{"id":16309,"date":"2020-11-27T06:19:30","date_gmt":"2020-11-27T06:19:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vargiskhan.com\/log\/?p=16309"},"modified":"2020-11-27T06:40:21","modified_gmt":"2020-11-27T06:40:21","slug":"deoria-tal-to-rishikesh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vargiskhan.com\/log\/deoria-tal-to-rishikesh\/","title":{"rendered":"Deoria Tal to Rishikesh – Camping on White Sands"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post is in continuation with a previous one<\/strong><\/a> and part of my Deoria Tal Travelogue<\/strong><\/a>. After spending a night at the Lake, we traveled from Deoria Tal to Rishikesh where we again stayed at a camp. It was a trip for a total of 4 days in which we covered trekking till Dugalbitta and camping at Deoria Tal and Rishikesh.<\/p>\n

The original plan was to trek all the way till Tungnath but that did not materialize. Due to heavy snow on the road, we could only go as far as Dugalbitta and that too by foot. We had to leave our car near Makku Bend actually. Nonetheless, it was a fun trip indeed. Details of Day 3 of the journey are as mentioned in this article. To read the previous part of this travelogue, please click on the link below.<\/p>\n

Journey So Far: Sari Village to Deoria Tal \u2013 An Awesome Trek<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Night at Deoria Tal was an uncomfortable one. After a few hours of restless sleep, we all were up early in the morning; and were amazed by the surroundings which we did not see last night because we got here after dark. With a lake and forest on one side and the majestic Chaukhamba and Kedarnath peak on the other, it was a perfect setting; something that I had only seen in the movies before.<\/p>\n

Day 3: Deoria Tal to Rishikesh<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

We did not sleep well the entire night because of multiple reasons. The first one was that we were actually sleeping on snow. So except for the flimsy layer of the tent and a rubber mat, there was nothing protecting our butts from freezing.<\/p>\n

The second reason was that we were three people squeezed in a tent for 2. The third was that the ground underneath was uneven and there was no comfortable sleeping position that we could achieve. Last but not least was the sleeping bag that we were stuffed into which is actually inconvenient at an entirely another level.<\/p>\n

But the sunrise next morning made all this pain worth it. It was one of the most beautiful mornings that I have witnessed in my entire life.<\/p>\n

\"chaukhamba<\/a> \"chaukhamba<\/a> \"chaukhamba<\/a><\/p>\n

The Views around the Lake<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

We walked around enjoying the scenery for a couple of hours. After having our morning tea at the small dhaba near the campsite, it was time to start trekking down to Saari. And this is when I realized how steep the climb was at a couple of places.<\/p>\n

Good thing we went up in the dark because that way we couldn’t see the difficult path ahead, just kept climbing up. Otherwise, I knew that a couple of other people in the group would certainly have cribbed and cried about it all the way.<\/p>\n

Also Read: Chopta Tungnath Chandrashila Deoria Tal Itinerary<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Our campsite at the lake.<\/p>\n

\"deoria<\/a><\/p>\n

The Gang<\/p>\n

\"vargis<\/a><\/p>\n

Walking Around<\/p>\n

\"deoria<\/a><\/p>\n

The Beautiful Reflections and View of Deoria Tal<\/p>\n

\"deoria<\/a> \"deoria<\/a><\/p>\n

Those houses down below is the Sari Village that we were trekking down to.<\/p>\n

\"deoria<\/a><\/p>\n

Sari Village to Rishikesh<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Upon reaching Saari, the big question of “What now?” came up. While I was in favor of returning to Delhi the same day, Gunjit was against the idea of driving all the way back. After discussing for a while, the idea of staying at a camp in Rishikesh came up which is popularly known as ‘White Sand Camping’ or ‘White Beach Camping’.<\/p>\n

This got Shoaib very excited. Even though I tried explaining to him several times that it was just a campsite on the banks of the River Ganges; he still was very eager in camping at Rishikesh for the night and continue to Delhi tomorrow.<\/p>\n

So now the situation was that some of us wanted to go to Delhi while some wanted to camp at Rishikesh. We tried voting but could not reach a unanimous decision. With the thought in mind that we will think about it when we reach Devprayag, the drive back home started. It was almost 1 PM by the time we left Sari after having lunch there.<\/p>\n

Also Read: Chopta \u2013 A Comprehensive Travel Guide & Itinerary<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Scary Drive<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Because of the restless night at Devprayag, Gunjit wanted to take a quick nap in the car. Shoaib took the responsibility of driving in his stead and moved on to the steering. What followed in the next couple of hours left all of us praying not to die today and Gunjit still not able to sleep even for a minute.<\/p>\n

There were 2 close calls with other vehicles when we almost came an inch to meeting with an accident. With everyone sitting and holding onto something in the car, lots of oohs, aahs, and ouch, and Gunjit still wide awake, it was decided that perhaps it isn’t the best idea to let Shoaib drive if we wanted to reach Delhi. And with that though, Gunjit took over the wheel again.<\/p>\n

Campsite at Rishikesh<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

It was already 5 in the evening when we reached the hotel in Devprayag where we left all our luggage and my motorcycle parked. We checked out, took our luggage back, and even though still in favor of driving back to Delhi, I agreed to the idea of camping at Rishikesh for the night.<\/p>\n

The biggest reason behind this was that the restless night in the tent at Deoria Tal was starting to take a toll on all of us, leaving us tired and sleepy already. Driving in that condition all the way back to Delhi was definitely not the wisest choice.<\/p>\n

Gunjit got the contact details of a campsite from one of his friends and we were told 1000 bucks for a camp that can hold 3 people. We were a total of 6 people. So under the assumption that it would be 2000 for the group meaning around 350 per head, we agreed. The journey continued towards Rishikesh now with 4 of us in Gunjit’s car and Sunny and Shoaib on my motorcycle.<\/p>\n

Also Read: Tungnath Chandrashila Trek \u2013 How to Plan & Prepare<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Sunset a little before Rishikesh.<\/p>\n

\"deoria<\/a><\/p>\n

It was dark again when we reached the camping site at Rishikesh. The guys at the camp were awesome hosts and we were soon served with tea and pakodas. This made me wonder if it is really 350 per head for staying here. Or did we misinterpret 1000 per head for 1000 per camp? Rs. 350 per person including snacks, dinner, night stay, and then breakfast sounded too generous and good to be true.<\/p>\n

Another Amazing Evening<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

However though, since we had already checked in and had pakodas, nothing could be done about it so I let the thought pass by for the moment. We all sat around the bonfire at the banks of the river Ganges and that’s when we met Roopa. And by that, I mean the puppy that I am holding in the picture below.<\/p>\n

\"vargis<\/a><\/p>\n

At first, we thought there were 3 or 4 puppies because it kept jumping and running around. But soon we realized that it was only 1 super active puppy which seemed to be all over the campsite and everywhere.<\/p>\n

Going by the name, our initial impression was that its a female dog but after an unintentional look at an obvious place, we found out that it was, in fact, a male dog but still called Roopa. Nonetheless, Roopa kept us all in a playful mood and proved to be the cutest puppy I have ever seen.<\/p>\n

Also Read: Best time to Visit Chopta, Uttarakhand<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Pretty soon dinner was served and with our bellies full, it was time to call it day.<\/p>\n

\"vargis<\/a><\/p>\n

Night in Rishikesh<\/p>\n

\"deoria<\/a><\/p>\n

Please click on the link below to read the next part of this travelogue.<\/p>\n