Julley Everyone,
A beautiful day out here in the Himalayas! We got a chance to explore this magical place of Spiti Valley called Chandra- Tal ( The Lake of the Moon) " In the local language- Chandra means' MOON' And Taal 'The Lake" There are countless folklores about this place that is was once referred as to the gateway to the Heaven and there too were various stories that the locals have about the place that at the time of midnight angles to come closer to the lake.
And thus the stories never ends...!!
The journey begins here! Took a long drive from Manali Himachal Pradesh. Where we decided to visit the Chandra Taal Lake. It was my second time when I got a chance to explore the place in my life!
The last time when I visited this place in mid-July when the whole valley was covered with the snow caped mountains and the lush green grass. This time of the year is to be considered as the driest when mostly all of the Himalayan regions and peaks are cold and dry as the snow though-out the year gets melted and just the few days when the whole region would get covered under a thick blanket of snow.
The Phenomenon was right in front of us! When the the peaks right in front of us started with the first fall and the whole place would be a white paradise in a while maybe few hours! It was truly a magical experience guys! Just seeing the mountain getting covered with the first snowfall.
There was a high risk that even we might get caught in the snow as if the snowfall sustains more than one feet then for our cars without snow chain we can’t cover the distance up and will get stuck in the valley without any camping equipments. This place was at an altitude of more than 4200 m above the sea level and due to the atmosphere and thin air people face issue in Breathing.
We stayed at the place for about an hour and another magical phenomenon captured our eyes! In just few minuted the the fresh snowfall that occurred up there at the top of the mountain just vanished away and the sun cleared the clouds up.
Though the whole place too.
The Three Season.
The shape of the lake is like that of the crescent moon. The locals of Spiti valley also believe that in the ancient times when the Moon God descended upon Earth they left behind this heavenly mark of the Earth.
The Chandra Taal Lake is also considered Holy Lake and bathing in this lake is Strictly Prohibited.
The visible fact I would say is that the lake changes its colour from time to time. Maybe would it be due to the changes in the season of be it the changes in the climatic conditions but few of the locals and Shepherds believe that the lake changes it's colours according to the changes in the mood of the nature. Few of the Shepherds from the ancient times also used to see the colour of the lake and predict the weather conditions for the upcoming days.
Close to the Spiti Valley The lake has a significance in the Tibetan Buddhism, Monks and Travellers consider this place for Meditation and Spiritual connections. People even try to walk and cover the whole distance of the Lake in a circular manner calling is 'Parikrama'.
I had also heard from the local Gaddis that most of the people even hear the sound of footsteps of a person walking behind and when we turn back to look there is no one. They believe that the sound of the footsteps if from that of the ancient wonderers and the spirits who once walked the path of the Chandrataal lake.
Lahul and Spiti Valley.
Here are few of the Photographs that I captured at the place.
The reflection of the while mountain chain was clear as a crystal so was the water inside ot lake. It was really freezing cold.
The Chandratal Lake is considered as highly sacred by the local Gaddi Shepherds and they believe that the Spirits and Deities Guard the Lake. In the past times many locals and travellers had came across various super natural experiences, such as sudden change in the weather, various sounds like whispers in the air, and feeling of an unseen presence.
Which all together may advice the travellers to respect the surroundings. In our journey too we do experience sudden change in the climatic conditions that I have captured in the photographs.
So thats all for today guys. I hope you liked it.
Thanks for your precious time. 🙏
Love from the Himalayas.❤️