The Bhagirathi is a tumultuous Himalayan river arising at Gamukh from the snout of the Gangotri glacier at a height of 7,756 m (25,446 feet) in Uttarakhand. The Bhagirathi is a major tributary of the River Ganga. It flows for 700 kilometers until it reaches Deoprayag where it merges with the Alaknanda River at a height of 465 metres (1,526 feet). As the river flows downstream from the holy confluence at Sangam, it becomes the Ganges.

Hindus consider the Bhagirathi River as a sacred river and it is also one of the white water Rivers in the Himalayas. From Uttarkashi to Deoprayag, rafting or kayaking trips are arranged on the river. On the right bank of the Bhagirathi, eighteen kilometers downstream from Gamukh there is the Gangotri Temple dedicated to Goddess Ganga.