This wasn’t my first time to Haridwar. I have survived its oppressive and dehydrating sun previously though it got tougher this time. Haridwar was my city connect to and from the Valley of Flowers trek. My stay here was split into two sections: first for a short 24-hours before the trek and the next for…
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Through the crowded, dusty roads of Haridwar, the jeep took me through Shyampur’s dimly lit village towards the yellow lights of Aalia. I had just finished the Valley of Flowers and Hemkund Sahib trek. Escaping the exhaustion, I allowed Aalia to flatter me with its luxurious comfort. And in the following days, I realised how addictive…
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On an excruciatingly hot day, I decided to walk around Rishikesh. It was not my first visit to this mystique land but things have changed much since the 2013 floods. My eyes looked for the landmark statue of Lord Shiva, facing Parmarth Niketan and not having located it, I asked a passer-by, who told me it…
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Journeys are made by the people we meet and the landscapes we see. People share the stories of the land as they have seen or heard about it and that makes the place more special to me. In my recent trek to the Valley of Flowers and Hemkund, I got the chance to meet some people…
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Before I started for my Valley of Flowers trek a couple of weeks ago, the only preparation I did was bought a new pair of waterproof hiking shoes. I have been trekking for a few years now and hence, I had basic expectations and a set of equipment well inline. For everything else, I kept myself…
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In 2008, I first came across the existence of the Valley of Flowers. While I waited to see the images of this flourishing valley on my screen, I wondered when would I be able to visit this heaven-like place. Many people confuse the Valley to look like Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip Garden of Kashmir or Keukenhof…
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