Spending some time around Manali Mall I had a few hours in Manali before I could catch a bus towards Kasol. I decided to make some good use of the time. I visited the Monastery at the Mall road. I also visited the pine forest (Van Vihar) from where I had returned yesterday due to … [Read more…]
My mobile ditched me (momentarily) It had snowed last night. There was a thin layer of snow on everything that was exposed. The vehicles used the ramp in front of the hotel to propel and ignite the engines. A local said that some of the worst cars are the Tata Diesel variants. They need external … [Read more…]
Hotel Sangam should be taken by ASI The building in which I was staying in Mandi is probably as old as the ancient artefacts around it. It is hard to figure that out from the upper floors. The paint-job conceals most of the visible defects. If I had realised this earlier, I wouldn’t have even … [Read more…]
My camera ditched me I was using a Sony Cybershot point-and-shoot (DSC-W630) to capture the images of this trip. That small form factor camera has been my companion in the last three trips, too. Me and my sister have been using it for the last three years. It was quite foggy today morning. The moment … [Read more…]
From Palampur to Mandi I had to leave early from Chachian in order to reach Mandi before sunset. The 110 kms travel took a long time. A private bus that had come from Dharamshala took 45 minutes to reach Palampur bus stand. It stopped at every other corner for passengers. The bus that I took … [Read more…]
The Dhauladhar range looked brilliant in the clear, morning sky. However, the ground near me didn’t. I had a hard time sleeping in the ruckus made by the marriage party. When I woke up, the place was in a mess. A lot of disposable plates, plastic glasses, remains of fireworks and empty liquor bottles were … [Read more…]
A ride on Kangra Valley Railway One of the reasons to take a detour to Kangra was to ride the narrow gauge train. My stay at Kangra in an abysmal hotel was mildly offset by my visit to the Kangra Fort. According to the manager of Hotel Yatriki, I should have also visited Chamunda Devi … [Read more…]
Bidding Dharamshala goodbye My four days at Dharamshala was a very pleasing and memorable experience. I had a chat with Nandy (the guy with whom I did the North-East ’14 trip and the Vietnam ’15 trip). He had been to the place before and mentioned that he could stay there for weeks and not feel … [Read more…]
It had rained quite heavily last night. In fact, it was raining cats and dogs at 8:00 am. The rain subsided at around 11:00 am. I had a quick lunch (or brunch) and decided to cover the vicinity of McLeod Ganj on foot. A small walk to Bhaksunag waterfalls Bhaksunag waterfall is a very short … [Read more…]
Ways to do the Triund trek There are two options for trekkers. A person may chose to do a day trip. This would require some bit of fitness to cover 20 km to and fro in one go. The other option is to get there, hire a tent and spend a night before descending the … [Read more…]