Hemkund Sahib
Chamoli, Uttarakhand, India
Nearby attractions
Valley of Flowers
Uttarakhand
A UNESCO alpine wonderland at 3,600 m that erupts each monsoon into miles of blue poppies, brahma kamal and 600 other species beneath Rataban's snows — reached by a lovely 17-km trek from Govindghat shared with Hemkund's pilgrims.
Badrinath Temple
Badrinath, Uttarakhand
The northern seat of Vishnu at 10,170 ft between the Nar and Narayana peaks — the crown of the Char Dham, framed by Neelkanth's pyramid.
Mana Village
Chamoli, Uttarakhand
India's 'first village' on the old Tibet route beyond Badrinath — Vyas and Ganesh caves, the Bhim Pul rock bridge and Bhotia wool looms.
Joshimath
Joshimath, Uttarakhand
Adi Shankaracharya's winter seat of Badrinath — the Jyotirmath of the north, with the sage's cave, the Kalpavriksha mulberry and Narsingh temple.
Vasudhara Falls
Chamoli, Uttarakhand
A 400-ft ribbon of glacier water beyond Mana village, said to turn away from sinners as the wind sways its spray.
Gorson Bugyal
Joshimath, Uttarakhand
The alpine meadow shelf above Auli at 11,000 ft — a 3-km oak-forest climb opening onto grass oceans beneath Nanda Devi and Dronagiri.
Auli
Joshimath, Uttarakhand
India's premier ski bowl at 9,500–10,500 ft, its meadows staring point-blank at Nanda Devi — reached by Asia's longest ropeway from Joshimath.