Uttarakhand : An Ode to Himalaya and Spirituality ( towards Badri dhaam)

Day XII : Joshimath – Badrinath

82.          The next day morning after visiting the Math again we left for Badrinath and also had a mendicant as passenger who wanted to reach Badrinath, The first stop was Vishnu prayag which is the confluence of Alaknanda and Dhauliganga rivers. After spending some time here we proceeded ahead. The route consisted of Vishnuprayag followed by historical places like Pandukeswara, Hanuman Chatti and then finally Badrinath.

83.          This entire stretch had also faced the devastation of the 2013 disaster and had not recovered since then. The entire route gives one a feeling of instability and the road has been at various places kept open with the help of JCBs and other heavy earth moving equipments. The scenic beauty is worth describing as one goes right into the heart of the mountains as the road snakes its way deeper and deeper. Hanuman Chatti was reached by 1400 hrs and thereafter we reached Badrinath at 1500 hrs.

84.          Our stay was booked at GMVN, Badrinath however we did not like the look of the property and shifted to Hotel Shankar Shree which was more welcoming. In the afternoon we went up till Mana Village which is the last village this side of the border and visited the various historical sites out there. In the evening we went to the Badrinath temple and spend some quality time out there.

85.          As the night approached the temperature fell substantially and after a hot simple dinner we hit the bed as we wanted to get up early to witness the natural beauty of the place and also take part in the morning aarti at the temple.

SANGAM AT VISHNUPRAYAG

ON THE WAY TO BADRIDHAM

BADRIDHAAM 

NEELKANTH PARBAT

NAR NEEL PARBAT  

MT NEELKANTH

HANUMAN CHATTI

BADRINATH VALLEY

Uttarakhand : An Ode to Himalaya and Spirituality ( towards Joshimath , the Northern Math amongst the four ) DAY XII

Day XII : Nandaprayag – Joshimath

79.          The next morning we visited the Sangam of  Alaknanda and Nandakini rivers which did not have many tourists or pilgrims . Maybe it was early in the morning hence there were hardly any visitors. After this on a  warm  sunny morning we proceeded towards Joshimath . The route was along the Chamoli-Gopeswar Highway and we also took a detour from Chamoli to visit the Gopinath temple at Gopeswar. Gopeshwar is nestled on a hill and a narrow winding road leads up to the town itself. The setting was very picturesque with lavender trees in full bloom.

80.          The Gopinath temple dedicated to Lord Shiva has significant importance in this region and is highlighted with the presence of a 5 mt trident which I think is similar in metallurgy to the trident of Maa Mookambica at Kodachadri Village, Karnataka. Both these weapons are exposed to the nature however remain unaffected by the same.

81.          Post the visit we proceeded towards Joshimath and we arrived at Joshimath by 1400 hrs. The road conditions were a mix of good and bad and the heat definitely had built by the time we arrived at Joshimath. Our stay was booked at GMVN, Joshimath which was definitely a good place to stay. In the afternoon and evening we visited the famed Narsingh Temple at Joshimath established by Adi Shankaracharya himself and is one among the 108 “Divya Desams” and thereafter proceeded to visit the Shankaracharya Math which if one of the four Maths established and is in-charge of the ‘Atharvaveda’. The Kalpavrikhsa tree is also a major attraction and is said to be as old as Badrinath himself  and is worth a visit. Joshimath also has the idol as well as site of the future Kedarnath temple which can be seen quite easily presently. 

JYOTIRMATH MATH  

EVENINGS AT JOSHIMATH  

SANGAM AT NANDAPRAYAG  

PRETTY GOPESHWAR

THE FAMED GOPINATH TEMPLE @GOPESHWAR 

TOWARDS JOSHIMATH  

WILD ROADS  

NARSINGH TEMPLE  

DEDICATED TO ADI GURU SHANKARACHARYA