You must have heard, "sometimes the wrong choices bring us to the right places" but If I say, an unexpected call brought us to an indelible journey, not a journey as such , but an everlasting footprint, which is too difficult to be articulated in any form known to human kind.
Away from thronged and jam-packed Himalayan touristy places, I would like to share, my travel story to the most pristine part of the outer Himalayas, Haripurdhar- The summer capital of Sirmour Valley.
When we were at the verge of deciding another Himalayan getaway, the thoughts started revolving around the feasible options, Kullu valley?... Tirthan? Barot? Mandi?...Manali?
An old family friend, had been persisting upon inviting me over to his hometown, in the Sirmour valley, without taking much time, and giving my weary mind a final pause, I convinced my mates for this particular paradise, though we were totally clueless about the destination, but the novelty of this Himalayan town, brought some optimistic hope that it is going to be worth the visit.
Where is Haripurdhar?
Situated on a crest of the Sirmour Valley, the town is situated on a high ridge overlooking a deep valley. At an altitude of 2500 metres above sea level, it is the most serene and beautiful part of the outer Himalayas, and is popular among the religious tourists, as it also shelters, one of the most beauteous temple of the local Himalayan deity, Maa Bhangiyani Temple. The pristine town is also popular among the Trekkers, as it is the gateway to the highest peak of the outer Himalayas, The Churdhar Peak.
It was mid of December, We left early morning from Delhi, the friend conveyed the relevant navigation and the estimated time, 7.5 hours, Yes that's it, Shocked? still can't believe, a place this beautiful, this close. Though we were group of usual ones, we took a furry friend along.
We drove till Naraingarh, Haryana and took the right towards Kalamb, Himachal Pradesh, and as soon as we drove past Kalamb, we entered the hills, and trust me it took only about 3.5 hours from Delhi. The weather had been crisp, as we started the ascent, the entire landscape around was full of tranquility. The minimal tourism in the valley, has greatly preserved the lush green forest cover on the route.
As we crossed Nahan, We felt the need to take a hault for lunch, Google recommended Hotel Grand View, so we took no chances, it was splendid, the food was equally scrumptious. We got so overwhelmed with the ravishing view from the property that we lost track of the time.
It was getting late, so we unanimously decided to skip a short detour to Renuka lake, which is a famous natural lake, on the way to Haripurdhar.
We scudded towards the road, as directed by the Google Maps. There was a radical increase in the ascent, and a sharp decline of width of the road. There is a single treacherous road, with frequent curves, enough for giving some serious adrenaline rush. As we became habituated to the road, we witnessed, an entirely different topography altogether. The route was in the midst of an unearthly forest with Pine backwoods all around. The weather was a bit irresolute, as it started raining heavily without any sign of intimation. Amusingly, predicting the snowfall, We drove past the forest and we were really close to our harbor, Haripurdhar.
The temperature had already started slumping down swiftly, but then we finally came to the last milestone for Haripurdhar, We did not imagine, we would be able to see the traces of snow across the road.
The weather was as cold as Arctic, but we were totally wide awake with zeal, when we reached the destination finally.
We did not imagine, that the small Himalayan town will welcome us with this amount of snow, without stopping the car, we drove about 1.5 Km towards the Temple road.
Within no time we reached the mountain abode from Delhi. We were totally jaded by the numerous hair-pin curves, but the moment came when we saw the best kept Himalayan Secret, Trekkers, the Himalayan Backpacker.
As soon as, we gave our ride final rest, it was a wonderland, far away from any figment of imagination, it was blissful. We were totally spellbound by the magnitude of beauty offered by the property. Every nook and corner of the property provided a 360 degree glacial view of the upper Himalayas.
All I could think was,
"Oh, the weather outside is frightful
But the fire is so delightful
And since we've no place to go
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow"
If peace and solace & nature you're looking for, the property has it all.This inspired dwelling nestled right into the picturesque Sirmour Valley is a heaven for those looking to fall in love with nature. Style and reverently framed by the iconic beauty of the Himalayan ranges in view and a deep valley below, the wondrous views will entrance your imagination and inspire an unforgettable journey. Every nook of this little habitation will warm your soul.
I could have stayed here till eternity, the panoramic view was unearthly nothing short of a fairyland.
We were alleviated by the warmth and the comfort the place provided after an 7.5 hour journey, all we further was some fire, eh.. bonfire.
We had planned a short stay, so we decided to go for an offroad trail around the property, so started wandering in the midst of Churdhar Sanctuary.
We crossed the nastiest terrain in the woods, thus the topography got enhanced substantially, took the ride, deep into the forest and then we saw,a very ancient British Guest House after a considerable hike.
We thought of spending a few hours at this 200 year old Estate and admire the never ending solace offered by the nature at that place. We got the opportunity to have a detailed conversation with a few locals, it was a blend of cultural intercourse, we got to know the intrinsic information and knowledge about traditional Sirmouri culture and how they differ from other Himachali cultures.
One of the locals at the village, told us about an enigmatic waterfall, for which we would have to hike for 45 minutes into the deep woods, we were more than thrilled about it, as we wanted to absorb most of the place in a limited span of time.
The more we jaunted into the astuteness of the trail, more astonishing views were emerging from all corners of our visibility.
we entered more into the the forest trail, towards the waterfall, remoteness and the wilderness were increasing manifolds. Glacial valley with mountains on one side and a deep valley on the other, We sat there one day doing nothing, absolutely nothing, just soaking up the sun. Trust me, with the Himalayan chill, a day just soaking up the sun is a luxury you cannot have easily.
The waterfall, according to the information given by the generous local lady, was situated soon after a sharp decline from the hilltop, we were able to see the entire gorge from the top of that hill. According to my friend, this place was the seat of the ruler of Sirmour, from where he used to monitor the entire valley for administration, in short he used to spend considerable time chilling here, with a gorgeous 360 degree view of the outer Himalayas.
As we moved ahead, we could hear the sound of the stream, after about 10 min of further stroll down the path into the depth, there were several submerged boulders in the water body, we were sure about the outcome of this trail.
All you would hear, is whistling of the water, gushing of the air piercing through the trees. The only thought which came into my mind, take off the clothes and plunge into the Jungle waterfall. I knew it is going to be frosty and unbearable, but we live only once.
and finally best part of the day..
The water was indeed icy cold, but the atmosphere around gave me a sense of warmth down the spine.
“You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.”
The weather was getting a bit unpredictable at the Hostel, my friends back there were repeatedly calling us, so we unwillingly got out and headed back to the property.
This is what they were telling us about, but we were short of words in explaining ,what we tried grabbing in a single day. The place is amaranthine and hidden away from the hustle-bustles of tourists, not much known about this fairyland.
The next morning we had to move back to where we actually belong, Delhi- The city of dreams, our lives were so tied up with monotony, that we could not absorb the essence of Haripurdhar, fully.
No matter how much paucity of time we were facing, I still wanted to see the glorious Maa Bhangiyani Temple and seek the blessing of the popular Himalayan Deity for my future en devours, so I managed to take a small walk to the Temple.
I did not know, I'll be so strayed by the beauty around the temple, I could see every possible shade of nature in one frame.
Ever seen a snow clad old Himalayan Temple, doused in the sheet of sun-kissed gold sheet of snow?
After climbing about 100 stairs, and reaching the cloak of the temple, I simply realized why god resides in the mountains.
As I am sharing my travel story today, I still have the remnant memories of our short getaway undimmed revolving in my mind.
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