A trek to the Valley of Flowers is a must-do for all trekkers who travel to India. It is situated in Uttarakhand, a state to the north of India. Part of the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, it is perched at a height of over 3600 m, surrounded by the stunning Himalayas on all sides. The Biosphere is spread over an area of 81.50 sq km. It is also listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India. (The trek to the Valley of Flowers, however, falls in the ‘easy’ category).
The Valley of Flowers was discovered accidentally by Frank S. Smythe, who was a Botanist, a mountaineer and a naturalist in 1912. He was the one who named it ‘Valley of Flowers’. The locals, of course, always knew of it’s existence and believed that it was haunted by fairies. In the Indian mythologies, it was recorded as ‘Nandan-Kanan’ or the garden of the Gods.
The Valley of Flowers was declared a national park in 1982. This place in the upper part of the Himalayas is inaccessible through most part of the year. It is open from July to September every year. The rest of the year it is completely snow bound and inaccessible.
The Valley has many of the world’s rarest and most beautiful flowers growing wild. These include the Blue Poppy, the ‘Brahma Kamal’ and the Cobra lily. The fauna is equally rare and amazing. The Himalayan Tahr, snow leopard, Musk deer, the Himalayan Black bear and huge varieties of butterflies.
The trek to the Valley of Flowers starts at Govindghat. A trek of 17 km leads to a small village called Ghangharia. The Valley of Flowers is a 3 km trek from there. You cannot stay at the Valley, so the last stop has to be Ghangharia. The stay options at Ghangharia are very basic and minimal. The best option would be to stay at the Government accommodation, which provides clean and has hot water supply. You have to start very early in the morning to reach the Valley, so as to get maximum time there. In the evening, the gates shut and everyone has to be out of the park.
A day is technically sufficient to explore the Valley, but, you can never have enough of the place. You will be greeted by super stunning views of mist and snow sprinkled mountains on all sides. And the wildest riot of colours you could ever imagine !
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Valley of Flowers National Park
A trek to the Valley of Flowers is a must-do for all trekkers who travel to India. It is situated in Uttarakhand, a state to the north of India. Part of the
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2024-04-04
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