The gorgeous beauties pose for a perfect picture standing lush, tall and all colorful; they sway along with the calm cool breeze, which seems to be friends to them, and then the clean meadows and the pebbled path. This is the Valley of Flowers, a niche in the mountains; a dwelling place where untouched view of nature and the flowers is perfect to be called as gorgeous beauties. It’s a heavenly experience which has consumed all of my senses and had not allowed them to wander anywhere else since then. These flowers bloom in between the month of June-October and this the time when the valley is open and rest of the year it’s covered with thick snow.
A treat for the trekkers this Valley of Flowers is nestled in the high altitude of Bhyundar Ganga, which is near Joshimath in Gharwal region, district Chamoli of Uttranchal State. It is well connected with the road from, Haridwar, Dehradun and Rishikesh, the major cities both about 270 km from Joshimath. But the distance is not a hurdle between the aims as they say sometimes the atrocity of the journey is soothed by the thrill to reach the destination. The nearest metro is New Delhi which has direct rail or road services for either of the place. Prior reservation in the train is the most intelligent thing to do as the rest of the journey is quiet taxing specially for those who are not used to the mountainous journey, buses can make matter worse with the bad roads and the long 11 hrs it takes. A night halt is must in any of the cities as you need to start as early as possible the next morning for Joshimath as the last bus leaves at 9a.m in the morning. Again a night halt here in Joshimath where charge up the batteries of your cameras and stock and hoard chips and chocolates because as you go up food will be more and more expensive. There are many vehicle rentals from Joshimath to take us up till the settlement called Gobindghat which is about 21 km away from the town. The path is narrow with the roaring and fierce Alakhnanda River down gives you goose bumps. From this place there is further long and difficult trek to be covered to reach this blooming and buxom site.

From Gobindghat a trek of 14 km brings us to Ghangaria a tiny settlement located about 3km from valley. For those who trek occasionally taking a mule or a pony is the best idea as the path is narrow and steep and filled with the mule dung, which fills in the air and hit your nostrils real bad. It seemed as the journey will never end, but for the first timers remember patience is virtue. The valley starts near a gorge over the Pushpawati River and is spread over an area of 87.5 Sq. Km and is 3,250 meters above the sea level, with no human settlement in or around the area and prohibited for animal grazing too, its fragile beauty compliments the Nanda Devi National park which is all rugged with the mountain wilderness. An accidental discovery by Frank S. Smythe an English mountaineer, who was lost while his way back from an expedition to Mt. Kamet, was declared a National Park in 1982 and now is a World Heritage Site.

This place gives you all the reason to become an escapist from the daily challenges of the busy city life. If you are ardent nature’s lover, you can find solace here, the chromatic florid picturesque and the mild fragrance of the abundant flowers mixed with the air can soothe you to the core. The pleasant coolness in the weather makes the whole experience exquisite in itself. Gazing the burst of bright colors and hues, while taking a quiet stroll, enjoying the quietness around and taking in the purest form of oxygen in, feeling the squeaky and clean air patting your cheeks, the crystal clear water, tastes like mineral water so clean that we were not reluctant to fill our bottles for our way back.
The hard experience of the journey that seemed eternal and taxing was all ignored once you reach here; all you have with you is the rejuvenated you, amidst the flowers and the meadows and all this beauty can be captured digitally and cherished forever.

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