Kinner Kailash the Holy place of the Himachal Pradesh
The Kinner Kailash is a Holy place of the distric kinnaur Himachal Pradesh.This place is situated at high altitudes.This place is about 300 far from the shimla.The kinnaur kailash shivling,one of the mythical abodos of loard shiva,is a 79 feet rock in the kinner Kailash.
What is Kinner Kailash?
The Kinner Kailash is a mountain in the Kinnaur district of Himachal pradesh. Kinaaur is a beautiful place of the Himachal Pradesh which is situated in the high altitudes.The Kinnaur Kailash has a height of 6500 meters and considered as sacred by both Hindu and Buddhist Kinnauris. The mountain is also called as Mount Kailash in Tibet. It is a Trekking place and known as one of the toughest trekking.
A natural kund near Kinner Kailash peak, is known as Parvati kund, is considered to be creation of Godess Parvati. She worshiped here for long time. It is a meeting place for Lord Shiva and Godess Parvati. That is the reason Kailash Darshan park or Ganesh park was earlier called Ashiqi park.
According to mythology, Lord Shiva conducted meetings here with all Gods and Goddesses every winter.
This accounts for the Yatra that takes place every year at the time of Jnamatmi by devotees of Lord Shiva and localities.
The shivalingam changes the color in the day time and is also called as red mountain.How to reach Kinner Kailash
Kailash Ytra starts from tangling village which is 11km before from the Recong Peo head quarters and about 260 km from Shimla. The Tangling village is situated at the left bank of Satluj river at an altitude of 7050 feet. There are two ways to reach the Tangling village, one through the Powari Jhoola which is very adventurous and another is through dirt road by crossing Shongthong bridge over the Satluj river.
From here the trek follows a stone pathway up to a small stream about 2.5 Kms ahead. It takes around 1.5 hours to reach the stream passing small wooden houses, vegetable fields and orchards along the way. This fresh water stream comes directly from the Kinner Kailash Mountain range. After crossing the the steams one should reach the Ashiqui Park, from the stream to that there is no water source. Ashiqui Park which comes after conquering Kailash Dhaar after a vertical climb of 6-7 km. This part of the trek is known as Kailash Dhaar because it is the way towards Kinner Kailash Peak. There are two famous halts on the way to Ashiqui Park from this small stream. These are known as Bara Pathar (Big Stone or Rock) and Bara Ped (Big Tree). It took two hours for us from the stream to Bara Pathar. This is a trail of around 2.5 Kms at an altitude of 8415 ft. through a dense forest of Deodar trees.
Bara Pathar is famous due to the big rock on which travelers rest. This big rock is in the midst of the dense Deodar trees and looks very beautiful. 2.5 km after Bara Pathar at an altitude of 9695 ft. is Bara ped. This place is famous for the centuries old massive Deodar tree. The tree line ends abruptly at this place. After this point there are only shrubs and herbs on the way to Ashiqui Park.
After crossing that we will reach Ashiqui park. Ashiqui Park is at an altitude of 11,778 feet. It is a big Bugyal, which is the best camping site for the trekkers. Water source is very close by. An inn has been constructed here at Ashiqui Park for travelers. It has 270° view of the Himalayas and surrounding towns from this vantage point.
There are two important halts on the way to Kinnar Kailash from Ashiqui Park: Bheem Dwar and Parvati Kund. The distance between Ashiqui Park and Kinner Kailash is around 8-10 Kms with takes 7-9 hrs depending the fitness level of the pilgrim or trekker. This made it necessary to start early so as to reach back to base in time.
The first place we halted at was Bheem Dwar. This place is around 3-4 Kms from Ahsiqui Park at 12,400 ft. The first part of the trek up to Bheem Dwar was a steep climb of about 2 Kms from Ahsiqui Park which takes 1.5 hrs. The next part up to Bheem Dwar is a descent. Just before the Bheem Dwar there is a stream which we heard is frozen most of the time and is part of glacier.
After crossing this stream we will reach Bheem Dwar. This place is a small cave under big stones. It can accommodate around 10-15 people at one time. It is also an ideal place for camping and water is available in plenty. During winter pilgrims camp at this place and during summers shepherds use this place to stay and to deposit their food items. Hours can be spent here listening to the sweet sound of stream flowing close by.
The next halt on the way to Kinner Kailash is Parvati Kund which is a glacial lake at the base of the Kinnar Kailash peak. There is no source of water in between Bheem Dwar and Parvati Kund, so it is necessary to carry enough water from Bheem Dwar.
This next part of the trek from Bheem Dwar to Parvati Kund is around 3 kms which takes 2.5 -3 hrs. The first half is a vertical cliff of around 1.5 kms and the next part up to Parvati Kund is covered with rocks, boulders and snow.
On the way to Parvati Kund we have to find the way with the help of stone pillars and have to be careful on the rocks while moving forward. Parvati Kund is a small glacial lake at around 9843 ft. It is frozen. Many worship here for the blessings of Mata Parvati and Lord Shiva to safely complete the journey to Kinner Kailash.
From Parvati Kund to Kinner Kailash peak (Lingam) there is no source of water so we had to carry enough water from here up to the peak and back. This is the last part of the trek and it required a lot of dedication and strength. From Parvati Kund to Kinner Kailash peak is a vertical climb of around 2.5 Kms which takes 3-4 hrs.
The way to Kinner Kailash from Parvati Kund was full of Moraines and extra care have to be taken during the trek. On the way to the peak we have to cross some small stone tunnels or caves. There is only one route from Parvati Kund to Kinner Kailash, which is marked by stone pillars.
Kinner Kailash Shivling is a sacred rock worshiped as the Lingam of Lord Shiva. The rock pillar faces towards Reckong-peo and Kala and is about 79 feet high and 30-40 feet wide. This is a holy place and we could feel the aura of sacredness here. Standing here we could see some high peaks of the Great Himalayan Mountain Range like Mt. Jorkandan and Mt. Rangrik . Climate and Temperature
Climate of the Kinner Kailash remains very pleasant in summer. But in winter, the temperature remains below zero degree centigrade.
That's a fabulous travel experience to Kinner Kailash. You have narrated the experience very well and the article is very useful for those who wish to visit this place.
Can you please share some more details about the travel and accommodation facilities available there/ Are there good lodges with budget accommodation?