Chopta

Itineraries you can copy

All 3 →

Day plan · First visittrek

One day at Chopta — the walk up to Tungnath Temple

A one-day Chopta plan on foot: the paved path from the road-head up to Tungnath Temple, an early start and a descent before dark. Free to copy.

Best Apr–May · Sep–Oct

See the plan →

Day plan · First visitleisure

One day below Chopta — Deoria Tal and Ukhimath

A relaxed Chopta plan below the high ground: a short walk to the forest lake of Deoria Tal, then the pilgrimage town of Ukhimath on the way down. Free to copy.

Best Apr–May · Sep–Nov

See the plan →

1 night · 2 days · First visittrek

Two days at Chopta — Tungnath, Chandrashila and Ukhimath

A two-day Chopta plan: the walk to Tungnath Temple on day one, then the Chandrashila summit and the winter pilgrimage town of Ukhimath on day two. Free to copy.

Best Apr–May · Sep–Oct

See the plan →

Chopta is a high settlement of meadow and forest at about 2,700 m, on the road between Ukhimath and Gopeshwar, in the Kedarnath wildlife sanctuary area. It is the road-head for the walk to Tungnath Temple, the loftiest of the five Panch Kedar shrines, and on to Chandrashila, the summit above it. From Delhi it is about 484 km by road on our routing, where free-flow routing says 7.5 hours and traffic and hill roads usually add many more, so most people break the journey.

Chopta is a place to walk from, not a town. Deoria Tal, a lake in the forest, is a short walk from Sari village, 39 minutes down the road, and Ukhimath, the winter seat of the Kedarnath deity, is 53 minutes down. Snow covers the high ground from about December to March, and Wikipedia says the Tungnath temple is shut for around six months, so the season matters here more than in most places.

A day covers the Tungnath walk; two days add Chandrashila and the drive down to Ukhimath, and Deoria Tal has a half-day plan. See the one-day plan, the two-day plan, the half-day plan, things to do in Chopta, when to visit and how to reach Chopta.

Places worth the drive

Ukhimath

Ukhimath, a pilgrimage town at about 1,311 m where the Kedarnath and Madhyamaheshwar deities spend the winter, 26 km and 53 minutes below Chopta.

Tungnath Temple

Tungnath Temple at about 3,680 m, the loftiest of the five Panch Kedar shrines, reached on foot from Chopta and shut by snow for about six months.

Deoria Tal

Deoria Tal, a lake at about 2,438 m ringed by forest, a walk of 2 to 3 km from Sari village, with a wide view of the snow peaks on a clear day.

Chandrashila

Chandrashila, the summit above Tungnath at about 3,690 m, a steep walk from the temple with views of Nanda Devi, Trishul, Kedarnath and Chaukhamba.

On the map

Open the Chopta map →

The places a Chopta day reaches, with the road time from town. Each opens on the map with its plans and pages beside it.

Deoria Tal

lake · 39 min by road

Chandrashila

peak · 4 min by road

Ukhimath

town · 53 min by road

Tungnath Temple

temple · 4 min by road

Before you go

All articles →

Things to do in Chopta — 5 stops, and which are on foot

Five things to do around Chopta, from the walk to Tungnath Temple and Chandrashila to Deoria Tal and the pilgrimage town of Ukhimath, with drive times.

How to reach Chopta — distances and drive times

How to reach Chopta from Delhi, Dehradun, Rishikesh and Rudraprayag by road, with measured distances and times, and where the regular buses stop.

Best time to visit Chopta — month by month

When to go to Chopta: the cool, clear weeks of spring, the cloud of June to August, the snow from November, and why the Tungnath temple is shut for six months.