On 27th September, Indiahikes, in collaboration with the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary Forest Department, carried out a clean-up drive on the Chopta–Chandrashila route.

Why the Green Sweep Was Planned

The idea for this Green Sweep emerged during an earlier visit with the Sub-Divisional Officer, Mr. Mohan. One concern was clear from that conversation—the Chandrashila route needed to be cleaned before the first snowfall. Once snow settles in, waste gets buried, making it much harder to recover and manage later.

The Clean-Up Drive on the Ground

The clean-up drive began at 10:00 am from the forest check post. Nine team members from Indiahikes participated alongside fifteen members from the Forest Department, working together on the ground throughout the day.

The Indiahikes team included Sanjay, the Indiahikes Slope Manager at Sari; Anushka, Green Trails Intern; Subhash, Trek Coordinator; Harshmohan and Vinod, both Store In-charges; Gagan and Lakshyajeet, Trek Leaders; Dheerander, Campus Caretaker; and Promod, Guide.

Equipped with sacks and gloves, the team moved steadily from the summit down towards Chopta, collecting waste along the trail. By the end of the day, a total of 167 kg of waste had been collected and brought down to Chopta.

Conversations and On-Trail Awareness

Throughout the drive, several trekkers and tourists stopped to interact with the team. These conversations helped explain what the Indiahikes Green Trails initiative is about and why such efforts are necessary on popular trails like Chandrashila. 

Seeing the work being done on the ground, many chose to step in and help. The drive also became a point of awareness, reinforcing the importance of not littering on the trail.

Certain sections of the route were particularly difficult to clean. Heavy waste accumulation was found near the meadows and around the Tungnath temple area. These zones were cleaned thoroughly. 

Support from the Forest Department

The Forest Department team supported the effort throughout the day. One notable method they used was bringing down waste sacks using pipes from the trail, which proved to be both effective and practical in this terrain.

Despite it being a long and physically demanding day, the energy on the ground remained high. The team finished the drive feeling satisfied, knowing that the effort had led to a visible and immediate impact on the trail.

A key concern that emerged during the drive was waste disposal. At present, the Forest Department does not have a system in place to transport collected waste to an appropriate disposal site. Support has been requested to move this waste to Dehradun, as leaving it behind risks it being buried under snow and undoing the work that has been done.

Looking Ahead

This Green Sweep marks the beginning of a working collaboration with the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary Forest Department. With continued coordination, and the involvement of local villagers from Makku Math, there is real potential to keep the Chopta–Chandrashila trail cleaner and better protected over time.

What happened here is not a one-off effort. Similar outreach and clean-up initiatives are carried out across Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Himachal. And experience has made one thing clear—isolated clean-ups do not create lasting change. That happens only when local communities take ownership, when systems for waste management are put in place, and when behaviour shifts gradually on the ground.

This is the direction Indiahikes is committed to. Because caring for the trail does not end when the trek does. What we do beyond the trail matters just as much as what we do on it.