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Up hill, down dale
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Somewhere deep in its little valleys lies the real Himachal
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PRETTY AS A POSTCARD Himachal’s little nooks
Tourists rush to Shimla or to Manali for that Himachali experience, but ironically it is the little valleys that lie between the Sutlej and the Kulu Valleys that are the essence of the real Himachal.
Two such valleys are the Tirthan Valley and the Karsog Valley. Last spring I was trying to get from Narkanda to Manali via the Jalori Pass. But the news on the way was that it was closed thanks to a landslide. A wizened old man, at the local tea shop offered some advice, "go via Chindi and the Karsog Valley".
By the time I got to Chindi it was dark, but the next morning on the drive along the Karsog Valley the full impact of the beauty of spring in Himachal hit me. I kept thinking that this is the best part of Himachal I have ever been too, but then I realized that it is not the place, rather it is the time of year.
Inspite of visiting this state so often I have never been in the state during that narrow window of time between the end of winter and the beginning of spring. Karsog has some temples that are worth visiting and if you do visit the Mamleshwar Mahadev temple then go to the fields behind it and there is another small temple set amidst the fields. It makes the perfect Himalayan postcard picture. Another temple is seven km from Karsog along a fantastic road skirting the valley; this is the Kamaksha Devi Temple.
The Tirthan Valley is as pretty and the Tirthan that runs alongside is full of trout where anglers can cast. Little quaint Himachali villages line the banks of the river and there is even a house shaped like a shoe at Jibi. A Dutchman fell so in love with this place and a local woman that he built a house that reminded him of home.
From the Jalori Pass there is a six km trek to the Sewalsar Lake and this is a fascinating trek through pine forests and rolling green glades. The lake itself is also simply serene. The best time to go would be the end of March and the beginning of April. Chindi and Karsog can be approached from Simla via Tattapani. Banjar and the Jalori Pass can be accessed via Larji off the Rampur-Shimla road.
You can also approach from Manali, but for this you need to get off the Manali- Mandi road at Aut. Himachal State Transport buses run the route and taxi drivers at Shimla know the area quite well. Chindi has a HPTDC property called Hotel Mamleshwar (Ph: 01907- 222638).You can book online at http://hptdc.gov.in/custsw/ viewuser.asp. Or, you can book at any of HPTDC's offices across the country. A full list is at http://hptdc.nic.in/contact. htm
RISHAD SAAM MEHTA
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