Panch Kedar (19 June, 07 - 1 July,07)

Following is the trek plan for the Panch Kedar undertaken mid-June to mid-july. Actual trip abandoned mid-ways before Kedarnath due to health conditions of the group and mosquito ("mora") bites.

Trip Photographs

Trip Itinerary :

Day	From	To
1	Rishikesh	Joshimath		10 hrs	Bus
2	Joshimath	Helong		13km:45min	Bus
	Helong	Urgam		8-9km	trek
	Urgam	Kalpeshwar	2134m	2km	walk
3	Urgam	Dumuk		14km:7hrs	trek
4-5	Dumuk -> Panar->	Rudranath	2286m	18km:8hrs	trek
6	Rudranath	Anushaya devi		18km:7-8 hrs	trek
	Anushaya	Mandal		5km:1 hr	trek
7	Mandal	Chopta	2900m	40km	bus/jeep
	Chopta	Tunganath	3810m	3-4 km: 2hr	trek
8	Tungnath	Chandrashilla	3679m	4km:1hr	trek
	Chandrashilla	Tunganath			trek
	Tungnath	Chopta			trek
	Chopta	Ukhimath		35km	bus/jeep
9	Ukhimath	Uniana		15 min	bus/jeep
	Uniana	Gaundhar		9km	trek
	Gaundhar	Bantoli		1km	trek
10	Bantoli	Madhya maheshwar	3289m	9km:5hrs	trek
11	Madhya maheshwar	Buda Mahadev		1 hr	trek
	Madhya maheshwar	Bantoli		10km:5hr	trek
12	Bantoli	Guptakashi		17km:6hr	trek+jeep

Abandoned sector :

13	Guptkashi	Gauri Kund			Bus
	Gauri Kund	Kedarnath	3584m	14km:7hrs	trek
14	Kedarnath	Gaurikund		14km:7hrs	trek
	Gauri Kund	Guptakashi		33km	Bus
15	Guptkashi	Haridwar		182km	Bus

Trip Notes :

Day 1 : Rishikesh -> Joshimath : Bus at 7 am, reaching around dusk

Day 2 : Joshimath -> Helong ->Urgam<->Kalpeshwar: Joshimath to Helong is a short 13km or 45 minute bus drive. A motley group of shops and houses mark Helong, the road head to Kalpeshwar. Start early at 7am.

Day 3 : Urgam -> Dumuk : Dumuk : comes from the sound which was produced when bhagwan shankar smashed his locks on the ground. There is a rest house with food & lodging.

Day 4 : Dumuk -> Panar : One can also spend the night at shelter here which is open during Yatra Times (sometime in may till Diwali may be) and hot food is available

Day 5 : Panar -> Rudranath : The shrine is the location of the ‘mukh’ or face of Shiva. The temple provides splendid views of Hathi Parvat, Nanda Devi, Trishul and other peaks.

Day 6 : Rudranah -> Anushya devi -> Mandal: Start after Breakfast at the dhaba at Rudranath around 7am . Breakfast can also be had a little ahead on the route where a shepherd has made a temperory shelter.

Anushaya devi : Bhagwan Datt's (Brahma/vishnu/Mahesh) mother. Basic lodges accomodation / food. Atri Muni's cave, curtained behind a waterfall, comes before one reached Anishya devi.
Instead of staying at Anushya devi, it is better to climb down to Mandal and stay at “Bhagat Bist's hotel directly opposite the archway claiming Anushaya Maata mandir marg” which is much cleaner, cheaper & with friendly service.

Day 7 : Mandal -> Chopta : conveyance frequency kind of workable, a bus at around 11am or 12pm

Chopta -> Tungnath :Shiva's arms. Weather quite cold. Good accomodation. Can stay at Kalikamli wala Ashram which also serves hot food.

Day 8 : Tungnath ->Chandrashilla->Tungnath->Chopta->Okimath: Start early for viewing the sunrise, may be 4am. At Okimath, stay at GMVN or some guest houses near Bus Station.

Day 9: Ukimath->Mansuna->Jagashu->Raoli->Uniana->Ransi->Gaundhar->Bantoli: A bus at around 11am (reconfirm the timings!) goes to Uniana besides the normal shared taxies. Some delivery jeeps also ply on this route from Mansuna. But overall the frequencies are not so good. So need to check & plan ahead. Stay at Bantoli, about ½ km after confluence of rivers near Unyan, good rooms .

Day 10 : Bantoli (1800m) ->Khatara(2100m)-> Nanu(2350m)-> Makhouma->Kun chatti (2780m) ->Madhyamaheshwar(3120m) : Start morning, reach evening. Naval of Bhagwan Shankar : Slight height. Attend night puja, morning puja. The shrine is 30km from Guptkashi and is approached by a trek through the famous Sidha Peeth of Kalimath. Unparalleled scenic beauty and incredible landscapes distinguish the distance from Kalimath to Madhmaheshwar. Chaukhamba, Kedarnath and Neelkanth are visible enroute. (The route to Kalimath diverts at Uniana).

Day 11 : Madhyamaheshwar <-> Buda Madhyamaheshwar
Madhyamaheswar -> Bantoli : Can proceed to Uniana the same day if group is fit. The single bus leaves for Uniana at around mid-day. In the evening one may need to book a jeep.

Day 12 : Bantoli -> Ukhimath : The trip abandoned from here on due to health conditions of the group and mosquito ("mora") bites . Returned back to Okhimath and the rested at Rishikesh. better to carry some insect repellent cream/ointment while trekking.

Trip log: coming up....