The departure from Hardwar is utter chaos.  The festival's two weeks had half a million pilgrims in 1996, but in recent decades the number has gone into the millions.  Most often one sees people walking in long lines that snake their way through the rest of the crowd. 

Here this group is climbing a staircase, which makes for an even tighter fit. 

Kanvar variety is limited only by people's desire and    ingenuity.  One possible choice is to construct bigger and bigger kanvars, which are of course heavier and more difficult to carry.  Insofar as this pilgrimage is an ascetic act, in which pilgrims undergo voluntary hardships out of a sense of devotion to God, carrying a bigger kanvar (perhaps as a result of a vow) is an intentional added hardship.

A common practice among pilgrims departing via the main road to Jwalapur (which leads to Delhi), is to circumambulate the statue of Shiva that divides traffic down by the railway station.  This is one more little rite to pay homage to Shiva as the rite's  primary deity.

One development in the 1990s was the growth of kanvar seva sanghs--service organizations that provide various services to the kanvar carriers such as food, water, a place to sit and rest, or a place to spend the night.

Here's a simple resting-tent near Jwalapur, a short distance from Hardwar.