Tunganath & Chandrashila Peak

Chandrashila Trek with Tunganath is one of the most exciting and adventurous trails in Uttarakhand. Rocky terrain leading to the summit to witness the impressive panoramic views of the Himalayas leaves you enchanted. Soaring upto 13000 feet decked with snow, oak trees, clouds and mists, this is one trek you must take.

Tunganath Temple is the highest Shiva Temple in the world perched at 3680 metres. The 1000 year old temple is open to public from April end to November and is closed during winters and the deity is shifted to Mukku Village.

Chandrashila Trek Route Map

Haridwar – Chopta – Tunganath – Chandrashila Peak – Chopta - Haridwar

Where is Chopta?

Chopta is actually a small settlement on the main road with few restaurants. It’s not even a village but a collection of restaurants and hotels. It is the starting point for the trek to Tunganath and Chandrashila Peak.

But do remember there are two Choptas in this region. The second Chopta is located near Rudraprayag which is actually a bigger village and is thus shown more prominently on Google maps. Do not get confused.

Just to let you know, there is a Chopta Valley is Sikkim also.

How to reach Chopta

Enroute Chopta

By air: Jolly Grant Airport at Dehradun is the nearest airport to Chopta. It takes around 6 hours to cover 180 kms from Airport to Chopta by road on a private vehicle

By rail: Haridwar is the nearest railway station which is well connected with major Indian cities. Local buses and Taxis are available from Haridwar.

By road: Government buses, private buses and taxis run all the way from Haridwar to Chopta and takes about 8 hours.

Trek from Chopta to Tunganath Temple

Trail to Tunganath Temple

The very nature of this beautiful and easy trek, distance and connectivity to Chopta makes this an ideal trek for novice.

Trek to the top

The trekking distance between Chopta and Tunganath is 4 kms and it usually takes 3 hours.

Time taken to trek from Chopta to Tunganath Temple is usually three hours for an average person and another one hour from Tunganath to Chandrashila. It can be classified as a fairly easy trek and is an ideal trek for first timers.

Tunganath Temple - The Highest Shiva Temple

The trekking path from Chopta starts from the main road. The trekking trail is well marked and is properly paved till Tunganath. Trees welcome the trekkers as soon as the trek begins and an endless array of snowcapped peaks can be seen on the left side.

Tunganath Temple

Snow Shivling at Tunganath Temple

The trail zigzags and steadily climbs up gaining altitude. There are places where one can sit and enjoy the views of the snow capped Himalayan range.

Trek from Tunganath Temple to Chandrashila Peak

View from Chandrashila Peak

The trek from Tunganath Temple to Chandrashila Peak is of 1.5 kms and is a steep climb gaining 600 feet ascent to 13000 feet. The path to Chandrashila starts from Tunganath itself and cannot be missed. There is a small temple at Chandrashila Peak. One can savour the 360 degrees panoramic view of the Himalaya Range from the Chandrashila Peak. Prominent peaks visible from the peak are Trishul, Nanda Devi, Kamet, Kedar dome.

While we were climbing Chandrashila Peak, it became cloudy and as soon we payed our regards to the temple at the Peak it started snowing (how cliche!!). 

Chandrashila Peak

According to mythological legends, Chandrashila is the place where Lord Ram performed penance after killing Ravana.

Trekking back to Tunganath and Chopta

The downhill trek to Chopta will be an easy task and will roughly take half the time taken to ascend the Chandrashila Peak. If there is no hurry, take a leisure walk back and enjoy the mesmerizing views of the mighty Himalayas.

Stays and accommodation at Chopta

Tents at Chopta

Many lodges, guesthouses and tents are available in Chopta and in the nearby village Sari on a single and sharing basis. Campsites are also available in Chopta and Sari.

Dos & Don’t’s

Our very own SNOWMAN

• Carry sufficient water and keep yourself hydrated.
• A good trekking shoe is a must. It can save your life.
• Wear light clothes. Avoid jeans and body hugging clothes
• Dress as per the weather
• Carry some nuts and chocolate bars for instant energy
• Trekking poles are helpful and work as a third leg sharing the body weight and pressure
• Physical Fitness is essential. Trekking needs a lot of physical and mental strength and stamina. Start practicing from today.
• Always remember that you are the inferior one in the Himalayas. Listen to the weather.

Elephanta Caves - A Ferry Ride from Mumbai

The last time I visited Elephanta Caves was in the year 2005. We recently went to Ajanta & Ellora Caves near Aurangabad and thought of exploring Elephanta Caves especially since the caves were so near.

We decided to go on a Saturday and everything just fell in place.

Location:

The Elephanta Caves are located on an island, about 11 Kms from Gateway of India (Apollo Bunder).

Getting There:

The most accessible way to reach Elephanta Caves is to take a 45 minutes ferry ride from Gateway of India. Normally every half an hour a ferry leaves from Gateway of India to Elephanta Caves. You can buy chips, wafers, mineral water and cold drinks from the ferry at an extra cost.

Gateway of India

A return ticket cost Rs. 180 per person, an extra Rs 10 per person if you want to sit on the upper deck of the ferry. Once you reach the Elephanta Jetty it is half an hour ride to reach the caves. You can take a toy train for Rs 10 per person for the return journey from the jetty to the feet of the caves.

The first boat starts from the Gateway at 9:00 am and the last one back from the Island is at 5:00 pm. The caves are closed on Monday.

Boat Ride:

The boat ride in itself is a part of the Elephanta Caves experience. As we moved away from the harbor we were surrounded by flocks of sea gulls hoping for a few crumbs of food. 

Sea Gulls following the ferry

One could see the magnificent Gateway of India and the iconic The Taj fading and enjoy the skyline of the city. You could see numerous ships and boats of different shapes and size.

The Island:

The name “Elephanta” came originated with the Portuguese, after they found a massive elephant structure on the island in the 18^th Century A.D. This is now displayed at the Jijamata Gardens in Mumbai.

Once we reached the island, there was a mad rush to take the toy train. Since it was hot, we were busy buying mineral water and raw mangoes to taste. There are small tuck shops selling raw mangoes, berries, star fruits, tamarind sprinkled with chillies and salt. By the time we started to move, the toy train had already left. We simply walked alongside the toy train route and reached the steps leading to the caves.

Toy Train on the Island

The steps leading to the caves are lined on both side by shops selling jewellery, T shirts, artifacts, trinkets, wrap around skirts etc. The shops were very well organized and no shop keeper was after me to buy something from their shop. Due to this it was quite fun to climb up the steps at your own pace looking at the interesting things on display for sale.

Display at the shops

Once I reached the caves, I realized that the caves were very neat and clean. You need to take a ticket to go inside the caves which is Rs. 10 for Indian and Rs 250 for foreigners.

The Main Cave:

There are seven caves here, but the most fascinated and the only cave worth seeing is Cave No. one. The entire cave is dedicated to Lord Shiva and it depicts Shiva in various postures.

A little off centre is a temple with a lingam inside. The temple has entrances on four sides and there are eight guards at the corner of the temple.

Lingam In Cave 1 of Elephanta Cave

Let me take you along with me and show you some of the sculptures.

The main and most interesting sculpture of this cave is - The Trimurti. It is named so as it has three heads, and is thus considered to be the Trinity – Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. A closer look at this sculpture will tell you that this is actually the three faces of Lord Shiva himself. The central face, which is the calm and the serene face, is the creative side of Shiva, the Creator. The right face of the Lord (left for us) is the Destroyer, represented with a snake in the hand and the left face is the Preserver, with a lotus in hand.

Trimurti

Just next to the Trimurti is beautiful sculpture depicting Lord Shiva as Ardhanareeshwara – half man, half woman.

Ardhanareeshwara - Half man, half woman

Shiva in the Yoga pose:

Lord Shiva in yoga pose

The next carving depicts Ravana lifting Mount Kailash. Unfortunately, the lower portion of the figure is completely spoilt and we can hardly see Ravana.

Ravana lifting Kailash

This is the carving which shows the marriage of Lord Shiva and Parvati. Again, this is such a detailed carving but has been ruined.

Lord Shiva & Parvati marriage

He next carving shows the slaughter of demon Andhakasura.

Slaughter of Demon Andhakasura

The final carving in here is the very famous Nataraja.

Nataraja Posture

Gangadhara Shiva:

Gangadhara Shiva

On the eastern wing of this cave, we saw another lingam and a sculpture of Lord Shiva, Ganesh and Kartikeya.

Ganesha & Kartikeya with Lord Shiva

We wanted around the rest of the caves for a while, but there was nothing interesting. We decided to head back. On the way back, we took the toy train to go back to the ferry. The ride back was quiet and we again saw the sea gulls. We saw the skyline of Mumbai surfacing in front of our eyes and gradually the iconic Taj.

Gateway of India & Taj

With this we ended our visit to Elephanta Caves.

Points to remember:

• You can take a ferry from The Gateway of India for Elephanta Caves. It is a 45mins ride. The ferry ride is closed during monsoons.  
• Ferry Timing:   
• Gateway to Elephanta : 9 am to 2 pm
• Elephanta to Gateway : 12 noon to 5:30 pm
• The cost of the ferry return ticket is Rs. 180 per person.
• Elephanta Caves are open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. and are closed on Monday.
• Entry Fee is Rs 10 for Indians and Rs 250 for foreigners. Free Entry below 15 years of age.
• Beware of monkeys.