Travel information and tips on Sonamarg, Kashmir
When we got to Srinagar from Pahalgam on the night of the 17th, we thought that if the scenario had actually improved in the city we would invest an additional day there simply to see the Hazratbal mosque, which we had missed out on earlier. Nevertheless, there was no such luck. We were told that because the following day was a Friday more difficulty might be anticipated. Madhu and I recognized that there was no point in squandering any more time and chose to remove to Sonamarg, which is at the eastern end of the valley. That would be our last destination in Kashmir and from there we would head to the Ladakh area of J&K. So on the morning of the 18th, which also occurred to be Madhu’s birthday, we unfortunately bid adieu to Srinagar and boarded a Sonamarg-bound JKSRTC bus.
After the customary 20-minute mid-way halt at a shopping location, the bus dropped us off at Sonamarg at around 1pm. As it rolled into the main market area, what struck us right away was the wonderful scenery! There were rolling hills of green meadows on either side of the roadway and these were framed by tall, snow-capped mountains; it was incredibly picturesque! Each location we’ve gone to in Kashmir has seemed prettier than the last one; it’s incredible!
The market of Sonamarg is simply a kilometer long string of shops and tiny restaurants. We strolled to JK Tourism’s Alpine Resort hotel, which is ideal in the center. At the hotel’s reception desk we were offered the choice to either stay there or in another home called Alpine Hut, which lies about 4kms away in the surrounding valley. Madhu had actually read or heard that the latter lay in a much nicer location than the market, so we went with that. After lunch at a little eatery where we had the best Rogan Gosht ever, we took a cab to Alpine Hut. Simply as expected is set wonderfully in the center of grassy meadows with perfect views of the surrounding peaks; we were delighted! We relaxed the afternoon away then at around 4pm, set out to explore the location.
Sonamarg’s most significant destination for many Indian travelers from the plains is the Thajiwas Glacier. Its snow has spilled down to the base of the mountains allowing visitors to stroll and play in it without needing to go up to the peaks, like at Gulmarg. From the market, a tarred road of about 8kms causes the glacier, giving the local horsemen a bit of company from visitors not inclined to stroll the range. Our hotel has to do with mid-way between the marketplace and the glacier, so we decided to walk. We followed the horses ahead of us. They led us across hilly, grassy meadows, on to the tarred road and then up a short, rocky slope to a dirt track, which eventually took us to a string of tea-stalls; the snow glacier formed the best backdrop to them. As we passed the tea stalls, we kept getting asked to register for a trip on snow-sledges. We had seen these in action at Gulmarg and had actually had real safety concerns regarding them, specifically at that height. But out here, because the snow wasn’t all that high up, Madhu felt inclined to give it a shot. In the beginning we were priced estimate Rs.500 per sledge but given that it was practically completion of their organisation day, we were able to deal with the vendors and bring it down to Rs.600 for two. The suppliers called upon two more males as ‘assistants’ for the ride and then we were led throughout the rocky, muddy base of the glacier towards the slopes.
At initially the men asked us to rest on the sledges. Then one of them pulled it from the front with the assistance of a rope while the helper pushed it from behind. The plan was to pull all of us the method to the top of the slope and after that relapse down. But the pulling was excruciatingly slow and painful for the guys as they huffed and puffed their way up. After a couple of minutes, Madhu and I could not enjoy this anymore and chose to walk up rather. Even though the men aimed to persuade us to keep sitting, we might see the relief on their faces. However walking on a steep, snowy slope is not a simple job, so the guys held us and guaranteed that there were no accidents. At the top, they took pictures of us, all part of their service. Then after a few minutes of sitting around and enjoying the awesome surroundings, we came down to business end of the offer — moving down to the base upon the sledges. Madhu went first followed by my yelling self. Naturally, we didn’t slide by ourselves; it was a tandem flight with the sledge owners. It lasted for almost a minute but was both scary as well as absolutely thrilling and loads of enjoyable! Madhu, my birthday boy, was smiling from ear to ear when my sledge came crashing to a halt beside his at the base.
By the time we stopped at the tea stalls for a break, it was 6pm and the majority of the day-trippers had actually left; we had the beautiful landscape all to ourselves. We pulled up a couple of plastic chairs and drunk on hot tea because wonderful setting. When we lastly began our walk back to the hotel, we ran into the sledge vendors once again. One of them, who looked a lot like Bollywood’s Akshay Kumar, provided to take us on a half-day hike throughout the Thajiwas Glacier deep into the valley beyond. Apparently, a great deal of foreign tourists do simply that, some even crossing the mountains at the back and heading on to Pahalgam on foot. A shorter day-hike sounded excellent to us so we assured to meet him at 8am the following early morning.
Prior to we got to the hotel, we saw a few guys around an only horse in the adjacent meadow. Among them appeared like he was attempting to train the horse. Interested, we discussed and rested on a surrounding wall viewing them. The rest of the men strolled over to us and we struck up a discussion. They verified that their buddy was indeed trying to get the horse used to being ridden on. They declared that the horse would be ready for rides to the Thajiwas Glacier within 3 to 4 days, supplied the male is able to hang out with it every evening for a few hours. It was hard to imagine the bucking, wild horse prior to our eyes would soon me trotting tamely over the meadows lugging people on its back. However, it was an interesting sight!
Our first evening in Sonamarg ended gloriously with a moonlit night that made the surrounding snow-clad mountains radiance! We were totally captivated by this place and could not wait to see more!
For more information on Kashmir tour packages from Delhi and any other holiday packages contact Swan Tours one of the leading travel agents in Delhi, India.