The stunning landscape of The Valley of Flowers National Park in northern India's state of Uttarakhand, bordered by Nepal and Tibet, comes alive with the monsoon rain. This high-altitude Himalayan valley has around 300 different varieties of alpine flowers, which appear as a bright carpet of color against a mountainous snow capped background.
The park is spread over 87.5 square kilometers (55 miles), and was declared a national park in 1982. It’s also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The main Valley of Flowers is a glacial corridor, around five kilometers (3.1 miles) long and two kilometers (1.2 miles) wide.
History:
The place was little known to outside world due its inaccessibility. In 1931, Frank S. Smythe, Eric Shipton and R.L. Holdsworth, all British mountaineers, lost their way while returning from a successful expedition to Mt.Kamet and happened upon the valley, which was full of flowers. They were attracted to the beauty of the area and named it the "Valley of Flowers." Frank Smythe later authored a book of the same name.
In 1939, Joan Margaret Legge,(21 February 1885 – 4 July 1939) a botanist deputed by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, arrived at the valley to study flowers and while traversing some rocky slopes to collect flowers, she slipped off and lost her life. Her sister later visited the valley and erected a memorial near the spot.
Prof. Chandra Prakash Kala, a botanist deputed by the Wildlife Institute of India, carried out a research study on the floristics and conservation of the valley for a decade, beginning in 1993. He made an inventory of 520 alpine plants exclusively growing in this national park and authored two important books - "The Valley of Flowers - Myth and Reality" and "Ecology and Conservation of the Valley of Flowers National Park, Garhwal Himalaya.
How to Reach:
The nearest airport is in Dehradun, 295 kilometers (183 miles) away, and the nearest railway station is in Rishikesh, 276 kilometers (170 miles) away.
Location:
The Valley of Flowers National Park is located in Chamoli Garhwal, close to Nanda Devi National Park. It’s about 595 kilometers (370 miles) from Delhi, and has an altitude that varies from 10,500 feet to 21,900 feet above sea level.
When to Visit :
The Valley of Flowers is only open from the beginning of June until the end of September as it's covered in snow the rest of the year. The best time to visit is from mid July to mid August, when the flowers are in full bloom after the first monsoon rain. If you go before July, you’ll find hardly any flowers at all. However, you will be able to see melting glaciers. After mid August, the color of the Valley changes quite dramatically from greenish to yellowish, and the flowers slowly die.
In regards to the weather, temperatures get quite cold at night and in the early morning.
Travel Tips:
The Valley of Flowers requires a strenuous hike but you'll feel on top of the world in this magical and enchanting place. Exotic flowers and foliage can be found all along the route from Ghangria to the main valley. Make sure you pack plenty of clothes in case you get rained on (which is likely), and carry some food with you for the hike. Govind Ghat and Ghangaria get quite crowded from July to September with Sikh pilgrims on their way to Hem Kund, so it’s a good idea to book accommodations in advance. Hiring a porter at Govind Ghat to carry you luggage to Ghangaria is also recommended to make the trek easier.
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