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 …

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 …

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 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 …