Junagadh – Many steps are going up and down

11. December 2024

 

 

But we took the cable car for the long stretch. I wanted to hike all the metres up to the 1,050 m high Girnar Hill, but had imagined a beautiful nature trail. However, as it is a pilgrimage mountain, there were only steps here too – and as you had to climb a lot more at the top anyway, I decided against it.

 

The mountain is completely plastic-free, i.e. you are not allowed to take plastic bags with you. So wrapped muesli bars or something like that are fine, but my toilet paper in the plastic bag to prevent it from getting tattered was sorted out. That means the plastic bag, not the toilet paper.

 

The cable car, which is actually a typical skier’s capsule, is very new. To be more precise, the newest in India. And also the longest. It took a while to build. Because the mountain is so high and also a pilgrimage destination, there were a lot of these ppeople-porters who – justifiably – feared for their jobs. They were then promised compensation and shops were financed, which they can now use to make a living. There were also protesting bird conservationists, but they were rejected in court. We actually saw a long-billed vulture. And of course Modi was after this fancy project and inaugurated it in 2020. In any case, it was a bit strange to float upwards so elegantly in the basically bustling Pilgrim India.

 

Start

 

drive

 

view back

 

view down on steps

 

Temple nearly on top

 

At the top there is a kind of mountain ridge with several prominent peaks. There were temples on the next two and in between you had to go a long way down before climbing up again. This map shows that a bit. So our destination was the Dattatreya temple.

 

map

 

But first we went to the Ambaji temple with the fewest steps. Even though there are a few Jain temples here, it is mainly a Hindu pilgrimage hill. In Jain temples, there are always statues of deities or saints that are worshipped. In Hindu temples, there is usually a priest next to the statues or whatever else is being worshipped. Ceremonies are held and there are incense sticks and flowers and somehow it’s always a bit of a mess.

 

1. Temple

 

outdoor-temple

 

Then you could have a very good view of the 2nd mountain peak with the temple:

 

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First you had to climb down quite far and then climb back up in a semi-circle. You could also have your photo taken with the beautiful view. The utensils you found to go with it were guitars and guns. Quite strange.

 

Utensils

 

Result

 

The steps were very narrow and many people were already making their way up and down, including the frail and elderly at a very slow pace. A few people used porter services here too, which was not easy given the narrow steps, the steepness and the crowds.

 

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It was much warmer than I expected and I felt unwell on the way back up the steps. I rested for a long time in the shade at a water supply point and then dragged myself up to the cable car, where I rested even longer and drank a Coke. I was overcome by a shiver. I became ill.

 

supply stall

 

It was really inconvenient and made travelling difficult and all that. And in order to keep going, I fought it with paracetamol – and to tell already by now: it worked. With the ‘doping’ and a runny nose, I managed the next 2 days quite well and then it was gone again. But first we took the cable car back down, checked into the hotel, had lunch and a rest. And then we set off again.

 

The hotel was ugly in design, but very comfortable

 

Incidentally, the Junagadh district experienced a somewhat turbulent history during the founding of India and Pakistan. When independence was declared, it belonged to Pakistan despite being 90% Hindu. 3 months later it was occupied by India. After a further 3 months, this was virtually authorised and it then officially belonged to India. However, Pakistan often still marked it on maps as belonging to itself.

 

There is a large fort in Junagadh. We walked to it on foot because there were building sites everywhere. I really enjoyed that – up until then, I had definitely missed out on strolling around.

 

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However, the fort surprised us with early closing times. We were only allowed to go into a small area with a great gate and an impressive well, to which you had to go down and up many many steps again. But it was really impressive what they had built. I didn’t manage to get any good photos though.

 

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We had more success with the uniquely designed Islamic mausoleums. The so-called Mahabat Maqbara Palace complex was built at the end of the 19th century. With ‘fake’ minarets, Gothic-style elements and onion domes, the ensemble looks very unique.

 

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Since Somnath, our tour group had grown by 1 man: Sanket. He is a local guide who is a bit long-winded but can tell funny stories. In the next blog post, I will introduce all my company in a little more detail. That day we had to continue resting.