Monsoon in Kinnaur - Budget trip to Kalpa & Chitkul

Day 1: 11th August/12th August- Delhi- Rampur-Kalpa

We had pre-booked the Deluxe AC bus from Delhi ISBT- Rampur Bushar(decent bus/less leg space/nothing like Volvo/Good for Rs 900) that leaves from Delhi at 7.25 pm and reaches Rampur around 9 am the next morning. Then we caught a bus for Peo (Recongpeo) at around 10.30 am which cost us about Rs 120 and please note that all the local buses that go till Peo are ordinary buses. These buses are frequent and take about 4-4.5 hours till Peo. We reached Peo by 2.30 and as Peo doesn't really have much to offer we moved to Kalpa which is 30 mins away from Peo and again very frequent buses from Peo-Kalpa-Roghi till evening 6 pm.

This is the view that greeted us at Kalpa:

Day 2, Kalpa

Kalpa is not really a place where you can have things to do or places to go list. It is to sit back and enjoy the view, take long leisurely walks, eat the dal chawal and desi chicken and breathe the fresh air. We just chilled the second day, explored the place a little more, went to the monastery again, walked around apple orchids, talking to locals, meeting new people. Though we did plan to go to Roghi and I had almost walked half the distance when I realized it would get dark and I was not sure of how I could come back on my own after 5 pm so I didn't go all the way (next time I guess). For people who do want to explore a bit more can ask around for a trek from Kalpa called "Chakka Trek" it takes about 3-4 hours depending on your stamina and is a steep trek .

Day 3- Chitkul- Last village on Indo-Tibet Border

It was time to leave for Chitkul. Though we had not planned a lot about Chitkul as we had decided that we will take the call as per the weather and as the weather Gods were kind we packed up and took the only bus that goes from Kalpa to Chitkul. But we took this bus from Peo at 9.30 am and again was an ordinary bus and cost us about Rs 140 per person. The roads from Peo to Chitkul is extremely narrow but takes you through some amazing views of Karcham Dam, Sangla valley, Rakcham on your way to Chitkul. It takes about 4.5 hours to reach Chitkul with a stoppage at Karcham and Sangla mostly. The roads from Rakcham to Chitkul is one of the prettiest roads I have come across full with pink flowers all around. We reached Chitkul around 2 pm and for people who don't know it is the last inhabited village on the Indo-China border and the border is actually 18 kms from Chitkul and you need special permits to reach the border.

Chitkul is far more beautiful than all those pictures we saw, the long tiring journey was all worth it when we stepped out in Chitkul. It was the best birthday gift I could give myself. We had nor prior bookings and went to a very pretty home stay with great views all around and took up a corner room for Rs 1200. The place has food facility too and most the home stay there are well equipped with their own restaurants so food will not be a problem. There are a handful of houses and thankfully the place wasn't crowded apart from a couple of biker groups. We were greeted with a little afternoon shower ( I stated panicking because I have heard of how a landslide on these roads can strand you up-to a couple of days but the home stay guy told us it was just passing clouds) and double rainbow!! Yes, I was jumping and screaming like a kid but it was so pretty I couldn't help it. We explored quite a lot on foot, walking on the sides of Baspa river, clicked hundreds of pictures. At night we went for dinner to a nearby home stay and around 9 pm the temperature started dipping and was almost 5 degrees. We decided to go to the terrace of our home stay and we just sat there staring at the sky full of stars. It was magical. (We had to leave soon after an hour or so because it started getting really cold and i got a little scared - don't forget your jackets no matter the season)

Day-4- Chitkul-Karcham-Rampur Bushar

It was time to bid adieu to Chitkul. Please note that there are two buses which ply from Chitkul to Peo on a daily basis the first one at 6.30 am and the second one at around 2.30 pm (the same bus that comes from Peo at 9.30 am returns back the very same day). We woke up early morning to catch this bus as we had to catch our bus to Delhi from Rampur at 5 pm in the evening. We got down at Karcham dam where we caught a bus to Rampur and the buses were less in frequency as it was Independence day. But we manged to reach Rampur by 12.30 pm to catch the HRTC Deluxe Bus at 5 pm for Delhi which reached Delhi next day at 6 am.

Accommodation

At Kalpa we stayed at this cozy guest house called Chinni Bungalow which has one of the best views for a decent amount of Rs 800 per night and the rooms are quite clean and good with provision for hot water and the guy who manages the place is extremely helpful too. At Chitkul we went to the first home stay that came to our sight, its called Kinnaur Heights and is right next to the bus stop. Again a decent place Rs 800 for rooms with okayish views, Rs 1200 for rooms with great views.