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Places MAGAZINE | OCT 01, 2012

ADVENTURE: VALLEY OF FLOWERS

Where The Wild Flowers Are

The best way to experience the valley of flowers is to trek through itin the footsteps of the man who named it.
AHTUSHI

I felt as if I was walking through Gods own garden a paradise of beautiful and quixotic flowers blooming as far as the
eye could see, splashing the landscape in a riot of colour. Fairies live here, remarked my very able guide Bachan Rana
very seriously. He seemed equally enthralled by the wild profusion. Miles of empty space echoed between the rugged
high ridges and steep cliffs, which turned into lush green slopes, and descended into sinewy birch forests further below.
We walked somewhere in the midway zone through fields of flowers, often finding it impossible not to trample on the
blooms.

I was walking in the footsteps of the famed British mountaineer Frank Smythe, who had put this picturesque Garden of
Edenthe Bhyundar valley in Garhwalon the world map with his 1938 book, The Valley of Flowers. Our trail was to lead
us through the valley and over the Bhyundar Khal (5,090m) to the village of Ghamshali above the confluence of the Amrit
Ganga and Jainti Gad rivers. This gave us a rare peek into the little-visited interiors of the 82 sq km national park.

Smythe and his team of fellow mountaineers had stumbled upon the valley on their way back from climbing Kamet in
1931. They were chased down the Bhyundar Khal by a blinding blizzard only to discover a riot of colour and warmth as
they descended further into the valley. Besotted by the unusual flora that surrounded him, Smythe immersed himself in a
study of horticulture before returning alone in 1937 for six weeks to further explore and document the mysteries of the
valley. His book is a lyrical ode to the floral diversity of the valley and its stunning landscape.

My eight days in the park were nothing short of magical. The monsoons mists wafted moodily across the skyline, often
cloaking the high peaks under a veil of dense clouds. That didnt bother me; I could barely take my eyes off the rich
ground that seemed to sprout a glorious blossom at just about every switchback all the way to the glaciated upper
realms of the valley. I slept fitfully every night and dreamt of fairies.

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Photograph by Ahtushi

Ahead of the fields of invasive balsam and persistent knotweeds that greet you at the entrance of the park lay the real
attraction of the valleydressed to kill in its finest monsoon colours. At the far end in a nook above Tipra Kharak we
pitched camp for two nights where waterfalls drained the slopes above with the most glorious profusion of blooms lining
their banks. Clusters of pink dwarf fireweeds with classic drooping hoods, purple gentians and geraniums ran riot along
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the gushing streams (ab ove). Just as I was admiring the springy pink stalk of a lovely Himalayan orchid we saw a
female Himalayan black bear sprinting up to her lair with her young cub in tow. It completed the picture of the rich flora
and fauna of the park.

Photograph by Ahtushi

Over the next two days we gained height steadily to base ourselves at the spectacular and appropriately named
balcony camp (ab ove). From a vantage point of 4,600m perched on a ledge high above the Rataban glacier, we had a
ringside view of the surrounding landscapethe Bhyundar valley way below us to the west, the Ghori Parbat peak and its
glacier to the southwest, the Khulia Ghata ridge to the north and the terminal moraine of the Tipra glacier to the east. The
deafening roar of seracs (ice pinnacles) breaking off the Rataban icefall continued well into the night. The flowers never
failed to appear and enthrall us through the ascent. Dwarf sunflowers, blue poppies and other rock-breakers sprang out
of this apparently desolate land where it seemed certain that nothing could grow.

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Photograph by Ahtushi

The next morning brought heavy clouds and the resulting whiteout dampened my spirits for the pass crossing ahead.
The Bhyundar pass (ab ove) has thwarted many attempts in the past due to bad weather and the tricky crossing of the
crevasse-ridden Rataban East glacier that lies on the other side of the pass. These worrying thoughts lifted, though,
when the clouds above the pass suddenly parted. Even the eerie skull-shaped rock along the pass ridge seemed to be
smiling down at us. A beautiful glacial lake just below the ridge to the east shimmered in the morning light and we set
about descending to the Amrit Ganga valley below. It was a long day of boulder-hopping and tricky rock fall crossings
before we made it to a temporary camp along the riverbank.

Porters on the trail. Photograph by Ahtushi

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The Rataban East glacier.Photograph by Ahtushi

Photograph by Ahtushi

I barely noticed the two-hour walk the following morning as I chatted with Bachan. His sharp mountain sense never
failed to impress me all through the trek. The altitude decreased and we found ourselves in the rainshadow of the trans-
Himalayan belt of the Zaskar range. We walked airily through dwarf rhododendrons and juniper shrubs for a much-
needed rest day at the lovely grass flats of Eri Udiyar. Fed by the massive glacial tongues of the Rataban and Nilgiri
massifs, the river that had begun as a trickle was by now a raging torrent. We lit up our very first bonfire of the trip (ab ove)
for a celebratory night.

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Photograph by Ahtushi

The next day we were treated to the mesmerising Pandav Leela dance-drama, as the Marcha Bhotias of Ghamshali
celebrated an annual festival. These frontier villages have mostly been abandoned as villagers have been migrating to
towns and cities in the foothills and the plains after the 1962 war with China brought their centuries-old border trade to a
halt. However, during this festival everyone makes it a point to attend. The songs have no written script and are a part of
an old oral tradition. The five dancers in white outfits are manifestations or pashus of the five Pandava brothers. On the
very last day the holy brahma kamals are reverentially brought from the higher reaches of the valley to appease the local
spirits and deities.

The Information
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The park

Nestled high in Uttarakhands Chamoli district and listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site, the 82 sq km Valley of
Flowers National Park supports several endemic species of alpine flowers, with a total of 521 recorded species of
vascular plants. Mid-June to mid-September are peak flowering months. Higher altitude alpine flowers are best seen
from mid-August to mid- September. The park is open from June to end September. It is also quite rich in fauna and is
home to musk deer, bharal, leopards, the Himalayan black bear and even snow leopards.

Getting there

The roadhead is the town of Govind Ghat in the Alaknanda valley, about 26km from Joshimath. On the return journey, you
can take a shared jeep or hire a car from Ghamshali to Joshimath. One-way taxis from Delhi to Joshimath can be hired
for approximately Rs 8,500. The nearest railhead is Haridwar (284km) and the nearest airport is Jolly Grant, Dehradun.

The Trek

There is hardly any proper route or even cairn markers on this route and it should be attempted only with an experienced
trekking agency. My trek was organised by Great Indian Outdoors (Nalin, 9810366824 and 9411110855, gio.in). We were
fully equipped with an NIM-trained guide, ropes, harnesses, etc as the pass, glacier and river crossings can pose a
challenge. The food was great with campsites duly cleaned up after lifting camp. As a responsible trekker keep your
impact on the environment minimal and ensure your operator does the same. Bring all non-biodegradable garbage back
and do not litter.

GIO offers the following treks in the Valley of Flowers:

Retracing the Footsteps of Frank Smythe: This 11-day trek traverses the valley and crosses
the Bhyundar Khal at its head. Level: tough, for experienced trekkers only. Fixed departures for
Rs 39,500 per person including stay, food, permits, porters and transport from Haridwar to the
roadhead and back for a maximum of 12 people. Customised trek for Rs 55,000 per person (2
people) and Rs 45,000 per person (3 to 4 people).
Comprehensive Valley of Flowers trek: This is a shorter and easier 8-day trek which includes
camping at Tipra Kharak. Fixed departures for Rs 26,000 per person in groups of up to 12
people. Guide charges are included in the prices quoted by GIO.

Where to stay

GIO runs a large network of Himalayan Eco Lodges and Camps all over Uttarakhand. These comfortable, clean and
simple camps come with good creature comforts, and are located at great locations. The food is nutritious vegetarian
fare and the vegetables and grains are sourced locally. All tented accommodation comes with attached toilets. Some of
these lodges and camps practice rainwater harvesting and use solar power.

I stayed at their green and blue tented campsite at Kanjila, 1 km below Ghangaria. It is definitely a superior option to the
noisy tourist traps that have overrun Ghangaria. They have a good six-day package for people who want to visit the
Bhyundar valley and the nearby Hemkund lake for Rs 18,500 per person for a group of four, ex-Haridwar.

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