Deosai, Truly The Land Of Giants

Deosai national park falls in skardu district in gilgit baltistan. It is known as the land of giants with an average elevation of 4,114 metres (13,497 ft) above sea level. It takes approximately an hour and 30 minutes drive via land cruiser from skardu to deosai.

The road from skardu to deosai is full of beautiful scenery; Sadpara Lake where they have constructed a dam which is known as sadpara dam provides water to nearby village is truly mesmerizing. Clear water with different shades of blue and greens is entrancing.

Deosai plains are rated as one of the highest platues in the world. For me this place is limitless. It’s in fact difficult to describe this charismatic place in words. This land of giants; spell bounds you in such a way that you might have to pinch yourself to believe that something of this sort really exist, something which is majestic and immeasurable.

Deosai open’s  only in summers for four months as other 8 months it is fully covered in snow. The weather there is impulsive, at one moment you will find clear sky with sunshine and the very next moment it starts raining and snowing. I consider myself lucky to witness this rapid changing moods of deosai, it was sunny and right after five minutes the sky was full of black heavy clouds and it started raining, however the rain stopped after few minutes and wow it was snowing then. In July and August this land is all green and full of wild flowers and multiple fragrance and in September you will find all the possible shades of browns and yellows. Deosai literally makes your jaw drop.

This beautiful place is also famous for its wild life, red fox, snow leopards especially huge brown bears and cute marmots. Though it’s rare to have a view of them as they hide themselves somewhere far where they are not disturbed by humans. Everybody loves privacy so do they 🙂

Bara Pani is another charismatic beauty that deosai hold. It’s a stunning river stream where you can do trout fishing or you can just sit down and absorb the beauty around. This spot is as beautiful as any other spot here and listening to the music that the flow of water is producing is no less than any meditation or healing therapy.

Crossing the Bara Pani bridge there is one more fascinating sight waiting for you; Sheosar Lake which is also known as Deosai Lake.. Sheosar Lake means Blind Lake. It’s at an elevation of 4,142 metres (13,589 ft), is one of the highest lakes in the world. Its length is 2.3 kilometres (7,500 ft), width 1.8 kilometres (5,900 ft) and average depth 40 metres (130 ft). This heart shaped beautiful lake is bordered by stunning and vibrant flowers and will make your heart beat faster by its absorbing beauty. You can camp around this lake or just take a walk for a while; its serenity will rejoice and rejuvenate you.

There is one more worth mentioning beauty that we visited after crossing deosai is Chillam Valley. First you have to get yourself registered at the check post and then you enter this mind blowing valley. Since we were dropped by the jeeps here and we were waiting for our coaster to arrive, we luckily got the chance and time to explore this spectacular place before heading to Astore. The silent and alone walk on the road enclosed by small and simple cottages, goats and yaks playing around on the lush green grass was incredible. The landscape here is nothing less than Deosai. It’s as spell bounding and freezing as it was in the land of giants.

Deosai National Park for me is a place beyond imagination; it’s mesmerizing; it captures your heart, mind and soul. This piece of land is a place where you feel so close to your lord and entire universe. This boundless place is extraordinarily silent, a silence which is loud enough if you want to listen, you can just simply get lost in this stillness and in the endless beauty around, restore and reconnect to yourself.  It will be an injustice with this majestic beauty to unfold Deosai in words, you got to go there and experience it yourself.

Picture Credits:Trip Companions