The vast expanse of the unsympathetic yet romantic Thar Desert embodies a sense of the timeless, the feeling that the past is always present. And with good reason. As part of the Silk Road—a 2,000-year-old trading route that connected China to Turkey and Italy via India and central Asia—the Thar was once witness to a mirage more improbable than water: Colourful caravans travelling across the desert expanse laden with spices, silk, tapestries, precious stones and bronze ornaments, led by wealthy merchants from China, the Middle East and even Egypt, who had bet their lives and fortunes on surviving the desert.
Battling not only the risk of being robbed on the way, but also facing treacherous terrain, the merchants and their retinue required frequent rest stops in between. These places of rest, which carried the promise of safe haven, were called caravanserais, and provided water and food, animals for trade, and respite from the harsh trail for a night or two.
About 400 years ago, Jaisalmer in Rajasthan became one such frequent pit stop for the travellers who preferred to cut across 320,000 sq km of the Thar rather than traverse the Pamir Mountains of Central Asia. Centuries later, their history and stories have faded from memory, but the desert remembers. The remnants of abandoned villages, fortresses and havelis can be found on a 50-km trail—organised by the fort-hotel Suryagarh—across the settlements of Khaba, Kuldhara, Kanoi and Lakhmana in and around Jaisalmer.
The genesis of the trail began in 2010, when Manvendra Singh, managing director of the Jaipur-headquartered MRS Group (which has businesses in hospitality, infrastructure and mining), was building Suryagarh, a boutique property about 12 km outside Jaisalmer city. Every evening, the 27-year-old would explore the surrounding desert to learn more about the area that would house his hotel. “The countryside has always fascinated me, and Jaisalmer’s scrub desert didn’t seem to hold anyone’s interest but mine. I found it quite beautiful and very revealing,” says Singh.
The cenotaphs at the Kuldhara cemetery date back to medieval times
What he discovered in unnamed settlements were not just ruins, but vestiges of a surprisingly well-preserved legacy. In order to delve deeper and discover the stories behind these structures, he engaged with geologists, archaeologists, historians and locals. Compelled to know more, Singh travelled to remote parts of Rajasthan “to talk to old folk”, the unofficial repository of oral history. As his SUV made tracks and grooves in the desert, the idea of offering tourists some of these extraordinary stories he’d accumulated began to take root. Today, Suryagarh’s Desert Trail allows guests the opportunity to immerse themselves in this chapter of Jaisalmer’s history.
Suryagarh prompts you to take a step back in time: The stunning 40-acre property has been built using architectural cues from old forts and Paliwal temples in and around Jaisalmer. Its ramparts, moat, carved pillars and even the lattice work are emblematic of the region. With its quiet luxury, the boutique hotel offers guests a respite from Jaipur’s rather aggressive brand of tourism. After exploring the property, I spent my first day doing what most visitors to the city do. I visited the Jaisalmer Fort (Sonar Quila), Gadsisar Lake and Patwon Ki Haveli and experienced dune bashing (a form of off-roading).
The next morning, after a halwai breakfast (the hotel’s speciality) of kachori, samosa, chaat and perfectly sticky gulab jamun, I clambered into an SUV, and embarked on the Desert Trail. With Singh as my guide, myths and legends got a new lease of life; old tales became plausible; cemeteries seemed to hold great treasure and temples in the middle of nowhere became landmarks of culture. Above all, I was afforded a lens through which the Silk Route with its hefty history became visible.
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