Are you looking for a day by day detailed travel plan or itinerary for a trip to Tungnath – Chandrashilla – Deoriatal? Look no further and follow the most popular itinerary for these lovely places in Uttarakhand.
Nowadays Tungnath – Chopta – Chandrashilla circuit is becoming one of the favorite places for travelers who have already been to other familiar places in Gharwal, Uttarakhand.
Tungnath – Chandrashilla trek offers not only much-needed peace and tranquility in life from time to time but also offers magnificent views of the Chaukhamba range in Uttarakhand. The presence of Deoriatal in the vicinity also spices up the vacation offering complete solitude aside a lake.
In winters, you can even plan an adventurous snow trek to both Tungnath and Deoriatal. At times, Chandrashilla becomes unreachable due to the presence of too much snow ahead of Tungnath and the risk of having a fatal incident.
Let's quickly dive into the details:
Background on Tungnath – Chandrashilla – Chopta – Deoriatal
Tungnath temple, at an altitude of 3680 Mtrs, is considered to be the highest temple of Lord Shiva and is one of the Panch (Five) Kedars. You can reach it by trekking around 3.5 km from Chopta. Madhmaheshwar, Tungnath, Rudranath, and Kalpnath with Kedarnath forms the Panch Kedar, the five most important temples of Lord Shiva in Garhwal Himalayas.
Chandrashilla, at an altitude of 4000 Mtrs, is the highest point of the mountain on which Chopta is situated. It offers 270-degree views of the Chaukhamnba range. It lies 1.5 km further of Tungnath Temple which makes it a 5 km trek from Chopta.
Chopta is situated at an altitude of 2600 Mtrs in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand. It is well known as a base point for the trek to Tungnath temple and further to the Chandrashilla peak. But, Chopta itself offers a beautiful snow meadow in winters locally called Chopta Bhugyal (Bhugyal meaning meadow).
Deoriatal lake, at an altitude of 2438 Mtrs, offers mesmerizing reflections of Chaukhamba range in its crystal clear water. One needs to drive about 12 km to Sari Village from Ukhimath, and from Sari Village, one can reach Deoria Tal by a trek route of 2 km.
All these places are among the list of offbeat places in Uttarakhand.
Ukhimath lies 31 km from Chopta, where the deity of Kedarnath is shifted in winters. There are locale temples of Usha and Anirudh, Shiva and Parvati which we will be visiting too.
Common Itinerary for Tungnath – Chandrashilla – Deoriatal
This five-day itinerary traverses through Rishikesh – Srinagar – Rudraprayag route and comes back the same way. You can opt to go from Chamoli route as well in case you are also planning to visit Auli.
However, beware, the route from Chamoli to Chopta remains closed in winter when heavy snowfall blocks the roads. This article covers both Tungnath – Chandrashilla as well as Deoriatal. Below is the most common itinerary for Tungnath – Chandrashilla, spanning over 5-6 days and making the most use of each of the days.
Day 0 | Delhi – Haridwar / Rishikesh
- Leaven early evening, may early out from the office to reach Haridwar/Rishikesh by night
- Rishikesh is about 35 odd km from Haridwar
- About 200-225 km / 4-5 Hrs drive to Haridwar/Rishikesh
- Overnight at Haridwar or Rishikesh, whichever suits your timings
- There may be office hours traffic in the evening, so leave before office timings to avoid jams
Day 1 | Haridwar / Rishikesh – Ukimath – Sari Village – Deoriatal Lake
- Sari to Deoriatal is about 2.5 Km trek and takes about 1-2 Hrs depending upon your speed
- Sari Village is about 12 KMs from Ukimath takes about 20 minutes
- About 220 KMs / 8 – 9 hrs drive to Sari Village
- Bhagirathi River and Alaknanda River confluence at Devprayag (Confluence)
- Mandakini River and Alaknanda River confluence at Rudraprayag (Confluence)
- Panorama to capture between Srinagar & Rudraprayag of river Ganga (Alaknanda) bending in U-Shape near Khankra bend
- A cup of tea at Syal Saur between Rudraprayag and Kund. Govt. refurbished the remains of GMVN rest house after the Kedarnath tragedy
- Have your lunch at Srinagar
- There are camps for an overnight stay at Deoriatal: Camps or Tents at Deoria Tal – A Review
- Overnight at Deoriatal
Day 2 | Deoriatal Lake – Duggalbitta / Chopta
- Take rest up to late afternoon at Deoriatal & rejoice the tranquility in the air
- Capture the amazing reflections of Chaukhamba range in the morning in Deoriatal
- Trek down to Sari village and start for Chopta. In winters, last stay options will be at Duggalbitta and rest will be closed ahead of it
- In winters, even the road is closed ahead of Baniya Kund mostly and you have to start the trek from that point.
- Overnight at Duggalbitta / Chopta
Travel Tip: You can check out my list of places to play in snow or snowfall in Uttarakhand which are near Delhi.
Day 3 | Duggalbitta / Chopta – Tungnath – Chandrashilla – Chopta / Ukimath
- Start the trek from Duggalbitta / Baniya Kund / Chopta towards Tunganath (3.5 KM of the trek) + Chandrashilla (1.5 KM trek)
- Start your trek by 6 AM and carry plenty of water with you
- Starting early helps you walk over firm snow, and you can maintain the speed. As the sun rises, snow melts and softens making walking over it difficult.
- In winters, it is critical to take the guide with you. You can get in touch with two good local guides Bharat Puspwan: 09719875326, 09456108780, and Umeid (09411737835), maybe if you need they can be of much help with everything and you can directly get in touch without involving any travel agent. Both Bharat and Umeid are good people at heart and friendly company on a trek. Bharat is working as a guide for almost for more than 14 years.
- You will not find electricity at Duggalbitta, Chopta, Tungnath, and Deoria Tal. If you think you will need electricity, then do confirm with the hotels or guest houses at these places if they have a generator or not. Mayadeep hotel at Duggalbitta may run the generator for you.
- In winter; there is no accommodation at Chopta or Tungnath, which you will find open. When there is ample snow, even Duggalbitta is hard to reach.
- Overnight at Duggalbitta / Chopta
Day 4 | Chopta / Ukimath – Rishikesh
- Start the journey back to Rishikesh. In summers, you can take Gopeshwar – Chamoli route where you can visit Kanchula Korak Musk Deer sanctuary.
- If coming via Ukimath – Kund, you can take a detour to Guptkashi to see Vishwanath temple, Ardhnareshwar temple, and Manikarnika Kund
- About 8 Hrs drive to Rishikesh
- Overnight at Rishikesh
Day 5 | Rishikesh – Delhi
- Do some water sports at Rishikesh including rafting or drive over to Neelkanth Mahadev temple
- Take the route from Rajaji National Park this time while exiting from Rishikesh to Haridwar to enjoy a serene drive
- Or you can decide to spend a day in Mussoorie.
- About 5 Hrs drive to Delhi
Other Tips and Important Distances
- Syal Saur to Ukhimath is 17-18 KMs approx. Syal Saur comes first even before Kund when going towards Ukhimath from Delhi.
- Kund is the bifurcation point where left turn goes to Guptkashi – Gauri Kund – Kedarnath and the straight or slightly right turn goes to Ukhimath – Sari Village – Chopta
- Kund to Guptkashi is about 25 KMs. Further, 22 KMs is Gauri Kund, where the road ends. From Gauri Kund, a 14 KMs trek starts for Kedarnath.
- Ukhimath to Sari Village is 13-14 KMs approx. You need to go straight from Ukhimath, and you will find a board on the right side stating directions to Deoria Tal. Here, you need to take a U-Turn towards left for Sari village – Deoria Tal. If you do not take the U-Turn and follow the road coming from Ukhimath, then you go towards Duggalbitta – Chopta.
- Sari Village to Chopta is 32 KMs approx and Duggalbitta is 4 – 5 KMs before Chopta.
- Overall Delhi to Syal Saur/Ukhimath/Sari Village/Duggalbitta/Chopta is almost alike, with an overall span of about 50 KMs. Hence, from any place, you can travel to Delhi in one day without much time difference.
- We couldn’t find any signals of Phone on the trek to Tungnath and Chandrashilla. Nearby Chopta, the phone signals were present but with inferior connectivity. There is no issue of Phone connectivity on the entire route before Duggalbitta. We had BSNL, Airtel and Idea connections with us.
- Although there are several ATMs on the route as well, and we used Chandrapuri ATM, which comes after Agustmuni and before Syal Saur. Chandrapuri ATM is the closest ATM because I guess there is no ATM present at Ukhimath.
- Nearest Petrol Pump is at Kund about 7-8 KMs before Ukhimath. I will suggest that you top-up the fuel either at Srinagar or Rudra Prayag.
- Do not forget to carry these must-have things for a trekking trip.
You should always carry your water bottle and refill it as many times as you need water. It will not only keep you hydrated always, but you will also help in saving the Himalayas from plastic garbage. Remember, every tiny step counts and your step in this direction can help save the Himalayas too !! 🙂 🙂
Conclusion
I am sure the above itinerary, if not help you 100% with planning a trip to Tungnath – Chandrashilla – Chopta – Deoriatal but can certainly act as a starting point. It is a beginner trek in the Uttarakhand – Himalayas and I am sure you will completely enjoy going up there.
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You can share your valuable thoughts or queries or doubts you may have in the comments section of the article or in the DwD Community | Itinerary Advice forum for Uttarakhand and we can discuss more your upcoming Travel Plans for Tungnath – Chandrashilla – Chopta – Deoriatal :).
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29 Comments
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Hi Dheeraj, hope you are doing good. Planning for a uttarkhand trip in end of april. Two couples and two kids (9 years and 2.5 years).
Is it safe to plan a trip of Delhi-Chopta-Deorotal-Auli-Rishikesh-Delhi in 7 days? Main purpose of adding Auli is for playing in snow, will snow be surely present during end of april?
Also heard of mules available for deorotal trek, is it a safe option to take? Is this option also available for Tughnath / Chandrashila trek?
Thanks, Sekhar.
Sekhar, I highly doubt that you will find any snow in Auli in April. Snow in Uttarakhand vanishes by end of March and only a few remains will be present around Chandrashilla. However, with high influx of tourists to these locations for past few years, I doubt even on Chandrashilla you will get snow.
Mules may be available, but Deoriatal is much less hectic than Chandrashilla one. You can get in touch with some guides referenced in the articles of guides of these places above and check with them if they can make mules available. I have personally not seen mules on this treks.
Thank you Dheeraj. Then i will skip auli as it doesñt seem to be worth the long distance. Now iam confused whether to go for uttarkhand or Himachal. I had already been to manali and thirthan valley. What would be your suggestion between kumaon region of uttarkhand vs narkanda and kinnaur for a family trip. We come all the way from Chennai, so snow is surely a special attraction. Sorry for out of thread question.
Hey Sekhar,
In case snow is for sure what you need, you can make a trip to Kinnaur valley for 7 days and expect snow to be there somewhat near Chitkul. Is it possible for your to extend the trip and include Spiti Valley? I mean can you spare 10 days? If not, I will highly recommend Kinnaur Valley including Kalpa, Sangla and chitkul stays.
Thanks for your suggestions. Will check your other thread on Spiti and come back with any questions. To start with, I may have max 9 days. Is it too hectic to do Kinnaur or Spiti with family and kids? in terms of both travel and remoteness?
Sekhar, I will suggest that you just stick with Kinnaur Valley only in that case: Kinnaur Valley – Most Common Itinerary
Thanks Dheeraj. I hope kinnaur is enjoyable with family and kids. I will catch up on the other forum for any further details. Really appreciate your super quick response..
Yes Shekhar, everyone will enjoy a lot Kinnaur is a very beautiful place.
Glad to know that. Again thanks for your valuable insight Dheeraj..
I am planning for deoria tal-chopta-tungnath-chandrashilla trek with my friends on new year long weekend from 29Dec-2 Jan. Will I be able to find snow at that time .
If not, can u suggest me some place where I can find snow on new year.
Manmeet, most likely you will be able to find snow in Chopta during that time of the year. In general it snows but weather have been playing funny things in the last couple of years 😀
You can also read the series: Snowfall Near Delhi | 7 Places to Visit in Himachal
Hi Dheeraj,
Very nice to see your article. We are 16 people team and planning this trek in March 2018 first week.
Can you please brief us about the climate and conditions over there in March month.
Do we have any contact number of there local Guide.
Thanks & regards,
Rajesh
Hi Rajesh,
Contact number of local guides is already mentioned in the article above or travel guides linked to it. You can, of course, find snow in MArch and conditions will be snow trek to Tunganath top
Thanks a lot Dheeraj,
Very informative and to the point article. very well written.
I think I can do this in 3 days in hand with following iternary based on your guidance:-
Day 1- Reaching Rishikesh and directly to Chopta, Stay at Chopta
Day 2- Early morning trek to Tungnath-Chandershila, Trek back and stay at Chopta again
Day 3- Drive to Sari village- Trek to Deorital- Stay at Deorital
Day 4- Back journey from Sari to Haridwar to my place
Pls guide me if this is ok. Pls also tell me what are the stay options at Chopta and Deorital as I have to travel solo. And also do I need any guide for these treks? I think, if routes are marked and trek is frequented by villagers and travellers, I may nt need guide.
Kindly guide as I have to set out for the journey tomorow morning
Thank you and regards
Bindiya
Replied you in the forum post.
Hello
Dheeraj
We have seven days 4th June to 11th June
How can we explore this places in 7 days.. plz make a 7 days itinerary for us for the same route..
You can refer the article above for a common itinerary for Chopta – Deoriatal – Tunganath. Spend easy time around Chopta, do spend a day at Deoriatal and trek further to Bedmi Bhugyal. You can also add hike to Kartik Swami temple too.
thanks dheeraj 🙂
can u plz compile a list of places near chopta.
we are not interested to spend day at rishikesh.
as already told u having seven days in hand.
list of
day 0 (4th june we start at night 9 pm. will drive whole night) to
day 7 (11th june back to delhi)
need a proper itineray from day 1 to day 6
forthe same chopta deriotal route
There isn’t much near Chopta.
Day 1: Reach Deoriatal and crash for the night
Day 2: Spend the day at Deoriatal, resting peacefully, may be walks around
Day 3: Get down to Chopta and rest for the day
Day 4: Do the Tunganath – Chandrashilla trek
Day 5: Do the Kartik Swami trek and go over to Khirsu
Day 6: Stay at Khirsu
Day 7: Return home
Hi Dheeraj ,
Great article .
I am planning to go there by the starting of jan . Can u tell me the accomodation over there i mean we have to carry tents or we can get tents there , if we have to arrange then from where should i .
Thankz
Himanshu, where are you planing? Tunganath? or Deoriatal? IN case you planning to visit Deoriatal, you should be able to get camps running over there. However, for Tunganath I will not suggest camping at night in winters. Also, in case you snow it is highly recommended that you take a guide with you.
Dheeraj ,I am planning to go to chandrashila peak via deoritaal and tunganath .
If you are planning to trek the whole route without coming down, you will need to have a guide and all camping gear with you which can be carried and camped when necessary.
Thankyou Dheeraj . It is really helpful . Can u provide me contact number of any guide ?
You can get in touch with Bharat Puspwan: 09719875326, 09456108780, who is a good guide and local of that region.
Hi Dheeraj,
Really gr8 article. I am planning to visit deoriatal, chopta and tungnath on last week of this dec 16 (may be 29 & 30).
I will drive from delhi with my Honda City via Khirsu-Rudraprayag-Ukhimath-Chopta and Deoriatal with my family (myself, my wife and 4 years kid). Plz guide me on :
1. Road condition from Khirsu to Rudraprayag.
2. Whether road at Chopta will be open during that period for driving.
3. whether my 4 years kid can trek at deooria tal and tunganath.
4 Any other point you want to suggest.
Regards,
Raj
Hi Raj,
1. Road conditions are pretty much fine barring few sections in between
2. Since, you are going from Rudraprayag, Ukimath side, the road will be open from that side. The road closes from Chamoli side.
3. Well, the trek will be too much of Tunganath for a 4 year old, but Deoriatal is fine.
Regards
Dheeraj
Hi Dheeraj,
Very well written, going in last weekend,
In your itinerary, Day 4: last two points are should be typo error or you may copy them from other post mistakenly (Shimla-Narkanda).
Thankyou for guiding us.
Best regards,
Adnan
Thank you so much Adnan for pointing the correction. Yeah, it seems the template itinerary had a leftover from other post.