Kedarkantha - Ocean Of Mountains

Kedarkantha trek was on our bucket list for a long time and finally, the stars aligned and we packed our bags to embark on our first Himalayan trek.

Five of us started from Bangalore around 4 AM. Our flight to Dehradun was at 6:20 AM from KIA Bangalore. All but one boarded the flight as one of our teammates wanted to make this an adventurous trip so he kept a power bank in his check-in baggage and KIA officers helped him in making his trip a memorable one.

En route Dehradun

Itinerary:

Day 1: Dehradun to Kotgaon
Day 2: Kotgaon to Khujey
Day 3: Kedarkantha base camp
Day 4: The Summit
Day 5: Summit to Kedarkantha base camp
Day 6: Kedarkantha base camp to Sankri

Dehradun to Kotgaon

We started from Dehradun around 7 AM and there were beautiful landscapes en route. It took us around 8 hours to reach Kotgaon.

Kotgaon is a beautiful snowy village in Uttarkashi district, it lies in the foothills of the Himalayas. Indiahikes took us via Kotgaon to keep us away from the crowd coming from Sankri.

We dumped our bags in the cottages and were out in no time to explore Kotgaon. Localities were playing volleyball and by looking at the mountains in the background we couldn’t stop ourselves from joining the Himalayan volleyball.

We had our dinner around 7:30 followed by a general health check-up before we hit the bed.

Kotgaon Village

Kotgaon to Khujey (9,395 ft)

"Bhaiya abhi kitna door hai? Bas aagaye!"

Some of us were so tired that we were asking our guide every five minutes about the distance to Khujey campsite and he kept on telling us we are almost there.

On the other hand, some of them were so energetic that they looked as if they could make it to the summit on the same day.

We started our day after the quick briefing about do’s and don’ts while on the trek.

We got our gators, spikes, trekking stick, and started marching towards the snow-capped mountains.

Teamwork plays a major role when you go for a trek on the Himalayas. Tanmay(Our guide)’s team came up with some interesting activities which helped us to know each other in the team.

After climbing around 500 meters we stepped on snow for the first time and that boosted our energy once again.

The Maggie Stop!!

After climbing for hours we had to top up our tummy and luckily we found the unexpected spot on our way, I call it a Maggie stop!

Maggie, omelette, bread omelette, tea, potato chips whatnot. We had plenty of options on the menu and we started again after filling the chilled water from the small stream which was flowing near the shop.

Finally, after trekking for close to 6 hours we spotted our first campsite, Khujey.

It was so majestic that it had the power to suck our tiredness and all of a sudden we felt refreshed. Our campsite was surrounded by plenty of pine trees and the view of the spectacular mountains made our day.

After having dinner we drifted off on a bed of snow in our respective tents.

Khujey Campsite

Khujey to The Base Camp (11,250 ft)

Waking up to a view of stunning mountains is a different feeling altogether. We were up by 6 AM and witnessed the most beautiful sunrise, it was looking like the sun rays were breaking into the mountains to reach us.

It was a short trek unlike the other day and filled with activities. We showed our creativity by making paper crafts and played Antakshari for hours before hitting the bed.

Kedarkantha Basecamp

Kedarkantha base camp to The Summit (12,500 ft)

After an entertaining night, it was the day to challenge ourselves.

The plan was to start as early as 4:00 AM, so we had to get ready before that. Waking up before the sunrise in the Himalayas is itself a challenge and on top of that, it was a frosty morning at the base camp. We tied gators to our legs and spikes to our shoes and stepped out like an army.

We packed our breakfast for one last time. We started as per the scheduled time and after about 30 minutes, the sun showed mercy on us and saved us from the bitter cold. And soon, it turned out to be too harsh to resist so we started to remove our jackets one by one.

It was an arduous climb up the mountain and the panoramic view of the Himalayan range was enticing. At one point, the view was so dramatic that it looked as if the sky was kissing the mother earth and a 360-degree rainbow was like an illusion to our eyes.

We were tired and gasping for breath as we climbed higher and surprisingly, we found yet another Dhaba on our way but this time, we didn’t stop there as we wanted to reach the peak as early as possible. We filled the water and continued to trek.

This was the first time in 4 days that we met people other than our teammates. As we were getting closer to our destination, it started getting crowded as people who started from Sankri joined us at this part of the Mountain.

So finally, after all the struggle, we were there in the place where we all wanted to be. It’s The Summit.

We felt like we were in the "Ocean of mountains". Yes! you heard it right.

The view from the peak was so mesmerizing that it calmed down my heart which was pounding like there’s no tomorrow, It gave a soothing effect to my dead legs, it kicked out aches from my body and after breathing in such fresh air, I felt like I am reborn.

View from the peak. In my words, it was an “Ocean of Mountains”

If you ever happen to be there on the peak of Kedarkantha, you will see the mountain ranges like Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath, Badrinath, Bandarpunch, Swargarohini (unclimbed), Har ki Doon, Rupin pass, and Shimla range.

After the quick intro about those peaks, we opened the box of happiness, our breakfast. We gobbled up some chapatis and got ready to show our teeth in no time, It was a time for capturing those moments. After taking the group picture, we waited for that group to vacate the place as we wanted to spend time on the lonely mountain.

Every start has an end, we started to descend!

Returning from summit

We started to slide from the peak (We do not recommend this as our power bank hero rolled like a snowball for about 200m, yet another adventure for him)

As we started to descend, we were talking to each other about our future plans and by that time we reached the Dhaba and we grabbed some snacks from there. We reached our basecamp and started sharing our experiences with each other. We called it a day after the stargazing session by Tanmay.

It is hard to say bid adieu to the Himalayas but the time has come. We had to vacate our tents and reach Sankri for one last stay in the Himalayas.

The only reason why I hate the Himalayas is that once you go there, you can’t stop yourself from going there again. All I can say is the Mountains keep calling and you must go!!

Until next time, keep Exploring!!

Extended check out to our Kedarkantha photos.

• Kotgaon
• Khujey
• Kedarkantha