Tour de Parashar Lake, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh || First Photo Journey by Karan Gupta

Hello everyone. I may not be good with words but somehow I am going to share about one of the most exciting and memorable trip I had with my family during monsoons of 2012. The destination was Prashar lake, situated at a height of 2730 meters above sea level, 49 km north of Mandi, a buzzling town situated in Himachal Pradesh. It’s a place about which very few people know, but once anyone visits Prashar, he longs to come back again.

For convenience of visiting tourists, recently HPPWD and HP Forest Department constructed different rest houses. In addition a Trekker’s Lodge was also constructed which is more sophisticated than others.

The bookings can be done from respective offices in Mandi.
After making all the necessary arrangements including food etc. , we a group of 15 family members started from Mandi at about 4 pm. It was a risk though in monsoons because almost 25 km of road was a muddy tarmac and had become slippery, thanks to some contractor who didn’t do a good job.
As we came closer to our destination, more the chill in air increased. This was my second visit to Prashar. Earlier I had trekked almost 14 kms to reach there way back in year 2000. The route chosen was via Katindi, Kataula and last thickly populated place en route is Baghi, which is 28 kms from Mandi approximately. Till here the road condition is good. After crossing Baghi you will find lesser number of inhabitants. As you move higher, just 5 km before Prashar you will find one room mud & stone houses, inhabited by shepherds or gaddi’s as they are locally known.

We reached Prashar at 7 pm as last 14 kms of distance had to be covered in fog. The temperature was a whooping 2 degrees celcius in evening. After some tea everyone settled down in quilts and blankets, as that was no doubt the need of hour. With fog and darkness all around there was nothing to be explored nearby, so after a tasteful dinner I slept.

I woke at around 6 am in morning. The scenery outside was mesmerizing. It had rained during night. The clouds were making way for mountains to be seen. The cold didn’t stop me from getting my camera and go for a short exploration spree around. The surroundings were full of many types of flowers. The area had various types of flora.

At around 8 am it started raining again, and that is when I noticed one of our cars had a flat tyre. It was replaced then and there as chances of heavy rainfall were expected in later part of the day. At such places there are no workshops etc. so one has to come well prepared beforehand.

 Once all were ready luckily it stopped raining. We all started for the famous Prashar Rishi Temple and Lake. It’s a 15 minute walk from the rest house when you reach and gaze down to see a lake having crystal clear water and a temple premises consisting of three pagoda architecture buildings.

   

Being a Sunday the secluded place was abuzz with activity with many tourists thronging to seek blessing and enjoy their Sunday.

One can make out that how much worshipped diety is Prashar Rishi as large number of followers were seen seeking blessings.

There are two shops which serve delicious rajmah-rice and tea in vicinity of lake.

As the day was foggy, the beauty of Lake was at its best.
One must surely visit the place.    

The myth about Prashar Lake is that it was formed after Saint Rishi performed meditation here. 

The depth of the lake is still uncertain. Rumors are that the main temple is beneath the lake.  It is also said that there is a big treasure beneath the lake, but no one dares to go and find out. Once some foreign national took a dip in lake to reach the depth.  It is said that once he returned he lost his vision.