India. I was warned about going up the 4 km to Gaumukh in such bad weather and was beginning to have doubts myself. Virendra took me for a coffee in the canteen and said it should be ok for me to go up, as the path was easy to follow. He suggested I take a stick with me which I did, borrowing one from the rest house.

It was still snowing lightly as I set of at 7.30 am. The mountains were covered in cloud and all the trees had snow on them. I was alone on the path; it was quite wild and atmospheric. I saw no one until just before a dhaba 0.5 km from Gaumukh. A couple of groups of horses then passed me and I was slightly disgruntled that they had overtaken me. The weather was a bit better now; the sky was clearing and the tops of some of the mountains were visible; the sun was shining!

I stopped and had noodles for breakfast, which cost an outrageous 60 Rupees. Mountain prices I was told. I was feeling a little tired but pushed on over rocky ground to the glaciers head or snout at Gaumukh. Marked on boulders at various points was the position of the snout in years gone by. A couple of hundred yards down the valley was marked ‘snout position 1935’.

Gaumukh, the cows mouth glacier

The river appeared out of nowhere from a little dark hole at the base of the glacier: the so-called ‘Cow’s Mouth’. Large blocks of ice gleamed on the shore; the glacier wall towered white above me.

I chatted to Robin and Alice a French couple from Grenoble. They were going up to Tapovan a further 6km and invited me along. Tapovan is a plateau high up on the glacier at 4400 metres. It was an invitation I could not refuse.

Simon at the Ganges source

Robin and Alice had been trekking for three weeks in Himachal Pradesh and were much fitter than I who had been hacking round India for three months. Robin seemed to know the way so I led the rear and just concentrated on trying to keep up. It was hard going over rocks and boulders. One slip and one could easily break a leg. The only sign that we were walking over a glacier was the occasional dune shaped sheets of ice exposed by the wind that gleamed green.

View from Tapovan

The last part of the climb was very steep and from the top Robin motioned me to come up. I was shattered and my lungs crying out for breath as we sat down outside a devotees shack on the glacial plateau. I was definitely affected by my cold, as I am not normally that out of breath. The views of Shivling and Bhagirathi peaks were amazing though.

The Hindu devotee who greeted us told us that he lived there year round. I could not imagine living there, especially through winter. There were dirty kitchen utensils and other rubbish strewn around. The shack was built against a large boulder. Inside a cave had been hacked out below the boulder. It was obviously a work in progress as pick axes and other tools were lying around inside. I would have liked to have continued on to a lake further up, but I could go no further and would only have just enough time to return to Bhojbasa before dark. I was feeling the altitude so I took some photos and thanked Robin and Alice for inviting me along.

The way down seemed long and very tiring. After two hours I reached the dhaba below Gaumukh and collapsed with a headache. I drank a chai, but this did little to revive me. I needed to get down quickly. I walked the last 4-km to Bhojbasa as fast as possible, my headache easing gradually as I went down.
 
The following day I set off on the walk back to Gangotri, I was feeling much better. The sun was crystal clear on the mountains and I enjoyed the walk down, pausing to take photographs and admire the views. However I felt more and more tired as the walk went on. The last 5-km was very tough.

Sadhu, on the trail near Gangotri

I met a Sadhu (holy man) sitting by the path just before Gangotri. He signalled me to sit down from his rock and blessed me on the forehead as I sat down by his small fire. He seemed genuine and had a good vibe about him. Using sign language he indicated that he had been living there for years and that he was very cold. He needed a new blanket and wanted 300 Rs to buy one, which was a bit steep, he could probably get one for less than 50. I gave him something towards it, which he accepted with a slow waggle of his head, I then continued on my way.

Back at Gangotri I had a good sleep not rising until 1 pm the next day. In hindsight it was probably not sensible going up to Tapovan with a pack and a heavy cold but I’m glad I did it.