Yamunotri

Yamunotri is the first of the Char Dham circuit, at about 3,290 metres below the Bandarpunch massif, reached by a climb of some five or six kilometres from the road head at Janki Chatti on foot, pony or palanquin. The temple was built in the nineteenth century and rebuilt after damage. Beside it, the Surya Kund hot spring runs at close to boiling, and pilgrims lower rice and potatoes in muslin bags on strings to cook them in a few minutes, then take the food as prasad. The actual glacial source, the Champasar glacier, is higher and rarely visited. The shrine closes for winter.

What you actually see

• Surya Kund - a near-boiling spring where pilgrims cook rice in cloth bags.
• The temple - the nineteenth-century shrine at the head of the valley.
• The walk up - five kilometres of climbing from Janki Chatti.
• The Bandarpunch massif - snow peaks above the valley head.

When to go

May to June and September to October, within the open season from roughly late April or May to November; the monsoon brings landslides on the approach and can close the trail.

Honest expectations

The climb is steep and crowded in season with ponies on the same path. Facilities at the top are basic. Weather turns quickly and the valley is cold even in summer.

Nearby

Gangotri lies east; Barkot is below in the valley.