Trek to Paradise - Valley of flowers

Valley of Flowers national park is nestled in Western Himalayas in Uttarakhand, this alluring place is famous for its charming meadows of alpine flowers. Endowed with a diverse range of endemic flora, it is picturesque in its beauty .The season for valley of flower trek is from July till September. I traveled from Bangalore to Delhi then Haridwar . The trek started from Haridwar , where we were picked up by our group (www.hiketohimalayas.com) . It took us 12 hours to reach Joshimath by road which is around 270 km but we did not mind traveling long hours as the route is spectacular.

On day 2 actual trek started where we had to trek to Ghangria the base camp for Valley of flower and Hemkund sahib . From Joshimath till Govindghat we went in shared ride and after that we started our trek at around 8 AM , there are proper walkways build for trekking and there are porter services as well for luggage and people ( additional charges ) . It took us 6 hours to cover 13 km , we made lot of stop of tea , to take in all the beauty around , lunch . I can say this that the food we got in those dhaba's was delicious , simple and home like taste .

On Day 3 after early breakfast we started around 7:30 AM for Hemkund Sahib . As it was raining throughout the day it took us around 8 hours(7 kms) for to and fro trek . For Hemkund sahib trek proper pathways are built and there are shops along the way and who would not love a cup of tea when it is so cold outside . I myself had 6-7 cups of tea along the way , but do remember there are no restroom along the way . The energy during this trek is too high with trekkers and at the same time pilgrims around you . When you are about to reach the Gurudwara , you can hear the chants of " Satnam Waheguru " . We reached at around 12 Pm at the top , went for the darshan and had piping hot prasad there . As everyone knows the signature lunch is served at langar here " Tea and Khichdi " ( not to miss item ) . There is a beautiful sarovar in the premise , on clear days you will get a stellar view of sarovar and Himalayas in the backdrop and its reflection in the sarovar . After lunch we started our journey towards our base camp . Along the ways you can spot lot of wildflowers , poppy and state flower of Uttarakhand( Brahma kamal ) .

Day 4 was about trek to valley of flowers , it is 10km to and fro and it took us around 6-7 hours . Though the valley is at lower height but the path is no that wide compared to Hemkund sahib and Ghangaria and it is steep as well . But after all the hard work and what you witness will hold a special place in your heart forever , valley covered in colorful flowers , clouds floating around you , waterfall at a distance ,river streaming with crystal clear water and the pebbled path . You can stroll around , take pictures , have lunch and enjoy the view .

Day 5 we started trekking down to Govindghat , though it took less time to trek down but it was more difficult as all our weight was coming on our knees . After we reached Govindghat , we took shared jeep till Joshimath and evening we spent roaming in the city .

Day 6 was a dull day for us as it was the end of an adventurous week . We trekked around 45-50 km in past 5 days , challenged our self for every step when we were too tired to move . My trek group and trek leader were awesome people , we started every day as a group not leaving any person behind and ending the day same way . The day ended with sharing numbers , good byes and the highlight was the trek completion certificate given by our trek group.