Roopkund

Nestled in the lap of the western Himalayas, this glacial lake appears to glint under the moonlight, its icy sheen a facade for what lies underneath. As the morning sun melts some of the ice away, it reveals an unsettling mass of skeletal remains. This is the Roopkund Lake, a bewildering secret that belies the pristine beauty of the Himalayas. Years after the British unearthed the skeletons and speculated that they were likely martyred Japanese soldiers, a reserve ranger stumbled upon these bones. The mystery unraveled dramatically, and a climactic study by National Geographic revealed that the skeletons were the casualties of a wild hailstorm that occurred more than a millennium ago, circa 9th Century CE. Today, this lake attracts a sizable tourist crowd, mainly consisting of hikers and trekkers who attempt to scale the Trishul and Nanda Ghunti peaks of the Himalayas. With the history and mystique surrounding this lake and its remains, this spot is one of the top spots for dark tourism in India.