Bet You Didn't Know about This Hidden Gem of Himachal Pradesh Hiding in Plain Sight!

Himachal Pradesh is a land of many wonders. Some we have explored. Some, we are yet to.

And within the state, there are many other wonders too that we are still unaware about.

I have been lucky enough to discover some of those hidden gems, including an unnamed lake, which is now named after me (SS TSo).

You can read the story about the unnamed lake, now named after me, here.

One such wonder, hiding in plain sight is in the picture below.

The place is Pong Dam, which lies in Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh.

Pong Dam is a water reservoir, used for irrigation and hydroelectric purpose. But the beautiful environs of this wetland has attracted many species of migratory birds and wild animals as well.

How to reach Pong Dam

While there are several entry points to the this place, and it can be accessed from other sides, one of them is via Dehra - Guler.

If these names sound alien to you, let me simplify it.

Dehra is a popular bus stop and town enroute Kangra. From Dehra, you can drive down / take another bus towards Guler. The entry point for this is close to Nagrota Surian Market.

There are other entry points to this wonderland as well like Bhaner, but the best is to go from the regular route the first time and enjoy some activities as well.

Pong Dam is also a protected bird sanctuary, and thousands of migratory birds can be spotted here.

My first tryst with the place was after getting lost, and taking the off-roads from the interior villages and landing upon this wonderland, and witnessing thousands of birds and a magical sunset.

And it was only the next day that I got to know about the actual route, and we entered the place from the main entry gate, and cycled around the place.

There are other activities around the place as well. But, I'll leave that for another time. For now, enjoy planning a visit to this hidden wonderland of Himachal.