Untouched Tirthan Valley
The human mind can be described as a restless
freak. It doesnt want to stay in one place and always wants to wander. I have
recently developed a thing for less crowded and unexplored places where the
human chit chatter doesnt reach my ears and all I could hear is chirping of
birds and gushing of flowing water. Such a kind of place is the quaint and beautiful
Tirthan Valley in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh.
We started our journey by boarding a bus towards
Manali and left Delhi in the evening. The morning view during the last hours of
the bus journey was amazing as the Beas river flowed between the mountains in
narrow stream beside us. We reached Aut the following morning which is around
40kms away from Mandi and lies on the way to Manali. We boarded a local bus
from Aut towards Banjaar and from there hired a taxi till Gushaini. It took us
around one hour to reach Gushaini from Aut altogether. We had not per-booked our
stay at any resort or hotel so we started searching for a place to stay in the
small village place. The roaring Tirthan river was flowing through the solid
rocks and it was a quiet valley with not many people around. Just across the
other side from the river, we spotted a lovely cottage with red roofs just near
a steep mountain. We reached there and enquired about the availability of
rooms. The owner was also from Delhi and was very hospitable and congenial. The
cottage was called Devat Farms Cottages and the place where it was located was
known by the name Chhamni Village. You can check out the link to the cottage
and pre-book your stay there.
The location of the cottage was perfect as it was
on the banks of the river and there were plum and apple orchards surrounding the
place. The rooms were spacious, beautiful and clean with running hot water in
the bathroom. We had a refreshing bath and then came to the open dining area
where breakfast was served to us.
After eating a filling breakfast of Bread Omelette
served with tea, we set out to explore the area. We went to see a small
waterfall where we reached after a trekking for a small distance. The place was
called Nagni Village and there were small houses with green fields spread all
over. The place was like quiet fairy tale countryside and a refuge from the
bustling noisy city life. After walking for an hour, we found the waterfall and
there was a small hut beside it. We found a cute little local village girl near
the waterfall and befriended her. The waterfall was beautiful with chilly cold
and crystal clear water flowing and we sat on the rocks to have an amazing view
of the mountains in front of us. The best thing was there was not a single
person there and it was total solitude.
We left from there and enquired about the Great
Himalayan National Park trek as we intended to do it but the local people told
us that the trek is of 7 days and we didnt have that much time. So we walked on
the trail for a little while and saw a beautiful snowclad mountain in front of us.
We sat there for some time to admire its beauty with the river flowing beside
us and small huts visible at the terrace of the mountains.
After sometime, we came back to our cottage where
a sumptuous meal was waiting for us. There was a variety of cuisines prepared
for us including chicken, rajma rice, dal etc. The best part was the trout fish,
which is a specialty there, prepared by the sweet and friendly owner of the
place. Trout fishing is a famous activity here and those who want to go fishing
in the Tirthan river have to acquire license from the fisheries department. The
Trout fish was delicious and so was the rest of the meal. There was a bonfire
lit outside the cottage and we sat around it. It was not much cold there at
night time but the night had its beauty. The sky was clear and the moon was
shining brightly in the midst of the sky. The reflection of the moon was
falling on the river and the gushing of the river was the only sound one could
hear in the quiet night. The next morning we hired a cab back to Aut leaving
the beautiful valley behind us.
If one wants to spend a quiet weekend away from
the boisterous crowd of the city, this is the perfect place. The place has its
own fairy tale charm and the beautiful flowers in the valley welcome you with
their blooming fragrance.
Tirthan valley is indeed a beautiful place and i wish to visit it.
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