Some rides are measured in kilometres. This one is measured in vertical metres. You park the bikes at Chopta — 'Mini Switzerland', the signboards insist — and from there the mountain goes vertical: 3.5 kilometres of stone steps to Tungnath, the highest Shiva temple on the planet.
The 4 AM arithmetic
The plan was simple and terrible: wake at 4, start at 4:30, summit before sunrise. What the plan did not account for was the moonlight on the meadows, which stopped all conversation for a full minute. Some of the best frames of the trip were shot before the sun ever showed up.
Chandrashila at sunrise is a 360° argument for taking the longer route in life.
From the summit the panorama stacks up like a flex: Nanda Devi, Trishul, Chaukhamba and the whole Garhwal wall laid out in one unbroken line. We shared coffee from a single flask with a team from Bangalore who had trekked through the night. The mountain makes instant friends of everyone.
Why this is the perfect first ride
- Under 300 km of riding from Rishikesh — no exhaustion, no rest day needed.
- Roads are beginner-friendly; the trek is the real workout.
- Meadows for camping, homestays if the tent loses the argument.
- Tea stalls at exactly the altitudes where you will need them.
If you have been waiting for a sign to do your first Himalayan ride, this is it. Three days, one summit sunrise, and a temple older than most countries — all within a long weekend's reach of the plains.
