The Ashapati Glacier , also known as Sonbain , is a vast snow bed located on the top of Ashapati mountain . This never ending glacier marks the origin of river Neeru which flows through the heart of the Bhaderwah valley . The water stream emerges from the glacier and later joins some small streams from the same mountain range and a major stream “Haloon” which emerges out of the Kailash Range.
TREK DETAILS:
The trek starts from Gurdanda , a huge slanted meadow which falls on the Bhaderwah-Bani-Basholi Road .The initial part of the trek comprises some steep slippery trails and are better to be avoided during rains and off hours.After this, the route quite eases off and rest of the part is grassland leading to the top of the ridge.
You can get the best of the views from the last ridge which touches the glacier .Overlooking Bhaderwah towards its left, this makes it a perfect spot to witness the best of both sides, glacier as well as Bhaderwah valley.
The trek can only be done during summers (June – Oct) as there are some huge steep glaciers which would make it quite impossible to cross them during winters. The only company you can get during the trek is of Gujjar’s (Nomads), who make these mountains their home for summers during cattle grazing season.
