Trek to Kheerganga

  Kheerganga is situated at 2960 m of altitude in Parvati valley of Himachal Pradesh offers a mystical journey into the woods, where you will see a waterfall, river, water crossing, mountains, apple orchards and one of the gifted abode for natural sulphur hot water springs.

  For Kheerganga you need to take a bus or taxi up to Barsheni, crossing Manikaran. Barsheni is the last stop in Parvati Valley, and beyond Barsheni no motorable road is available, and one has to trek to reach to the villages like Pulga, Tosh, Nakthan, Rudranaag, Kalgha, and Kheerganga.  The trail in the entire trek is well defined, and one can hike without any guide. Moreover, you can find many local peoples, other trekkers, and porters who travel up and down carrying vital supplies along with their horses of donkeys from whom you can ask for trail and the distance left.

  At the beginning of this 13 km trek, You will see a massive construction of an Hydel power plant in Phulga.  From where you trek to the very first village Nakthan, which is around 3-4 km (45-60 min), the trail will lead through lush farms, small hills and,  apple orchards, and remember don’t pluck apples from these trees, they may fine you if they caught you.  You can get eatables in Nakthan.

  Trekking to further you will reach Rudranaag (60 min), a small meadow surrounded by mountains where you’ll find a waterfall, Parvati river on the other side, and a Maggie point.

   Just by leaving Rudranag you will cross a wooden bridge built precariously in two wooden logs over Parvati river. And then you will enter the lust green, and thick forest of pine trees and where ascending begins. This entire trail from Rudranaag to Kheerganga is completely into the woods, and you may get some slippery and wet trail as well, so make sure you have a support stick with you.

  On your way to Kheerganga, you will find one more Maggie point named as Sunflower cafe, and you can see some sunflower plantation nearby. And after some three hours of trek, you will reach Kheerganga a beautiful meadow, surrounded by snow covered mountains. And a dip in the hot spring water pool after you reach will soothe and relieve from the worn out you experienced during trekking. Taking a bath in nature’s lap and surrounded by snowy mountains is a delightful and a unique experience. The water is natural, hot and has some healing properties of white sulphur. There is a different and covered area in the pool for ladies seeking their privacy.

Localites from nearby villages of Pulga, Kalga, Nakthan, Tosh & Barsheni have set up shops, eating joints, Inns, and camps here. 

Returning and trekking downwards is much easier and you can cover it up in 3 hours.

  Carry as lightweight as you can. Don’t carry excess water bottles and foodstuff as it’s going to make your trekking difficult. You will get everything on the way and also in Kheerganga. Start your trek maximum by 10.00 am. Carry sunscreen, hat, necessary medicines, torch, Raincoat and a camp light if you wish to stay in a tent.

En route to Kheerganga.. 

As we started our trekking and just after crossing the hydel power plant, we are welcomed by this giant tree. So we are not the only one with good height.😀

After bit tiring we reached Nakthan, houses here are built by arranging wooden logs and stone.

We felt greedy by seeing those apples, but these trees are also tagged with a board with a notice "1000 Rs fine". So we politely asked for apples, and the villagers happily gave us few apples for free.

This kid from Nakthan getting ready for school was so glad to pose for a photograph.

And this lazy bun doesn't bother if you take a snapshot.

A local house in Nakthan. Most of the houses here are built with wooden logs. And natural slates are used for roofing.

Tiny white blossoms.

and the waterfall racing down in a series of cascades.

And then we reached to Rudranaag, where one can see the Rudranag temple and some desolated huts. 

Waterfall nearby the temple.

We rested in the meadows and delighted by the scenic view of the valley at Rudranaag.

Then we crossed this swaying bridge, and the heavy streamflow underneath the bridge shook us a bit.😥😱

Look at the flow of the Parvati River.

That's why they call it as KheerGanga, the flow of water resembles a Kheer (Rice Pudding).  

And then we entered into a thick and dense forest.

and crossed those water streams.

A closer look at the water flows.

On our way, we found a tree with a hollow trunk. This trunk is so big that one can easily fit into it and can hide inside it.😉

And then we met some porter with their Himalayan horses, in a wrong place. Because we got no space to get aside and somehow we managed ourselves by balancing on that rocky slope to avoid any hit from the luggage.

This waterfall on the nearby mountain is remarkable.

Then we reached Sunflower Cafe, somewhere in the middle of the jungle and time for a small break,  where we had some refreshments, and of course, we clicked some photographs of these beautiful sunflowers.

And also took some shot of this eye-catching pine.

The first thing one will notice while reaching the top is this standalone giant tree.

And finally, we arrived at this divine meadows. The moment we arrived here, we are in a big hurry and excited to take a dip in the hot water spring. We relieved ourselves from all the tiredness and then relaxed in a tent house. Had some savoring non-veg food and slept peacefully.

  Next morning, we get ready to return. And was mesmerized by watching the first sun rays hitting the mountain which is so amazing on its own.

This tree once again attracted us.

This Himalayan dog followed us in the entire trail and bade us adieu at Rudranaag.

So the experience was amazing, as this trek brings us close to nature, and definitely relieved us for some days from those hectic lifestyles we were spending in the cities.