The shrine is managed by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) who are doing a stupendous effort. I was particularly very impressed with the communication, facilities and cleanliness through out. :)))
How I get there ?
After taking an overnight train journey from Karnal to Jammu, there is a 3 hour on road journey(bus/taxi) to The Katra. This is the base camp where all the pilgrims assemble to start the 13 km hike up the hill to The Bhavan. This is the main place of worship and has the holy cave which has the manifestation of Mother Goddess - Mata Maha Kali, Mata Maha Lakshmi and Mata Maha Saraswati.
This was the second visit for me .People says when mata calles you then noone can stop you,same happened with me .I had no plans til thrusday evening then all a sudden I got to know that friday is a day off from office.In the evening I made a call to one of my friend and he informed there is a ticket available for Vaishno Devi.I was very happy with the info .I talked to my parents ...Request approvel from their side :D :P
Finally the Journey begins at 11:45pm .
Papa asked , " pack your bags we'll have to rush for Railway Station",And all a sudden my mata at home ;) showed interest that she also want to come along.So after some small talks we started for Station around 00:03 am .As we reached there I was shocked!!!! As Jammu Tavi was about to leave from platform.
I was again a multitasker!!!!
I was laughing and running behind the train ..I stopped as d train went away...I made a call to my friend n asked where they are finally I took a deep breath as that was not the same Jammu tavi I had to catch.
Finally around 12:56 train arrived and after 1 min I was with my friends .We had some gosip session for 30 mins den finally we all voted to sleep :))))
Reached Jammu by 8pm in the morning ...We went to our bhai's(proud Tcser Sandeep ) home :)))))
Had our brunch at bhai's place and stated for Patnitop(In Lokesh's words we were moving to Patni top without patnies {wives}lol ).We started with pehla dershan temple ...
When We reached to Patnitop the only voice came outof my mind was
Oh! God ! It Is Green All Over..
Patnitop offers a beautiful picnic spots, peaceful walks and breathtaking views of the mountainscape.We played corners with the trees and as always had a photo shot :))))
How I get there ?
After taking an overnight train journey from Karnal to Jammu, there is a 3 hour on road journey(bus/taxi) to The Katra. This is the base camp where all the pilgrims assemble to start the 13 km hike up the hill to The Bhavan. This is the main place of worship and has the holy cave which has the manifestation of Mother Goddess - Mata Maha Kali, Mata Maha Lakshmi and Mata Maha Saraswati.
This was the second visit for me .People says when mata calles you then noone can stop you,same happened with me .I had no plans til thrusday evening then all a sudden I got to know that friday is a day off from office.In the evening I made a call to one of my friend and he informed there is a ticket available for Vaishno Devi.I was very happy with the info .I talked to my parents ...Request approvel from their side :D :P
Finally the Journey begins at 11:45pm .
Papa asked , " pack your bags we'll have to rush for Railway Station",And all a sudden my mata at home ;) showed interest that she also want to come along.So after some small talks we started for Station around 00:03 am .As we reached there I was shocked!!!! As Jammu Tavi was about to leave from platform.
I was again a multitasker!!!!
I was laughing and running behind the train ..I stopped as d train went away...I made a call to my friend n asked where they are finally I took a deep breath as that was not the same Jammu tavi I had to catch.
Finally around 12:56 train arrived and after 1 min I was with my friends .We had some gosip session for 30 mins den finally we all voted to sleep :))))
Reached Jammu by 8pm in the morning ...We went to our bhai's(proud Tcser Sandeep ) home :)))))
Had our brunch at bhai's place and stated for Patnitop(In Lokesh's words we were moving to Patni top without patnies {wives}lol ).We started with pehla dershan temple ...
When We reached to Patnitop the only voice came outof my mind was
Oh! God ! It Is Green All Over..
Patnitop offers a beautiful picnic spots, peaceful walks and breathtaking views of the mountainscape.We played corners with the trees and as always had a photo shot :))))
Its been a wonderful experrience but as we moved from Patnitop to katra we had some problem in the car ..Our driver contacted a person der he informed main nut of our car,which support the engine had broken down.I started remembering MATA N PITA (Vaishno mata n BABA ji ;) at the same time .....
With d blessings of mata our driver decided to move slowly ... we were running late finally after couple of hours we reached Katra had our dinner.Bhai collected our yatra receipt,It is of utmost importance to collect this receipt because this is your ticket to entry to the Bhavan later.
and started around 11:15pm for Bhawan with mata ka jaikara :))
jaikaa sherawaali ka !!bol saache darbaar ki jai !!
joor se bolo jai mata di !!
mein nae unya jai mata di!!
baanganga !
Paani thanda!
maa aradh kuwari!
lage pyari!
jai mata di!!!
:)))
n finally sumthing interested added by bhai
Nakul bole,jai mata di!
lokki meri jaan ,jai mata di!
rajni bole ..jai mata di !
Happy pehelwaan ,jai mata di !
saare bole ..jai mata di !
milker bolo ,jai mata di!!
If you are not interested in hiking from Katra to Bhavan, then alternatively you can ride a pony, palki (palanquin) or even a helicopter ride. A mix-and-match where you ride the pony oneway and walk the other way is also available. Or you can also hire a pithoo (porters) who will carry your luggage from Katra to Bhavan and vice versa. The biggest majority of devotees walk all the way up & down and backpack their change of clothes or goodies (that may include prasad - offering to the Godess) to be offered at the Bhavan.
The hike can be done on the paved path (very well maintained) or up the stairs (shorter distance but steep and tiring). The paved path and stairs meet at certain points. However one particular stairs have 529 steps, before an exit, so make sure to watch out for that (marked before the stairs) before you venture.In our Toli some of our bhakat frnds went through Stairs ;) and they got very tired :((((
There are numerous food and utility shops through out the hike. And then of course there are Dhabas (street-side restaurants) which serve complete meal. And the best part we have CCD and many soft drink stalls in between. :))))
As we were moving for the bhavan ....Danced on the rythm of dhol ,every one was very energetic and was in their fullest ....jai mata di ..jai mata di ...all over the place the golden words were echoed........
Finally after lots of breaks and easy going sessions we reached at bhavan by 4:30am ..
After worshipping at the Bhavan, you head over to Bhairon Mandir (Bhairon Temple). A visit to this temple is skipped by a few devotees because of a further higher altitude and steepness of the hike. This is the highest elevation (approx 6600 feet) in the entire trip. Make sure to carry your camera to capture some picturesque view of the Himalayas.
And finally we moved to saanjichat and aradkuwari and around 5:30pm back to the taxi :)) Fully tired ...with low energy but with a feel of happiness and joy :))
With d blessings of mata our driver decided to move slowly ... we were running late finally after couple of hours we reached Katra had our dinner.Bhai collected our yatra receipt,It is of utmost importance to collect this receipt because this is your ticket to entry to the Bhavan later.
and started around 11:15pm for Bhawan with mata ka jaikara :))
jaikaa sherawaali ka !!bol saache darbaar ki jai !!
joor se bolo jai mata di !!
mein nae unya jai mata di!!
baanganga !
Paani thanda!
maa aradh kuwari!
lage pyari!
jai mata di!!!
:)))
n finally sumthing interested added by bhai
Nakul bole,jai mata di!
lokki meri jaan ,jai mata di!
rajni bole ..jai mata di !
Happy pehelwaan ,jai mata di !
saare bole ..jai mata di !
milker bolo ,jai mata di!!
If you are not interested in hiking from Katra to Bhavan, then alternatively you can ride a pony, palki (palanquin) or even a helicopter ride. A mix-and-match where you ride the pony oneway and walk the other way is also available. Or you can also hire a pithoo (porters) who will carry your luggage from Katra to Bhavan and vice versa. The biggest majority of devotees walk all the way up & down and backpack their change of clothes or goodies (that may include prasad - offering to the Godess) to be offered at the Bhavan.
The hike can be done on the paved path (very well maintained) or up the stairs (shorter distance but steep and tiring). The paved path and stairs meet at certain points. However one particular stairs have 529 steps, before an exit, so make sure to watch out for that (marked before the stairs) before you venture.In our Toli some of our bhakat frnds went through Stairs ;) and they got very tired :((((
There are numerous food and utility shops through out the hike. And then of course there are Dhabas (street-side restaurants) which serve complete meal. And the best part we have CCD and many soft drink stalls in between. :))))
As we were moving for the bhavan ....Danced on the rythm of dhol ,every one was very energetic and was in their fullest ....jai mata di ..jai mata di ...all over the place the golden words were echoed........
Finally after lots of breaks and easy going sessions we reached at bhavan by 4:30am ..
After worshipping at the Bhavan, you head over to Bhairon Mandir (Bhairon Temple). A visit to this temple is skipped by a few devotees because of a further higher altitude and steepness of the hike. This is the highest elevation (approx 6600 feet) in the entire trip. Make sure to carry your camera to capture some picturesque view of the Himalayas.
And finally we moved to saanjichat and aradkuwari and around 5:30pm back to the taxi :)) Fully tired ...with low energy but with a feel of happiness and joy :))
I slipped to the back seat and some how manage to sleep in breaks :P
My legs were shivering like anything :(( We went to Maharaja gulaab singh Palace too ..but unfortunatly we were late and doors to musium were closed.
At last after lil bit shopping and lots of sleeping in the taxi frm my side ;)
we reached to Jammu Railway station by 8pm..had our dinner :P
and by 9:30pm we were in the train ...............
I was in a differnet world of dreams after 15 mins :)
woke up by 7:30am in the morning and finally reached Gurgaon at 12:45pm :))))
I really enjoyed the trip :)))
dos were some unforgettable days I had :)
Happy:))
