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The Valley of Flowers Trek in Uttarakhand is epitome of nature’s abundance where lush green landscape, white fluffy clouds, scintillating waterfalls, and dreamlike spread of colorful flowers await you. Jigar Shirish decided to explore the nature’s verdant beauty with his soul buddy, and in no time, he contacted Thrillophilia and booked his journey. Soon, he was on his way to the paradise that the Valley of Flowers is.
“The Himalayas have always enchanted us and the Valley of Flowers was something even more intriguing. An area that opens only for a few months every year, blooms to showcase nature in its full glory. It is not an easy trek, but not impossible for someone who has average fitness. The Valley of Flowers had the perfect recipe for us.”
Hello Frandssss!
“We’ve done treks in the past, but most of them were a day or two long. This was going to be our biggest trek trip so far! After reaching Haridwar early in the morning, we were excited to meet our fellow group members. Though we’d already connected with them over a WhatsApp group, but meeting in person is always exciting! We were super lucky to have found a bunch of fun and adventure loving, like-minded people. And a couple of them in the group were hilarious! Kept our spirits high and entertained all of us all the while!”
The Trip Begins
“After Haridwar, we had a long bus ride to Govindghat, stopping at multiple locations en route. Watching the confluence of 2 rivers at Devprayag was a lovely sight. Never before had we seen something like that, and the stark difference in the colors of 2 rivers made it even lovelier!”
The group called it a night at Govindghat as they had the big trek waiting for them the next day and they were tired from the long journey that they had taken last night.
“Waking up the next morning, we were all pumped up and excited to start our first trek of this trip! A long trek of almost 6-7 hours started at Govindghat, located a bus ride of an hour away from Joshimath – where we’d stayed for the night. Packed ourselves with basic supplies for the road like water, biscuits, fruits and chocolates, we started our trek to Ghangaria! We had some fitness enthusiasts in our group who went marching ahead, but they were super friendly and kind enough to take breaks in between and slowed down so that we could catch up. After all, trekking in a group is always motivating and more fun than just walking alone.”
“Stopping in between to catch our breath, sip some water, soak in the beautiful nature around us, splash some water from the streams flowing alongside made the entire journey beautiful. As they say, at times, the journey is more fun than the destination.”
Valley Of Flowers, Of Beauty, Of Marvel
The group reached the camp site Ghangaria at around 4 in the evening; though the village had nothing much to offer, they sipped tea and enjoyed the view around them. After a basic dinner served in the night, Jigar conversed with fellow travelers and slept for the big trek next day.
“Next morning was a big one, where we started on our trek to the Valley of Flowers: the main reason for us to be there. We were super excited, and after a quick breakfast, left for the valley. The trek to the valley wasn’t very difficult and the flowers alongside the entire path give you a glimpse of what to expect ahead!”
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“When we saw the valley, it was stunningly beautiful, and something just out of the world! One just wouldn’t feel like leaving the place and it was as if someone has laid a carpet of flowers to welcome you! We strolled, rested, sat down in the valley to soak in the scenic beauty. But then, we had to leave it with a heavy heart as the valley closed at 5 pm. The trek back felt relatively shorter, or maybe we didn’t realize it as our minds were still in the valley and enchanted by it!”
Spiritual Retreat
“Next day was the trek to the towering Hemkund Sahib – a very important religious place for the Sikhs. Though in terms of distance, it was a short one, but was extremely steep and hence, the most difficult part of the trip, and also of our lives. But, the effort was totally worth it, as once we reached the top, we felt like we were in heaven!”
“A pristine blue lake with freezing water, a beautiful Gurudwara and mist all around, it felt like a magical! We found people taking dips in the freezing chilled water of the lake. Initially I was reluctant, but after some coaxing and watching others in my group do it, I also went for it! It sent a chill down my spine, but completely removed all the tiredness in my body! I’d say one should not skip it while they are there! Don’t think too much about the temperature of the water, just go for it! On our way back, we stopped at the glacier and clicked a few photos as for the first time, we were so close to a glacier.”
Another Addition
“After a night halt at Joshimath again, the tour operators were kind enough to take us to Badrinath, which wasn’t a part of our tour. Seeking blessings from the divine forces always feels special and we thanked our stars for giving us the power and faith to complete our trek smoothly!”
Words For The Readers
- Keep your expectations really low. Don’t see the photos online and raise your expectations. Then you’ll have a lot of fun
- Work on your fitness a bit which will help you during the trek
- Carry an all weather jacket, as it might be cold as you start, but the trek tires you down and your body starts to heat up
- Be prepared to experience the rawness of nature and do not expect luxury
- Stay at camp sites in Ghangaria as the hotels aren’t that great
- Carry chocolates and dry fruits as they are a great source of energy on the trek
- Carry a good camera if you want to capture memories for a lifetime
- If you feel that you aren’t fit enough for Hemkund, still do it. Do it on a horseback but it’s absolutely worth it!
- Buy an all weather trek shoes. It may rain, or you may have to cross streams and wet shoes with wet socks won’t give you a great experience
