The Flower Valley

In 1931, Frank S. Smythe was one of six British mountaineers who climbed Kamet. On his return to the plains, he crossed the Bhyundar Pass, standing at 5,086m, “with the intention of exploring the mountainous region at the source of the two principal tributaries of the Ganges, the Alaknanda and Gangotri rivers’. The next day, Smythe descended to “lush meadows… embowered amidst flowers. The Bhyundar Valley was the most beautiful valley that any of us had seen. We camped in it for two days and we remembered it afterwards as the Valley of Flowers”
The first flowers the Smythe noticed in some profusion was the primula, coloured “a blue so intense it seemed to light the hillside…. At the most it stood six inches high, but its flowers were enormous for its stature, and ample in number – sometimes as many as thirty to the beautifully proportioned umbel.” His camp, he recalled, was surrounded by flowers – white anemones, golden nomocharis (which resemble lilies), marigolds, globe flowers, delphiniums, violets, eritrichiums, blue corydalis, wild roses and rhododendrons. Higher up, near the moraine, were saxifrage, yellow and red potentilla, geranium, asters and gentians, so many that “it was impossible to take a step without crushing a flower”.
The valley had long held a place in local legend and was called Nandan Kanan- the garden of Lord Indra. But Smythe’s name stuck, and the Valley of Flowers it is. Though the Himalayas are home to countless alpine meadows, called bugyals in Uttaranchal and thach in Himachal, the Bhyundar Valley has come to occupy the popular imagination as the place to see alpine blossoms in the Himalayas.
If you stand at the foot of the valley, grassy meadows run down to the cleft of the stream, which, even in ‘august, is still fringed by ice. On both sides, green slopes turn to dark rock as they vault into deep blue skies. Rising gently, the valley ends as a notch on the horizon, crested by the snows of the Rataban (6,166 m) and Nilgiri (6,474) peaks, and underfoot, the flowers that give the valley its name.
Leave Ghangaria with the stream of pilgrims heading to Hemkund. You need to veer left (north –west) as they climb east to the lake. The trail is well marked, and is a delightful ramble as it climbs gently through a coniferous forest, before dropping down to a bridge, shack and check-post that mark the official beginning of the Valley of Flowers (Bhyundar Valley, 3858m). pay your entry fee (Indians Rs 30, foreigners Rs 150- for 3 days) here and climb up a rocky trail. The forest is now behind you, and the flowers begin to appear.
As the trail levels out and turns right (east), you begin to get a sense of the valley. To the right, just below the trail, a marble slab marks the death of Margaret Legge, a botanist from Edinburgh who fell to her death her in 1939: “I will lift mine eyes unto the Hills from whence cometh my strength.”
The valley is exquisite and it seems a shame not be able to spend the night here – depending n the weather, snow bridges may still span the river below, and scrambling up-valley, crossing its numerous feeders, is a delight. If I were to visit the valley again, I would camp, not at Ghangaria, but as close to the valley as permitted, and spend a couple of days savoring its delights. In any case, do try and reach there early – both to catch the morning dew on the blossoms, as well as to make the most of the day.

Getting there:India
Delhi-Rishikesh: Frequent buses from ISBT from 5am -11pm (6 hrs): Shatabdi Express train (6am 5hrs).
Rishikesh –Joshimath: Buses from 5am to 9am. There are no buses after 9am, since vehicles do not ply on these roads after dark (11hrs). Shared taxis (9hrs, 10 people).
Joshimath- Gobindghat: Buses (1 hr drive) and shared taxis from 6.30am to 4.30pm.
There’s a ‘gate system’ which remains closed after 4.30 pm for ALL vehicles. For Gobindghat to Joshimath, the gates open at 7.50 am and close at 5.45pm.
Shikhar Nature camp, Ghangariya
Gobindghat-Ghangariya-Valley Of flowers: - 16 km walk, ponies and porters available. Charges are negotiable


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