Syalsaur – the non-existent village (A photo blog)
As the morning sun lights up the Kedarnath peaks - view from Syalsaur
After spending some quality time
at Devprayag we headed toward the final destination of the day i.e.
Syalsaur.From Devprayag, the road runs along the right bank of the river Alaknanda for
a distance of 29 km up to a small township Kirtinagar, which was founded by one
of the former Maharajas of Tehri Garhwal named Kirti Shah. Here Alaknanda is
crossed over on a bridge to its left bank and then after traversing a further
distance of 6 km comes the town of Srinagar. The road from Devprayag to
Srinagar is all level driving without much of climbs or downhill runs.
The road traverses through some small villages namely Bagwan, Maletha and Kirti
Nagar.After crossing Srinagar, which is
also a significant and historically important seat of modern learning,
associated with the Garhwal University established here by the British in late
1920’s, is still known to be a seat of learning, where NIIT and other modern
teaching establishments flourish.The
township of Srinagar is also known for the holy temple dedicated to Goddess
Dhari Devi.The statue inside the temple
is said to change its colour in the reflection during various phases of the
day.Despite protest by locals for not
disturbing the temple, which was to be relocated from original position due to
construction of dam downstream, the relocation was undertaken on 10th
June, 2013 and within three days the devastation in form of unprecedented
floods shook the entire region on 13th June, 2013 wherein thousands
of human lives and livestock perished and caused irreparable loss to
property.The devastation that took
place is still attributed by the local people to the wrath of Goddess Dhari
Devi.
As River Alaknanda meanders beyond Devprayag
Green terraced fields on the road side
Approaching Srinagar town
The River Alaknanda widens as we near Srinagar town
Traversing a further distance of
33 Kms. alongside the Alaknanda River, we reached Rudra prayag, which is another
confluence on the holy Ganga River.This
confluence is that of Alaknanda River with Mandakini River flowing in from
Kedarnath. I will provide you all with a
brief detail about this destination in one of my ensuing blogs, as due to
paucity of time, we did not have a stop over here during our journey, so as to
reach Syalsaur in time i.e. before the evening set in.From Rudraprayag, the road again bifurcates,
the road that runs along Alaknanda River heads towards Badrinath and the other
one that crosses the Alaknanda River heads towards Kedarnath and this road runs
along the mesmerizing Mandakini River. Having gone past small, but well known townships of Tilwara and Agast Muni and after having traversed a distance of 28 Kms. from Rudraprayag we finally reached Syalsaur, which is actually a non-existent
village, with only wilderness and a single
house and a silk breeding center, parked in between the villages of Chandrapuri
and Banswara of Rudraprayag district
of the Uttarakhand State.Having
covered a distance of 165 odd kilometres during the entire day, that included a
small stop over after Dev Prayag in a small home run café of sorts, where we
had some really nice noodles & Coffee, we reached Syalsaur late in the
afternoon and as the lunch hour was over, we ordered some pakodas etc. being
famished and tired.Being the only
occupants of the TRH, the entire staff was ready to receive and provide for us
and we enjoyed our grand stay.
The gate leading upto Dhari Devi temple near Srinagar
Distant view of Dhari Devi temple
Headed towards Rudraprayag
Going past Tilwara
Going past Agast Muni
Reached Syalsaur finally
This nondescript little destination i.e. Syalsaur, which
houses the Tourist Rest House run by the Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam Ltd. (GMVN)
is perched at an altitude of about 870 meters above mean sea lever (MSL) and provides
for accommodation in bamboo cottages that are speckled alongside the pristine
Mandakini River, with its turquoise water spluttering on the rocks and the
distant Kedarnath peaks looming over the valley.It is a very beautiful location, calmness and
serenity personified and for the tormented souls, to spend a few days in bliss,
away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Pilgrims to Kedarnath can stay
here, the
holy place is about 55 km from Syalsaur.Being a virgin destination, Syalsaur itself was home to about thirteen
odd hotels, constructed in a row facing the serene Mandakini River.All of them, including the GMVN run one,
were destroyed during the ravaging floods of 2013 and I have garnered some
photographs from the internet showing the location of the GMVN run TRH then and
you can compare the same with my present video.The only hotel that withstood the ravage and remained standing was built
away from the river.
The Kedarnath peaks - early morning view from Syalsaur
Photo sourced from internet to show the pre-2013 position of TRH at Syalsaur
Photo (2) sourced from internet to show the pre-2013 position of TRH at Syalsaur
The night spent at Uttarkashi was horrendous. Even though the hotel room at Ujeli just before Uttarkashi was well furnished but the heat was unbearable and the room fan could do little to help the cause. It was 8th of June, 2007 and when we returned back to Delhi later we came to know that probably thatwas the hottest in Delhi too during the present summers'. The effect was felt in far away Uttarkashi too, despite the fact the the hotel room was overlooking the Bhagirathi river. Despite all this, we being exhausted managed some sleep during the night. Early in the morning we started for Kedarnath and choose the Lambgaon route which is shorter. Having started early in the morning and the tract being scantily used, the route was not only picturesque but we also encountered jungle pheasant foraging for food & water just next to the road. Further, as we continued our descent through the hills having passed Lambgaon, before reaching Ghansali we crossed the newly constructed bridge across Tehri dam reservoir -
Bridge across Tehri Dam -
The road we took is scantily used as the bridge design only permits light vehicles to pass through. After reaching Ghansali, which is a very congested bazar and important transit point of the area and having overcome a short traffic jam due to visit by local MLA, we again proceeded onwards for journey to Gaurikund. After negotiating some really tortorously bending roads we proceeded upto Tilwara, whereafter the road became somewhat even and straighted out. Having stopped at Tilwara for some light refreshments, we again commenced with our journey forGaurikund enroute to Kedarnath. The next stop-over for us was at a very short distance from Tilwara, at a place called Agasth Muni. From this point the helicopter services are available for Kedarnath and round trip costs around Rs.8,000/- per head -
Helicopter at Agasth Muni
Having gone past Agasth muni, the road after a stretch of around 15 Kms. again started its upward climb although the curves were not that steep in this stretch. After passing through Kund, just ahead of Son Prayag we got stuck up in a massive traffice jam. We were informed that this was normal as the downwards bound traffic from Gaurikund is passed in batches and only after space becomes available at Gaurikund for parking of vehicles that the vehicles are allowed to proceed towards Gaurikund in batches. The road also bifurcates for Trijuginaryan from Son Prayag which is at the confluence of Mandakini (also called Kedar Ganga by some) and Vasukhi Ganga
View of Son Prayag - Mandakini flowing over the rocky outcrop forthingand Vasukhi Ganga flowing steadily below -
Although the distance between Son Prayag to Gaurikund is hardly 3 Kms. yet the distance was covered in one & half hours due to the intense rush of traffic. Vehicles are not allowed to stop at Gaurikund but allowed only to disembark passengers and then move down alomost half a kilometer for parking. Gaurikund is a really congest bazar at an altitude of almost 2000 meters. However, the GMVN hotel/rest house which is perched high on a hill side appears very distant to a fatigued traveller but on hindsight it is well placed away from the hustle & bustle of the bazar below and provides for prisitine fresh mountain air. We decided to rest there for the night for onward journey to Kedarnath the next morning.
At GMVN hotel in Gaurikund -
To watch video of Guarikund kindly click on this link -
