I loved the intimacy of the lakes on this trek that I didn’t get on the Kashmir Great Lakes trek. I was right on the edge of the shores of the Tarsar and Sundarsar, my tent on the grassy glades of these lakes, watching the dark blue aquamarine waters being fed by snow patches.

The sight stayed with me. I went on long walks all alone along the shores of the lakes, my thoughts to myself. These were rare moments on a trek, which I didn’t get elsewhere. Tarsar always gives me these moments.

From Sundarsar there is a secret passage over a Col that led me to a cliff over Marsar. I timed it right twice, an hour after sunrise, to see something spectacular. Rushing down the valley that leads to Marsar, huge columns of clouds rolled in towards Marsar.

Sunlight glinted over the top of the clouds throwing wonderful shadows as they rolled in at an angle. The sight was so spectacular from my vantage point above the cliffs, that I almost wanted to applaud. Within fifteen or twenty minutes the clouds blanketed Marsar, taking the lake out of sight.

Even without the rolling clouds, the sight of Marsar took my breath away. Easily, it was one of the largest lakes with the deepest blue waters that I had seen in Kashmir.

The sight of Tarsar as I climbed to the Tarsar pass is one of my favourite sections. I think the best photos of the lake come from this section. I just loved sitting on a ledge, high above the lake, watching the long stretch of blue waters of Tarsar as the morning sun catches it at its best. Every time I do this trek I take out those few minutes to do this. I think most trekkers enjoy this bit a lot.

My favourite top secret section of the trek is the plains of Jagmargi. You get them an hour or so before you reach Sundarsar. I suddenly found the rushing stream going dead quiet, forming giant crystal clear pools. On my left were vast grasslands, stretched out in a big oval arch.

Somewhere in the far distance, like a western movie, the grasslands touched the foot of rugged hills — a sight I have not seen on any other trek before — an entire big sweep like this.

Sheep and horses grazed peacefully. As I passed by I caressed some of the sheep and they didn’t move an inch. But what stunned me were the flowers. It was a carpet of wildflowers, purple, white, blue and yellow, nurtured by the abundance of water. I couldn’t trek. Because every step I took would crush flowers under my feet. It took me a long while to cross this section.

Give me the Shekwas campsite for a day and I will trade two campsites from any other trek. I just love the setting! Nestled in the junction of three green valleys (name another trek where you see three valleys intersecting — it is very rare!), a ridge climbs right outside the camp.

I remember I took off my shoes and climbed, and climbed and climbed on those soft grass. I climbed endlessly until the camp was a dot below, perhaps a thousand feet, yet the ridge had a long way to go.

From this viewpoint, I saw what we call Kashmir, a heaven on earth! Sweeping mountains, great grasslands in the valleys, and an undulating landscape that can only be made by a divine source. To top it each of these valleys had a river running through them with the sun setting on its glinting surface. I sat on a small outcrop of a rock for a long time until it was dusk.