Patnitop is located in the Lower Himalayan Range close to the Pir Panjal range, 47 km from Udhampur and 112 km from Jammu. This famous hill resort is perched on a beautiful plateau, at an altitude of 2024 m across which the Jammu-Srinagar Highway passes.
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| The hill station Patnitop [Shutter speed: 1/60 sec; F-stop: f/4; ISO: 80; Focal length: 6 mm] |
Patnitop is a hilltop tourist location in Udhampur district in Jammu and Kashmir state of India on National Highway 1A 112 km from Jammu on the way from Udhampur to Srinagar. Situated on a plateau in the Shiwalik belt of the Himalayas, Patnitop sits at an altitude of 2,024 m (6,640 ft). The river Chenab flows in close proximity to this location.
Recently I visited the place for two days. One day I found cloudy weather & another one is a sunny day. The above picture was taken on the sunny day. But the beauty of the hill station was entirely different on a cloudy day...
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| The magic of cloud [Shutter speed: 1/80 sec; F-stop: f/3.5; ISO: 80; Focal length: 20 mm] |
My this visit to the Patnitop is not a pre-planed one, we went to the hill station for a break at afternoon. But I can ensure you that if you miss the place, your Kashmir visit was incomplete.
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| Can u guess this? Either fog or cloud...! [Shutter speed: 1/60 sec; F-stop: f/3.5; ISO: 80; Focal length: 18 mm] |
Enveloped by thickly wooded Cedar/Deodhar forests, Patnitop offers beautiful picnic spots, peaceful walks and breathtaking views of the mountainscape of the Chenab basin. A variety of natural vegettion was found at this place. These are some different trunks in Ceder forest.
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| Can you hold this trunk by your hands? [Shutter speed: 1/60 sec; F-stop: f/2.8; ISO: 80; Focal length: 6 mm] |
Patnitop is popular among honeymoon couples for its tranquil location and adventure sports like paragliding. The legend behind Patnitop is that the region had several ponds where the princess took bath and one such pond still exists close to the youth hostel here.
After looking at some trunks you will be surely confused that is this a single tree or 2 to 3 trees are grown together!
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| Just look at this... [Shutter speed: 1/50 sec; F-stop: f/3.5; ISO: 250; Focal length: 14 mm] |
The best way to enjoy its beauty is to take natural walk along the trails the region has to offer. There are three gushing mountain springs known for medicinal properties and hence considered as the holy. It is also credited with the title of being 'The Hub of Adventure Tourism', with a wide gamut of adventure sports and activities such as paragliding, golfing, skiing and trekking, etc. The Holy Shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi is just 39 km away from Patnitop.
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