Srinagar Garhwal Travel Guide - Srinagar Sightseeing

The small town of Srinagar in Uttrakhand is clad in a mystic charm of its own. It has fascinating nature and many interesting myths that can keep you busy all day long. Before you plan your Srinagar trip, go through this detailed travel guide-

Srinagar derived its name from ‘Sri Yantra’. It was etched on a big rock and people were sacrificed on it. Myth has it that it contained evil powers and anyone who set an eye on it was met with violent death. It was notorious for centuries until Adi Guru Shankaracharya intervened. He threw away the rock in the river Alkananda and relieved the town from the curse.

This historical town served as the capital of Garhwal kingdom till the advent of the British. King Ajay Pal founded the Garhwal kingdom in mid 14th century and took Srinagar as his capital city. Situated in the Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand, this town sits beside the beautiful Alkananda River and flanked by majestic Himalayan ranges all around. It is a booming city now and serves as the optional base camp for the holy shrines of Badrinath and Kedarnath.

How to Reach:

By Air: Jolly Grant airport is the nearest airport in Dehradun at a distance of 150 km from Srinagar, Uttarakhand.
By Rail: Nearest railway station is Rishikesh and Kotdwar of which Rishikesh is situated only about 5 km away from Srinagar. But, Haridwar is the main railhead which is better connected to the major stations.
By Road: There are luxury buses, ordinary state buses and taxis which ply regularly from important nearest destinations to Haridwar and Rishikesh. From Rishikesh, Srinagar takes only 2 hours.

Weather:

Best time to visit Srinagar is during the winters. Summers are hot in Srinagar owing to its low altitude of 560 m.

Sightseeing

Srinagar acts as the divine portal to Valley of Flowers, Hemkund, Roopkund, Nanda Devi sanctuary and the likes.

Keshorai Math

It is an ancient temple dedicated to Lord Narayan. Built in 1682 AD, the magnificent architecture is fascinating and beautiful. The temple draws devotees in large numbers on pious occasions. According to legends, Kesho Rai started his journey to Badrinath and in this place fell asleep. In his dreams, Lord Narayana urged him to dig that ground. He did accordingly and found the idol of Lord Narayana and established the idol here after constructing this beautiful temple in 1682.

Kamaleshwar Temple:

It is again another ancient temple and one of the five Maheshwara Peeths in the Himalayas. The myth that floats here is that Ram came here to worship Lord Shiva with thousand flowers and when the flowers fell short he offered his eyes. Also, it is believed that childless couples begets child if they pray to the lord with lighted lamps on Vaikunth Chaturdashi.

Shankar Math

This temple of Lord Shiva is situated 3 km from Srinagar and is generally believed to hold divine powers.

Devalgarh

It is 19 km from Srinagar and known for its ancient ruin of the temples. Rajrajeshwari temple, Gauri Devi temple and Laxmi Narayan temple are known for its architecture as well as their contemplative ambience.

Kilkileshwar Mahadev Temple

Adi Guru Shankarachrya established this temple on the banks of spritely Alkananda River.

Dhari Devi Mandir

Dedicated to Goddess Kali this temple is perched atop a 20 m high monolith. An ancient cave is also nearby. Pilgrims going for Badrinath also visit this holy place. The Devi idol is kept under the open sky and photography of the idol is prohibited.

Vishnu Mohini Temple

It is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and his consort goddess Laxmi situated near the main market of Srinagar.

Around Srinagar there are lots of other tourist attractions. There are Kaleshwar Mahadev Temple, Bhim Pakora, Bhulla Lake, Danda Nagraja Temple, Durga Devi Temple, Jwalpa Devi Temple, Kandoliya Temple, Kalagarh Gate, Maletha, Baba Gorakhnath cave and many more.

Fairs and Festivals:

Vaikunth Chaturdashi Mela is the most important festival of this area celebrated in the month of Oct-Nov. This festival span for four days and cultural programmes are held too.