I spent some nice Days with Rishabh as my guide on the Deoria Chopta Trek.
Transport:
We met at Dehradun ISBT and went to Ukhimat by bus and then took a jeep to Sari village. The Road up there is prety scenic and has some worth stopovers, but is also kind of rugh at some points.
If you prefer a minimum of comfort, i suggest going for a shared taxi, as the drivers take more care of the vehicle and slow down when there are bumps in the road and its just 10-20% more for the ticket.
The Trek:
From Sari village we hiked trough Deoria Tal to Chopta. A nice scenic trek with lots of animals and plants to discover. In total it was 19 km for this first day. In Chopta are several camps with big tents and central kitchen, so was ours. As Chandrasilla is the highest Shiva Tempel in the world, the trek from Chopta on is prepared and solid and pretty crowded. Original plan was to take the same way up and down, but to make it more interesting, i asked for an alternative way down. The alternative way down is much quieter and from landscape perpective morr interesting. I highly recommend to do it that way :) I also liked the old road to chopta which i would also recommend to intecrate into the trek. It is more interessting then walking allong the main road :)
The Guide:
Rishabh is a very pleasant, experienced guide and an honest, sincere person. If you want, he can tell you a lot about the local flora and fauna. Next time I plan a trek in India I will consult him again :) 5 out of 5
The Food:
Breakfast and on trek food was basically chocolate bars and cookies, which was to sweet for my taste. Some poridge for breakfadt and some fruits and nuts would be nice and privide some slower carbs and other nutritions.
When cooking next to the river we had some maggie noodles which was ok as in the evening at the campsites there was always fresh cooked food. If requested, also less or non spicy food was provided.
The accomodation:
We slept in simple guesthouses or in big tents with beds and a wash room inside. I suggest bringing some toiletpaper or an extra towel as in mid november your ass can get freaking cold after the ass shower on the toilet ;)
Communication:
Could be improved :)
My guide did not know that i wanted a four day trip and had a three day trip in mind.
When we met initialy at the bus station in Dehradun i was asked if it is ok if a friend/cousin of my guide joins us while he was already standing next to us with his packed backpack. It was fine for me and i appreciated his company on trek, but i recommend to communicate such things at least one day in advance :)