Parrots, Camels, Monkeys, Francolins. Hiking in Pushkar, India

There are many opportunities for hiking around Pushkar - trails up rocky peaks, normally leading to a Hindu shrine or temple. One of them is Gayatri Mata Temple, which you can see right from the shores of sacred Pushkar lake:

And that's a view from another mountain trail:

The route starts at the edge of (this pretty small) town, as a staircase separating from a residential alley, turning into a pathway through a wood:

A view from a higher point:

The wood is inhabited by birds, for example, doves:

I also encountered cool feathered critters I had never seen before, except in Jodhpur, where I spotted one out of the corner of my eye and wasn’t even sure I hadn’t imagined it...

Francolins! Yummy-looking birds, I couldn't even see them until they started running from me in panic.

The trail led up the hill through rocks,

covered with shrubs and euphorbias,

and decorated with stand-alone low-growing trees.

I wasn't surprised when I realized there were not many birds on the top of the hill - arid area, mostly rocks and stones, and no natural sources of water.

However, I spotted sunbirds eating flower nectar, and another species that I couldn't identify.

Someone scattered seeds by the shrine on the hilltop and thus attracted ubiquitous Indian palm squirrels.

A true prize for those who weren't lazy to climb that rocky hill:

A lovely view of Pushkar town and its lake.

I was returning to the town when I noticed a group of grey langurs:

So cool monkey tribe!

Shree Savitri Mata Mandir is another temple located in the rocks, and another reason to have a hike through nature.

Leaving the lakeside streets, exploring streets in the outskirts, meeting camels:

This is how they earn for living:

Ugly carts with those tire wheels... The tents are obviously meant to make them look more luxurious, lol.

Camels always look downwards...

Strange creatures...

They have stairs leading to Shree Savitri Mata Mandir and cable cars, too. I chose the stairs but quickly changed my mind and left them to explore wooded sandy hills.

And was rewarded with this trophy - a shot of rose-ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri). It didn't allow me to approach closer so I had to crop the image to get a close-up... And then, when I was going back to the town:

It just perched on the top of a tree several meters away from me... Lucky me!

The photos were taken with a Nikkor 70-300mm on a full-frame DSLR Nikon D750 in November 2025, in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India.