The Valley of the Flowers

In 1931, a party of British mountaineers - including Frank S Smythe - on their way back from a successful ascent of Mount Kamet, were looking for shelter from inclement weather in the wilderness above Joshimath in present-day Uttarakhand when they came upon the lush and colourful Bhyundar Valley, the Valley of Flowers. In the monsoon of 1937, Smythe returned to the valley with four Tibetans from Darjeeling - his climbing partners and factotums - provisions and six weeks of leisure. On this adventure, Smythe extensively explored the Valley, identifying and collecting flowers and seeds from among the wealth of plant life.