If I remember correctly, my first thought of visiting Kedarnath was in 2020. I don’t know where that thought came from, but my dream was to take my father along with me, so we could visit Kedarnath Ji together. Back then, I knew nothing about Lord Shiva; I know nothing about him today as well. I didn’t know what significance the place held back then, but I know a little now because it changed the way I see my life. All I knew three years ago was that it’s in the Himalayas, absolutely beautiful, and it isn’t easy to reach. But once you get there, they say you’ll see Shiva!
Coming to April 2024, I woke up one fine day and wondered what I could do differently to excite me, breaking from the monotonous days I had been living for a few months, mostly engulfed in chaos. The immediate response I got from within was to go to Kedarnath alone. I decided to visit Kedarnath in May when the temple reopens after six months. I did some research and learned the process. I had to register on the Char Dham website for Darshan and with GMVN for accommodation. Every day, I checked to see if registration had opened for devotees, and the day it did, I was quick enough to register myself. I booked my Darshan from May 20 to May 23 for Kedarnath Dham. The GMVN accommodation was full, but luckily, I got one bed for myself and booked my flight tickets from Bangalore to Dehradun for May 19.
It was an early morning flight with a layover in Hyderabad. I reached Jolly Grant Airport by 12:30 PM. As soon as i landed, the first thing i heard was, my grandmother, who is very dear to me had a stroke and was rushed to the hospital. Despite in a deep state of shock, i never kept returning back home as an option, and i decided to take an airport taxi to Rishikesh. I booked my stay at Zostel Rishikesh (Tapovan), and it was my first time staying at Zostel. Rishikesh was very hot, around 43 degrees Celsius, and I’m really not fond of hot weather. I had booked a separate room for myself, took some rest, and then strolled out to enquire about traveling to Kedarnath. From my earlier research (YouTube videos and Quora), I knew that government buses ran from Rishikesh to Gaurikund, and I had gone with that belief. The hotel staff informed me that it would be better to take a private tourist bus service because the Char Dham season had just begun, so it would be difficult to find seats.
I went to a nice restaurant in the evening for dinner and saw a lot of foreigners who had come to study yoga and meditation. While eating some really good stuffed parathas, I wondered why we (Indian youth) never took any time out to learn yoga and meditation. I booked a private traveler bus later that night after the dinner . I was required to reach Nataraj Chowk at 5 AM on May 20 to board the bus. Since there weren’t any cab services available at that time, I woke up at 3 AM and started walking towards Natraj Chowk, hoping I might find an auto that could drop me, as it was almost 3 miles from where I was staying. I walked in the dark towards a taxi stand, filled with fear, but my mind kept telling me this was my only option if I wanted to go. I kept walking and finally found an auto that dropped me at Natraj Chowk safely.
At Natraj Chowk, I met two fellow travellers waiting for the bus. The bus arrived around 6 AM. As soon as I stepped inside, I realised it was filled with male travellers and that I was the only female solo traveler. Although it was a sudden realisation, it didn’t make any difference during the journey because I never let myself feel less than anyone else on that bus, but I was more aware of my surroundings than ever. We were all going for the same purpose, and I kept my mind focused on what I would witness in a few hours.
The bus journey through the Himalayas was about nine hours to reach Gaurikund, taking us through high elevations and rough Himalayan terrain. At Devprayag, I witnessed the birth of the holy river Ganga, where the Alaknanda and Bhagirathi rivers unite.
We continued our journey, with the bus stopping for lunch. As we climbed higher, I grew anxious about the mountains, which seemed as if they could slide at any moment. The mighty Alaknanda flowed alongside us, and I had heard news of accidents along the Chardham Yatra route. I had never been so concerned for my life before. I trusted the bus driver, hoping our journey would be safe.
We reached Agastyamuni around noon and were stuck in traffic for a good six hours. We waited for vehicles coming down from Kedarnath because the route couldn’t hold too many vehicles and there weren’t any parking spaces left. Around 4 PM, a thunderstorm started. I’m very scared of thunderstorms, and am sitting in a bus, in the middle of nowhere, amidst the lightning and thunder, thinking, Why did I do this and put my life at risk? I had two options: either get down, find a motel, and catch a bus back to Rishikesh, or go forward and visit Baba Kedar. I chose the latter because I felt it was worth risking my life.
The traffic cleared by 6 PM, and we resumed our journey. Due to the heavy traffic, we didn’t stop for dinner, heading straight to Gaurikund. I met a group of recent college graduates on the bus, and they were also going to Kedarnath. We quickly became friends and started our journey together. Around 3 AM, our bus reached Sonprayag. It was cold and raining when we got down and joined a long queue of devotees heading to Gaurikund, the starting point of the trek to Kedarnath.
The line was so long that people were fighting for their spots, with a lot of pushing and pulling. This was new to me, but I managed. The queue stretched almost 2 km, and we moved slowly. Around 7 AM, we finally got inside a Jeep that took us to Gaurikund. Gaurikund was filled with small restaurants and motels. We took a quick nap, freshened up, and started our trek by 10:30 AM on May 21. I couldn’t sleep because I was so excited for the trek. We kept our luggage in a cloakroom, took only the essentials, and began the trek.
Gaurikund was so crowded that over a lakh people were visiting Baba Kedar daily. People were traveling on foot, by chariot, horseback, or like how Sushant Singh carried people on his back in the movie Kedarnath. The path was narrow, making it difficult for people ascending and descending by various means. Walking was challenging because horses often came close, hitting us occasionally. The horses were in poor condition, mistreated, and expected to walk on slippery slopes. The path was filthy, filled with horse droppings, mud, and rainwater—making our journey bit more difficult.
From lush greenery to bare rocks and small streams, nature displayed her beauty.
By the time we’d walked around 6 km, it was 5 PM, and a thunderstorm hit, filling me with fear, hoping the lightning wouldn’t strike us. Rain shelters and “landslide-prone area” signboards added to my anxiety. It was getting dark and colder, and my body was tiring. Each mile took more than an hour to cover, and by midnight, we finally reached near the base camp. Although the base camp was still a mile away, exhaustion and freezing temperatures made every step challenging. But the sight of Baba Kedar and the snow-capped mountain shining like a diamond kept me going.
We decided to stay in a tent for the night, and plenty of private tents were available. Throughout the journey, I could see remnants of the Kedarnath floods, and avalanches were visible on the distant mountains. I trusted Shivaji and fell asleep.
The next morning, sunlight woke me, and I opened my eyes to breathtaking beauty. Surrounded by the mighty Himalayas at the abode of Lord Shiva, I woke without any pain, despite the previous day’s exhaustion. It was surreal.
Around 7 AM, we walked to the base camp, where the Darshan queue stretched for nearly 2 km. We didn’t have the energy to stand in the queue then, so we decided to wait until the evening. We found a hotel near the temple and shifted there until Darshan. As soon as I entered the temple premises, tears filled my eyes. Words failed; all that remained was gratitude. The energy I felt at the temple was indescribable, something that can only be felt. The chants of “Om Namah Shivaya” reverberated with such power that it felt like billions of echoes.
Around 10 PM, I was blessed to enter the temple sanctum. In a different state of mind, with tears flowing, I was fortunate to touch the Shiva Linga. Unlike other lingas, this was a triangular stone, and I performed Pooja, applying chandan and kumkum with my own hands—a moment I still can’t believe. I asked for nothing, just chanted “Har Har Mahadev,” with all my might!
After leaving the garbhagriha, I sat near the temple complex for hours, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Lost in thought, with no sense of time or surroundings, I realized around 3 AM, when the temple opened for morning Darshan, that I had been sitting alone in the cold all night, in utter peace and with deep content.I returned to our hotel, slept for a few hours, and woke up around 7 AM to begin the climb to the Kal Bhairava temple, situated nearly 1 km above the Kedarnath Temple.
After reaching Kal Bhairava temple, I took his blessings before making my way back down. Around 12 PM, we decided to start the descent. With a grateful heart, I thanked the universe for this experience(for me thats Shiva himself) and, filled with renewed energy and enthusiasm, began my journey down. Everything around me looked beautiful, and I felt an inner peace and strength like never before. With a sense of vigour, we reached Gaurikund by 8 PM.
We waited until 10 PM to get a public taxi to Sonprayag and arrived there by midnight. Stayed at a hotel for a few hours, took some rest and left for Rishikesh at 3 AM. My friends were staying in a different hotel, and we planned to meet at the bus stop. On my way there, I witnessed a car accident—a woman was hit, and the police were rushing to the scene. I felt saddened, thinking it could have been me, but i was protected through out the trekk by Shiva himself or me,i don’t know , and I continued walking to the bus stand, boarded my bus, and started the journey back to Rishikesh.
Throughout the bus ride, I didn’t utter a word, tears were flowing through my eyes at times. When i look back now, I went all the way up to catch a glimpse of lord Shiva, and instead, I found a bit of myself. I realised how powerful i am and what can happen when my body, mind and soul are in perfect sync. My eyes are tearing profusely even now while i write, because sometimes, these journey’s makes us realise who we truly are!
Har Har Mahadev🔱
