Roopkund

Roopkund, in the state of Uttarakhand in India, is a famous glacial lake. This lake is famous due to more than five hundred skeletons of humans that are found at the edge of the lake. It is located in the Himalayas and rests at an altitude of nearly 4,800 meters. Roopkund is located in the Chamoli district of Garhwal. At a distance of 217 km from Nainital and 235 km from Kathgodam, Roopkund is one of the major adventure attractions for people in the country and also for people who are travelling from abroad. Roopkund, which is located in the lap of Trishul massif is also known as the ‘mystery lake’. You can find human skeletons at the bank of the lake and it is believed that they belong to the Palaeolithic age. On the morning of 8-October-2016, a group of 19 trekkers departed for Lohajung from Roorkee at 4:00 am. Adventure started at the very early stage of the trip due to hilly and narrow roads which thrilled everyone. In Devprayag, breakfast was served that was a delectable treat of ‘Parathas & curd’ in the midst of the clouds. After having refilled the energy tanks, the group headed to Lohajung which it reached by 7 in the evening. From there the next destination was Wan village which is 15 km away from Lohajung and also the last motorable village in this part of the Himalayas. Wan Village is also a base location for the Roopkund trek. After reaching there by 8:30 p.m. everyone had their share of the evening meal and slipped into the blankets. The next day, around 9 amthe group started trekking after being served the breakfast. The trek continued for 10 hours with brief breaks to reach the beautiful high-altitude meadow of Pathar Nachuni. The path to it has a moderate slope and rough terrain. Tents were set up at Pathar Nachuni. The beauty of the surroundings made everyone fall in love with them, forcing everyone to capture and preserve in the digital form. The arrangements for the dinner were made and by 9:30, everyone was off to sleep. The next day’s climb was a bit challenging, especially on the steep climb to Kalu Vinayak from where one can find majestic views of Mount Trishul as well as other glacial peaks around. With vigour, everyone completed the 14km trek from where then the trek to Roopkund started. The slopes were steep and added to this was the hazy view due to the fog and snowfall. After reaching “Roopkund” everyone started the back journey to Pathar Nachuni where the group faced a heavy snow fall, whereby everyone drifted to sleep in the tents. Early next morning, the tents were packed everyone started to descend through a new path which was headed to Bedni Bugyal to explore the beautiful Bugyals(high-altitude meadows). This marked the last day of the trek. The dense thick forests provided a perfect escape route rendering everyone with a fresh state of mind. By 8:30 p.m. the group headed back to Roorkee and reached at 9:00 pm. The journey ended but memories followed.