Aru Valley

Day 15 – Pahalgam to Aru Valley – 8th Sep 2018

We decided to do a trek to a meadow called Baisaran in the morning. Ponies were already available outside the front gate of our hotel in Pahalgam. Even if they have a fixed price for the ponies, they do reduce the price on bargaining. Maximum price should not be more than Rs. 1000 per pony. On the way, they might offer to take you to the destination via different routes, asking for an increase in the rates already agreed upon. It would be good not to go for any of those options, and just climb upto Baisaran. We could see several tourists including school kids trekking up the hilly pine forests! The dense trees seen on the road sides as we moved along, comprised mainly of walnuts, and apricots. Baisaran is a nice large green meadow with pine trees and snow capped mountains adorning the background. It is an awesome view once you reach the top.

There were several recreational activities available at Baisaran, including zip lining and zorbing!  However we chose to simply lie down on the green meadows and have a relaxed time enjoying the beauty of the distant mountains! We bought shawls from weavers wandering on the meadows, we had doubts whether it was pure pashmina, but still we enjoyed the enchanting designs and chatting with the sellers. The horse ride was pretty hectic while coming down, with the trail being very steep at some places and we really felt sorry for the pony at many places. Insha slept off on the horse while coming back.

Post lunch, we spent some time at the riverbanks – all you do is sit on the pebble like river rocks and stare — at the green mountains, the ice cold water splashing on you, other tourists, or even the nomadic shepherds!

We clicked few pictures, and then left for Aru valley which was a 45 mins drive from Pahalgam. The green winding roads all the way had Lidder river on the side, and finally we reached the grasslands of Aru! Aru is the last scenic village of the beautiful Lidder Valley – the whistling sounds of the pine trees, gurgling streams of the Aru river, and flower clad valley created a mystic charm altogether. 

We soon reached Aru, a small village, with a street lined with couple of shops. Unfortunately something bad had happened in Aru Valley that day and we were really scared to see police and several people gathered near our stay as we approached. Someone who had gone for trekking from Aru Valley to the mountains had lost his life,  it looked a little scary to see lots of people gathered around, with ambulances and police officers. But it was all normal after sometime. Our stay – Hotel Milkyway – was a small and cozy one, the host soon came to us with two cups of tea, finishing off the police formalities. While we were sitting on the sofas outside our rooms, he patiently explained us the events that happened outside, and comforted us saying there is nothing to worry about. The rooms were very clean, even though small, with a perfect view of the Aru Valley.

In the evening we spent our time walking around the valley. We had an amazing evening tea amidst the lush green meadows adorned with pink flowers, with horses grazing here and there.

Daughter played in the ice-cold mountain streams which were slowly flowing to join the Aru river, and we clicked some amazing photographs of the evening Aru village! We spent some time playing carroms in the hallway near our room, and had a relaxed dinner of rice and mixed vegetables afterwards. We met an elderly couple at the restaurant who were really excited to hear that we drove all the way from Bengaluru with our kid! We soon headed back to the room, and prepared ourselves for the next day’s travel to Srinagar.

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