One evening in Srinagar, I was searching the tourist destination in Kashmir on my laptop, and fortunately the word Pahalgam appeared many times. Out of curiosity, I went on reading the article on Pahalgam and believe me! the very article forced me to know more about the abode. I spoke to the manager of my resort and asked him "Where is Pahalgam?" He told me that the exotic abode is situated at the confluence of the streams flowing from Sheshnag Lake and the Lidder river. Pahalgam, at 2,130 m, was once a humble shepherd's village and has many panoramic views. "Wilson, it is 95 km from Srinagar" he added.

I visited the most intresting place the Chandanwari, that lies 16 km from Pahalgam. Chandanwari is the starting point of the Amarnath yatra which takes place every year in the month of Sawan, July-August. The destination is the Amaranth cave, believed to be the abode of lord Shiva.

I visited the Sheshnag that is about 3, 574m, 11 kms from Chandanwari, after which, 13 kms away is the last stop, Panchtarni. As I researched about the history of Pahalgam, I came to know that Mughal rulers ruled this region in the medieval period. It was later a part of the kingdom of Kashmir, which was ruled by local Hindu rulers. Unbelievably, this princely state remained independent even during the British period and later on merged into independent India.

It in fact offered me to spend my time ...fishing. Believe me! I had great fun in doing that. I had to take fishing license from the Directorate of Fisheries in Srinagar.

Pahalgam is the starting point of a number of trekking and hiking trails to the surrounding mountains. I also trekked around Pahalgam that was quite exhilarating. It enable me to explore through virgin pine forests, clear mountain streams, and meadows of wildflowers.