As the car began to rumble ahead of the famed rest point on the way to Gulmarg, I got a cue to put
more pressure on the pedal to reach to the top. I wasn’t keen to stop but my fellow passenger who
happens to be my friend insisted. So I stopped, got down and a cool breeze of air wafted through my
hair and my loose shirt.
The cool winds were waiting for us to cool down and my Maruti 800. ‘Zig Mode’ called in common
parlance gives you the view of the world that is far away from the hustle and bustle of the city life.
The long range of Pirpanchal in the western Himalayas are covered with snow for the most part of the
year. A view away from the reality and yet real. To the left of the ‘Zig mode’ a deep gorge and a flowing
Ferozpura Nalla emanates a desire from within to go down and to touch those white waters.
To the extreme left of the view at the Zig, Gulmarg Wild Life Sanctuary stands tall and welcoming to
budding wildlife photographers and adventurers. Also known as Gulmarg Biosphere Reserve, you can
watch Brown Bear, Hangul, Musk Dear and sometimes all of them partying in the jungles of the
Pirpanchal. So to party in the wild with the rarest of the rare, you have to choose the time when you
visit the site. September to March for the animals to watch them doing fun with the nature and March
to May to watch the rarest of rare birds like Griffon Vulture, Monal, Snow Cock, Koklas, Blue Rock
Pigeon, Kashmir Roller, and European Hoopoe.
Back to the ‘Zig Mode’, one gets the first view of the Khilanmarg. The snow covered mountains, the fir
and pine trees sooth your eyes and your mind as they sooth the environment around them.
While stopping at the Zig, the cherry on the top is the Kehwa restaurant by the Tourism Development
Corporation of the state. Sipping Kehwa and imbibing the cool breeze is the experience of the heaven
only. On the way to the small restaurant you may trample the wild flowers and will have to dodge the
wild monkeys as they welcome you to the place.