EP - 2 Tandi to Udaipur to Miyar Valley, Lahaul valley | Trilokinath Temple, Himachal Pradesh
Namaskar friends! Welcome to Visa2explore! This is your host, Harish Bali. We are starting the day in Tandi. I remember when I came here last time.. On our way back from Leh-Ladakh tour We had seen the Sangam of Chandra and Bhaga Rivers in Tandi. Have a look at River Chandra from here.
It is flowing under the bridge. We will go downwards by 8KM-9KM and reach the Sangam (meeting) point. I am standing outside my homestay now. It is called Lahaul Homestay.
They have 2 types of accommodation.. One is a normal house as you can see this building, we stayed here. The tariff is Rs 1,500 double occupancy. This is only for the stay, food excluded.
Another type of accommodation is this mud house that you can see. The occupancy was full here. So, we stayed in other place in 2 rooms. The breakfast is almost ready. Let's go and have breakfast and we must reach Udaipur by today evening.
The surroundings are beautiful! It an absolutely natural environment. A unique thing about this place is No public transport operates here.. So, you must have your own vehicle to move around here. I was talking to a local lady today, I asked how can one go by bus to Kullu? She said, they walk 1 hour and take the bus to Kullu.
So, you can ascertain how far we are from the main road. Let's go and have breakfast. Red rice, Maa ki dal with potato. A unique feature of these potatoes is these are of 2 different varieties. This is the potato you get in the market and this potato is found only in Lahaul. You can see the difference from the color.
I requested them to cook jeera aloo using both varieties of potato so that I can taste the difference in the two types of potato. On left side is Lahaul's famous potato This is the market variety. Great right! This red rice is from Naggar. Half an hour from Naggar there's a village I can't recall the name from J..Jana This rice is from Jana village. Red rice of Jana village is very famous.
You can't think of this taste in cities. Dal has an absolutely desi flavour. Delicious! The taste of dal has simplicity just like the taste of the potatoes. It tastes just like normal potatoes. I'm having 2 types of potato back to back for the first time.
Let's see the taste of local potatoes. Not instantly, but if you try to feel the taste carefully you will find it different and it is a bit sweet. When people come to Sissu, Tandi or Keylong, they take back local potatoes.
You can see how famous potatoes are. I suddenly remembered about Gurez valley in Kashmir. Potatoes of Gurez Valley are also famous. I wanted to ask when I went to Gurez Gurez Kaka Palace. When I went to Sheikhpura I got to know large-sized potatoes grow there a lot. Potato of 1Kg also grows there.
I've never seen a potato of 1Kg Is there a potato that grows up to 1Kg? 1 single piece of 1 Kg. Wow! and it is soo sweet to taste! Yes it is sweet I remember that. Gurez Valley is off beat tourist destination The route opens up a bit late. Similarly, if you cover Tandi, Udaipur then Chamba via Saach Pass you'll get to know that Saach Pass also opens quite late. The journey I am showing you is off-beat Himachal Pradesh.
I am sure you will enjoy upcoming episodes as well. Let me introduce you to this homestay owner Mr. Bir Singh ji. I am drinking Sea buckthorn Tea. Great! I've heard this tea is prepared from the fruit of Sea buckthorn.
For selling in market we make it with fruit but I drink tea made from its leaves. So, does tea from leaves have same properties as from its fruit? From health point-of-view There was an article plus on Google it mentioned benefits of this tea for health Both fruit and tea have same properties. Apart from sugar, does it have ginger? I add 3-4 more things to enhance taste. Ginger, fennel seeds and more such herbs How does the fruit taste? It's sour to taste like lemon, but is full of vitamins.
So, taste will be different having tea of fruit and leaves. Just as one would have lemon tea. Can you tell a bit about these mountains? What about these mountain ranges? We'll have to go ahead a bit.
The mountains behind the river.. It is Pir-Panjal Range. This side is Central Himalayan Range Wow! Wonderful! How far is the bus stand from here? Bus stand is near Tandi Bridge 7Km away. So, one has to walk 7Km Some cars and taxis will give you a lift. So, public transport is not available.
No public transport, you can take a taxi or your own car. So, personal private vehicle. That is great! After tea, I'll clear the payments then we will leave from here. We spent a great time here with you. I will try coming here again next year. We will wait for you. Thank you!
Bhai sahab let's go. I have come to Tandi Bridge. I've come to see the confluence of 2 rivers This is River Bhaga Let's go up a little to see the confluence. On the board it is written about it.
When I was returning from Ladakh I had stopped at Bara Lachala La Pass It is a high altitude pass. On one side is source of River Chandra On other side is source of River Bhaga. Both these rivers merge into River Chenab Here is the confluence of these 2 rivers I'll walk closer to it. Did you know River Chandrabhaga has its namesake in another part of India Do comment if you know where it is. I am watching the confluence from ground level of Rivers Chandra and Bhaga This river here is River Bhagha That side is River Chandra flowing. The confluence is happening here and they will merge as River Chenab.
Sunlight is strong as it is afternoon now you won't enjoy much now but in evening if you sit by the river and hear the sound of the rivers flowing while watching the confluence. Directionally, we are heading to Udaipur. First we'll go to Rashil Village 18KM away. After spending some time there we'll go to Udaipur and spend night there.
We have reached Rashil Village. I am on the road and village is there. This entrance gate is the entrance gate for Mani Mahesh trek. It is a 43KM trek from this point. Information on the importance of this trek is written here.
I spoke to someone who said.. to meet the village head He will tell you more about Rashil Village as well as about Mani Mahesh Trek.. so let's go 3KM from here and visit the village head for more information. Rashil Village has a Zostel there Mostly accommodation is full as people prefer to stay there. There are few more accommodation here Let's find out more from village head. Let's go! The way to the village is very unique.
It is so much fun as we're crossing River Chadrabhagha Also known as River Chenab.. We came from that side of the mountains It is a 3KM journey to the village. We proceeded from the main road towards Rashil Village. There was a diversion and we took right. We ended-up taking turn for an adjoining village.
This is known as Jobrang Village. I have met a local person here He told us we are in Jobrang Village. Rashil is 1KM from here? Yes 1KM away. It'll get dark soon so no point going there.
Can you tell me what can tourists explore in Jobrang and Rashil villages? There is a waterfall here and Rashil has 3 There is a lake on upper side Poki Naag It is quite beautiful! So one has to trek and go there? Yes it is a 1 hour trek. There's a temple of Gurudev Swami It is 7KM away. Can you tell about Mani Mahesh temple? How long does the trek take? It takes 4 days to go and 3 days to return So it takes 7 days in total. One special thing of this village is I am feeling very satisfied and impressed. If I observe the mountains all are snow-capped. Beautiful! Look at sun's rays on that cliff The other side there's no sunlight.
In another 15 minutes it'll get dark. Are there homestays here? Shivani Homestay will be ready by next year. Rashil has 2 homestays. One is Zostel Other is Musafir homestay. These are the 2 homestays. So tourists are coming here.
More homestays are being made here too From next year it will be operational Great! It was nice meeting you. Thank you. I'll take your leave now as we are going to go towards Udaipur. It is 1 hour from here.
We reached Udaipur now at 8:45PM. We will stay at Sharma Homestay. This is the room with double occupancy tariff is Rs 800, we took 2 rooms. One costs Rs 800, the other Rs 1,000 I took Rs 800 room on first floor Rs 1000 room is on the second floor There is only slight difference with 2 chairs to sit. I will end today's journey here itself. I'll meet you tomorrow morning when we visit Tri Loknath Temple and as day progresses.
Tomorrow's night stay will be in Udaipur. For now, Goodnight! Good Morning! It is 6:45AM. I'm outside my homestay in Udaipur.
We stayed in Sharma Homestay last night Our homestay owner told the village has a population of 400 people. You can estimate how small this village is. 50-60% people are involved in tourism. There are 4-5 big homestays here with 8-10 rooms in each homestay. There are many with 1-3 rooms available. You'll get place somewhere or the other Earlier you book the better it is.
You will get good network of Airtel & Jio. But Jio signal is better here. In Tandi, I observed Airtel signal is better. Can you see the hills with sun's ray on it? On the other side of it is Chamba Valley. The snow-capped mountains remain like this all-year round.
The homestay owner told me that. Let's go to Triloknath Temple 12KM away. When we return we'll go to Miyar Nala from this way. Tingrate is written here 22KM Miyar Nala is ahead of this We will not get any signal on this route.
Only BSNL works there. That too with limited coverage. One important thing about Udaipur is I thought there will be electricity problem. But electricity supply is normal here.
Come. Let's go. When we were coming to Udaipur from Tandi it would have been better to visit Triliokinath Temple on the way. But it was already night. Obviously we were late but when you are traveling on this route you try doing this journey in daytime. That way you can visit the temple then stay in Udaipur at night.
We're 5KM away from Triliokinath temple have a look at this view. The water is gushing down the mountains at a great speed. Wonderful! Just look at this surrounding! Such lofty mountains! We will proceed from this road I told our driver to wait for 5 minutes As I must watch this view.
A journey which takes 30-45 minutes I take double of the normal time. homestay owner told its 10-12KM.. I will reach in 20 minutes, I understood that I would take 1 hour.
We take a lot of breaks. Whenever I see a good scene I stop to enjoy the view! Lovely! Let's walk a bit. Journey is more enjoyable than the destination. I am enjoying myself! What an experience! Mountains this side and the River Chenab flowing We will cross this bridge. We reached temple Triloknath's parking.
We have to go in from here. We are inside the temple now. Prayer service (Kirtan) is being performed Now I'll go inside. Photography is prohibited. I'll go in, offer prayers, come out and tell you more about this place. This is a holy place both for Hindus and Buddhists.
Hindus worship Lord Triliokinath. Buddhists worship the same idol as Lord Avalokiteśvara. Also known as Compassion Buddha. I was told that it is the idol of Lord Swayambhu. This temple was built in the 8th Century.
Around 1,200-1,400 years ago a milkman found the idol of this God who the inaugurated the temple. The milkman then turned to stone. Inside the temple there are 2 pillars with a wall in-between them.
Devotees go from between the pillars When you cross it sideways your belly would touch the pillars. One pillar represents sin, the other virtue. On the back side is an idol.
Devotees go around idol 7 or 11 times. This will help to fulfil their wish. Post wish fulfilment devotees come again I was thinking that nowadays there are many facilities. You can come to Keylong via Atal Tunnel Then travel 55KM to this place easily. I wonder how people would reacht 100-200 years ago.
his temple 100-200 years ago. Right! Let's go out now.. and we will have our breakfast. For breakfast I've come to Aditya Bhojanalaya, an eatery just outside the temple. Look at the surroundings. This building is under construction.
Its made from wood, stones & bricks I can see more of wooden structures. Let's go inside. I met you inside the temple and here again now.
Please have your food. I offer food to God before eating. Yes! It's very important. Praying to get better food wherever we go That's true! Do you have black pepper? If you have it please give me some. Don't you have thukpa in breakfast? We don't cook Thukpa sir.
I was told Thukpa is famous in this area. Yes it is made from local noodles. Noodles are made in machines nowadays How is the taste sir? It is good. If I eat paratha of this size 1 will be enough for breakfast. What is the population of Trilokinath? Around 400 people reside here.
Even in Udaipur it is around 400. Were you born here? Yes. I was born in Keylong. I am from Jispa side. With black pepper it tastes perfect. Great! The paratha tastes delicious.
While traveling in the mountains I enjoy eating aloo paratha. I just met Prem ji, your homestay is known as Larjee Homestay. If a room is empty can you show me? This room is quite huge! Around 6 people can stay here easily. What are the charges of this room? This room costs Rs 1,500.
Udaipur has electricity supply. What is the scene of power supply here? There is power supply all day long with a temporary power cut sometimes. The double occupancy room costs Rs 800 From the temple as we were heading to Udaipur I saw the confluence of Miyar Nala and River Chandrabhagha.
Take a look at it from here. The brownish water is of Miyar Nala We will soon visit Miyar Valley. This is River Chandrabhaga. We were watching the confluence from the bridge. As both waters are of different colours It is easy to identify the two water sources This then merges into River Chenab.
How the stream flows into River Chenab. So nice! Lovely! You can see the gust of wind from the flags that are flying. Sometime back I visited the huts to see the accommodation they offer. They charge Rs 3,000 double occupancy with breakfast and dinner included.
You can stay here for a unique experience Let's now proceed to Udaipur. We won't stop in Udaipur, we will go to Miyar Valley. Miyar Valley is 30KM away from Udaipur The car is waiting ahead. We traveled 1.5 hours and reached Miyar Valley.
Miyar Valley started long back we have reached Shukto Village here. I am standing on the terrace of one of the village houses to show you this view. Have a look at it. You can see the snow-capped mountains.
There is a strong gust of wind. If you look down there are big &and small rocks with trees Nature at its purest form is what I feel. Looking at those snow-capped mountains I feel its started raining there.
Its got foggy. Shukto Village has only 7-8 houses in total. This village population is 70 people only. This Tashi Homestay is in Shukto village I told them we will be back in an hour from Miyar Valley, till then they will keep the food ready for us. They will get it ready till we return.
I am so impressed. I have no words! It has started drizzling. Its fun to explore when its drizzling but it is not good for our camera. With even little water camera is at risk. Come. Let's go! As I came down from the car and saw this scene I could estimate That this is going to be the best place.
I asked them for some help She is ready to help me but is camera shy. Please help me explore this village. How far is Khanjar Village? It is 1KM from here. Alright!
Karam Chand Ji please open the seat. Lambu ji has taken her friend along Now 2 people will guide us. I spotted this camping site.
It is full now so we can't see it from inside Charges are Rs 1,500 double occupancy with breakfast and dinner included. Come. Please have a seat in the car! What a beautiful place! I'm impressed. I have reached the last village Khanjar Cars don't go beyond this point. These houses belong to Khanjar village In total there are 7-8 houses in this village I also showed you Shukto 2KM away.
I have no words for this place's beauty. If you carefully observe, farming is happening down. Cauliflower, Peas and Potato grow here. Wheat is grown as per requirement.
Have a look at this side. There is a tall tree line on upper side. Grass with big and small rocks.
Anyone will be impressed at this view. You'll love spending time amidst nature. You'd love to feel the vibe of this place. Look at the snow on the mountain top! There is so much snow on the mountains As I mentioned about Miyar stream This valley is named after Miyar Naala Let me show you from here. Miyar stream is flowing along the fields. In the morning I showed its confluence with River Chandrabhaga.
We saw that camping site sometime back Now we are at such a height. Weather is quite unpredictable here. Enjoy as long as the weather is clear. This side there is a primary school.
As there are no children, school is empty. The girls who agreed to show the village helped us meet a guide Mr. Ranjeet. Ranjeet will show the village from here. Karam ji will drop the girls back to village Till then we'll explore and wait for Ranjeet. On seeing the houses made of wood, brick and stone I went back in time. If you go to the interiors you can still find such houses.
With time cement houses are being made. Here some are proper cemented houses. I feel I have time traveled 50 years back I've never seen such a valley in Himachal Pradesh.
Never did I see a village like this. At every step there is something new. Water is gushing down at such a speed! There is a small bridge that side. Since past 5 minutes I am observing the same scene again and again. The water flowing and this bridge. If you like the vibe of a place we say it was good, enjoyable..
Here I am feeling a sense of peace. This place is out of reach of tourism. Only limited tourists come here because Lahaul is still off-beat to this day. Many are still not aware of Lahaul. Miyar Valley is further off-beat. I just met Ranjeet, let me introduce you.
Tourists can contact you as a local guide You can also help with trekking. So, tell me about treks in this region. One trek is towards the valley From here you can go towards Zanskar You will enter Padum How long does it take to Palepu? 4 days to go there and 3 days to be back. You can explore the place further. You can extend the stay to 3-4 days. It has a glacier too.
You would walk on the glacier for 2 days Yes you will walk on the glacier. Camping at night will be on the glacier. Amazing! It is a trek of 8-9 days. We are now going to visit the lake.
We will reach the lake in 45 minutes. What else is there for sightseeing? You can go and play cricket in the ground. Is there scope to play cricket in this terrain. You can play in the valley ahead.
Come. Where to start? Ok! So as you see the way keep walking! I will walk after you. If it is high please help me. Ranjeet bhaiya, I never go for trekking We go wherever the car can go. But on coming here I feel I must trek too.
It is quite steep! We walked a bit & we are at such a height Should we go this way? I am enjoying a lot! Individually no one can reach this place. It will be difficult to find the way. The scene changes at every 20 meters. After long I spotted Himalayan Birch tree I can also hear the sound of the stream. It is natural music.
Why is water of a different colour here? That's because its glacier water. First time it was less cold. Now my hands are freezing. Yes hands will freeze.
I can mostly see pine trees here. There are Pine, Birch and Juniper trees All found in plenty here. It is more on the other side. After a steep trek, I feel a bit relieved now. The lake is there.
Where I can't see.. How much must we have walked till now? It is 2.5Km and we took 45-50minutes. Wow!! I can't express in words about its beauty! What a natural beauty! I didn't know how big the lake was so I didn't have anything in mind.
Size-wise its not that big But I feel so calm and peaceful here. Especially in this place. Yes, that's the specialty of this place. Wind was not blowing so strongly earlier The trees were keeping wind in check. But as we have come to this place the wind speed has become strong. Miyar Valley is a valley in itself.
It has many villages in-between. There must be 15-18 villages. I was noticing other villages on the way Where I am standing is a valley too. There are mountains this side. All the mountains are snow-capped.
The clouds are looking beautiful! It seems like clouds are above the snow. What a beauty! You will definitely like the lake. You'll enjoy sitting on rocks more For example, If you sit here and absorb this 360 degree view of the place. Ranjeet bhai, tell me something.. How far is the cricket ground? That place with a white shaded area The ground is just beside that. Oh! That is where it is! Aerial distance wise also must be 2KM.
There are clouds everywhere. Below here is a beautiful grassland. Seriously, this place made my day. I have no more words for this. Does this place get power supply? There is power supply mostly here too. There is continuous power supply.
It is important to know of facilities one more thing he told me on the way It snows from November-January The snow melts by March Tourism starts in April During the time when it snows roads open once in 10 days for people to commute. People can go to Udaipur side then. I was wondering, when roads are closed and there is snow up to 8 feet and someone falls ill how can he be rescued? How to visit doctor or reach hospital? Doctor can't come here, patient has to be taken to the doctor. On stretcher, or on shoulders till Udaipur. Udaipur to Keylong then Kullu or Manali.
Otherwise he has to be airlifted. Ultimately, I have fallen short of words of praise for this place so.. Let's go down to Tashi Homestay for late lunch as it is 4:30PM now After lunch we'll go to Udaipur by 8PM This episode has become very long. So, I'll not show the lunch on this episode. I will show it on Harish Bali Travels.
Let's end this episode here. Bye bye! In less words I can say.. I am in the middle of nowhere. That's absolutely true! Bye bye! Thanks for your time.
2024-08-15 03:07
