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KEDARNATH VS KEDARKANTHA The ultimate trek trail mix up!
One is bound to be confused when the names are so similar. But they are definitely two different places in terms of their location, history and experience. Having yourself confused can create a lot of ruckus and chaos when you are out there trekking in Kedarnath while you actually wanted to trek the Kedarkantha, now that would be very unfortunate. SO, let’s clear out this confusion and learn the difference between the two.
KEDARKANTHA
Kedarkantha is a trek located in Uttarakhand with Sankri Village as its base camp and is popular among beginner trekkers due to it’s easy to moderate difficulty level. It is located in the Himalayan ranges so one can experience and feel close to the Himalayas. With an altitude of 12,500 feet, Kedarkantha is famous for its winter trek which offers a snowy abode as the sceneries become bizarre since they are blanketed in white, mystical snow, adding to the place’s allure. But one can also trek this during summer and enjoy the green landscape and meadows blanketed with flowers. You can enjoy both winter and summer over here since its open throughout the year. Though, it is always suggested to avoid monsoons due to possibility of landslides and extreme weather. Beginners can do this trek without any issues but one has to make sure they are still physically capable of pushing themselves till the summit because there will be steep terrain here and there during the trek. It takes 5-6 days to complete this 20 km trek so one can expect to stay the nights in camps and enjoy the open starry sky at night. There’s a lot to experience in the course of this trek including learning how to live life in some of the remotest villages during winter. When one summits this trek, there’s feeling of accomplishment and content after all the strenuous trekking.
The itinerary of this trek looks something like this-
DAY 1– Pick up from Dehradun railway station – Drive to Sankri – 190 Km (8/9 Hours) (elevation – 1920 Meters) overnight stay in a Hotel at Sankri
DAY 2– Trek from Sankri to Juda ka Talab (05 km) (4/5 Hours) (2700 Meters) overnight stay at first camp site
DAY 3- Trek from Juda ka Talab to Kedarkantha base camp trek (3.5 km) (2/3 Hours) (3200 Meters) overnight stay at second camp site
DAY 4- Trek from Kedarkantha base camp to Kedarkantha summit (12500 Feet) (3800 Meters back to Hargaon campsite – 9 km) (5/6 Hours) (2645 Meters) overnight stay camp
DAY 5– Trek from Hargaon camp to Sankri base camp – (5.5 km) (4/5 Hours) (1920 Meters) overnight stay at hotel
DAY 6- Drive from Sankri to Dehradun by taxi (190 km) (8/9 Hours)
KEDARNATH
On the other hand is a pilgrimage in Uttarakhand and it starts from Gaurikund. It is a part of the Char Dham Yatra and is also known to be an ‘abode of Gods’ due to it’s religious significance. Devotees from around the country and also the world visit this place to feel the divinity of God that surrounds the place. The shiva temple, also known as the Kedarnath Temple is the main attraction that one reaches at the end of the trek. At an altitude of 11,755 ft, people feel close to God here. People from all age groups can be seen visiting this pilgrimage but due to it’s medium-steep terrain, one needs to be physically capable of doing some moderate hiking. This trek can be completed in 2 days at the max as it’s not too strenuous, but for the 2 days that you need to stay, there will be ample amount of accommodation and facilities available. From tents to Dharamshala, it won’t be an issue to find shelter to stay but a prior booking would be better. This trek only operates from the month of May to October, all the other months are closed due to bad weather and various other aspects. Not only this, there’s also a fixed timing that is, 1:30 am to 4 pm when one can trek and the pilgrims are otherwise not allowed to leave at any time apart from this. The route to Kedarnath has changed ever since the devastating 2013 floods, before the floods its course run through Rambara but now the route runs via Gaurikand-Jungle Chatti-Bheem Bali- Linchauli- Kedarnath.
The itinerary for Kedarnath looks something like this-
Day 1– Arrive Haridwar- Guptkashi (205 km/ 7-8 hours)
Day 2– Guptkashi- Sonprayag- Kedarnath (30 km + 20 km trek)
Day 3– Kedarnath- Sonprayag- Rudraprayag/ Srinagar (20 km trek + 30/55 drive)
Day 4– Rudraprayag/ Srinagar- Rishikesh- Haridwar (205 km/ 6 to 7 hours)
Now we know that these two treks are not only different in terms of their location but also in terms of distance, altitude, main attraction and what season they are open. Now that you know, don’t shy away from sharing this knowledge with others when they are confused about the two treks like you were once too before reading this! Help us clear this unfortunate but understandable confusion among people by sharing this piece of information.