A week in Heaven: Parvati Valley
This was a continuation to my Spiti Trip If you have not checked it out yet then do read this blog. After spending over a week in Spiti we reached Manali, Whenever I visit Manali I prefer staying in Old Manali, It has a fun vibe to it, no traffic, it is quite peaceful. A visit to the lazy dog cafe is most recommended.
So, how do you reach Parvati Valley?
In any case, you have to reach Bhuntar which is in Kullu district.
- If you are in Manali, you can take a public transport bus or a taxi, the tariff is fixed for the taxi.
- If you are traveling from Delhi, you can take a bus to Bhuntar, usually reaches Bhuntar early morning.
- If you are very rich you can even get a flight to Bhuntar Airport (very very expensive).
We took a public transport bus from Manali, its the cheapest option available, the ride was a bit crowded and bumpy, but we had so much fun. Upon reaching Bhuntar we stopped for a small meal and then reach the bus stop, we had an option of taking a taxi or a bus to Kasol, our next stop. To conserve money we decided to take the bus, boy it was a crazy ride, no place to stand, and a lot of twisty roads ahead. The bus driver was kind enough to let me sit on the gear shifter box since there was no other place to sit and I had 17 Kgs on my back. The roads are so small that when the bus turns in the ghats the road is not visible in front, and I was sitting right at the tip of the bus so naturally, I thought the bus was going to fall off the cliff, but the experience of these drivers is so much that they do it with ease. A deadlock is another problem on these roads, the roads are so small that 2 large vehicles cannot cross each other in most parts of the road, so a traffic jam is natural, so if you are in a hurry I would suggest keeping 4–5 hours buffer.
Our plan was to reach Kasol and spend the night there and explore the place. Kasol is like mini Israel, you will definitely feel like you are not in India anymore. The first thing we did was find food, and we went to this famous cafe, The Moondance Cafe, they have amazing food, and the most perfect burger I have had in my life.
We divided ourselves into groups of two and decided to find a place to bunk for the night, our objective was to find a place with a view, so I and a friend of mine hiked for half an hour and found this place called Star view guest house, it was high up on the mountain and had a view of snowy mountains, it was cheap on the pocket, not luxurious but we were not there for luxury anyway. So we got back after an hour to the same cafe where we left off from and we all discussed the places we saw, shared pictures and the prices, and after a half an hour debate we finally decided to go to the star view guest house.
We went up, took a nap and started exploring Kasol and the areas nearby, we went to Chalal, so secluded and peaceful, the sounds of birds and the Parvati river running close by, I was so lost in nature that I completely forgot to take pictures there.
While exploring we found this nice restaurant right next to the river, you can hear the water crashing against the rocks, you can feel the cold winds of the river. This was the first time I tried Chicken Schnitzel, and I fell in love with the dish, must try!
The next day we spent exploring Rasol which is a small hike from Kasol.
Day 3 we decided to go to Malana, I know right! Exciting! Malana is about an hour's drive from Kasol, you can get a taxi from the small bridge in Kasol. The taxi drops you at the foothill of Malana, and from there it is an hour-long trek.
You all know what the place is famous for so I don't need to tell you that, the view is amazing from here, they have cafes which will give you the hippie vibe, weed plants everywhere you can see.
They have different rules though, you cannot touch any temple there, you will be charged with a fine if you do.
Although a nice place in terms of view, I personally felt that the place is not clean, open drainages, litter everywhere.
It was dark when we left there, and it started raining, we had to go downhill in heavy rain, luckily there was a doggo eager to help us out, he was leading the whole way back to our taxi, whenever we used to lose track he used to bark and show us the right path. Since it was muddy we all kept falling, and the doggo used to come and check up on us if we are okay, after reaching our taxi the doggo just sat there looking at us, I felt really bad, I wish I could take him with me, I just bought a few boiled eggs for the doggo and sat near him till he finished it all, it was a very emotional goodbye for me. We stayed at the same guest house that night.
Next couple of days we were supposed to spend up in the mountains, Tosh, the magical village. For Tosh, you can take a taxi or a public transport bus, which is an hour-long drive, the bus will only take you to Barshaini, which is a small village just before Tosh. It is a fun ride, you can see snow-capped mountains and beautiful apple orchards. The taxi drops you off just outside Tosh, you have to cross a small bridge which can be only crossed on foot, so no vehicles beyond this point, cool right?
We took a small stop at a cafe just at the start of the village, all the cafes have this relaxed seating where you can actually lie down, I lied down and through the window, I could see a white mountain, and Bob Marley songs going on, it was all so relaxing.
I got my favorite beverage when I go to the Mountains, a Ginger Lemon Honey Tea, trust me it is a magic drink, it will recharge you in an instant.
After a small break we started climbing again and we stopped at another cafe called the Blue Diamond, this cafe has an open view of the full mountain landscape, another dose of Ginger lemon honey tea and some Schnitzel, and then we split into groups to find a place to stay.
Like always I and my friend have a crazy mind of living at an offbeat place, we asked around and got to know that there is a camping spot next to a waterfall, a spot next to a waterfall!!! We had to check it out!
We were so excited that we didn't really ask how far it was, it took us 40 minutes to reach, that too without our bags, met this lovely doggo on the way who was then following us around everywhere after that.
Finally, after reaching the spot, we told each other that we are all definitely camping here tonight, no other place can beat this, so we ran our way back to the restaurant, convinced our friends to hike a little, everyone got so excited that they thought let's cook the dinner as well, so we split again and bought all the ingredients from the village and headed to the camping spot. That night we cooked Chicken Stew on a bonfire. Imagine this, cooking on a bonfire at 1 am on a starry night, waterfall next to you, and cold winds.
After dinner, I spent time taking long exposure shots, ill post some of them here.
Mornings were no less beautiful, waking up to the sound of birds and a view of mountains from the tent, that day we spent exploring Tosh village, such a serene place, I decided to go there every year.
Tosh is one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen so far, I think it is going to be my retirement plan.
The air so fresh, healthy food, stunning vistas, and the lovely furballs, spending time with mother nature, listening to the songs she sings for us, listening to the stories she has to tell, what more would you want?
The next day we went to Kasol, spent the night and off to Bhuntar the next day in a taxi, and from there a bus to Delhi.
Thank you for reading this blog, hope you guys enjoyed it and hope it helps you plan your own trip! For more pictures do check out my Instagram page.
