Tiger Nest Hike in Bhutan : A photostory

The world is made up of magic , and when you travel, your little heart believes it. When you first lay eyes upon the fabled Tiger Nest monastery, You can only wonder how men could achieve this feat of building up such a classic construction so high hanging on a cliff. Then you hear of the legend and you start to believe that , surely magic does exist. The story goes like Guru Padmasamabha or Rinpoche came to Bhutan, which was filled with demons back then. Spreading the holy name of Buddha and spirituality , he helped the people here to form the peaceful and serene country that today is. It was during this time , that Rinpoche with a help of a tigress flew to the caves hanging on the cliff , here in the region of Taktseng, and finally the tigress laid down making this her nest. 
In my latest exploration of Bhutan leading my amazing trip, we made a point to climb Tiger nest , and here are some glimpses of what we found while hiking there.

Since this is a sacred Buddhist sight , you might find a lot of locals climbing it with you. They believe Rinpoche still meditates there , and having the blessings from this monastery is really helpful in life. I am glad this was my third time climbing here. Adorned in their traditional wear, carrying the children on their back , it is a sight to see. It is also easily accessible, as Tiger nest is situated in upper Paro, around an hours drive in taxi from the main town, so it is inevitable to see people going up and down. 
​ A lot of people met on road stated , I must be blessed by Rinpoche and have a lot of Good karma that I could come back here , even when I don't live in this beautiful country.

The trail to Tiger nest is beautiful indeed, with a lot of nature all around. You can avail ponies or mules to climb up, but my team, as always was amazing, and we decided to take the short cut. Now short cuts are a little tricky but more beautiful always.
The total climb is around 8 kilometers. It takes in general 6 - 7 hours to go up , see the monastery and come back. It can be done faster, but my advice would be , go slow enjoy the journey too. 
You can also get to hear a lot of birds singing here and there. On patient approach , you might get to see some rare ones surely.

The monks on the trail add up to beautiful frame that you might capture with your eyes or camera. Befriending some , you get to hear a lot more stories about the tiger nest and also folk lores associated with it. This place is so famous , monks from different nations tend to visit it and find blessing from the holy sight. You can find a lot of them from Sikkim or Thailand. They are so friendly they might offer you some food , and share their beautiful laughter with you.

The door to the monastery is vibrant and colourful. Also the little kids accompanied by their father puts in perspective of the happy nation that Bhutan is. People's happiness matter most in this beautiful country and you can see or feel it in every inch of air. 
It is not permitted to click pictures inside the monastery due to some security reason and then some spiritual too.
If it was, surely , we would miss out on the calmness and vibes inside , always bothered to click pictures while going around inside. 
The last of a selfie is mandatory before you leave this place. Back at home , make a print and stick it on your wall, since Tiger Nest and its memories stay long enough as the adventures lived and blessings found here.

To plan this amazing trip in Bhutan , consult me soon.
All Pictures are copy right of photographer Shrikant Bhadrige , who traveled with me in this journey. Require prior permission to feature or use them.