Roopkund,The Skeleton Lake

Roopkund is a place in Uttarakhand state of India, and it is the location of about three to six hundred skeletons at the edge of a lake—Skeleton Lake in the Himalayas.
The skeletons were discovered in the 1942 when a park ranger stumbled upon on one of it and find a mass grave of skeletons. At that time it was believed that the people died from an epidemic, landslides or a blizzard. The carbon dating from samples collected at that time in the 1960s vaguely indicated that the people were from the 12th century to the 15th century.In 2004 a team of Indian and European scientists set off to the location to gain more information on the skeletons.The team uncovered vital clues including jewellery, skulls, bones and a preserved body. DNA tests on the bodies revealed that there were two groups of people, a short group (probably local porters) and a taller group who were closely related. Though the numbers were not ascertained, it is believed that three to six hundred people perished. Radiocarbon dating of the bones also accurately pinpointed the time period to be in the 9th century predating the earlier inaccurate tests. After studying fractures in the skulls, the scientists in Hyderabad and London determined that the people died not of disease but of a sudden hailstorm. The hail sizes were as large as cricket balls and with no shelter in the open Himalayas all of them perished. Furthermore with the rarefied air and icy conditions, many bodies were well preserved. With landslides in the area, some of the bodies made their way into the lake.What is not determined was where the group was headed to. There is no historical evidence of any trade routes to Tibet in the area or any places of pilgrimage.National Geographic Channel is the first to learn about the latest findings on the Roopkund Lake mystery in a documentary titled Skeleton Lake. The documentary reveals the secret behind the lake’s mass grave in Uttarakhand, based on the latest anthropological and medical evidences that has been unearthed. The film claims to have finally solved a riddle that had haunted many experts for over 60 years.A possible explanation to the Mystery of skeletons

Roopkund is the destination of a religious event in Garhwal called the Nanda Jaat yatra which repeats in 12 years. The latest, at the time of writing, was in the year 2000. A ram with four horns is born and is considered as the vehicle of the Goddess which is taken through villages and finally to Roopkund. Thousands of people participate in this event, and many devotees continue their journey with the ram to Roopkund. According to the folklores, a king took part in this yatra with his entourage which had women dancers and Goddess Nanda was displeased with this. A snowstorm or an avalanche could be the reason for the skeletons in the lake.