Spiti - A travel story of heaven (part 6)

“Where do you want to go first? Dhankar monastery or Pin valley.” Asked the driver. “Take us to the farthest one first.” We then headed to Dhankar first.

Dhankar monastery is situated above the Dhankar village at a height of 3900 meters between the town's of tabo and kaza. The journey is very beautiful. With all the twists and turns, our vehicle ascended towards the top slowly. The Spiti and Pin river flowing below the mountain adds jewel to the crown.

Dhankar means fort in local language. Dhankar village was also the capital of Spiti valley in the 17th century. The monastery was built in the 12th century. There are homestays available in the village.

At first one reaches the new monastery and the new prayer hall which were built in 2009.

After spending some time we again started going towards the top where old monastery is situated.

The condition of the monastery is not very good. They charge an entrance fee in order to maintain the monastery. The monastery overlooks the valley where Spiti and Pin river converge.

We trekked for around 15 minutes to reach the top of the mountain and the view from there is such that one can only stand and look down in awe with his jaw dropped. On one side the Himalayas can be seen in full glory. The valley and the Dhankar village looks too scenic. On the other side the cold barren desert can be seen.

Stay tuned…