3 Days in Kalpa of Himachal Pradesh !

In 2019, I took resolution to stay in a valley of the Himalayas from which the Himalayan mountains should be visible from a hotel or guesthouse in that area! Ya..! I had a strange idea, but every traveler has a different idea of ​​traveling!

This fantastic resolution was completed in November 2019! After much searching on the internet, I came across a place called Kalpa a small village in the lap of the Himalayas.

Then what ? Planning began on how to reach and the booking process began. Kalpa is a small hill village in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh, near the Kinnaur Kailash (Himalayan mountain range) and the Sutlej river.

I booked a flight from Ahmedabad to Delhi and boarded a government bus from Delhi to Himachal Pradesh which departs from Kashmiri Gate bus station at 8.10 pm, which delivers Recong Peo which is the headquarter of Kinnaur district.The hardest journey was about to begin. It takes at least 18 hours to reach Rekong Peo from Delhi. In between, mountain roads that bring life to the palate! Sometimes you are at the top of the mountain, sometime along the river Sutlej!

In this roller-coaster ride, those who suffer from motion sickness get tired of vomiting. A passenger sitting next to me was screaming as if he was about to die ! Other passengers were also frightened. For the last half an hour, I also thought that I would vomit , but nothing like that happened. The Kinnaur Mountain range was bringing itself closer to us as the roads were taking our bus closer to Rekong Peo. Snow-capped mountains appear and hide back. But as we entered Rekong Peo, these mountains stopped the game of hide & seek and we all saw the vast Himalayan mountain range!

I was emotional as I saw the Himalayas for the first time. It was almost evening when we reached the bus station of Rekong Peo and it was a little cloudy atmosphere. Sitting at the bus station, the view of the snow-capped mountains was so beautiful that it was hard to get up. But the destination was still half an hour away. To reach Kalpa village, I had to get out of the bus station and go to a post office in front of it from which I could catch a private bus which would take me to Kalpa. Government buses run between Recong Peo & Kalpa but this was the only way as it was getting late and This was the only way as private buses are available in large numbers. I got the bus and reached Kalpa village. It was night when I arrived.

I called Sanjay Kumar, the owner of Farmvilla Homestay, where I was supposed to stay (booked) and called him at a certain place. As I walked through the Kalpa, my eyes were on the sky and I was amazed because I saw such a clear and starry sky for the first time in my life.

Finally Sanjay Kumar came and reached his house. Freshened up, I took the pure vegetarian food of my demand and went to sleep.

The next day at 6 o'clock in the morning my eyes opened and my room was in such a place that I could see the Himalayas from the room (strange resolution!) And when I saw it, my eyes could not believe it! The clouds came down and the atmosphere was surrounded by clouds.

I saw the weather update and it was written that it could snow! I was glad and the prediction came true. The snowfall started but differently, at first it started raining slowly and suddenly after an hour that rain turned into snow! The first snowfall of life! It was a different experience, it snowed all day and I enjoyed the snowfall from my room window like a curious child. The whole day ended in snowfall.

I couldn't sleep thinking about what the next day would be like but tried to persuade my mind to sleep which was successful.

Following are places which I saw in Kalpa in the rest of the days :

Narayan Nagini Temple

It is only through the doors of the temple that one realizes how old it will be ! Built in the Himachali style, this beautiful temple captivates your mind.

In the temple there are stone idols of Narayan and Nagini. The carvings of the temple are eye-catching. In Kalpa, it is important to note that the temples are open only during Aarti Pooja. There is a large space next to this temple, where there are benches to sit, from where the view of Kinnaur Kailash mountain range is very captivating.One can sit here for at least half an hour and enjoy the peace and natural beauty! When I went this place, there was no one here so I was completely delighted and lost in the natural beauty.If such places are secluded, the pleasure is different.

Buddhist Monastery

Ratan Bhader (Rosova Linsen Zangpo) was a great preacher of Buddhism who established 108 gompas (Buddhist monasteries) in his lifetime, one of which is in Kalpa.The gompa was badly damaged in a fire in 1959, after which the residents of Kalpa rebuilt the gompa.There is an ashram of child Buddhist monks on the side. The gompa opens on time and then closes. So if you ask for the time of prayer or if you call a monk from the ashram, he will make you visit the monastery.

Kalpa Fort (Chandi Ka Fort)

This is also a mythical temple or fort. It is said that Goddess Chandika killed demon Banasur here, then Goddess moved to Kothi village (which is a small village 4 km from Kalpa as well as 1 km from Recong Peo),where the Goddess promised that as long as the humans obeyed the laws of nature, she would protect them.Isn't that a wonderful story? Here too the temple opens on time and then closes.So take the information of the time of Aarti of the temple in advance.

The first primary school in Kinnaur district ! The two schools are on the same campus, a short distance from the Buddhist monastery,one primary school and the other secondary school. The primary school was founded in 1890! Unfortunately it was Sunday when I went to see otherwise I would have had conversations with the younger students and from the place where the secondary school is, the Kinnaur Kailash mountains can be seen from its windows. The students of this school envied me for what a beautiful place they are getting education.

Apple orchards of Kalpa

All around in Kalpa you will find apple orchards. The sweetness of the Kinnauri apple is something different. As soon as you bite the apple here, the sweet juice touches your tongue and gives the feeling of eating some nectar fruit of heaven !

The main occupation of the people here is apple farming. The home stay in which I stayed has about 200 apple trees in its own garden. At the same time, different varieties of walnuts, guavas, wild apricots and plums are also found here. I went in November when the apples were almost harvested. If you come here between August and October, the gardens are full of apples.

You can fine more information regarding this trip on my YouTube channel. Click here to watch the entire series of this trip ---->Kalpa Travel Series

How to Reach : It can be reached from both Shimla and Delhi via Bus or Personal vehicle.If you want to come from Delhi by public transport, you can get a Himachal Pradesh government bus from Kashmiri Gate Bus Terminal to Rekong Peo at 8 pm. Which will take you to Rekong Peo around 4 pm the next day after an 18 hour long journey.You can also get buses from Shimla.

When to Go :

For snowfall and winter - December to March

For clear skies - April to May

For monsoon - June to August

For Apples - August to October

Where to Stay : There are many hotels and guesthouses available.You can book hotels and guesthouses from www.booking.com.