I have been born and brought up in Himachal, and so love for high hills is in my blood, but the way hills of Shimla have been converted into concrete jungles and the murderous attacks on the otherwise tranquil forests made me to explore areas which were still virgin..... (oooppssss.. I love virgins too.....) and still had the serenity one expects at the hills.
My desire made me to go on a hunt for higher Himalaya and landed me in the lap of Kinnaur district.
Going in a car (strictly with a local driver) on the twisty roads above Shimla is fun for advanterous souls. But I would prefer car/jeep for such route rather than buses due to their scanty availability and I could not find any luxury buses plying at the rout above Shimla region.
A car with an expert driver is the best solution.
As you go up from Shimla, leaving Kufri behind, reaching Narkanda, you would witness the breeze of high altitude . And ironically after Narkanda (say 65 kilometers from Shimla) one has to desend again to a lower height. There is almost a desend of 35 kilometres from Narkanda and you reach Kingal/KumarSein villages.
The refreshing fast flowing Sutlej river welcomes you with its breath taking views. During the desend this river is visible like a glistening serpant on the move.
From Kingal/Kumarsen, the road and the river flow side by side. The river is a dividing line between Shimla and Kullu districts. ANd one can see small woodden bridges and pulley bridges (a person sits in a basket attached to rope and is pulled to other side of the river with human force.... advanterius but very risky, not recommended for people with weak heart)
The road moves about 30 kilometres with te river through the rocky mountains having a little vegetation as compared to Shimla -Narkanda route.
At then you reach Rampur Bushahr.
WE stayed at Rampur Bushahr, a small town on the bank of River Sutlej.
This town boasts of being a Royal state, King of Bushahr Riyasat, Raja Padam Singh , ruled from here. In the heart of town there is a Woodden Palace of the King(though not open for public viewing from inside)
There are ample Hotel facilities at Rampur Bushahr. Hotel Sutlej View, Hotel Bhagwati, Hotel Indra Palace offer economical rooms with almost all the modern facilities.
If you visit Rampur in November, remember t book your room in advance as rooms are all booked due to LAVI MELA which starts in first week and ends in second/third week of November.
After Rampur, at about 8 kilometres, there is located the most renowned Nathpa Jhakri Dam.
Remember to refill the petrol here.
After Jhakri, the ascend starts, a bit steep, 21 kilometres ahead there is JURI and further from here starts the Kinnur district.
At Juri, one of the diversion of roadsbends backwards to Sarahan. A quiet serene place having a HOLY BHEEMA KAALI TEMPLE. This is a temple mainly built with wood and having some gold plating. SOme years ago, animal sacrifice was also performed here (now banned). This beautiful temple has many powers as told by the locals here and also controls all the spirits of the region.
To go to Sarahan, we had to divert from our original route for 21 kilometers on side. There from the temple, we saw a 32 metre high rock, resembling Shivlinga on the Shri Parvat. A Sarahan there is SriKhand Hotel which offeres reasonable rooms at very economical prices.
Sarahan also has ITBP head quarters and when we went there we had to procure passes from the head Quarters. These can also be had from Shimla SDM office, and from Rampur Bushahr office after showing the identity proof. I must appreciate the honesty and speed at which the passes were issued to us.
THANK YOU HImachal for having such and honest bribe free offices......
Anyways after Juri you would find yourself surrounded with rocky moutains with less forests.
After Juri there is Tapri / Karcham townships serving cho-cho, momo dishes (eat at your own risk) with traditional noodles and some non-veg delicacies having intestines of cattle mainly he-goat.
Yaks could also be seen there offering rides to tourists.
From there you may divert for Sangla Valley which again has vegetation and is a wide view of the hills forming part of the scenery.
Banjara camps are there which can be booked from HP Tourism counters at Chandigarh Bus-stand or from The Mall, Shimla.
From Sangla, you may test your trekking skill and walk upto Chitkul, a breathtaking 7 kilometres walk .
The water falls and rivers accompany you all along your journey
The rocky mountains, the twisting waters , the simple locale, the traditionally dressed people....... all add charm to the journey.
The sun sets and sun rise at Sangla are very beautiful. And remember the darkness fills the atmosphere suddenly after the sun ,elts into its crimson colours.
This tour would take about 3-4 days and keep your blood pressure tablets ready with you during the trip.
And those having asthama or breathing problems at high altitude may take the preventive medical kits and MUST NOT try trekking there.
You may be tempted to walk when you find yourself at an altitude of5000 metres above sea level at many places.
Beware of winds and rolling stones that sometimes come running down from the hills (though a rare occurance insummers)
Please avoid going there in rains as roads are blocked due to land slides.
In winters the tempratures may dip to -15 degree cellcious.
Best time to visit is March-May or September-November(upto first week).
The lands are still virgin from the EVIL clutches of modern civilisation. And I hope all the visitors would help preserve the same in its Natural grandeur
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Hi Buddy Baatcheet,
In April it would be cold , expecially in morning......
If you are going from Shimla, then folow the route Shimal-Narkanda-Rampur as on this route the road is quite good till Jhakhri. Then the STEEP accent starts .
Sharp turns and twists..... but yeah the season is good , a bit of land slides near Sangla are expected.
Everything else in this April season would be fine
Take care of petrol and medicines for dysentry and water infection as these are common for tourists at such places
yashasvi
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Very informative article. We are planning 9 day biking trip to Sangla in April. DO you think it will be very cold there. What about the roads. Are they good enough to drive down.
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