Kosi Climate / Weather           Summers 22°- 45° C. Winters 4°-32 °C
Coordinates           22.47 N 77.26 E

Best time to visit Oct to Mar

Vrindavan is a town 15km north of Mathura,and is the land where Krishna grew up and played his famous antics with his gopikas or female admirers. It is wrapped in folklore and legend, and has hundreds of small temples and ashrams.

The holy city of Mathura, is an important district town of Uttar Pradesh, located 145kms from Delhi. It is also famous for being the birthplace and abode of Lord Krishna. According to the Mahabharata, Mathura was the capital of the Surasena Dynasty, ruled by Lord Krishna's uncle Kansa. In history, it was ruled by many more dynasties like the Mauryas, and the Sungas; it was also said to be home to many Jains.

Sightseeing:
Mathura is famous for its temples and places of religious significance. Krishnajanmabhoomi, meaning Lord Krishna's birth place, is a temple built on the place said to

Main Road Highways            NH2

Nearest Train Stations           Kosi Kalan, Mathura

Nearest Airport           Delhi Airport (100 kms)

Holi
Holi heralds the beginning of spring and is celebrated with great enthusiasm all over India. According to a legend, Hiranya Kashyap, the demon who ruled over 'Sapta Deep' believed himself to be more powerful than God. He contemplated killing his youngest son Prahlad, an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu after he refused to worship him as God.

Holika, the demon's sister who possessed a divine, garment to protect her from fire, agreed to enter the burning pyre with Prahlad in her lap but got burnt herself.

Holi thus signifies the triumph of good over evil and is marked by grand festivities all over India and particularly in the Braj area where it is celebrated with great gaiety and fervour.

It is believed that Lord Krishna, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, in human form played holi with the Gopi's (cowherd maids) in the ancient past. Keeping this tradition alive in Braj, Holi celebrations last for more than a week and are marked by people sprinkling colored water & smearing colored powder on each other.

The playful teasing of the Gopis by the Gopas (cowherd boys) is enacted by groups of men and women through special Holi songs and dances, called Rasiya.

The holy city of Mathura, is an important district town of Uttar Pradesh, located 145kms from Delhi. It is also famous for being the birthplace and abode of Lord Krishna. According to the Mahabharata, Mathura was the capital of the Surasena Dynasty, ruled by Lord Krishna's uncle Kansa. In history, it was ruled by many more dynasties like the Mauryas, and the Sungas; it was also said to be home to many Jains.

Sightseeing:
Mathura is famous for its temples and places of religious significance. Krishnajanmabhoomi, meaning Lord Krishna's birth place, is a temple built on the place said


The famous Shani Dev Temple, also known as Kokilavan Dham, at Kosi Kalan near Mathura in Uttar Pradesh is believed to be the spot where Lord Krishna gave darshan to Sani Dev (God Shani). The temple is visited by thousands of devotees on Saturday (Shanivar), the day dedicated to Lord Shani. There is an interesting story associated with Lord Krishna and Shani Dev and the Kokilavan Dham.

Legend has it that when Lord Krishna was born all Devas (demi gods) visited Nandagaon. Shani Dev too came to see little Krishna but Yashoda did not let him see young Krishna. Reason Shanidev might bring bad upon Krishna.

Shani felt disappointed and went to a nearby forest and started performing austerities (tapas). He wanted to know why he was being sidelined when he is doing his duty of punishing people according to their Karma. It is said that Shani only creates trouble on those people who do bad Karma.

Moved by Shani’s plight, Lord Krishna appeared before him in the forest and asked him to stay near Nandagaon. He also granted him the boon that whoever visited his temple will be immediately freed from troubles.

In his teenage, Krishna visited the same spot and attracted gopis with the music from this flute. When the gopis arrived, Krishna appeared in the form of a Koyal (Cuckoo). That spot came to be known as Kokilavan.

Kokilavan Dham is spread over an area of 20 acres and consists of the Shani Dev Temple, Sri Dev Bihariji Temple, Gokulesh Maharaj Temple, Giriraj Temple, Navgraha Temples and Barkhandi Baba temple. There are two large pools and a Goshala (cow shelter) in the compound.

The Kokilavan Shani Temple is just six km from Kosi on the Nandgaon-Barsana road.

River rafting

River rafting, also known as White Water Rafting, is an adventure sport that challenges one’s ability to row against the current of rivers. This is usually done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water, in order to thrill and excite the passengers riding on an inflatable rubber raft. It became popular as as sport during the mid 1970s and is now the third most popular adventure sport in Nepal; after mountaineering and trekking. The Sun Koshi river (The Golden River) presents the longest river trip in Nepal, traversing 270 km (170 mi) and meandering its way through the picturesque Mahabharata range of mountains. The river rafting trip in the Sun Koshi is listed as one of the world’s top ten classic river journeys. Other rivers where this adventure sport is a popular tourist attraction in Nepal are the Kali Gandaki, the Trisuli, the Bhote Koshi, the Marsyangdi and the Karnali.[22] and [23]

A classic multi-day River trip (9 days) with around 40 rapids of grade 2-5 (Rivers are graded on a scale from one to six based on rapids and difficulties in rafting through the river) is recommended for advanced Rafters and Kayakers.[24]

Sport Fishing

The Koshi and other rivers draining the Himalayas have populations of Mahseer which are esteemed as gamefish and known as Indian Salmon. Mahseer can weigh up to 50 kg. and are said to put up a greater battle than any other type of fish of equivalent weight. They will take tied streamer flies as well as bait.

The Kosi River, called Koshi in Nepal (Nepali: कोशी नदी), is a transboundary river between Nepal and India, and is one of the largest tributaries of the Ganges. The river, along with its tributaries, drains a total area of 69,300 km2 (26,800 sq mi) up to its confluence with the Ganges in India (29,400 km2/11,400 sq mi in China, 30,700 km2/11,900 sq mi in Nepal and 9,200 km2/3,600 sq mi in India). The watershed also includes part of Tibet, such as the Mount Everest region, and the eastern third of Nepal. The river basin is surrounded by the ridges separating it from the Brahmaputra in the north, the Gandaki in the west, the Mahananda in the east, and by the Ganges in the south. The river is joined by major tributaries, approximately 48 km (30 mi) north of the Indo-Nepal border, breaking into more than twelve distinct channels with shifting courses due to flooding.[1][2] Kamlā, Bāghmati (Kareh) and Budhi Gandak are major tributaries of Koshi in India, besides minor tributaries like Bhutahi Balān.[3][4] Over the last 250 years, the Kosi River has shifted its course over 120 kilometres (75 mi) from east to west.[5] and the unstable nature of the river is attributed to the heavy silt which it carries during the monsoon season. Flooding in India has extreme effects. India is second in the world after Bangladesh in deaths due to flooding, accounting for one fifth of global flooding deaths. The Kosi River (The Sorrow of Bihar) is one of two major tributaries, the other river being Gandak, draining the plains of north Bihar, the most flood-prone area of India

Tourism Info:
UPSTDC, Rahi Tourist Bungalow
32 Civil Lines, Mathura
Ph:(0565)-2407822