Brazilian Woman Walks Barefoot On Winter Pilgrimage Across Uttarakhand’s Sacred Shrines To ‘Attain Peace’
December 12, 2025
In Chamoli, where pilgrims walk wrapped in woollens, a woman in sari walks barefoot. Meet Fernanda who has embraced Uttarakhand’s winter pilgrimage with remarkable grace.
Chamoli: After Chardham Yatra, Uttarakhand has opened its vast Himalayan expanse to winter pilgrims, those who travel not for fun and frolic but to attain spiritual solace amid the snow-capped mountains. Among them is an unusual devotee 35-year-old Brazilian lawyer Fernada who has captured the attention and affection of locals everywhere she goes.
What makes her journey extraordinary is, she has crossed continents to walk through the Himalayas barefoot, draped in a sari, head covered with a pallu, chanting ‘Hari’ with every step she takes on the cold, stony paths.
Fernada reached Haridwar after returning from Brazil, seeking ‘inner peace’. But by then the Chardham had already closed for the winter. So instead of turning back, she embraced a new path – the six-month winter pilgrimage, following the deities to their winter residences.
“I arrived in Haridwar and wanted to visit the spiritual Char Dham of Uttarakhand. Because the doors were closed, I decided to begin my winter journey,” says Fernada. From there, she began walking barefoot, sans any complaint or regret. She says she is purely guided by faith.
By now she has covered all the four winter shrines – Kharsali, the winter seat of Yamunotri, Mukhba, the winter shrine of Gangotri, Ukhimath, the winter abode of Lord Kedarnath and Pandukeshwar, the winter home of Lord Badrinath.
She has also visited the Narsingh Temple in Jyotirmath and the Yoga Dhyan Badri Temple in Pandukeshwar. “People here look at me with awe, though they are happy to see my faith,” she says. Fernada speaks only English but her devotion makes her mingle and be one among the locals.
Travelling with her is Sujit Kumar Chaudhary from Darbhanga, Bihar. He explains that Fernanda follows strict spiritual discipline throughout her journey.
“She follows a religious regime. After bathing, she visits temples, applies tilak on her forehead, and touches the feet of priests to show them respect. Wherever she goes, people appreciate her devotion and help her with understand the culture,” he says.
Fernanda says she is deeply inspired by the temple architecture, the rituals, and the warmth of the ‘pahadi’ people.
Behind her pilgrimage lies a very personal story. “I have a 10-year-old daughter. Amidst domestic difficulties, I had heard that Uttarakhand is a place where one connects with the self and attains inner peace,” Fernada says, adding, “In Ukhimath, I was taught about resolving family disputes. I really liked the temples here, their construction, their atmosphere. I find peace by visiting these places.”
In the icy stillness of the Himalayas, Fernada has found something she had been searching for – healing in peace.
Every year, as snowfall cuts off the high-altitude shrines, the deities of the Char Dham are ceremonially brought to their winter homes, where pilgrims can continue to offer prayers for six months: Mother Ganga is shifted to Mukhba, Uttarkashi; Mother Yamuna to Kharsali, Uttarkashi; Lord Kedarnath to Omkareshwar Temple, Ukhimath, Rudraprayag and Lord Badrinath to Pandukeshwar, Chamoli.
With the state government promoting winter tourism, pilgrims from across India and from around the world arrive here to witness this quieter, more intimate spiritual season. Among them, Fernada stands out for her courage to bear the hardships as a part of her peace journey. “Faith should be felt, not just followed,” she says.
Fernada has proved that devotion has no nationality. “Many times, the road ahead is unknown but once you are driven by conviction, you just have to take off your shoes and step into the mountain chill and then peace is all yours,” she concludes.
