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Alpather lake is a high altitude alpine lake which lies at the feet of the twin peaks of Apharwat, Gulmarg at an elevation of 4500 meters (14700 feet). Alpather lake remains frozen until the month of June and is a well kept secret of Kashmir. The trek towards this beautiful lake starts from the meadows of Gulmarg which are about 50 kilometres away from the Srinagar city.
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Watlab, is a village located 56 kilometres away from the Srinagar city. The village lies on Sopore-Bandipora road and the closest town to Watlab is Sopore which is about 8 kilometres away. Watlab is known for it’s unmatched, untouched beauty with green lush meadows and a splendid view of the Wular lake.
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Shahi Masjid or more commonly known as Pathar Masjid is a Mosque located in the old city of Srinagar Kashmir, near new Zaina Kadal. The Mosque sits on the banks of Jehlum river, opposite to the Shrine of Khanqah-e-Moula. This Mosque was built by Empress Noor Jahan in 1033 A.H (1623 A.D) which means the Mosque was built almost 350 to 400 years ago. What sets this Mosque apart from the rest of the historical Mosques in the valley of Kashmir is that this Mosque is entirely made out of stones, ergo the name Pathar Masjid (The stone Mosque).
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Mt. Mahadev or Mahadev Peak, is the highest mountain peak of the Srinagar district, Kashmir. The peak can be seen from most parts of the Srinagar city. It is named after the hindu Lord Shiva, as Mahadev is another name by which Lord Shiva is known by. Mahadev Peak stands at an elevation of 13,013 feet (3966m) and belongs to the parent range of Zabarwan. The trek starts from Dara, Harwan which is 21 kilometers away from the heart of the Srinagar city, Lal Chowk. Being a person who has always been fascinated by mountains, Mahadev was the first peak I’ve summit. I’ve scaled the mighty Mahadev in the heat of summer and in the cold of winter.
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Astanmarg, a lush green meadow on top of the Zabarwan range is one of the best offbeat places to visit in Srinagar, Kashmir. What sets this place apart from the rest of the places is that it remains unknown to most of the locals of Srinagar city and the tourists visiting Kashmir. Located just 20 kilometers away from the heart of Srinagar city – Lal Chowk, this place provides an array of scenic views with Dal Lake, Golf Course, Hari Parbat fort and many other tourist places visible to the naked eye from the top. Astanmarg provides a panoramic view of the whole city with the mountains of Zabarwan range caressing from all the sides.
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Mamnet, a heavenly meadow in the lap of the Zabarwan range of mountains in Kashmir remains a fairly unexplored gem situated just a few kilometers away from the heart of srinagar city. The trek starts from Scholar’s School dhara, harwan. So, when I started this trek with some of my friends, this region of the Zabarwan range was quite unfamiliar to me & considering we decided to have this trek amidst winter made the task much more challenging. We started at around 7 in the morning. The cold chilly breeze of a winter morning welcomed us as we got off our car. We had never experienced a snow trek before so there was both a rush of excitement & a bit of fear of the unknown. One of the locals even went on to say that at this time of the year in the early morning, the bears descend to the lower reaches so it’s very unsafe but because we had proper gear with us, we decided to go ahead with the trek.
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Dal lake, situated in the heart of the city of srinagar, Kashmir cradled by the snow clad zabarwan range is one of the main tourist attractions of the beautiful kashmir Valley. What sets this lake apart though is the famous shikara ride. For all those not familiar with what a shikara is, it is a boat with a canopy which is painted with bright attractive colors.
The shikara ride often stands out for both the people of kashmir & tourists for a number of reasons as the first thing a person notices as he starts the ride is the serenity of the beautiful lake. It’s quite, composed waters waving their way back & forth takes a person into a state of trance.