Pahalgam In The Lidder Valley

On 29^th May 2012, around noon, leaving the scenic Gulmarg behind, we were in for a long haul of 150 km to reach our next destination Pahalgam.  At Rizk restaurant, Tangmarg, we had our lunch in peaceful ambience.  We retraced our trail towards Srinagar and did not know when we passed it. There must be some bypass route which goes without touching Srinagar. We passed through Awantipur but did not halt there to watch the historical ‘Awantipur ruins’ for want of time. 

Further down the Pahalgam road, the willow trees on both sides of the road made a massive continuous green tunnel, as we passed through miles and miles of asphalted road in sparse traffic with wood working factories on both sides of road. Cricket bats in semi-finished conditions made out of willow wood are piled up feeding the factories, where men and machines churned out world’s best cricket bats. 

Shopping for Saffron

We arrived at Pampore with  both sides of the road full of Saffron ( also called Kesar or Zafran ) fields.  They were barren now. October / November is the season when these fields can be seen in full bloom. Our interest was to purchase bit of genuine saffron and some dry fruits. The shop where we entered 1 gm Saffron pack was sold for Rs. 200/-, which we found cheaper compared to what we purchased at Srinagar at Rs.300/- . We were guaranteed of this high quality product by the sales staff. We went through the posters which told us how to distinguish between genuine and spurious Saffron. 

Info On Saffron

Another poster displaying essential benefits of Saffron to human body.

Poster On Saffron

Around 5 pm we entered the fringes of Pahalgam town. We were happy to have made it well before the dusk, so as to make best use of whatever time we get in late evening. On the main road, we came across JK Tourism office and were happy to see one person still working. He directed us to Yatri Niwas where we had booked the cheapest available dormitory bed online for three of us at Rs. 250/- each.  The Yatri Niwas edifice is in interior road leading from main road. The area seemed to be secluded, with growth of forest like huge trees on the opposite. The location pleased us no end. How about our dorm?  Not disappointing at all. It consisted of three bedded room with clean beds. What a value for money accommodation after a disappointing stay at our Gulmarg hotel. The washroom though common - there were two of them, clean and tidy, with hot water geysers functioning. Although food was not available in Yatri Niwas, that was not a big issue with market place nearby.

Yatri Niwas, Pahalgam

Dumping our luggage, we hit the streets to make use of the rest of the evening. We came to the road leading to main road and decided to try Nathu Rasoi – a restaurant which we have read a lot about from net. The façade and ambience was good. The readymade sweetened tea at Rs. 25/- was lousy and the menu-card with Masala Dosa priced at Rs. 80/- appeared too pricey. We had enough of that restaurant and came to main road.  Sachin bought his quota of fruits which he consumed in tons in the evening after missing most of his morning and afternoon meals.  I bought a few Kashmiri silk Saris from one of the shops suggested by another shop, which my better half did not find bad at all!

Pahalgam Town

There is some kind of nostalgia attached to Pahalgam. When we came here 30 years back, there was one main road with all shops and hotels and on the opposite side, all of Lidder valley with Lidder river flowing from end to end. In between the flowing streams, there were mini-islands - all virgin and a few wooden bridges interconnecting them. One could roam there whole day and have fun seating on the bank of river dipping one’s feet in the gurgling ice cold water.

Today, the scenario has changed radically. Many of those islands have been developed. There is one garden for recreation, which even charges Rs. 5/- as entry fee. There are too many structures on the hill opposite. The township full of houses on the main road and the pine trees behind and at the top a few snow peaks peeping out, with the roaring river Lidder all over the valley, made a pleasing place to be in. 

Lidder river and the valley

With dusk approaching, we had our food in Punjabi Rasoi, a small no frills restaurant on main road. The food was ok, so was the price.  Returning via a short cut road to Yatri Niwas, we had to use a torch light – this is one commodity which proved extremely helpful in all the destinations in hills. With nothing else to do, we hit the hay.

Next morning was a glorious sunlit day. We had our hot water bath and some breakfast and came to road for a cup of tea. On the roadside one small tea stall was doing business. The stall located just outside a plush looking restaurant was surprising. The shop keeper started a conversation and was proud to inform us that he owned the half of the plush hotel. Was it a story or for real we will never know.

Poster on Pahalgam sight seeing places

We came to the main road and saw the tourist map of Pahalgam,  showing all sight-seeing destinations their direction and distances. There are too many places to visit and tourists need a couple of day’s stay here to do full justice. Our hectic itinerary did not permit us that luxury. We decided to visit Mamaleshwar temple on the hill, a short distance of 1 km walk on a gentle slope. We passed by the river bridge and found some interesting activity on the not so deep portion of a stream, where the jeep and bus drivers were washing their vehicles.

Washing vehicles

We walked on the asphalt road up the hill leading to the Mamaleshwar temple and came across the poster which told in brief, history of the temple.

Info Mamaleshwar temple

We entered the arched entrance of Mamleshwar temple. The compound consists of a garden, a small enclosure with stored water in front of the steps to the temple. The devotees pick up bucket full of water from there for their rituals. The temple is made of stone slabs. We had the darshan of Shiva Linga – Lord Shiva being the presiding deity of the temple. 

Mamaleshwar Temple

After coming some way down the hill, we came to the view point. The Lidder valley looked good in morning sunlight, the distant township neat and scenic. Lidder river and a canal running near the hill could be seen. After some photo shoot we thought of having a stroll on the same hill after taking a left turn. We came across a number of good looking premium hotels and rest houses, each of them having a neat garden around. Tourists who are looking for some exclusive and quiet retreat at Pahalgam will surely stay in one of those places. 

Shiva Temple

We had a walk down the hill and came to main road and headed north words and came across a Shiva temple.  In our Kashmir visit we found ‘what ever be the name of the temple, it turned out to be Shiva Temple with Shiva Linga symbolizing the presiding deity Lord Shiva. Not surprising as the entire Himalaya is considered the abode of Lord Shiva. After darshan we headed towards the river side and came on top of a steel bridge from where we could get the view of valley on both sides.

Lidder Valley

Pahalgam holds a special significance for the Amarnath pilgrims as it is considered to be the starting point of Yatra. The season to Amarnath Yatra begins from around 20^th June and lasts till August end. In that period all the accommodations in Pahalgam are filled and hence should be avoided by tourists. In Yatra off season, one can go to about 10 km along that route upto a place called Chandanwadi. 

By 10 am we had to hurry back to Yatri Niwas, to do the packing and by 10.30 am we were on trails to Sonamarg to cover a distance of 140 km. The next blog will be on Sonamarg.  

* Pahalgam can be best seen from the video footages shot by author and uploaded in a video site as per the following captioned link:
1)Pahlgam at a Glance 
2)White Water Rafting Over River Lidder 
3) Mammaleshwar Temple   

Gulmarg – Gondolas, Glaciers and Grasslands In Kashmir

On 28^th May 2012, around noon, returning from visit to Shankaracharya temple, Srinagar, we had another short break on Bouleward road for a few more snap shots of Dal lake and took to the trail to 51 km journey to Gulmarg. Around 1.30 am, hunger pangs made us take a break at Rizk hotel at Tangmarg, still a short distance of 11 km from our destination. We savored the lunch of Veg. fried rice and sweet and sour vegetable, yet not so pricey for the ambiance which the restaurant offered.

Rizk Restaurant

Around 3 pm we entered the fringes of Gulmarg town and did not find it too difficult to locate the Kingsley hotel right on main road next to the Taxi stand. The hotel lobby is approached right from the dusty road; the horse shelter being near, the horse dung powder will surely be major constituent of the dust! The man on reception took a long look at my online reservation printout for a double room for three persons. We were allotted a room on first floor with two beds, the room had windows covered with polythene sheets, so not much could be seen of the outside world. ‘We have landed yet another average hotel in this tourist season like we did in Srinagar,’ I realized. However by the time we checked out of this hotel next day, my views changed. This hotel turned out to be much below average!

Kingsley Hotel

We took to the streets at 3.15 pm and had a view of imposing pink colored Rani Temple on a hillock, a sloping stepped walkway for tourists to reach the place. A few buses were parked nearby and tourists were trundling their way up. We too decided to go up and have darshan and have a top view of the valley and town. When we were through with our temple visit, the rain which eluded so far, finally caught up with us. We took shelter under a shed near the temple. It was frustrating watching the rain accompanied by wind lashing droplets and getting us drenched. As happens in mountains the rains come and go abruptly, we had bout of sunshine in ten minutes. 

Rani Temple

With weather improving and the green meadows enticing, Sachin and Raj could not control themselves and took off by the winding road for a trek to unknown. I just observed and shot some landscapes, watching the tourists taking off on pony for rides to various short haul destinations.

Pony Rates

The horsemen with their horses and jeep stand in the foreground; the vast stretch of Bugyal (green meadows) in mid ground; the dense cluster of pine trees and the snow peaks in backdrop made Gulmarg a picture post card of a beauty.

Gulmarg Landscape

At around 6 pm, Sachin and Raj returning, we managed to call our car driver to make next day’s arrangements of taking us to Gulmarg Gondola Cable Trolley station. No response initially but later on when he came on line, he informed us that we must do online booking for Gondola ride to avoid long queue expected at the booking counters. With no cyber cafes functional around, he suggested us to try one of the shops in the market selling assorted items. Shopkeeper had a lap top and logged on to www.gulmarggondola.com  and booked three Gondola first stage tickets up to Kongdori at Rs.300/- each plus Rs. 50/- per ticket as his service charges. Although we needed morning tickets to enable us to leave Gulmarg in afternoon for Pahalgam, we were given 2 pm tickets; he assured us that we would be able to get boarding passes for morning tickets if we went to Gondola station early at 8.30 am in the morning. We had no options but to have faith in this guy and see how our Gondola ride goes.

Multi-purpose shop

We had some simple veg. food in one of the dhabas with chairs spread outside on road. Raj fed the excess rice leftover to stray dogs who are found in almost every destination in hills.

Returning to hotel, we had some argument with the manager who refused to give additional bed even though we paid additional charges as normally charged for three persons occupying double bedded room. He wanted letter from hotel booking agent Travelguru.com for providing beddings to the third person. We never had such kind of experience anywhere till now. With night approaching, we thought it wise to pay the additional charge of Rs. 300/- demanded and take up the matter with the hotel booking website. After our bitter experience, the room staff tried to make amends by attempting to start the heater of the electrically  heated mattress. One of the mattress got excess heated and the other did not work. We asked them to switch off the heaters and went to sleep.

Next morning brought some more woes for us in Kingsley hotel. The water heating arrangement in hotel bathrooms in general in Gulmarg is a huge PVC drum, filled with incoming water, heated by immersion heater dipped inside. In this hotel it was no different. Raj put on the heater switch and had his bath as usual by taking the amount of hot water needed in a bucket through the tap at bottom of the drum. Next in went Sachin. As soon as he opened the tap, boiled steaming hot water  from a fully filled drum gushed out in full force through the hole left after the tap broke off from the drum. Sachin was saved by skin of his teeth from getting a serious burn injury. The hotel staff came running having seen steaming water coming out of the drain. There was nothing they could do. We managed our bath from whatever hot water we could salvage.

After my morning tea, I had another go at the Rani temple for a view from top. The snow peaks seemed to have received some fresh snowfall and were in its white pristine glory. The pine trees looked a huge green mass covering part of the distant mountains. The green meadows were alluring as ever.

Gulmarg Landscape

At 8 am, we started our walk for the Gondola station for our early morning tickets. On reaching we found people already queued up in all the counters. The online booking counter for online booked tickets had the least crowd. The driver’s tip regarding advance online booking certainly helped. As Raj stood in queue, I tried Kawa Chai costing Rs. 25/- per cup and did some photo shooting. 

Gondola Ticket Counter, Gulmarg

The counter opened around 9 am. One Sardarji with online receipt for 40 persons was bypassed by the booking clerk and Raj shoved in our three person’s ticket copy. On obtaining our boarding passes, we went to the Gondola Station for another queue, where Sachin stood. It seems most of the people queued up there did not have the boarding passes and were standing to get an advance entry as soon as they got the passes from their representatives. Some planning that!

Gondola Station, Gulmarg

Armed with boarding passes, we were allowed to jump the queue by the security and were soon inside the Gondola station where the trolleys were coming one after another, taking six passengers each and taking off for Kongdori. We got three front seats to have a clear view of whatever the journey had to offer. I had my Handycam going but was not expecting good footages because of somewhat dusty transparent front. We passed through villages drenched in early morning sun, a lot of villagers were trekking up, the pine trees on both sides were right upto the end.

Kongdori Gondola Station

Coming down the steps of Kongdori station, we reached the ticket booking office for Second stage which will take us to Afarwat at 4200 m. Not having facility for online booking of this ticket, was a disadvantage. Raj was behind some 10 people in the queue but there was no sign of ticket windows opening. After a wait of some half an hour, a guy ambled up and opened the enclosure and at 10 am ticket counter opened. Then what happened was not to our liking. The travel agents, the pony-wallas, the ski-wallas, were allowed to jump the queue and provided with tickets. There was a lot of shouting by one of the genuine tourist against this practice but the security person seemed not to notice; he made a token show of semblance of maintaining order. We were losing precious time as we were to leave for Pahalgam a good 200 km away for our next destination by noon. As Raj patiently bore with the ordeal, Sachin and myself made use of the time for shooting still and videos of Kongdori. There were a lot of ponywallas looking for customers for taking them to Khilanmarg a few km through the meadows. 

Snow-view from Kongdori

Finally we got hold of our second stage tickets which cost us Rs. 500/- each. The vista from cable trolley this time was all white snow all the way up. Some 15 minutes later we reached the cable trolley station of Afarwat at 4200 m, a lone edifice in ocean of snow. As we got down the stairs, we directly stepped on snow, which was somewhat dirty with tourists trampling all over it.

Afarwat Activities

At least 50 tourists were on the snow; some shooting pictures, some doing skiing, some sledging and some just walking on it  like penguins in slow measured gaits. We just watched all that and after 15 minutes, returned to trolley station for return journey. The tickets for both the stagers are valid for three hours from time of issue. 

Return Journey view from Gondola

After reaching Kongdori we changed over to stage 1 return journey. The trolleys, mercifully, there are too many of them, kept coming and departing at a high frequency, so reducing our wait to minimum. The sheer volume of tourists taking cable trolley at Gulmarg at Rs.800/- for both stages, make a decent income for JK Tourism, in spite of some bad management at stage 2 ticket counter at Kongdori.

At 11.15 am we reached Gulmarg. What we observed took us by surprise. The place was teeming with tourists, a few thousand of them. How many ultimately secured tickets is any body’s guess. As we made our short walk back to hotel for check out, the entire road leading to Gondola cable trolley station was filled with tourists, some in overcoats and gumboots hired at Rs. 50/- fully geared for high altitude of Afarwat. Some were riding ponies even for this small walk. As we entered the hotel lobby, I was ruminating, ‘what an exciting stay at Gulmarg, including the travails at hotel and gondola station!’

Checking out with one more cold stare at the manager, we boarded the car for our onward journey to Pahalgam.

* Readers of this blog will surely enjoy some video footages of Gulmarg captured by author as per the following captioned link:

1) Gulmarg At A Glance 
2) Rani Temple 
3) Kongdori - Gulmarg Gondola Stage 1 
4) Afarwat - Gulmarg Gondola Stage 2 
5) Gulmarg Gondola Cable Trolley Ride - Stage 1 & 2  

Srinagar after 30 years – Kashmir Valley

My first visit to Kashmir in 1982 is still fresh in memory.  A ten day trip comprised taking train to Jammu Tawi from Mumbai. Night halt was at sprawling Tourist Reception Centre, Jammu.  A visit to Raghunath temple  in the evening and whiling away some time in the city and winding up the day with a Kashmiri cuisine in one of the restaurant, trying out Gostabe – minced meat ball curry, which was too spongy to take off  the plate while trying to tackle it with knife and fork!  

Next morning boarding state transport bus for Srinagar, going through Jawahar tunnel was a novel experience. The high altitude halting points like Kud, Batote and Patni Top with purchasing of fresh fruits was all for the asking. At Srinagar, a room in the big campus of Tourist Reception Centre with sprawling garden blooming with early summer assortment of flowers.  The conveniences of availability of bus for destinations like Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Sonmarg was a big advantage. Dining at TRC or nearby restaurant like Ahadoo  although pricey offered some genuine KLashmiri cuisines. Gulmerg and Pahalgam were covered as one day program, where as we had to stay put up at a Pahalgam hotel for one night to enable us to have a feel of the place and also to have a pony-back  journey to Thajiwas glacier. 

We came back with a lot of fond memories including some irritants like, shawl-wallas and pony-wallas constantly pestering us at all the destinations. At  Pahalgam we had booked a papier mache table lamp by paying some advance to shop keeper who made a solemn promise of  sending the item by post parcel; it never arrived. On the other hand, being short of cash at Pahalgam,  we could not pay our dues at the hotel. The owner after inspecting my GOI identity card, allowed me to send the balance amount by Postal Money Order, which I duly complied.  

Our this year’s  Kashmir Valley trip was with a purpose of going from Srinagar to Leh via the road route with our focal point being Kargil. Kargil,  which is considered as pit stop for almost all the Leh bound tourists from Srinagar, became our starting point of jeep journey to Suru Valley and Zanskar valley in western Ladakh which are hardly visited by tourists. This part of Ladakh we missed or rather did not give priority during our first visit in 2010.

Our Indigo flight on 27^th May 2012, departing Mumbai at 11 am had a perfect touchdown at Srinagar airport on a sunlit afternoon at 1.30 pm. As planned we got our pre-paid taxi service voucher for Rs. 500/- at the booth in airport itself and coming out we were given our taxi number token in a booth near the taxi stand.  An amiable Kashmiri driver put our baggage inside his Tavera taxi; we three occupying window positions to have a look-in to the land which we yearned to see for so many years yet could not venture for the fear of unknown. The vicinity of airport and some distance onward were manned by Military. Being Sunday afternoon, the wide clean roads were without much vehicular traffic. Most of the shops had their shutters down. The presence of a large number of trees lined on both sides of the roads was eye soothing. The driver told us that for the previous two days it was raining and bit difficult for the tourists. We considered ourselves lucky to have brought sunshine with us from all the way from Mumbai! After nearly 30 minutes we entered the fringes of Srinagar town. The Jhelum river with embankments across it, consisted of a few house boats and smaller boats for ferrying across. New bridge erected on Jhelum offered us the river view in both upstream and downstream direction. We were in Dal gate area in no time. In the vicinity of our hotel City Plaza, driver  showed us the entrance to Durghanag temple as well as the Krishna Vaishno dhaba – a supposedly best joint for vegetable food in that locality.

Lunch Time

Dalgate basically offers connectivity of Dal lake with Jhelam river. Since Jhelam is at a lower elevation, there is danger of Dal lake water flowing to Jhelum. The Dal gate offers a buffer of a kind with double vertical gate arrangement. In my first visit to this city, I did experience the entry from Jhelum to Dal lake via Dalgate. This time we had no such idea. I am not sure whether that facility is allowed now. 

Hotel City Plaza

Talking of our selection of Hotel City Plaza – we did not have a real choice. The hotels in Srinagar this year for season May / June was booked 3 – 4 months in advance through online booking. Although an average hotel, City Plaza is located very close to TRC Srinagar, Jeep Stand and walking distance from Dal lake - the principal attraction of Srinagar city. Checking in, we immediately took to Street to get a bite to eat. Even at 3 pm the famous Krishnas Vaishno Dhaba was bustling with tourists, so we prudently tried another dhaba adjoining it with practically no crowd. The meal was simple vegetarian. Aimless thereafter, we walked to the TRC Srinagar and spend some time on the garden with assortment of blooming flowers. 

By late afternoon, while walking by first gate of the Shikara stand across Dal lake, we were accosted by a Kashmiri youth, who seemed to have acquired the art of smooth taking in English – by servicing overseas tourists. We were soon herded into his shikara at agreed rate of Rs. 500/- for specific places he prepared to show us. The per hour shikara ride is actually Rs. 300/- as per the rate displayed prominently. I did not know whether we were being  taken for a ride on that evening with a promise of one hour plus trip! We occupied the cosy shikara with enough space to seat three persons on reclining position, and two more perhaps in cramped up position opposite. Since we were three, we made full use of the space; my two friends reclining and I sat at the edge for all the photo shooting I had planned to do. 

Shikara Ride

The Dal lake shikara journey is surely a soothing balm to a tired soul. We lazed in cool breeze blowing across in otherwise hot afternoon, the transparent yet not so clean lake water showing all the vegetation growing at the bottom of the lake. The colorful shikaras gliding across noiselessly all across the lake, make the lake surface a visual delight. An entire township appears to be floating and moving. A boat passes by selling biscuits and snacks, one with vegetables and yet another with Kashmiri Chai. We passed by a floating vegetable field mounted on wooden structure, which can be towed away to any location. We did not find any vegetables growing there, but a boat was stationed on top of it. We passed by a boat with a photographer dressing up a couple in Kashmiri outfit doing a memory shoot. On the edge of the lake, came to our focus a hotel adorned with really big colorful rose flowers in front. 

Hotel Heaven ........

Our shikara passed by a bunch of lotus leaves, though no flowers were seen. We reached at a narrow watery lane in the lake with shops on both sides, some selling shawls and dress materials, some dry fruits and saffron and one selling ornament like stone beaded necklaces. It was a novelty getting off the shikara and hopping to the shop on the water edge. As my friends were shopping for saffron and dry fruits in one shop, I purchased one necklace and a pair ear rings. Saffron was purchased at Rs. 300/- per gram in one of the shops. After two days while passing through Pampore on way to Pahalgam, we had one more purchase of same product at Rs. 200/- per gram from a shop adjoining saffron field. Some price difference that! 

Hopping and Shopping by Dal lake

On return journey, we passed by a large number of houseboats, some of them exquisitely carved from walnut wood; most of them had American / English names to entice the overseas tourists. 

Exquisitely carved house boats

Embarking at gate no.1, we strolled on Bouleward road which runs alongside the Dal lake and has some of the best and pricy hotels on the other side. After a cup of tea in a small restaurant, some more walk and at 7 pm we arrived at Punjabi Vaishnav Restaurant for dining. A vegetarian meal was palatable yet not so pricy.

We were contemplating of contacting out travel organizer (rather taxi provider) for next day onwards journey to other destinations in Kashmir valley with a drop at Kargil. On contacting over phone the gentleman wanted us to come to his office at Rajbagh. An autorickshaw hired for Rs. 200/- took us to his place around 8 pm. We had a short chat with the gentleman who promised to provide us with car and driver at 9.30 am next morning at our hotel for three days at the rate of Rs. 2000/- per day plus Rs. 5000/- for Kargil drop. Additional cost of Rs. 12/- per km were to be levied, if we exceeded 100 km per day. After making full payments, we made our way to hotel for  doing next day’s packing. 

 

On 28^th May we woke up on a bright sunlit day. We had our bath and took to the Durghanag temple around 7 am, just opposite to our hotel.  The main temple has Shiva Linga the symbol of Lord Shiva as presiding deity. The not so small compound has a few more temples and a small area with water for washing hands and legs of devotees.  After darshan and spending some time looking around we were back to hotel room for packing of our belongings prior to checking out.

Durghanag Temple

After a breakfast of bread butter and jam, we waited for the vehicle to take us to Shankaracharya temple on hill top. The travel company did not disappoint us. A Tavera car with a youngish looking driver turned up to pick us up at 9.45 am. We checked out of our hotel and loaded our luggage at the rear and three of us had the luxury of window seats. We had one more ride this time in car on Bouleward road and had a morning view of Dal lake. It looked as lovely, however with less number of boats. We had a glimpse of an island within the lake, with hotel and a garden. As we started climbing the hill through asphalted road covered on both sides with dense growth of trees, Dal lake could be seen occasionally. 

We had a halt near an opening through the trees, for video and still photo shooting from top. The small boats looked even better from this elevation. Some motorboats were zooming raising a lot of foam and waves, some guy latching on to a rope tied to boat doing water surfing. 

We neared Shankaracharya temple and parked a little distance from entry point, deciding to walk some distance so that while returning we do not waste time in a vehicular jam. We were informed by drive that camera of any kind, mobile phone of any kind, ever leather belts, pouches and wallets be kept in the car itself. Loose cash and coins can be carried in pocket. Near the entry point a few army jawans did strict frisking, similar to one undergoes at airport these days. Having cleared that we went up the stone steps, some 200 of them I guess, when we reached a flat ground with benches spread out at the foot of the temple.  We took off our shoes, washed our hand and feet by taking water from a big plastic drum and climbed some more stone steps to the temple enclosure. Having darshan of Shiv Linga the symbol of presiding deity Lord Shiva, we descended through a different route and had a view of cave where Sri Shankaracharya meditated. 

On our return trip from the hill, some more photo-shooting later we were on way to our next destination - Gulmarg, the account of which will be covered in next blog. 

Important Info:

1) May/June are considered to be the height of touring season for Srinagar, hence air reservation and hotel reservation may be done 3 to 4 months in advance.

2) There are plethora of taxi hire portals who offer their services. It is better to check by email and telephonic talk the type of vehicle you require and also a program. We booked through Trans India Holidays for our requirement of taxi through our internal journey in Kashmir valley and also drop to Kargil at the end of Kashmir circuit. A Tavera car witrh driver and all expenses paid cost us Rs.2000/- per day with limit of 100 km of traveling. For extra km we were to pay Rs. 12/- per km extra. Kargil drop from Sonmarg cost us another Rs. 5000/-.  Unlike in other states, in Kashmir, the taxi rental sums are collected in advance. In July to September months, the taxi rates are generally lower.

3) For accommodation, we had one night’s stay  at Hotel City Plaza. It is an average grade hotel and cost us Rs. Rs.3,600/- for double room with additional bed. All better hotels tried even 3 months in advance were fully booked. We avoided staying in Houseboat because of logistical and other reasons.

4) Restaurant bills will be higher in Srinagar compared to other destinations in Kashmir valley.

5) Many stay put in Srinagar and take one days trip each to Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Sonamarg. But, if one wants to get a feel of a place nothing better than actually staying overnight in each of these places. 

6) Saffron is best purchased at Pampore, on the way to Pahalgam,  where there are large number of shops located near the saffron fields. Fruits and Dry fruits can be purchased at Srinagar or any other place in the valley costing more or less the same. 

* Author has the prevelage of having recorded a number of video clips at Srinagar which will give the readers of this blog some visual treat. The captioned videos can be accessed from the follwing:
1) Dal Lake Shikara Ride 
2) Dal Lake View From Shankaracharya Hill 
3) Tourist Reception Centre
4) Durganag Temple
 

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Hemkund & Valley of Flowers – An Overview

(Summer progressing, tourists, who are planning or already booked their Hemkund & Valley of Flowers Yatra for June to September, will find this blog useful. Only important info has been compiled, so it serves as a quick guide.)

1) Travel Package / Own itinerary

There are plethora of travel websites who provide a travel package as per their pre-determined departure dates and itineraries. Along with Hemkund & Valley of Flowers, they also have a day’s tour to Badrinath thrown in. The Uttarakhand Govt. provides a package tour which can be booked online www.gmvnl.com. I had two tours to this region, once availing of gmvnl package and once my own itinerary by hiring car from Rishikesh. The advantage of booking through gmvnl is getting best possible accommodation owned by Uttarakhand Govt. enroute.

One can have his own itinerary covering all the destinations as above by availing of car/jeep at pre-determined rates per day basis. The tour typically starts from Rishikesh, Haridwar or Delhi. As a thumb rule small car like Maruti Alto costs Rs. 2,000/- to Rs. 2,200/- per day and larger vehicle like Tata Sumo around Rs. 2,800/- per day. A typical touring period in this region is seven days. During monsoon in the months of July/August, it is better to keep an additional day, in case there is landslide in this region. 

2) Timing: The Hemkund as well as the valley of Flowers are open to tourists from 1^st June to 30^th September. When one should visit depends on one’s priority. Hemkund is visited best in first week of June, when the portion of route is through snow. One experiences some extra-ordinary landscapes en route; also the weather being cool, trekking is lot easier. Ironically the Valley of Flowers is best visited between 15^th July to 15^th August, during monsoon, when maximum number of flower species are in full bloom. Since base for both the destinations is Ghangaria (also called Govind Dham), one rarely wants to make two trips in the same region. Accordingly, one should decide his priority and journey date.   

3) Things to carry: Early June can be really chilly at Ghangaria, hence one needs to carry warm clothing, including thermals, jackets, woolen lined wind cheaters and Cap. A poncho (once use and throw type rain coat) helps in case of rain. 

4) Food: Only vegetarian food is available. Breakfast is Aloo Parathas and pickles or Maggie noodles. The meals are simple vegetarian fare. At Ghangaria, the base for Hemkund as well as valley of flowers trek, there are a few well stocked restaurants (Himalaya Restaurant, opp. Gmvnl guest house)with variety of food and a few dhabas as well. Apart from vegetarian food, egg preparations are also available. Hot Gulab Jamun, will rank as the specialty in this town. 

5) Trekking en route:

a)Day 1 Govind Ghat to Ghangaria( 13 km ): those who have done Kedarnath trek of 14 km will find this trek no big deal. One can cover the distance in 7 hours by taking several breaks. One should not miss River Point with a small island, river branching off in two streams. The place offers a good view of river and resting place with food served from restaurant. There will be a lot of tourists on this route, mostly Sikh community from Punjab and other parts of the country. Those who cannot foot it out, can hire pony, kandy (cane basket for children). A bamboo stick with spiked at one end purchased for Rs. 20/- at Govindghat, does ease the load on legs.

b) Day 2 Ghangaria to Valley of flowers (2km): Valley of flowers, which is much easier trek compared to Hemkund, can be visited first to acclimatize. A 2 km trek on a gentle gradient brings one to Valley. The valley extends another 5 km. But many do not explore too far. It is possible to return by early afternoon. The entry gate to Valley opens at 7.30 am and there are entry charges as well as fee for still and video camera. If there are glaciers en route to valley, the authorities take care to scoop the snow to get a firm foot hold. In this route ponies are forbidden and one has to foot it out.

Day 3 Ghangaria to Hemkund (7 km): The gradient is steep at most of the places as one climbs nearly 5000’. One can make it in 5 hours by starting very early in the morning. Some Yatris start even at 5 am. There are ponies available; however ponies are hired in pairs. So, one may have to wait for some minutes to be finally on the way. The last two km of the journey had stone steps sometimes back as an alternative to stone stitched route. It is better to take the sloping track route rather than steps – which could be really tiring. While returning one can avail of the stepped route partially, if it is in good condition. En route there are many dhabas (eateries) who cater to Yatris need of mineral water, soft drinks and food like Aloo parathas. The mineral water cost goes up as one goes to higher altitudes. On arrival one generally take a bath or wash hand, feet and face in the holy lake and then enter Gurudwara covering one’s head.

There is a langar run by Shrine committee who supply Khichdi – piping hot but somewhat on liquid side on stainless steel utensils. There are kar sevaks who continuously wash the used utensils in running stream water near the Gurudwara. One can have some hot tea as well. By 2 pm all the tourists are required to resume return trek to Ghangaria. There is no staying facility for tourists at Hemkund.

Accommodation: At Govindghat one can stay at gmvnl guest house by booking online. There are private hotels also. Those taking tour package are mostly halted for the night at Joshimath, which is one and half hour drive from Govindghat. At Ghangaria there is gmvnl guest house, a lot of tented accommodations, gurudwara hall and some private guest houses.

Full Blog On Hemkund

Full Blog On Valley of Flowers

My Handycam recorded visual of Hemkunt Yatra can be seen from following captioned link:

Sri Hemkunt Sahib Yatre, Garhwal Himalayas, Uttarakhand 

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Char Dham Yatra - An Overview

(Summer approaching, domestic and overseas tourists, who are planning or already booked for their Char Dham Yatra for May/June, will find this blog useful. Only important info has been compiled, so it serves as a quick guide.)

Char Dham* (Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri, Yamunotri)Yatra, offers the best possible opportunity to visit the finest and famous Garhwal Himalayan shrines by the devout as well as the laymen. Apart from Shrines, the chance to view Himalayas from close proximity is luring. Having done it two times, once in 1985 / 86 (Do Dham at a time) and then again in the year 2006, I found that the charm has not diminished a bit.

Following info will be immensely helpful for the first timers planning to undertake Char Dham Yatra.

1. Travel Package / Own Itinerary

a) The easiest way is booking an online travel package from a travel website. There are too many of them vying with each other to lure you. Personally speaking I preferred Garhwal Mandal Vikas Mandal Limited, a Uttarakhand Government Undertaking, with their head office located in Rishikesh. They have a website www.gmvnl.com , which gives a detailed itinerary and starting dates. One can select the dates and types of package (ordinary or deluxe) and make payment online. Normally one reaches Rishikesh earlier night (stay at no extra cost) so that next day there is no delay to start the Yatra. There are also packages for tourists who want to board from Delhi. Advantage of taking gmvnl package is that, the best accommodations at Garhwal are owned by them. The duration of the Yatra is 10 to 11 days.

b) Taxi service from Hardwar and Rishikesh is available for a small group of 4 to large group of 10 members. As a thumb rule small vehicle like Maruti Alto charges are Rs.2000 to Rs. 2200/- per day and large vehicles like Sumo/Qualis charge Rs. 2800/- per day. 

2. Timing: The tourist season for Char Dham Yatra is from May to September. The temple opening dates for Badrinath and Kedarnath are available from website http://www.badarikedar.org/ . Normally temples open between 1^st May to 15^th May.  Better to take earliest possible date to get hold of good accommodation on Yatra route. The first batch of gmvnl Yatra leaves from Rishikesh around 15^th May.

3. Things to carry: One needs to carry in addition to normal accessories, woolens, jackets, thermals and other warm clothing. Kedarnath can be really chilly any time of the year. A heated room is almost non – existent in the Yatra. A torch light is a must - the electricity can be erratic.

4. Food: Normally vegetarian food is available at all the destinations. For breakfast one has to do with Aloo Parathas or Maggie noodles. In hills nobody understands noodles but asking for Maggie will get you noodles.  At Badrinath one should not miss taking meals at Shri Saradeshwari Restaurant. They serve a variety of food including North Indian and South Indian varieties. At Kedarnath breakfast snacks are good at Kedar Mishtan, a sweetmeat shop. At Gangotri there is a big restaurant serving a variety of cuisine including South Indian stuff. However, I cannot recollect the name. At Yamunotri, there is nothing much to choose from. At Uttarkashi best restaurant is Bhandaris. It is air-cooled, comfortable and food is good. 

5. Trekking en-route:  The Char Dham Yatra which includes Gaumukh throws in has some 72 km of trek route where vehicles will not ply.

a) Kedarnath 14 km trek starts from Gaurikund. The entire trek route is stone paved. The gradient is steep but doable in around 7 – 8 hours with plenty of short breaks. There are many dhabas (eateries), to seat and rest or have some snacks and meals. At Gaurikund, one can buy poncho (cheap raincoat) for Rs.10/- and a bamboo walking stick for Rs. 10/-. Both will come handy. For those who do not want to foot it out, there are ponies, palkis (palanquins borne by four persons) and kandis (baskets for carrying children and old people) and pittoos (porters) carrying luggage. The rates change every season. The Uttarakhand Govt. rates indicating sign boards are at the starting point but haggling for price is common. If one starts on foot and enroute wants to engage a pony, the prices are higher.

b) Yamunotri Trek is 5 km and it starts from Janki-chatti. The gradient is steep, but being of short stretch is doable in 3 hours with a few short breaks. Here again a bamboo walking stick is useful. For those who do not want to foot it out, there are ponies, palkis and kandis.

c) Gaumukh trek is 18 km and it starts from Gangotri. After completing the trek, one retraces the path to Bhojwasa which is 14 km from Gangotri. After spending one night there, the next day’s trek is back to Gangotri. The trek is more or less on even elevation and is doable. There are ponies available from Gangotri up to 2 km before Gaumukh. The last 2 km has to be footed. No palkis or kandis were observed in this route. In early summer mid May, there was only one dhaba serving mineral water, beverages and biscuits. It is better to carry water and snacks during trekking. Hiring a pittoo (porter) and handing  over the back pack makes one comfortable.

Gaumukh is a restricted area because of environment preservation. An entry permit is a must. In a package tour, the entry permit is arranged by tour operator. Those who are having a private trip to Gaumukh need to obtain the permission from following authorities.

1)  Presently the number of visitors to Gaumukh is limited. Permits can be obtained from following offices:

a) Chief Wildlife Warden, Dehradun ( tel: 0135-2644691)

b) Director, Gangotri National Park, Uttarkashi (tel: 01374-223693 )

c) At Gangotri, if the quota of 150 persons per day has not been exhausted).

The fee for Indians is Rs. 150 for first two days and Rs. 50/- for per day per person thereafter. Permit is issued only for the first two days. Additional amount is charged on your way back at the gate of the Gangotri National Park. The fee for foreign national is Rs.600/- for first two days and Rs. 250/- per day, per person thereafter. In case of package tours offered by travel companies; they will arrange the permit for you.

6. Important places one passes through in this Yatra: Deoprayag, Rudraprayag, Joshimath, Vishnuprayag, Tehri Dam. Tehri Dam on river Bhagirathi at Uttarkashi is a spectacle, as seen from bus. View from car will not be as good because one is seated in a lower elevation. On a clear day, the sunrise view on Mt. Neelkanth at Badrinath at 5 am in the morning is a spectacle. 

7. Darshan, Puja Aarti Timings: One can get the info on timings after reaching the Dhams. At Badrinath, there are special pujas or religious activities for which one has to book tickets in advance, since a limited number of people are allowed. There are general darshan timings, when one has to stand in queue. The entire queue formation is in a shaded area, to get the protection in case of rain. 

At Kedarnath only general darshan is there for the devotees who queue up in early morning and other allotted times. At Gangotri, evening Aarti around 6 pm is attended by a lare number of people. At Yamunotri, one can have a darshan as soon as one reaches there, spend some time and resume their return trek to Jank-chatti.

Char Dham Yatra visuals can be accessed from following link:

Char Dham Yatra - Uttarakhand 

Rishikesh To Ukhimath – Worth While Journey In Uttarakhand

Rishikesh, the Gateway to Garhwal Himalyas, has been my destination since 1984, when I first ventured to visit the shrines of Kedarnath–Badrinath through a package tour conducted by Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam Limited. The Rishilok at Muni-ki-reti, happens to be my most favourite overnight stay prior to undertaking the journey to the hills. The huge complex has many two storied structures, with large number of trees, manicured lawns, gardens with variety of flower beds and most importantly the peace and tranquility. What impresses me the most is that even after more than two decades, the place retains its original charm. Now all rooms are atleast air cooled, that is a huge relief during summer, when the Yatras to holy shrines starts to pick up. I had no hesitation to book an economy room at Rs. 600/- per night during my Madmaheshwar – Rudranth twin trek.

On 30^th May of 2011, I woke up to the chirping of the birds and came out to the back yard which borders the forested area from the guest house boundary. Being situated on a small hillock, this place does not look any way a part of hustling and bustling Rishikesh town. A walk through the vast compound is nostalgic. In 1984, we were provided an ordinary double room without any cooler or attached bath. In the morning we boarded the bus from the very place inside the compound across the central garden. In 2007, we had our own private tour of Kedarnath, Badarinath and Tunganth and started our journey from the same place. We spent some time in the morning amidst the greenery and gardens. 

Garden at Rishilok

On 29th May 2011, after getting ready to hit the road, we did not have to wait for long. Naginder, my transport organizer at Rishikesh did not fail to send the Maruti Alto which he promised with an experienced driver in Manjit Singh. While we were packing our luggages into the car boot, we were surrounded by some form of wild life, which has been proliferating with the jungle on the backyard of the complex. They were practically every where, jumping on the tall branches of Gul Mohar trees, walking over the balcony of the guest houses. The pair on top of gmvnl jeep caught my attention. 

Langurs at Rishilok

We do not know, whether being seen off by Langurs at the commencement of Yatra is a good omen! We had a final glimpse of the Rishilok gate as we come out of the complex.

Rishilok Entrance

We took leave of  Rishikesh town and hit the hills, with a glance at the flowing river Ganges and Laxman Jhula at a distance. The road runs parallel to the flowing river with an occasional raft bobbing on river water and cruising with excited rafters waving at us. We have a brief halt to pick up a few bottles of mineral water from road side dhaba after travelling for an hour. The singnages of rafting companies are plenty along this route with beautiful bunglows just on the edge of the river, covered in greenery.

Rafting Hoarding

After another half an hour Manjit Singh announced that we are about to arrive at Shivpuri, a rafting enthusiasts' paradise and give us a photo shoot break. In my previous journeys along this route, never had the opportunity of having a break at this place. So, I was looking forward to it. After arriving at he spot, I realized what I had missed all these years.  From a vantage position, we watched the rafting camps full of tents, the furious Ganges flowing by the side. A group of early morning bathers took advantage of shallow bypassed stream of the river. A large number of cars parked, some people taking a stroll in early morning. It looked like a camp set up by a Circus company in big city like Mumbai. We Spent some time photo shooting and video capture, as we were not in undue hurry.

Shivpuri Rafting Camp

 Around 9 am we reached Kaudiyala yet another picturesque place on the bank of river Ganges and Rafters' paradise. This place has all the amenities right on the roadside. The GMVNL restaurant looked good, a log cabin nicely blending with the Scenic beauty of the place.

GMVNL Restaurant, Kadiyala

But we had other ideas for our morning breakfast. The Monal restaurant opposite looked more charming and alluring.

Monal Restaurant , Kaudiyala

In all my trip through this route, I invariably had my breakfast at Monal restaurant . There is a wide choice of food and beverages, the ambience is good, the service is prompt and what is fascinating is the restaurant has an unusual flooring. Actually there is no flooring, one walks on stone chips spread and all furnitures are placed on it.

A breakfast of bread and boiled eggs, washed down with a cup of coffee, we left the restaurant, crossed the street and took the steps going down the hill on the left hand side of GMVNL restaurant. We landed at a flat land of grassy surface and had a glimpse of the lovely row of cottages belonging to GMVNL. An ideal place to spend by the side of river amidst greenery and serenity, yet not so far from Rishikesh.

After a nice break we were back to the car and proceeded towards Deoprayg about 70 km from Rishikesh. Every time I passed by Deoprayag, we had a halt to take few frames. Time not permitting, we decided not to go upto the confluence point where the rivers Alaknanada and Bhagirathi merge together and move in unison and becomes Ganga.

Deoprayag

Beyond Deoprayag, yet again we came across the rafting enthusiasts getting a thrill out of traversing the turbulent rapids

Rafting on Alaknanda

 We got another break at Rudraprayag, the confluence of rivers Alaknanda and Mandakini. The colour difference of water of both the rivers is the most intense at this prayag.

Rudraprayag

Beyond Rudraprayag, we took a lunch break and rushed to a dhaba amidst drizzle. We got a top view of the agricultural plots by the side of river was lush green and blessed with copious amount of water to nurture the growth of crop.

Rain soaked landscape

Some more travel and we reached at the exreme end of the Ukhimath dwelling in late afternoon. Rain had abated by now. The river Mandakini flowing between the hills could be seen standing on the edge of the road above the terraced fields.

Mandakini from Ukhimath

 We checked in at Bharat Sevashram Sangha for the night halt to begin our twin trek to Madmaheshwar and Rudranth the next morning.

* Author has created a number of video clips based on the footages from his Handycam, which can be accessed from the following captioned link:
1) Ukhimath & Omkareshwar Temple 
2) Shivpuri, Rishikesh - Rafting Tented Camp 
3) Kaudiyala - Riverside Resort & Rafting Camp