| The Char Dham is the most important Hindu pilgrimage | | | | Gangotri, the source of the Ganga (Ganges) River and |
| circuit in the Indian Himalayas. All sites are located in | | | | seat of the goddess Ganga, can be reached in one |
| the Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand previously | | | | day's travel from Rishikesh, Haridwar or Dehradun, or |
| known as Uttaranchal. Char Dham Yatra consist of | | | | in two days from Yamunotri. More popular than |
| four sites—Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and | | | | Yamunotri and is also accessible directly by car and |
| Badrinath. While each site is unique in its own fashion, | | | | bus, meaning that it sees many more pilgrims. |
| inclusion in the Char Dham has, over time, caused them | | | | Adventurous pilgrims can make an overnight 17 km |
| be viewed together in popular imagination and actual | | | | trek to Gaumukh, the actual current source of the |
| pilgrimage practice. | | | | Ganga. |
| Most pilgrims to the Char Dham embark from the | | | | Kedarnath is a two-day journey from Gangotri, is one |
| famous temple town of Haridwar. Others leave from | | | | of remotest dham among the four. Besides its |
| Haridwar's sister city, Rishikesh, or from Dehra Duhn, | | | | affiliation with Siva, Kedarnath is also believed to be |
| the capital of Uttarakhand. | | | | the site of Shankaracharya's samadhi. The actual |
| Yamunotri, the source of the Yamuna River and the | | | | temple, an impressive stone edifice of unknown date, is |
| seat of the goddess Yamuna, is a full day's journey | | | | accessible only after a steep 13 km walk. Kedarnath is |
| from Rishikesh, Haridwar or Dehradun. The actual | | | | flanked by breathtaking snow-capped peaks. Badrinath |
| temple is only accessible by a six km walk from the | | | | is a two-day journey from Kedarnath. It is the most |
| town of Hanuman Chatti. The site includes hot springs | | | | important of the four Char Dham sites. Badrinath |
| where raw rice is cooked and made into prasad. | | | | receives many more visitors than the other three sites. |