At five in the morning on Wednesday, the first batch of 3,000 registered Amarnath pilgrims were given an official send off from Jammu. They will take both the traditional Pahalgam route, which is 45 kilometre long, and the shorter Baltal route to reach the holy Amarnath shrine, situated at an altitude of over 3,800 metre, about 140 km from Srinagar. The pilgrims say they are thrilled.
