The Road trip to Sarahan, Chitkul, Shangla and Kalpa -Kinnaur Valley, Himachal Pradesh
After a long 18 hours travel from Delhi Airport, we reached Sarahan, one of the remotest villages in Shimla District and located 5,000 feet above the sea level. The journey was quite pleasant despite it was tiresome and bumpy throughout the route. Sun was about to set when we reached the village and unbearable cold air started to blow hard. We realized that we couldn’t cope with it and rushed to board the guest house. On the other side, we were exhausted and could not move an inch. We munched delicious hot Tandoori roti with subji and slept like a log after a prolonged journey to mighty Himalayas!
On the next day morning, the view of snow caped mountains was alluring since tangible clouds were hovering around them. I couldn’t take my eyes off the ranges of mountains for a while despite it was cold. After a short walk, we entered into the magnificent door of Bimkali temple, dedicated to the mother goddess “Bimkali”, presiding deity of the rulers of former Bushahr and unusual architecture was the prime highlight. The lust green environment along with the smell of different varieties of flora and fauna attracted us the most.
After climbing down from Sarahan, it lead us to the curvy road adjacent to Sutlej River. It was not all smooth but river flowing through the valley of mesmerizing mountains was an eye capture. Often it was drizzling and cloudy, we couldn’t resist ourselves to move out of our cab to cherish the moment with nature for a while. The drive from Sarahan to Sangla was an absolute treat for Nature lovers but one must feel it. Sangla, an intriguing village bounded with snow clad mountains and one can experience the purest form of life despite it is filled with hardship.
A 28km bumpy up hill drive from the town of Sangla in the Kinnaur district lead us to Chitkul, the last village on the indo-Tibet boarder and the highest inhibited village in the sangla valley. The road along the valley was extremely amazing with the Baspa river dividing the snow clad Himalayan peaks on the left , the apple orchids and the wooden houses with wooden plank roofs on the right.
Chitkul at first glance gave us a feeling of time travel, way back into the past. The village has no cell phone coverage, No ATM, No market but a couple of home run shops selling basic necessities. After a long search, we boarded an old house turned into guest house but it was quite creepy. Our eating options were very limited to handful of dhabas and restaurant that serves maggi, rice and dal and I recalled that memories in Chitkul was lingering around my mind and it seems like never fading moments that one has to experience.
While walking around the villages on the next day morning, I bumped into numerous friendly locals who greeted with a broad smile and documented few images. The village of Chitkul is surely a must visit for anyone looking to explore to explore hidden gems of India . The village doesn’t offer much from the tourist point of view but is a place everyone who consider themselves a travelers will fall in love with
On the way to kalpa, we halted and captured this mesmerizing sunset
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