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Known as the largest religious gathering of mankind, the Kumbh Mela refers to a great gathering of Hindu pilgrims at auspicious locations. It takes place four times every twelve years, thus every three years, and rotates among four locations.

The most auspicious of these is Allahabad, known as the Prayag, the legendary confluence of the mighty Ganga, its tributary Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati River of the Hindu scriptures. At the Prayag occurs every 12 years the Maha Kumbh Mela, or the Great Kumbh Mela, next being in 2013. It is also at Allahabad that the greatest of the Maha Kumbh Melas is staged every 144 years, as the cycle of 12 Purna Kumbh Melas has been completed.

The last time the Maha Kumbha Mela had taken place was in 2001, when the most auspicious dates signified an exceptionally potent planetary equation of cosmic energy and the count of those in attendance had been given between 80 to as much as 100 million people.

Haridwar, a town on the Ganges river in northern India, Ujjain on the Kshipra River and Nashik on the Godavari River are the other three Kumbh Mela sites. The next Kumbh Mela, following 2004 Ardha Kumbha Mela, half-Kumbh mela, occurring every six years, is once again in Haridwar, the previous of which was in 1998.

Located at the foothills of the Shivalik Range, the front range of the Himalayas, Haridwar is one of the most sacred cities of India. Its religious significance stems from its prominent location where the glacier waters of sacred Ganga reach the plains after having tumbled down the course from the Adobe of Snow. It is for the very essence of constituting a gateway to the Himalaya that Haridwar carries its name, the Dwar of Har or Gateway to God, with its bathing ghat as the ultimate site, the awe inspiring Har-ki-pauri, or Lord Shiva’s Steps, from which pilgrims and holy men alike dip into the freezing waters of the Ganga.

Dates of the Haridwar Kumbh Mela are given as starting from January 14 and lasting until April 28, 2010. In reality the dates of the mela are not arbitrarily set but the starting date of the Kumbha Mela is associated with the astrological alignment of relevant planetary bodies, specifically when the Sun enters Capricorn. By this auspicious date, January 14, 2010, millions of pilgrims are expected to be present already. The date also corresponds with the celebrations of the Makara Samkranti festival throughout India. At the Kumbh Mela the date marks Makar Sankranti Snan, or the date of the First Snan, the First Holy Bath, when countless pilgrims submerge in the Ganga. From this date onwards until April 14, when the most sacred bathing day takes place on full moon day, the Shakh Purnima Snan, and the pilgrims celebrate Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death, a day when all sins are washed away and the soul enters into union with the One, the Oneness of the Universe, the God Almighty. Between these two most auspicious dates, nine other important bathing dates take place.

For the simple reason of just attending the mela pilgrims believe to be honored with the utmost in blessings, not to mention those of the darshan, the blessings bestowed by the revered sadhus and other holy men, many of whom descend from the High Himalayas and remote caves, interrupting their years-long seclusions in meditation to bath in the Ganga and to appear among the mortals. For it is at the Maha Kumbh Mela to bath in the Ganga River is to taste amrit kalash, the nectar of immortality, and to embark on the ultimate in destiny with chance of ceasing the cycle of birth and rebirth and becoming One with God.

Throughout these three months the site of the Haridwar Kubh Mela becomes a photographer’s paradise. The Kumbh Mela is rendered an exceptional event not only for its spiritual significance and the sheer phenomenal number of mankind gathered but for the astounding myriad of gathered holy men, the sadhus, yogis and saints, that arrive from all corners of India and create an unbelievable spectacle especially bewitching for the Western mind.

The radiant ambiance of all imaginable colors and sounds of horns, trumpets, conchels and drums, shouts and mantras, these spectacles are as nourishing for the soul as they are for the mundane mind wishing just to take pleasure in observing the holy bathing rituals, watching the naked ash-smeared sadhus perform stunning feats of mind and body control, while engulfed in the endless gathering of humanity as well as members of animal kingdom, from monkeys to camels, elephants to beasts of burden, pulling chariots of saints and pilgrims too old to walk but having arrived to partake in the powerful energy, the shakti released by the saints, prophets or devotees alike, rendering the gathering the powerful nourishment that it is and has been for millennia.

Needless to say, if you are to come to the Kumbha Mela as visitor rather than a pilgrim, to find and be at certain sacred spots and witness memorable events throughout this enormous gathering you best know how to find your way around. To make the best of your journey you need a private guide – settle for no less than having someone who truly knows to guide you!

To make your trip to Haridwar Kumbha Mela complete, and to experience more of the unique that India has to offer, having a custom luxury tour of India designed to your specifications is your ideal approach to private independent travel in India.

Under the British Raj you could had ridden a train into India from Lahore in present day Pakistan. Since India’s independence you have to walk across the Wagha border between Pakistan and India, take bus to Amritsar and ride all over India from there. But now, Indian Railways has announced that it plans to establish rail links with Nepal, Bhutan and apparently concrete plans have been also drawn to connect the Indian rail network all the way with the Chinese railways.
With trade and tourism having reached large scale proportions in Kunming and Yunnan province of south-western China, the Chinese have already connected its rail system with that of Myanmar and plans are underway to extend it from there to Bangladesh with Dhaka being only a step from Kolkata, the eastern gateway to India. Once the network is fully in place and operational you’ll be able to tour Assam and Meghalaya from Kolkata and continue all the way to tour Yunnan in China.

With now being able to ride the iron rooster across China to Lhasa in Tibet, Chinese already started on extending the line across the High Himalaya down to Kathmandu in Nepal. Thus obviously after China you’ll be able to tour Nepal and then hop on a train and ride down into the plains of India. Of course this line will cost pretty penny as the road down from Kathmandu to Indian border is not an easy ride but the Chinese engineers have already blasted their way through much worse in Sichuan.

The third route in the works is to link southern Xinjiang Province of Western China with Pakistan. There is indeed another major obstacle in the way there and that’s the Karakoram. But never mind, just imagine, you could ride a train along the legendary Silk Road from Beijing via Kashgar over Kunjerab Pass, and along Karakoram Highway all the way to Deli and Mumbai!

Few years ago this Italian tourist asked me if I could arrange for her to take a taxi from Kathmandu to Mount Everest Base Camp! Now I wonder how soon will this really become possible.

Most tourists wanting to see India visit Rajasthan and then perhaps Goa and highlights of Kerala. Very few ever tour Orissa and visit Bhubaneswar and Puri. Yet these two cities on the eastern coast of India offer some of the most striking temples and can be used as staging points for tours into the interior of tribal Orissa.

Bhubaneswar, the capital city of ancient kingdom of Kalinga, is known as the Temple City of India. Among the finest and also the biggest of Bhubaneswar’s 600 temples is the Lingaraj Temple of Shiva built in the 11th century.

Best visited from Kolkata, start your tour of Bhubaneswar with the Mukteswara temple. Built in the 10th century, Mukteswara temple is known for its richly decorated stone arch at the entrance. With the tales from the Panchatantra carved on it, the temple is a magnificent example of classical architecture of Orissa.

The Rajarani temple, set in picturesque surroundings, is noted for its intricate carvings of floral, animal and human figures. Built in the 11th century it has no deity.

Parasurameswara temple is small but richly decorated shrine of Shiva built in the 7th century. It is one of the best preserved and is embellished with sculptures featuring amorous couples, animals and floral motifs.

Last, do not forget to see the the Vital Deul-tantric temple located near Linagaraj Temple.

After touring Bhubaneswar continue to Puri. Puri is another major pilgrimage centre in India. Puri was established as one of the four cardinal institutions, shakti peethas, holy places of cosmic power, by Adi Shankara. Also known for its Golden Beach the fame of Puri emanates mostly from its Jagannath Temple. The 12th century temple is known for its annual Car Festival.

From Puri continue to the legendary Konarak temple. The temple chariot of the Sun God on the coastal sands of Bay of Bengal is a 13th century architectural marvel. It is designed as a celestial chariot of Sun God, complete with twelve pairs of wheels and seven horses. This striking temple has sculptures of great beauty covering all aspects of life, but it is most famous for its erotic art.

While in Puri, also visit the Raghurajpur village to have a look at the Patachitra painting, an art form akin to Batik.

Every year in July, the sacred coastal town of Puri celebrates the Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath The entire Ratha Yatra is a symbolic humanization of God.

In 1973 the Indian Government launched Project Tiger, a tiger conservation project to control and supplement the dwindling population of the Royal Bengal tigers in India. Over the years the Project Tiger has become one of the most successful wildlife conservation efforts in India. While initially only nine tiger reserves were set up under the Project Tiger, today there are nearly 30 tiger reserves all over India. Although not all tiger reserves, wildlife and national parks in India offer equal chances of seeing a tiger in the wild, there are a few where one can take tiger safari tour and have a good opportunity to actually see the tiger.

Bandhavgarh, Kanha National Park and Pench National Parks are the finest wildlife reserves when it comes to chances of encountering the magnificent Bengal tiger in the wild. Located in the hills of the Vindhyan Range in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, Bandhavgarh National Park is considered to have one of the densest tiger populations of any wildlife reserves in India, though since 2006, when Kaziranga National Park in Assam of north-eastern India was too declared a tiger reserve, that crown is now claimed by Kaziranga. Considered one of the best parks in Asia, Kanha National Park is hailed as providing the best opportunity for seeing a tiger namely on account of having the largest number of tigers, said to contain over 400 of these predators.

Bandhavgarh, Kanha, Pench and Panna National Parks can be included in your tour of the Khajuraho and Varanasi region. Pench and Kanha National Parks are best accessed from Nagpur, easily accessible by air from Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata.

Located in the foothills of the Himalayas is the majestic Corbett National Park, once a popular hunting ground of the British. Corbett NP became the first national park to be established in mainland Asia and the first sanctuary to come under Project Tiger. It is best visited as part of your Northern India itinerary, where it can be ideally tailored into your Rajasthan - Varanasi - Indian Himalayas itinerary.

Another option for visiting Corbett National Park is to combine it with a tour to the hill state of Uttarakhand, to Garhwal and Kumaon region. Here it is best added to your trip to Haridwar – Rishikesh - Almora – Nainital itinerary.

One of the premier parks of India and also established as one of the best for a chance of seeing a tiger has become Ranthambore National Park in Rajasthan. Typically visited as part of so called Temples, Tigers and Ganges itinerary that packs in the best of Varanasi and Khajuraho first and the tour visits Ranthambore en route from Agra to Jaipur.

Last but certainly not least recommended for seeing the tiger is Kaziranga National Park. Although relatively small, Kaziranga NP is among the best of India’s wildlife parks. As a result of a truly remarkable success story of conservation of the One Horned India Rhinoceros, Kaziranga National Park got the recognition of the UNESCO World Heritage Site List in 1985. Kaziranga NP is best visited as part of Assam – Meghalaya itinerary, either by flying into Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Jorhat or Shillong.

Binsar is a wildlife sanctuary under the management of Corbett National Park. Within its boundaries are hamlets whose residents have lived for centuries in close proximity of the forest and wildlife, and whose livelihood is interdependent with nature. The development and progress made in other villages of the region has eluded these hamlets due to stringent laws, remoteness of locations and the fact the people would feel resentment towards the Sanctuary unless efforts are made to integrate them into activities which empower them economically and socially. The concept of the village walks is to introduce nature lovers to the world of the forest dwellers and the hamlets within Binsar, creating a sustainable livelihood for the villagers and motivating them to appreciate and protect the unique biodiversity of the sanctuary.

The village walks are hosted by a local professional operator, Alpine Adventure, and the residents of five of the hamlets in the Sanctuary: Gaunap, Katdhara, Pataniyanail, Dalar and Rishal.

The walks take visitors through both the upper and lower reaches of Binsar, through oak and pine forests, up crests with stunning views of the Himalayas and surrounding areas and down valleys with streams and thick undergrowth. Starting from the North face of Binsar the walks go round the south and west faces of the mountain and return to the top. En route visitors will see hundreds of varieties of plants and wildlife, namely ghoral, barking deer, langur monkeys, wild boar, and possibly even a leopard. For birdwatchers there are 400 species of resident and migratory birds in Binsar Sanctuary. Combined with the great outdoor and a forest adventure are the lovely villages with their terraced fields, stone houses, and their dignified and hardworking inhabitants. In spite of the hardships of life and relative backwardness of the area, the people are proud and exude an inner strength and resolve as well as gentleness and joy. Visitors are guaranteed to come away nourished and refreshed by the experience.

Go to sample Binsar Village Walks itinerary.

For more info contact Alpine Adventure ‘Outdoor Programs’