Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal Itinerary

In the last few articles, I have written in detail about how can you plan a trip to Chopta and Deoria Tal and what are some of the things you must keep in mind while trekking to Tungnath and Chandrashila. As a last article in the series, in this post, I will provide a detailed Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal Itinerary. I will cover details like how much time you would need for the trip, how can you travel and move from one place to another, where to stay for the night, and what are some of the necessary tips to ensure a hassle-free trip.

Also Read: Chopta – A Comprehensive Travel Guide & Itinerary

For the sake of the itinerary below,  I will assume Delhi as the starting point. Even if you were coming back from a different city though, the journey to and from Rishikesh can be slightly different. The rest of the details will still apply. I will first start with an itinerary that I recommend followed by a few alternate versions of the same journey. I will also provide different travel plans for people traveling by their own vehicle and by public transport.

Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal Itinerary

Not everyone will be able to follow the plan mentioned below to the last detail. But it will at least give you an idea of how to create your own final itinerary. If, after reading the article, you have any other questions, you may comment and ask towards the bottom of this page.

A trip to all these 4 places commonly gets referred to as a Chopta trip. Deoria Tal is located is in close proximity to Chopta and the trek to Tungnath and Chandrashila too starts from here. In recent times, it has come up as one of the most favored destinations in all of Uttarakhand.

The first reason behind this is that visiting either Chopta or Deoria Tal gives you the experience of visiting an offbeat destination without going way too remote. The place is well connected by road and has all the basic facilities that you will need as a tourist. Yet, you won’t find many tourists around and it never gets crowded here.

The second reason is that both Chopta and Deoria Tal are known as trekking and camping destinations. The treks here are neither too easy to disinterest you, nor are they too challenging to dishearten you. Even an absolute beginner can successfully complete these treks. All that you need is a little bit of stamina and a pair of good shoes.

After the trek, you get to stay at a camp for the night, sit around a bonfire, and have fun with your family and friends. So in short, visiting Chopta and Deoria Tal can really give you a wholesome experience mixing both fun and adventure.

About Deoria Tal

For a brief introduction, Deoria Tal is a small lake located about 3 kilometers from Sari village near Chopta in Uttarakhand. It is situated at an altitude of 2,438 meters and has dense forests, lush green surroundings with snow-covered mountains in the backdrop. Chaukhamba peak is also visible from the lake here and watching its reflections in the calm waters of the lake is a photographer’s delight.

This lake freezes partially in winters and continues to remain a popular trek in all 12 months. If you are living in Delhi or at a place closer than Delhi then you can easily plan a trip with as few as 3 days in hand. How you can do so is what I will provide details on in this article.

Also Read: Tungnath Chandrashila Trek – How to Plan & Prepare

Chopta

Often referred to as ‘Mini Switzerland’, Chopta is a small region of meadows and evergreen forest located about 210 kilometers from Rishikesh and 465 kilometers from Delhi. At an altitude of 2,680 meters, this place is surrounded by forests of pine, deodar, and rhododendron and in fact, is a part of Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary.

It is popular and serves as the base for Tungnath and Chandrashila treks but is also visited by tourists who actually have no interest in trekking; and who just want to visit a scenic and peaceful location for a few days.

It is what you will really call a tourist spot in the middle of nowhere. The natural beauty of the place is truly mesmerizing and is bound to leave you wanting to come back here again.

About Tungnath Chandrashila Trek

The Chopta – Tungnath – Chandrashila trek is a 5.5 kilometers long trail that starts from Chopta and ends at the top of Chandrashila peak. The distance between Chopta to Tungnath is about 4 kilometers and 1.5 kilometers between Tungnath to Chandrashila.

The trek is considered to be moderate in terms of difficulty and is among the most popular ones in all of Uttarakhand. It remains accessible throughout the year except for the months of January and February when the winter season buries the entire region under several feet of snow.

Time Needed Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal Trip

A minimum of 5 days is what I will recommend for this trip. This would ensure that you are able to explore and see all that there is to see out here. The journey can also be done in 4 days but it will be very rushed and tiring. I will suggest itineraries for 4 and 5 days both; but if you can add more days, then you can prolong your stay at any of the mentioned destinations.

Also Read: Rishikesh to Delhi – The Journey Home

Route for the Trip

Starting from Delhi, there are two routes that you can take to reach Chopta. Both are almost the same in length and will require an equal amount of time to be spent on the road.

Delhi – Meerut – Khatauli – Muzaffarnagar – Roorkee – Haridwar – Rishikesh – Devprayag – Srinagar – Rudraprayag – Agastamuni – Ukhimath – Duggalbitta – Chopta

This is the first and the most common route taken. From Delhi, you take the highway to Rishikesh and reach Srinagar via Devprayag. After Srinagar, you will continue driving to Chopta via Rudraprayag and Ukhimath.

Delhi – Meerut – Khatauli – Bijnaur – Najibabad – Kotdwar – Lansdowne – Srinagar – Rudraprayag – Agastamuni – Ukhimath – Duggalbitta – Chopta

The second route will take you via Lansdowne which is another well-known tourist destination. This route is usually not taken for the Chopta trip but if you wish, you can use this road for your return journey. You will reach Srinagar from Chopta and rather than going to Rishikesh, you will take the road towards Lansdowne from there. After Lansdowne, you will again exit on the highway near Meerut and continue to Delhi.

Best Time to Visit

If you just want to visit Deoria Tal and Chopta then you can do the trip at any time of the year. If you however want to climb up to Tungnath and Chandrashila as well then you must plan between April to December.

The first three months of the year will have to be taken out as the trek has about 4 to 7 feet of snow at this time and becomes dangerous. The months of July and August are less preferred because of the monsoon season which can also trigger landslides if it rained too much. Trekking in cold weather with the rain beating down on your head does not sound like much fun either.

Also Read: Deoria Tal – A Complete Travel Guide & Itinerary

Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal Itinerary

Below is how your itinerary will look like for this trip. I will first explain in detail an itinerary that I recommend followed by a few alternate versions of it.

• Delhi to Chopta – Day 1
• Chopta to Tungnath, Chandrashila to Chopta – Day 2
• Chopta to Deoria Tal – Day 3
• Deoria Tal to Rishikesh / Lansdowne – Day 4
• Rishikesh / Lansdowne to Delhi – Day 5

Delhi to Chopta – Day 1

Please make sure that you get an early start on Day 1 of the trip. Start from Delhi possibly by as early as 3 AM. This will help you beat the traffic and get out of the city in time. It will be a long drive of about 460 kilometers which will take you around 12 to 14 hours to complete.

For your drive from Delhi to Rishikesh, you can either continue driving on the highway or take the upper Ganga canal road from Murad Nagar. After Rishikesh, you will start climbing up the hills and the road will be a mix of good and bad. Continue following the road via Devprayag, Srinagar till Rudraprayag.

A few kilometers after Rudraprayag is the small town of Kund from where you will have to take the turn towards Ukhimath. Continue driving via Ukhimath, Dugalbitta, and Baniyakund to arrive at Chopta.

If you started late from Delhi or got late somewhere en route and were not able to make it all the way to Chopta; then target to reach at least Rudraprayag and break the journey there instead.

On the way, you will see the natural beauty of the place and amazing vistas all day long. The confluence of Bhagirathi and Alaknanda Rivers at Devprayag; and Mandakini and Alaknanda Rivers at Rudraprayag is definitely worth taking a break and capture some shots.

Chopta to Tungnath, Chandrashila to Chopta – Day 2

You must get an early start on this day because you have a long trek ahead of you. It is going to be a total of about 11 kilometers of a walk. The trek will be steep at places in between. There are a total of 11 scissor bends between Chopta and Tungnath; and then several more switchbacks between Tungnath and Chandrashila.

You should target to start the trek latest by 8 AM. This should get you to the top of the peak by noon and give you ample time to return at an easy pace.

The walk is pleasant enough with magnificent views all around. It takes about 2 hours for an average person to trek from Chopta to Tungnath, and then another 1 hour to trek from Tungnath to Chandrashila. The return journey will take you about half of this time as you climb down.

The trek is fairly easy and you do not need a guide for this. There is a well-laid path all the way up to Tungnath. There are only two things you need to bring; plenty of stamina and a pair of good trekking shoes.

Also Read: Delhi to Deoria Tal – A Memorable Trip

Chopta to Deoria Tal – Day 3

Reaching Deoria Tal is not a very long journey so you will have time for visiting other local places as well. Take a look at Tourist Attractions in and around Chopta for a list of some other old temples that you can visit here. Indulge in sightseeing in the first half of the day and come back to your hotel. Check out and be on your way to Sari Village after having lunch.

Locals in Sari are very helpful people and you can ask anyone for directions towards Deoria Tal trek. But I am assuming here that you would already have made arrangements for your stay at the camp by the lake.

These are not a pre-arranged thing and you must call and book in advance. Talk to your campsite owner and coordinate to trek up to the lake. It will take you about 2 hours to walk up to the lake and you will arrive in time to enjoy a great sunset view.

Deoria Tal to Rishikesh / Lansdowne – Day 4

Make sure you set up alarms and get up in time before sunrise. You simply cannot afford to miss sunrise at Deoria Tal. It is truly a magnificent sight. Have breakfast and climb down to Sari Village.

Now you have two choices in terms of your return journey. For both of these, you will first have to drive down to Srinagar. After Srinagar, you can either continue the same route that you took to reach Chopta and stay for the night in Srinagar.

Another choice would be to add Lansdowne to your itinerary and head that way. There is a road that bifurcates from Srinagar towards Lansdowne that you can take. Ask the locals for directions if you weren’t able to locate the road.

The distance from Sari Village to both Rishikesh and Lansdowne is the same, 190 odd kilometers. And it will also take you the same amount of time, 6 to 7 hours, to travel to either of these locations.

Rishikesh / Lansdowne to Delhi – Day 5

This will be the last day of your trip. Rishikesh is about 240 kilometers from Delhi and Lansdowne is about 270 kilometers. From either of these towns, getting back to Delhi will take you about 6 to 7 hours. If you were staying in Lansdowne, then I will recommend that you keep the first half of the day for local sightseeing.

There are several places here that are worth visiting. For a list, please read Tourist Attractions in Lansdowne. Have lunch at Lansdowne, check out of the hotel and reach home by late evening.

And that will be your 5 days trip to Chopta, Deoria Tal, Tungnath, and Chandrashila. If you were short on time, then you can skip Rishikesh and Lansdowne entirely and travel straight to Delhi from Chopta; hence; making it a 4 days trip.

Itinerary # 2

This was just a sample travel plan and the journey can of curse be done in numerous other ways. I will suggest a few more examples showing how can you travel differently.

• Delhi to Devprayag – Day 1
• Devprayag to Sari Village to Deoria Tal – Day 2
• Deoria Tal to Sari Village to Chopta to Tungnath – Day 3
• Tungnath to Chandrashila to Tungnath to Chopta to Rudraprayag / Srinagar / Devprayag – Day 4
• Rudraprayag / Srinagar / Devprayag to Delhi – Day 5

The daily travel time in this itinerary is cut short by several hours as you are not directly traveling to or from Chopta. Your night stay will be at Tungnath Dormitories. In the morning of Day 4, you will trek up to Chandrashila and enjoy the sunrise view. Then you will climb down to Chopta and drive to either of the three towns. This will reduce your total travel time on Day 5 to Delhi.

Also Read: Devprayag to Chopta – The Valleys of White

Tungnath Chandrashila Trek itinerary

If you want to keep Deoria Tal out and just focus on Tungnath and Chandrashila, then your trip can be like below.

• Delhi to Chopta – Day 1
• Chopta to Tungnath to Chandrashila to Chopta – Day 2
• Chopta to Delhi – Day 3

If you want to, you can extend it by a day by either staying at Rishikesh or Lansdowne for the night on Day 3; returning home on Day 4.

Deoria Tal Itinerary

• Delhi to Devprayag – Day 1
• Devprayag to Sari Village to Deoria Tal – Day 2
• Deoria Tal to Rishikesh / Delhi – Day 3
• Rishikesh to Delhi – Day 4

Your entire trip here can be wrapped in three days if you chose to drive down directly to Delhi on Day 3 rather than staying at Rishikesh.

Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Trek via Deoria Tal

If you are up for a little bit of more trekking then you can walk directly from Deoria Tal to Chopta; or vice versa.

• Delhi to Baniyakund – Day 1
• Baniyakund to Chopta to Tungnath / Chandrashila to Chopta to Baniyakund – Day 2
• Baniyakund to Deoria Tal via Rohini Bugyal – Day 3
• Deoria Tal To Sari Village to Rishikesh / Lansdowne – Day 4
• Rishikesh / Lansdowne to Delhi – Day 5

Also Read: Sari Village to Deoria Tal – An Awesome Trek

Or you can also do this journey the other way around.

• Delhi to Lansdowne – Day 1
• Lansdowne to Srinagar to Sari Village – Day 2
• Sari Village to Deoria Tal – Day 3
• Deoria Tal to Baniyakund via Rohini Bugyal – Day 4
• Baniyakund to Chopta to Tungnath / Chandrashila to Chopta to Baniyakund – Day 5
• Chopta to Delhi – Day 6

Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal Trip – Conclusion

As I mentioned, this journey can be done in numerous other ways and the itineraries I suggested are just a few examples of it. Depending on your mode of transport and days in hand, you can tweak the plan as per your own convenience.

I hope the information above on planning a trip to Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal was of help. If you have any questions or need any further details, please feel free to ask in the comments section below, or at our Community Forum and I will be glad to answer.