A Silent escape to quietude | Kangra and Chamba (Jan 2014) – Part 3

(Click here for Part 1)

(Click here for Part 2)

 

Day 3 : McLeodgunj

 

To a bright and sunny morning

 

I woke up lazily around 7:00 AM. It had rained continuously through the night, and every time I stirred during sleep, the sound of water lashing outside was all I could hear. I wasn't sure when the downpour finally stopped, but when I opened my eyes, a calm quietude had settled outside. I brushed, opened the balcony door, and was pleasantly surprised by brilliant, warm sunshine.

 

The first thing I did was to bring my shoe, socks, clothes and bag and put them out in the balcony to dry :-p Then, I had a look at the mountains – there was fresh snow on the tree tops – what was green yesterday was now suddenly white – got my camera out, and as usual, went to the terrace to click pictures

 

The whole glory of the snowy peaks came to visibility – I always have this excitement when I see snowcapped peaks, can’t explain why, but the excitement is there each time, every time

 

 

 

 

 

A panoramic view :

 

 

 

Then I came back to the room and stood on the balcony to bask in the sun. In the adjacent room, a guy by name Rahul was staying. I had overheard him speaking in Kannada earlier, so when he came to the balcony, we struck a conversation. I believe, from the past 20 days he had just been traveling Manali, Mandi et al, and I was like, woow.. On another note, he seemed to know about DoW (Devil on Wheels - the travel forum I was a part of) and it seems had also spoken to Dheeraj earlier. He asked me what my plans were and I told him I’m heading to Chamba, and possibly Bharmour next. He asked me if there’d be snow, and I said I was hopeful. He then asked if I’d be interested in paragliding in Bir-Billing where he has headed to, I was tempted but then I had already booked bus tickets to Bharmour. He then asked me if he could join me, I said he was most welcome  He said he’ll inform me and will keep me posted if he is joining.

 

 

Talking with Rahul, I hardly realized two hours had flown by! By then, the sun had done its job—my clothes, shoes, and bag were completely dry. I grabbed a quick breakfast nearby and set off for Dal Lake (not to be confused with its famous namesake in Srinagar, Kashmir).

 

Again, since it was only about 3.5 kms from Pink House, I preferred to hike. I passed through the monastery near the main chowk (this is not the Dalai Lama monastery)

 

 

 

 

The namesake

 

I dropped into the monastery and then continued towards Dal Lake. Contrasted with the morning’s unhindered views, clouds now started building up and view was somewhat obstructed. But then, the sky was still so blue…. the kind of blue I’ve barely seen back home at Bangalore.

 

 

 

 

The roads were deserted and I was enjoying the views. The occasional peak showing up or a rock with inscriptions or the valley view when the clouds lifted, it was an excellent experience.

 

 

View of Dalai Lama monastery

 

A zoomed view:

 

 

Looked like another monastery nestled in the deep:

 

 

 

I even spotted some interesting birds, but couldn’t capture them in the camera. So for bird watchers/ lovers, I’m sure you’d some across something even if this place is infested with tourists.. This is the best I could get – looked like a long tailed something – a species I couldn’t identify.. though it darted away before I could frame a clean photo

 

 

Then I came near the Tibetan Handicrafts centre, and suddenly, I could see a mountain on the opposite side, rising above majestically:

 

 

The road to Dal Lake was alright except some small steep incline in one or two places – for a lazy bum like me, reaching there felt like I’d achieved some feat !! There’s a neat Bank constructed around the lake, and there seemed to be a temple there. Tourist vehicles were parked on the road abutting the lake. There is a concrete paved path and you can walk around the lake. It is believed that a dip in the lake is equivalent to taking a dip in the Holy Manimahesh lake. There weren't many ripples on the lake and one could get clear reflections

 

 

 

 

 

 

(of course, I did not take a dip!!)

 

 

 

 

Honestly, I wasn’t too impressed by the lake (probably because I expected too much !!). If you are with friends / family, I think this would be a perfect picnic place. Or, even if you are alone, if you are in the right mind frame, you can just sit here on the grass, do nothing but stare at the lake, and then soak in and enjoy the solitude

 

I spent about an hour there and then started getting back. There are two chai shops by the road, if you like to have something. There’s another route that connects you to McLeodgunj from here, going via Forsythgunj, but I took the same route by which I came. By now, the clouds had cleared a bit and those towering peaks that were hidden behind the clouds when I ascended were now shining bright, playing hide and seek with the clouds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was just going crazy with each passing cloud, the scenery was just awesome. I then thought enough was enough and started walking back. I had not visited the museum in the monastery yesterday, so I headed there next. I spent about 40 minutes there – the history of Tibet’s struggle for freedom was well documented and presented (I still wish it were independent so that we could enjoy relaxed or no visa rules for us to visit there. Under Chinese administration, getting a visa to visit Tibet is almost impossible, except for religious purposes and only to designated places)

 

A Lunch Date with her

Next I went to Javed Bhai’s and ordered some food as I was starving. The sun was out, so I sat in the rooftop – the views were just awesome. It was as if I was on a Lunch date with the Himalayas herself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The views were so lovely that I almost lost track of the time. I quickly finished my lunch (which was a simple rice, curd and some pickle) went to my room, packed up my stuff and settled the bill. I then headed to the bus stand. It was a bit of a difficulty to climb those stairs to the main road though

 

I took a bus to Dharamsala and reached there by around 5:30pm. It was sunset and the scene was beautiful, but I did not have a window seat in the bus to click at the exact time

 

 

 

 

 

From there, another bus, and I reached Kangra bus stand by around 7pm. The bus from there to Chamba was at 9pm.

 

There is a direct bus from Dharamsala (not McLeod) to Bharmour at 5pm. The same bus after going around comes to Kangra at 9pm and then heads to Bharmour via Dalhousie and Chamba – So it would be a better option to take the bus from Kangra rather than from Dharamsala!!

 

The guy at the HRTC booking counter indicated the previous day itself that the bus may not go upto Bharmour because of snow. I took a chance and decided to head up there, hoping it would make it till Bharmour. It was a Thursday, and there was a small Sai temple inside the Kangra bus stand complex itself and it seemed to be that it was a God sent indication that everything would be fine on my journey. Content now, I offered a prayer and went to a Dhaba next door for some Dinner.

 

 

Another journey begins

 

Initially, when I had told Rahul that I had reserved a ticket, he was making fun of me saying there’d be few crazy people who’d travel by night bus in the January cold. I thought so too… But when I got into the bus, I was thankful that I had reserved a seat – the bus was full and jam-packed. I had a window seat, but then I passed it off because someone was already sitting there.

 

I had thought long before booking a night bus – the entire route is scenic, and I would be missing it if I took the night bus. But then, I decided in favour of a night bus because (1) I had fewer days and wanted to cover more places, so it was best to travel at night and (2) I would spend the night in the bus which means 1 day’s accommodation also saved… afterall, money saved in one trip is money available for another 

 

I had prepared myself for the journey in the cold nights – a shorts, a track pant over that and a fleece pant; a tee, a sweater over that, a sleeveless jacket over that and a wind cheater; a cap and a muffler !! I was comfortable throughout the night with this

 

(Rahul then sent me a message that he had been to Bir - Billing and was staying over at Bir that night. I told him I was on my way to Bharmour and will keep him posted with snow pics to make him jealous) 

 

* * *