Tapovan

Tapovan, at the snout of the Gangotri Glacier in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi District, is a sacred alpine meadow at 4,463 metres altitude in the Bhagirathi Valley where sulfurous hot springs provide a remarkable warm-water resource in one of the most challenging high-altitude environments accessible to pilgrims — the source region of the Ganges River, one of Hinduism's most sacred geographical entities. The springs at Tapovan serve Hindu pilgrims undertaking the Char Dham pilgrimage circuit, which includes nearby Gangotri temple, and the combination of glacial meltwater, volcanic hot springs, and Himalayan sacred geography at the gateway to the Gangotri National Park creates a landscape of extraordinary spiritual significance. Tapovan's thermal springs, emerging at the edge of a retreating glacier at extreme altitude, represent one of India's most dramatically situated natural thermal features.