Last updated 25/12/2006

The source of the Ganges (or Ganga as it is called in India) is a holy site, a place of pilgrimage for Hindus. In fact 3 snowmelt streams from neighbouring valleys come together to form the river within the ranges. The holiest of these, known as Gaumukh (the mouth of the Ganga), is the snout of a glacier 20 km past Gangotri at the end of the road.

Traveling North from Delhi, the plains end at Hardwar where the Ganga issues forth out of the Himalayas, then turns eastwards for ~ 1000km to exit into the Bay of Bengal creating a delta. The road crosses a number of ranges to reach Gangotri - a pilgrim town - at a height of 10500' (3000m). The road is closed because of snow for >6 months of the year opening in April-May when a stream of pilgrims - yatri in Hindi - converge on Hardwar and go on to Gangotri. There are also tourists, mostly Indian, but some from other countries. The pilgrims have to be strictly vegetarian in their yatra - no eggs or even onions and of course NO BEER! - making this a far from gourmet experience.

The target - Gaumukh, the glacier at the bottom of Mt Bhagirathi 4 km up from Bhojbasa Ashram

Going up to Gangotri. Road workers - snow and frost take their toll on precarious roads. Note that women are breaking stones not men who usually go to the cities for jobs.	The Bhagarathi river in the Indian equivalent of China's Tiger Leaping Gorge on the Yangtse as it leaves Tibet.

The Indian army practising on a remnant snowfield near their base about 30 km down valley from Gangotri. These soldiers go on high altitude patrol near the Chinese border	A Gangotri cafe. We tried the porridge for breakfast - not bad

Sages seeking alms from Hindu pilgrims	More alms seekers in Gangotri

The track up from Gangotri to Bhojbasa Ashram - it's ~ 15 km long and climbs from 10500' to 12000'	Some go up by mules which don't get to eat much until they return next day; some get carried on a litter by two porters. Which is safer or more comfortable is anyone's guess

At the ashram - it was cold. Kuntala became very ill from altitude effects and we had to get her down quickly to lower altitude. Anyhow, the weather closed with heavy snow making the final 4 km trek to Gaumukh impossible.	Now largely recovered, Kuntala, Guttu and I meet a sage going back to his cave in the woods near Gangotri. He lives there throughout the year; when asked about being snowed in in winter he said his cave is quite warm as it gets an extra 2 hours sun in the afternoon.