Trek to the Lake of Truth : Satopanth

Topic of the post: Trek to Lake of Truth Satopanth. This is the concluding part of a two-trek combined sojourn. The first segment dealt with the trek to Mandini Valley and beyond to see the rare alpine flowering plants, which are not seen outside the Himalayan Region in the Garhwal segment during peak monsoon. The concluding segment deals with a trek to the Lake of Truth: Satopanth, deep in the Trans Himalayan Region of Uttarakhand. Uttarakhand is a state steeped in Himalayan lore and legends.

The sequel from Mandini Valley Trek

I pick up from the last post, where my team and I arrived safely after completing the Mandini Sojourn at Rudraprayag, the confluence town of two of India’s holy rivers, Alaknanda and Mandakini. We were now focused on the next part of the trek, which would begin ahead of Badrinath Ji.

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The Journey to Mana Village

The next day was spent travelling as we boarded the state transport bus and finally reached Joshimath at 1400 hrs, crossing significant towns like Karnaprayag, Nandaprayag, and Pipal Koti. At Joshimath, we boarded a local max trekker for the holy town of Badrinath, which we would reach by 1630 hrs. The route from Joshimath to Badrinath is unstable with heavy landslide activity at Lambagad, followed by a few more locations and two significant water crossings.

Stories en route the Trek to Lake of Truth Satopanth

The max trekker, an old horse on this route, managed all these quite dexterously with the driver fully knowing the trade’s tricks. He had been waiting for his turn to take on passengers for three days now, as per the roster maintained at Joshimath; however, with a poor influx of tourists, it had been a long wait, and in this particular case, it was three days. The capacity of passengers was 14, and he charged 160/- from each for the trip.

Badrinath Dham Uttarakhand

So my second visit to Badridhaam was a change from the previous occasion, no rush of people or vehicles. Hotels were empty, shopkeepers idle. I checked in to the same place where had stayed last time and after an hour or so spent sitting on the hotel parapet wall watching grown up guys playing cricket i decided to walk down to the temple. There was no rush at Badrinathji. I moved inside the main temple and sat for some time right out there. After paying my respects to Badrinath, I wandered outside and sat down at an enclosure where a discourse on Gita was happening. The entire atmosphere was serene and unhurried, unlike last time, when you just had moments in front of the main shrine before being told to move out. I realised that peak monsoon time is one of the best times to visit these places if one wishes to see the main shrine and rightly feel the occasion.

The Walk to Mana Village, First Village of India

At around 6 in the evening, Umeid and I went for a walk to Mana village, which was 4 km away. It was a good exercise to loosen stiff muscles. By the time we returned, it was night, and I bade good night to my team as I walked back to my hotel.

Trek to Lake of Truth Satopanth

The following day, by around 0830 hrs, we were off. We chose to skirt the temple and travel on the opposite side of Mana village, and our first checkpoint was Mata Moorti temple, which was the mother of lord Nar & Narayan. The weather was simply great, with the sun shining in a blue sky, and the path was definitely much simpler compared to what we had come through the last few days, and hence, we made good progress walking alongside the raging Alaknanda. We reached Laxmi ban without much fuss by 1130 hrs, thus covering a distance of 11 kms. The fog bank was soon visible on the horizon, and the tents were rigged up, especially the kitchen tent, and the team set about preparing lunch.

Description of the Satopanth Trek

Laxmiban is opposite the Banglung Glacier, which emerges from the opposite Himalayan peaks. This place has spiritual significance owing to Lady Draupadi’s departure from her mortal body. Also, one finds bhoj bhasa trees, whose leaves were used by sage Vyasa to write the Ramayana.

By late afternoon, it started drizzling, with heavy fog banks all around. Towering mountains hemmed us on all sides, hence the high density of fog. Dinner was served by 2030 hrs, and thereafter, we went to sleep.

History Legends en route the Trek to Lake of Truth Satopanth

The next day, I woke up to misty skies and fog and readied myself for the day ahead. The target was Sahasradhara. By 0800 hrs, we were off, and our first way point was Bhandar, around two km away, opposite to which lay the Bhagirathi Kharak glacier. It is said that the Bhagirathi peaks are visible from here, but all that was seen were swirling fog banks and the Alaknanda flowing nearby. The sun briefly appeared at around 0930 hrs, but there was hardly any impact.

Meanwhile, we kept climbing; today, we would be gaining heights. By 1020 hrs, we reached the start of Sahasradhara and the originating visual point of the Alaknanda river from the Satopanth glacier, which was massive and lay to my right. We could hear the thunderous noise of various falls to the left. Sahasradhara means a thousand falls, but everything was covered in deep fog. We picked our way, kept moving ahead, and by 1130 hrs reached our campsite,

It is said that Lord Nakul and Sahdev left their mortal bodies out here and departed from Earth forever. The decision was made to push on, for fog was all around, and we were uncomfortable staying in a low-lying area.

Satopanth Trek – A high-altitude Alpine Lake in the Lower Himalayas

So we continued, and by now the rains had come, but still we moved on, crossing various streams as we made our way to Chakratheerth, situated three kms ahead. We reached the campsite at Chakratheerth by 1300 hrs and stopped for the day. The rains had stopped, which helped rig our tents and settle for the day. The weather was definitely cold as we were at 3600 mts above sea level; in the late afternoon Umeid and i went back a km to do some photography thus passing the early evening hours. Nothing much was planned for the day. Based on the two days, my take on the trek is to do this in September, for the viewer will be treated to all the great Himalayan peaks in all their glory and be able to appreciate the surrounding places much better. August is a definite damper on the view. The trek is strenuous, with the monsoons beating down and the fog banks swirling all around.

View of Satopanth Lake

The following day, the rains stopped, and we were ready to proceed to Satopanth Lake. The route involved primarily walking on boulder-ridden glacial terrain. Anyways, as we trekked, I could hear the various glaciers that surrounded us breaking intermittently, or maybe the part of the mountains was breaking off. I am unsure; all I could hear was the sound, but the fog covered all visuals. Slowly by 1100 hrs i had my glimpse of the acclaimed Satopanth, the lake of truth. The campsite was rigged up, and a few mendicants stayed there till winter, building small caves with the big boulders as support.

Description of Satopanth Lake

The lake was magnificent even in the mist, and I could see the water level had reduced. Umeid and I did an entire circumference of the lake while the weather held, and after that, we just sat near the lake looking at the green waters. After lunch, the rains started, and I could discern that they would not stop till the night. Had a few polite conversations with a few of the mendicants over a cup of tea. Overall, it was a soothing time spent out here. I was terminating my onward journey to Swaragarohini and starting the return leg tomorrow. The weather was just not conducive, and I had no hopes of seeing the elusive glacier with its steps up close among the mist, hence the decision to return.

My experience in Trek to Lake of Truth Satopanth

The following day was cloudy, and the fog bank had partially covered the lake, but the stillness of the water was so loud that sometimes I felt that the proverb “ silence speaks loudest” was actually understood in places like these. It was a Monday morning, and the Ekadashi of Saavan was, per my team, most auspicious; hence, after a quick dip in the lake, we were off by 0700 hrs on the return leg.

The return leg from Satopanth Lake

The distance we covered was very good indeed, and at the ridge of Chakratheerth, we saw the sun break the fog cover to offer us a glimpse of the mighty mountain ranges; otherwise, the mist swirled all around all the time. Sahasradhara was reached by 1100 hrs, and after a quick tea break, we were off with a target to reach vasudhara ahead of even laxminban and set up camp out there. The same was reached by 1600 hrs, with the last km in pouring rain. However, the team set up the tent quickly, and we finished for the day.

Monsoons in the Lower Himalayas

It rained the entire day and night, and the drizzle continued the following morning, too. However, we were determined to reach Joshimath today, so we had to reach Badrinath first. The same was accomplished by 1000 hrs, and we got a shared Tata Spacio Cab to Joshimath by 1300 hrs.

Adventurous tales on the Satopanth Lake journey

However, it looked like other plans were set in store for us as we neared Lambhagad, a location notorious for streams running on the road and rockfall immediately after the stream. We could see a car stuck right in the rockfall area. The rockfall seemed to have boxed the car, so it was now stuck. The occupants had abandoned the vehicle and rushed to safety as the rockfall continued while the rains opened up. After waiting for 30 minutes, the decision was made to hike into the adjoining mountain slope and circumvent the rockfall area, arriving on the other side. So, once again, the equipment was unloaded and loaded onto the shoulders, and we set off in the pouring rain for what I hoped was the final part of the trek. It took us an hour, but finally, we circumvented the rockfall area and arrived on the other side, where we picked up a taxi again, which dropped us at Joshimath.

The evening was spent rearranging the backpack and drying some clothes, just relaxing by walking on paved paths for a change. The magnitude of what I had seen and accomplished in the two treks back to back had yet to sink in, but the experience had definitely given me something more that had been added to the core of who I am. We boarded the early morning bus for Haridwar the following day, which saw the culmination of a magnificent trek and experience. A small video on the trek is in this link.

FAQ

Difficulty Level	Moderate
Elevation Range	3300 – 4000 mts
Duration	07 days
Avg Temp	12 – 16 deg in monsoons
Water sources	numerous streams during monsoons
Network Connectivity	Non existent
Reality Check	12 – 16 degrees in monsoons

What is my blog about ?

My blog focuses on nature-based places and offbeat destinations. India has an abundance of these kinds of places. Read about the forest magic of Odisha out here, or read an in-depth story about the trek to Sandakphu to see the Kanchenjunga up close. I wrote my heart out on my thoughts to “Why do I Trek “