This post is part of a series on ‘Walks in India‘.
Place: Khuri
Highlights: Camel Safari, Village Life in remote Rajasthan, quiet and beautiful sand dunes, sunset point
Season: November to February, when it is not hot.
Time of the day: Evening – 4.30pm to 6.30pm
Distance: Approximately 3kms
Difficulty: Easy
Map. This is an indicative map. Not accurate and not to scale. Khuri is an hour’s drive from Jaisalmer, and can be accessed by buses.
The Walk.
Khuri Village is approximately 40kms from Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. The village is surrounded by sand-dunes, and has a few basic home-stays.
Begin the walk from Khuri village. Walk along the small mud-houses, seeing life in the village. Along the untarred road, you can see men squatting in front of the house chattering, children playing, a few camel being tended by their owners and cows lazing, while the women work in the house. Talk to the villagers – they are friendly and open – and get to know more about their lives.
The village has a handicrafts store where you can have a look at crafts material made by local artisans. There is a pottery house near the handicrafts store, where you can see a few men working with soil. Watch them prepare the mud, spin the wheel and bring out fine shapes from a lump of soil.
Leave the village behind and walk towards sand dunes. You walk through a plane area with a few shrubs here and there. Look out for birds here – you will see a lot of them chirping and fluttering. Most common are sparrows and White Cheeked Bulbuls.
A kilometer’s walk will take you to the sand dunes. Get on it and walk around at will. The fine sand is a pleasure to walk on, as your feet sinks at every step. You can find beauty in the patterns made by wind on the sand next to you, or in the expanse of the desert stretching far into the horizon. You will spot a few sprinting Black Bucks if you are lucky.
There would be a few camel drivers walking with their beasts, looking for customers for joy-rides. If you have never been on a camel, use the opportunity. Where-ever you are, return to the sunset point at the eastern part of the ridge when the sun is about to set. You can see a long stretch of the golden sand of the dunes from here as the sun is moves below the horizon.
After watching the sunset, walk back to the village, where the walk ends.
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Lovely series Arun.
Oh, these pictures of the sand dunes are absolutely gorgeous.
At the this rate, I’ll have walked all of india without being there!
Very nice pictures! The sand dunes remind me of Gobi desert
Thanks Mridula, indicaspecies and marin.
Matt, it is not worth it, not being here