Kesar Yon Chap
District Lahaul & Spiti, Himachal Pradesh
Position – N33 02.300 E76 47.794
Altitude –3983 metres
Part of Treks:
Kesar Yon Chap is a category in itself. Its not a village but thats not a big deal. I have written about temporary shop stops on trails before. Kesar Yon Chap is not that either. Its just a place you can potentially camp on your way to Kang La. Its the last time you camp on hard ground before you cross Kang La. Anything after this is a rocky and cold moraine or a chilled glacier. So, it forms a strange subject for an article on a place but thats beside the point. The place is captivating and interesting enough to write about.
From what I figured, the name Kesar Yon Chap comes from Tiebtan for 7 holy waters. It owes its name to 7 small, shallow ponds of fresh, cool, spring water. Miyar valley, the home of Kesar Yon Chap is an imposing, wide valley. All the waters are supplied by Miyar and its associate glaciers, are tinged with muddy hues, are violent torrents and exceedingly cold. As you start walking from Urgus and get deeper into Miyar valley, you encounter violent stream upon violent stream of mud tinged water surrounded by imposing snow laden peaks. They are violently beautiful. You often think many times before fording one. Many times you feel one could just carry you away. Sometimes your belongings do get carried away. By the 4th day, violent waters are the norm. You may even start getting tired of them. And then, just when you are preparing for entering an unforgiving moraine and walking on a cold glacier, Kesar Yon Chap happens. It comes out of nowhere. One moment, its one of the numerous campgrounds you are walking on. Up straight ahead is the boulder strewn moraine. Suddenly, you see a clear pond of greenish blue water, 6-7 feet 
deep, 30 metres long, 15 metres wide. Its calm and serene. 10 metres futher, there is another one, a little smaller. You walk around amongst the boulders and there are 7 of them. By now, having forded quite a few feet numbing streams, you dont dare put your feet or hands into them. Then you pick up some courage and its just cool, maybe even slightly warm. The morale changes. You have just walked 2 hours and decide to camp here.
Its after going through this experience that you understand the name. The water is indeed holy. Its warmer than the surroundings, its calmer, more serene and so much more friendly. That it so beautifully enhances the magical surroundings is no wonder. It shows you a world within another world. There is the reality and there is the reflection. There are the surroundings and there is Kesar Yon Chap.
Camping at Kesar Yon Chap is a wonderful experience. There is the cool water from the ponds to bathe in, have a drink from and just stare in. As the sun goes across the sky, light plays its tricks on the greenish waters and the surroundings reflect in myriad ways. There are 7 of them. You take your pick and stare at the one of your choice or you do a round of all. Looking South, the valley extends miles downstream and the horizon is lined by beautiful peaks. The slopes on either side of the valley are dotted by herds of sheep. As the evening sets in and nature starts going to sleep, the sheep come back home bleating softly to the long whistles of the shepherds. It starts to get cold and silence sets in. The noise of landslides on the moraine can be heard from far away, as can be some avalanches. All through this, the ponds retain their sanity and remain as calm as ever. Its as if nature wants to remind mortals of the virtues of being patient and yourself amongst the troubles of the world.
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