Yusmarg

Yusmarg or Yousmarg (meaning 'Meadow of Jesus') is a hill station in the western part of Kashmir Valley in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is situated 47 km south of Srinagar the capital of the state. Yousmarg provides space for beautiful landscapes, young pine nurseries, green pastures and heart touching lotic and lentic water bodies. Nilnag, Doodhganga and a nascently created artificial dam adds more to the beauty of the meadows.Nature  has bestowed Yoususmarg with pleasant flora and fauna. Among fauna, locals claim that they often sight wolves, bears, apes, cats, aves of various types (flight as well as flightless). Among aquatic fauna, Schizothoraxic is abundant one in catch.

Geography
Yusmarg in Kashmiri means The Meadow of Jesus. It is believed by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community that Jesus came to Kashmir and stayed at Yusmarg for some time. It is an alpine valley covered with snow clad mountains and the meadows of Pine and Fir. It lies 13 km south of Charari Sharief, a town in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir. It is situated at the bank of Doodganga River which is a tributary of Jehlum River. It is located in the Pir Panjal peaks, a sub range of Himalaya. The Peaks are: the Sunset Peak and the Tatakooti Peak for which the expeditions lead from this hill station. It lies at an altitude of 2396 m above sea level.

Tourism
A trek of 4 km leads to a small lake called Nilnag, famous for its blue water. 10 km trek leads to the frozen lake in Sang-e-Safed valley, which is mostly covered by ice even during the summer. Other tourist activities include horse riding, fishing, skiing during winter and photography.

Access
Yusmarg is easily accessed from Srinagar or Srinagar Airport (SXR), the capital of Jammu and Kashmir, 47 km. The drive in under 2 hours by car or bus leads through Charari Sharief town. During winter the road sometimes gets closed due to snowfall and remains cut off from the Kashmir Valley for weeks.

COVID-19
During COVID-19, teachers of High school Kandajan in Yusmarg area started open-air community classes in order to make up for the losses due to the pandemic.