Ever wondered what a paradise would look like. Is it filled with beautiful flora, fauna and snow? Well, we can just guess. But what if we tell you that there is a paradise on earth just like you have envisioned.

The places are known as Valley of Flowers & Hemkund Sahib. It is no less than a paradise. The beauty that is bestowed upon this place is beyond your imagination. The overwhelming views of the alluring mountains, streams flowing, and the colourful pattern of the flowers, it is gifted with the only thing you miss for your inner peace.

Valley of flowers trek is one of the most popular & oldest treks in the Himalayas during the monsoon. It is considered to be the best trekking destination for wildlife and adventure lovers worldwide. This trek is acknowledged by many mountaineers, trekkers, botanists, and spiritually inclined people. At the end of the long and tiring journey, the destination is worth the struggles.

Let us Get Into Some Details About the Valley of Flowers

Valley of flowers is a National Park situated in the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage site that is home to a variety of blossoming flora and other endangered species like Asiatic black bear, Brown bear, Red fox, Blue sheep, Snow leopard, Monal etc. The journey through the dense forests along with the Pushpawati river never lets your excitement down even for a second. The alpine flora of this blissful valley is about 2 km wide & up to 10 km long.

The valley of flowers trek is a moderate trek and it requires a good level of fitness. The steep and audacious trek through the Hemkund Sahib is the most fun adventure & challenging for those who want to test their limits.

The trail of Valley of Flowers starts from Pulna village which is 4 km away from Govindghat. The paved trail from Pulna to Ghagharia is about 9 to 10 km of the trek. Ghagharia is a tiny hamlet surrounded by lush green and tall Fir (Abies Pindrow) trees. For almost 3 days you have to stay at Ghangaria. There are two trails which we have to cover, on the left of Ghangharia is the trail for the valley of flowers which is 4 km of the trek. On the right, the trail goes up for Hemkund Sahib which is a quite tough and steep stretch of 6 km.

The True Beauty of The Valley of Flower

The valley of flowers shows the true essence of changing the beauty of nature. The flower bed of the valley keeps on changing its colours between May and October. Valley of flowers is embodied with a variety of flowers not even in colour but also in shape, texture, and smell. The variation will force you to flow deeper and deeper into the valley. People call it a fairyland. There are certain theories that it was captured by fairies who never returned. Well, why would they? No one would ever want to come back from such a beautiful place, but the unfortunate thing is that we can not camp at Valley of Flowers. This is an eco-sensitive zone so night camping and taking your pets or grazing your cattle is not allowed in the valley.

Incredible Spiritual Journey Towards Hemkund Sahib

The challenging part of this trek is visiting Hemkund Sahib. In just 6 km you have to climb from 9600 ft to 14,200 ft and this makes the trail very steep. Despite this, you see middle-aged, elderly and children climbing this stretch on their own or with the help of ponies. These people have immense faith so they do not give up climbing. Apart from Sikh pilgrims you also can see many saints and spiritually inclined people meditating on the banks of the beautiful Hemkund lake. Gurudwara Sri Hemkund Sahib is dedicated to Guru Gobind Singh Ji, the Tenth Sikh Guru. It is believed that Guru Gobind Singh came and meditated here. 

History Behind the Discovery of Valley of Flowers

In the year 1931, a group of British mountaineers Frank S. Smythe, Eric Shipton and R. L. Holdsworth lost their way while descending from the expedition of Mt. Kamet. Accidentally they reached this magical and mystical valley full of flowers and they named & documented it as “Valley of Flowers”. Earlier this valley was less known to the outside world and known as “Pushpwaati” for the locals. The Indian government declared this a national park in 1980; in 1982 this national park was established and renamed as “Valley of Flowers National Park”, and later in 2005, it was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Best Time to Visit the Valley of Flowers

Although you can visit the valley of flowers from the starting of June till the end of October, the best time to visit is between July to September because that is the time when maximum flowers bloom. Also due to rainfall, dust particles come down on the ground and the valley looks very clear and alluring. You can see Mt. Rataban, Gauri Parbat, Neelgiri Parbat, Mt. Saptasring, Kunt Khal, and Tipra Glaciar, out of which the Pushpawati river flows.

The valley is bestowed with rare and exotic Himalayan flora & fauna. There are about 600 species of flowers, out of which 45 species have medicinal qualities. Some of the species found here are Indian aconite (Aconitum Falconeri), Himalayan maple (Acer Caesium), Blue Himalayan poppy (Meconopsis Aculeata), Himalayan White birch (Betula utilis). Flowers mostly are orchids, primulas, marigolds, daisies, Himalayan bellflower (Campanula latifolia), Himalayan Balsam (impatiens sulcata), Geranium, Morina longifolia and also the State flower of Uttarakhand Brahma Kamal (Saussurea obvallata).