Adiyen went to Salagram in Nepal in June 2001.
There are two ways to reach Salagram
I . By bus / By Air (Arranged tour):
From Delhi you can reach kathmandu by road
.from Kathmandu you can rech Salagram by Helicopter. The Helicopter
are arranged by tour organisers. This will take about 40 - 50 minutes
.
The total cost from DElhi to Salagram and
back will be about Rs 20,000/- per head.Apart from Salagram the trip includes
Ayodhya , naimisharanyam also. In this arrnged tour food will not
be a problem.
II. you can also go to Salagram on your own
1. From Delhi you can go to Sunoli
in India - Nepal Border via Gorakhpur, either by train upto Gorakhpur or
by bus to Sunoli directly. >From Sunoli you have to cross the border by
walk or by rickshaw. Then you can take a bus to Pokhara which cost
around Rs 150/- nepali rupees.
This journey takes around 9 hours.
2. From Pokhara you can go by air to
Jomsom. This takes around 20 minutes and costs USD 25 (INR
Rs 1200/-approx).Please go by Shangrila Air and not by Royal Nepal Airlines.
>From Jomsom Muktinath(Salagram) is around 22km, which you have to trek.
THis trekking depends on how old
or young you are. I took around 9
- 10 hours , slowly looking for salagrm in the river kandaki. If
you trek in a hurry, may be you can cover the distance in about 7 hours
or so.
3. From Pokhara you can go by bus to a place known as Beni which takes 5 hrs by bus and from there you can trek to Salagram. But this trekking takes around 5 - 6 days. Since i have not tried this route i have no comments to make.
In Salagram, apart from Muktinath temple you have the following places:-
a) Jwalamukhi
b) Narasimhan Kovil
c) you can hear the river Saraswati flowing
under the earth. (I dont know how Saraswati came here, but the panditji
there told me that she descended earth thru this place).
d) 108 dhara in the temple
From Muktinath Damodar kund is around 2 days trekking , but there are no food available on the way. I did not go to Damadar kund as i was without company.
If you go on your own, food will be a problem right from Jom som till you reach salagram. But you have one big advantage, you can enjoy nature, and you can look for salagram in river kandaki. Or else you buy salagram from the shops enroute.
Best season is during March- April
Please avoid rainy season from June - July. i went to Salagram in June end during rainy season but was fortunate, as it didnt rain while trekking.
When you are in Nepal you can also visit Janakpur.
In case you need further information please feel free to send a mail
With regards
A Varada Desikan