All posts filed under: Himachal Pradesh

Rajgunda- a must visit hamlet near Bir

Published by nomadicnitin

Rajgunda – a serene alternate to Bir & Billing. We all know about Bir & billing, famous for sunsets, quaint cafes, and paragliding, a perfect weekend retreat or a workcation destination. But, what if I told you that just 1 hour away from Bir is a place hidden in the serene landscapes where mountains seem to touch the sky, and stars seem to be an arm’s length away!! I have been contemplating trekking to Rajgunda for the last 5 years, however, I delayed it for some other good time. So, this time when I was in Bir I finally decided to go for it. But, much to my dismay I was a little too late, I discovered that there is a road now which connects to this previously disconnected village. Most of the travelers carry out a day trip to Rajgundha, but I would recommend you to spend at least a night or two to experience the magical sky laden with stars. You can see the Milky Way arched across the sky and if you’re …

Tirthan Valley – A quick travel guide !

Published by nomadicnitin

Quick Links: About Tirthan Valley Why Tirthan How to reach tirthan from Delhi/Chandigarh What to do while in tirthan Where to stay in tirthan Snowfall in Tirthan/Jalori Pass Mobile/Internet connectivity in tirthan Local Transport in tirthan Work from Mountains Video : Morning walk at tirthan Tirthan Valley is not the place for you – if you want to stroll mall roads for eating and shopping, if you want to invest your evenings hearing a live-band while sipping your favorite cocktail in a populous pub, if you get spiritless when there are less or no people around, if you crave for ice-cream parlors around the corner, OR if you want to commute in luxury buses. Don’t read further, in case you happen to fall under this genre.   About Tirthan Valley Valley : a low area of land surrounded by mountains on all sides, and tirthan is a little extra special one. Along with presenting a 360 degrees view of gigantic mountains, this valley is positioned along Tirthan river (that is where the name came from) …

Sethan – An Epitome of Peace in Himachal !

Published by nomadicnitin

Quick Links: My first hand experience in sethan How to reach Sethan from Delhi Where to stay in Sethan What to do while in Sethan Video : Around Sethan Video : SnowBoarding I used to locate tranquil villages in Himachal, with extremely less settlement and complying local cultures. Every single time, the motivation was – wisdom of peace and a laid-back life. No pictures were clicked, no videos were recorded and there was no mention on social media. This lasted for many years before i got involved into the enthusiastic job of travel blogging, which required me to explore more places and write about them. With this assignment now, i earn comparatively fewer opportunities to visit a few places which i truly adored once. Sethan is one such place. Most of us visit manali after spending almost 15 hours on the road (from delhi). If you devote 40 more minutes to your journey, the road will lead you to this exquisite village – Sethan, which is almost 15 kms uphill from manali and locates at …

Pulga-Tulga-Kalga : stroll in the trio-village of Parvati Valley

Published by nomadicnitin

Don’t you feel uninterested and irksome about recurring and frequent mention of Kasol-Kheerganga trek from everyone who visits Parvati valley. I was also sailing in the same boat when I decided to trek Kheerganga – Once, twice, thrice to finally put a screeching halt and end the periodicity then and there. The trek is indeed beautiful and green but the summit is not that alluring. The major setback for me was immense human-traffic. Be it any season, people throng to kheerganga which makes it more commercialized and I, personally, don’t favor to visit those places anymore. Not in the mood & spirit of long trek and not in the mood to travel anywhere else other than mighty Parvati, I finally decided to explore the trio village of Kalga, Pulga and Tulga – starting from Pulga. Pulga is a small settlement of people attracting majorly hippies for its own reasons. Uniqueness of this village are the houses which are still in the same shape and of same material as they were built many years ago. I …

Bir-Billing : Paragliding Site and BackPacker’s Nest in Himachal Pradesh

Published by nomadicnitin

If you are thoroughly searching and keen to visit a place with pleasant weather, not very far from Delhi, some adventure, some backpacking, some trekking, some peace time, some yoga and meditation, some cycling, some cool cafes and what not – Head straight to Bir in Himachal Pradesh. Bir and Billing are two different but adjoint places in the state of Himachal Pradesh. As most of us already know, this place is famous for Paragliding (highest in India) : Billing is the Flying (take-off) site and Bir is the Landing site for Para-gliders, together it is known as Bir Billing – the Paragliding capital of India. Billing is situated at an approximate distance of 14 kms uphill from Bir. Bir is a home to many Tibetan Refugees and Monks. It has numerous magnificent  monasteries and Buddhist stupas. There are a lot of people in metro cities who practice Buddhism – Bir can be an ultimate travel destination for those people if they want to practice and experience the next level of salvation. But this place …

Barot Valley – The Hidden Gem of Himachal Pradesh

Published by nomadicnitin

People tend to throng to touristy places and why won’t they –  they are the tourists 😉 But there are some wanderers, Backpackers, Nomads who always try to find a place of Solace and Peace to visit. The outskirts of Barot Valley is the one of those places. Barot Village, situated at a distance of 66 Kms from the town of Mandi in Himachal Pradesh is not a very famous or a well know destination among people right now. But I must say, it is an under-rated place. Placed beautifully in the lap of Nature and surrounded by Dhauladhar Range from both sides, Barot village has a population of around 2000 people. This valley comprises of Uhl river and lush green forest area. So these lines from a famous poem are very apt when we talk about Barot Village –  When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass, And the river flows like a stream of glass.   How to Reach Barot –  By Bus – Take an overnight bus from Delhi to Mandi. After …

Prashar lake (trek OR no-trek) – Weekend Destination from Delhi !

Published by nomadicnitin

Don’t have a Long weekend coming ? Can’t afford enough leaves from work ? Prashar Lake is the destination for you.   Situated at about 50 kms from Mandi, Himachal Pradesh – Prashar lake is actually a religious destination but not for all. It is believed that Bhim(Mahabharta) created this lake and it is named after Sage Prashar as he meditated there for a long time. A temple is created along this lake where people (generally Himachali) come to express their love and seek blessings from the God. It is believed that the depth of Prashar lake is still not known. How to reach Prashar lake Take a overnight bus or Drive from Delhi/Chandigarh to Mandi,Himachal Pradesh enroute to Kullu/Manali. From Mandi, there are 3 options to reach Prashar Lake :- Trek – The trek to Prashar lake starts from Village Baggi which is 7-8 kms from Mandi. You can take a bus from Mandi bus stand till Baggi or Hire a taxi. From Baggi, you can trek to Prashar lake which is about 8 …

Village Choj : Best Getaway at a walking distance from Kasol

Published by nomadicnitin

Finding Kasol over-crowded but wish to stay in vicinity ? Smile please, Because I have a good alternative for you Choj, a beautiful yet small village in the neighborhood of kasol in the state of Himachal Pradesh, has it’s own rituals and customs followed by the locals there. In my vision, this village tops in the list of places to stay near kasol, because of its view and stay options. Katagla is another option if you want to adhere to the river (Check out my Blog on Katagla here). Out of many, the most superior advantage about choj is – no vehicular population at all. It is due to the fact that – one has to cross the mighty Parvati river in order to reach this village. No, you don’t have to swim across. There is a small hanging bridge on which you can only walk and reach choj. How to reach Choj You can take a bus from Delhi to Kasol OR Manali to Kasol OR from ‘wherever you are’ to Kasol. If you …

Katagla: the new Kasol

Published by nomadicnitin

Katagla is a small serene village, in the state of Himachal Pradesh, with a very less settlement of people. As we all know that Kasol is a lot thronged and commercialized now, so the main motive of backpackers is not accomplished there. Therefore, they have started moving to nearby Villages and Katagla is one of them and also the most beautiful, as per me. So, katagla comes first in the list of places to stay near kasol. How to reach Katagla – Katagla is located just 3 kms before kasol and 7 kms before manikaran ( kasol is 4 kms before manikaran). So take a bus to kasol and just take a drop at katagla, just before kasol. Katagla is not a settled along the road to kasol, but you have to cross a river bridge to reach katagla. So, just take a little descend from the point where bus drops you, to find the river bridge. Crossing that river bridge will lead you to Katagla.   Where to stay in Katagla – Katagla has …

A well planned Spiti Road Trip

Published by nomadicnitin

There are some Road trips which manifests you to breathtaking views everywhere you look. A road trip to Spiti valley is one of those. Well, for some, travelling solo is the ultimate contentment but for others, travelling with a group takes the preference. I went to Spiti (by Road) with a bunch of 12 friends so as to make it a budget trip (since the cost of travel and accomodation would be well shared among all). It costed us 10-12k INR per head for a 9 day trip (Delhi to Delhi) with all the luxury(almost) accomodations. We hit the roads in 1st week of June,2017. Day 1 : Delhi to Narkanda ( via Shimla) ( Approximate time of travel : 12-14 hours) We stared from from Delhi at around 9 PM in volvo bus to Shimla > Reached Shimla in the morning .We had our traveller vehicle ( which can accomodate 14 people) booked for the next 8 days. Bybassing the main shimla city center, we directly stared our fun ride from Shimla to Narkanda …