Sunrise Hike to Gayatri Temple in Pushkar

It was November.
It was the onset of winter.

During the four-day trip to Pushkar, the group comprising of nine individuals decided to go for an early morning hike to Gayatri Temple located on a hilltop to watch sunrise, on the last day of our group trip. Infact one can witness both sunrise and sunset from this hilltop. Our priority was to watch the morning sunrise.

"THE BREEZE AT DAWN HAS SECRETS TO TELL YOU. DON'T GO BACK TO SLEEP."    ~RUMI

Sacrificing early morning sleep, we made the effort to get out of the bed so that we could start on time. Once we were done with the usual morning routine, we left the guesthouse around 6:00 a.m. and made our way towards the base of the hill. It was still dark. It was cold. The small town was blissfully asleep. The street was deserted. Not a soul to be seen except us. It was quiet except for the barking of the stray dogs.

The rocky hill is located behind Marwar bus stand. The hike itself is fairly easy. It has a well-marked trail with small bushes here and there. Some portions of the trail route are uneven and the last few steps are a bit steep. But this shouldn't dither you. You can take your own sweet time to climb. It took us somewhere around 30 minutes from the base of the hill to reach the top of the hill where Gayatri Temple is located. Gayatri Temple is locally called Pap Mochani Mandir. Goddess Gayatri was one of the consorts of Lord Brahma.

We crossed a small shop on the way near the base of the hill. Few guys were busy in making candy floss. A few steps further we saw a small makeshift tenthouse where a sadhu was enjoying his drag. His body was covered in ash. He had a marigold garland around his neck. There were a few posters of religious person on the sides. Two-three men were sitting next to the sadhu. A trishul was fixed right in the centre of the makeshift room.

candy floss preparation 

sadhu baba

By 6:30 a.m. we reached the top of the hill. A small concrete temple of Goddess Gayatri was right in the centre of the hilltop. The temple was nothing to write home about. It was a simple temple. Before going to the temple, we had to remove our footwear and then climb a few steps to reach the platform of the temple. A priest sat near the door of the temple. A small shivling and a small statue of Nandi was on the right side of the temple. The early morning air was filled with the pleasant scent of the burning incense sticks. Pre-dawn glow illuminated the horizon with different hues. But the morning sun was yet to show its shining face. The hilltop offered spectacular bird's eye view of Pushkar town. One could see the surrounding hills in the distant, Pushkar Lake, and the sprawling Pushkar town. It was a bit chilly at that time. Cold breeze swept our face. It was peacefully quiet. There were other travellers/visitors, too, enjoying the views and the peace and the serenity. The silence of the place was broken by the red flag fluttering in the wind and the ringing of the bells from the distant temples.

pre-dawn illumination in Pushkar

natural steep trail to Gayatri Temple

Pushkar as seen from Gayatri Temple hilltop 

shivling, Nandi, burning incense sticks 

one for the memories at Gayatri Temple hilltop

Pushkar Lake as seen from Gayatri Temple hilltop

temple flag fluttering in the morning breeze

It was a long wait before the sun showed its face slowly and slowly from behind the hills. It was a magnificent sight to watch the sunrise from the hilltop. Words can hardly describe the magic of watching the sun emerging from the horizon. As the first rays of the sun warmed us, the chill went away.

first view of the morning sun

slowly and slowly the sun rises

All of us got busy in capturing the sunrise moment. We spent an hour at the hilltop and then we bid goodbye to the place. On our way back, we met groups and families who were hiking up to the hilltop.

visitors capturing the sunrise moment

elderly folks at Gayatri Temple

Pushkar as seen from the hilltop 

some going up, some coming down

The sunrise hike in this rocky hilltop gave us a wonderful opportunity to see a different side of Pushkar in the stillness of the early morning. The hike also gave us a good cardio exercise.😉 I suggest you go for a hike to this hilltop either to watch sunrise or to watch sunset when you are in this town. The 360° views from the top are worth the climb. I highly recommend it.

Given below is the link to the must things to see and do in Pushkar and Ajmer as experienced by me:

https://thehaflonggirl.blogspot.com/2019/07/leaving-behind-my-footprints-in-pushkar.html?m=1

Thank you for stopping by!
Happy Travelling feet!

Travelled on: November 2013

©All content and images are copyright of Hema Hazarika (thehaflonggirl).