If there is heaven on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here.
— Mughal Emperor Jehangir
Visiting Kashmir to trek in the Himalayas was never really on my bucket list of things to do. It was only after a conversation with a friend — who took a spur of the moment decision to book tickets to Srinagar and asked if I would like to join her — that I decided to embarked on the trek of the Kashmir Great Lakes (KGL as it is popularly known among avid trekkers). We roped in a few more friends and proceeded to book our spots in the batch for August departures.
Cursed heaven
A nine member strong group, our trek seemed to be jinxed from the very beginning. Our preferred batch for the trek to KGL filled up before any of us had a chance to book our spots. Deciding to not let this affect our plans, we split up into two different batches (6th and 7th August). But luck turned in our favour when a lot of people dropped out of the trek and several spots freed up. That’s when our trek operator decided to merge the two consecutive batches and the nine of us could finally trek together again.
Already known to be a sensitive city, when we landed in Srinagar on August 5, the political situation in the valley had taken a turn for the worse. Reports of stone pelting incidents throughout the city were quite common. Until the very last minute, we were unsure if we would be able to start our trek. Although, one great thing about Kashmir is that you’ll very rarely hear of any tourists being attacked or affected by the political situation.
Sonamarg
We decided to arrive at Sonamarg a couple of days earlier so that we could explore the region around Zero point on our own and trek to the glaciers nearby. Our stay in Sonamarg helped to mentally and physically prepare us for the trek and also allow us to get to know our co-trekkers better.
The trek begins
On the evening of our second day in Sonamarg, we proceeded to make our way towards Shitkadi — the location of our base camp. We had heard of some reports of clashes between locals and police forces, which resulted in the police stationed on our route stopping our progress to Shitkadi until our trek leader arrived to fetch us.
After several tense hours of waiting, our trek leader arrived and led us to the base camp. Our trek commenced on the early morning of the next day.
In the valley: From one lake to the next
The KGL trek route is a ridiculously beautiful combination of walks through lush meadows, climbs up meandering trails and descents down rocky boulders, all that take you from one gorgeous lake to the next. The route would reveal something different each day, be it vibrant coloured flowers, challenging rocky mountains or tranquil lakes.
Twin lakes
Our itinerary included trekking to Gangbal and Nundkhol lakes. The view of both lakes is simply out of this world. I think it is safe to say that I have never seen anything as beautiful. We couldn’t help but take a long break to admire the beauty from the top.
It helped that our rest day was planned at Gangabal lake. We had nothing to do but admire the beauty of nature and couldn’t have asked for a better sport to do it from. I couldn’t help but wonder how many times in ones lifetime would a person get a chance to live such a day? There won’t be many and I’m certain of it.
The gang
Right place with the right set of people?
Recently, I asked a friend who has done many Himalayan treks, which one she thought was the most beautiful of the lot. She said that the Kashmir Great Lakes was undoubtedly the loveliest. While I most certainly agree with her, for me, the chance to have been able to complete a gorgeous trek like this one along with likeminded people (some who have gone on to become some of my closest friends) just took the experience to next level. ❤
It wasn’t easy for me to pick photos for this blog. I had at least a few thousand photographs and videos from the trek; each just as beautiful as the other. I have tried very hard to keep the selection varied, but I must now end this post one last photograph from the day we camped at Gangabal. It was undoubtedly one of the best campsites on the trek route.
Trek itinerary
Srinagar to Sonamarg | Drive | 90 kms
Sonamarg to Nichnai via Shekdur | Trek | 11 kms
Nichnai to Vishansar lake via Nachnai Pass | Trek | 12 kms
Rest day and acclimatisation at Vishansar lake
Vishansar lake to Gadsar via Gadsar Pass | Trek | 14 kms
Gadsar to Satsar | Trek | 9 kms
Satsar to Gangabal twin lakes via Zaj Pass | Trek | 11 kms
Gangabal to Naranag | Trek | 15 kms
and finally, Naranag to Srinagar | Drive | 70 kms
This is the fifth story (of many) in my trek journal series titled Himalayan Photo Stories.
Here are all the stories in the series:
Trek to Pindari-Kafni glaciers
Trek to Goecha La Pass
Roopkund
Trek to Sandakphu