[PointZero]

Day 10 (Chopta – Kanakchauri – Trek to Kartik Swami:

After Chopta, we commenced towards the next place through the roads having orange trees on either side. We drove to Kanakchauri, which is just 20 kms far from Chopta and trekked for 3.5 kms till the ashram.

Trek to Kartik swami Temple is much easier as compared to that of Deoria Tal. In winters the jungle way of the trek is covered with snow and bright colors rhododendron makes the place heavenly. On the way, the setting sun could not be ignored because the gold and orange hues bled like fire in the west over the valley.

We enjoyed the sunset during the trek

As per the gathered information, we knew that we will get a place to put up at the ashram. However, there were many people there who have gathered for new year celebration. I was doubtful of whether we will be getting room or not. Without food I can still survive but if I don’t get shelter, then??????

We were just sitting with the people who have come and were chatting with them about their where beings. Swami Ji called my wife and showed a room downstairs and asked to adjust with the available blankets. I was still in the dilemma of what to do if it turns out to be very chilling.


As the gathered group became bigger it split into vegetarian and non vegetarian division as some of them restrained from having non-veg in the temple premises. With intimation, they had more interaction with us and they became more inquisitive about our travel and passion for that. My wife helped them with the chopping of the vegetables and cooking while the huge built guys gathered woods and water from the forest which has wild animals also. With the descending day we all became one group and they offered us to celebrate 31st night with them with food and music. Each of them had a unique well established profession. It was a cricket team which binds them together and today’s celebration was of their victory in the match. One was a retired army officer, a chef of a renowned hotel in Mumbai, a priest of Badrinath temple, an army officer who has made it to the Mt. Everest thrice and a teacher who is an actor at Ram Leela drama. With music and celebration, turning high with the night the group sang some folk music and played a part of Ram Leela.

Party Arrangement

With the tiring day of trekking, this hospitality was beyond expectation and it felt like a home away from home where people loved and cared about you. An army officer posted there who had put up at the room adjacent to us offered his sleeping bag for the night as the room had no bed and adequate blankets. I am thankful to him because the sleeping bag did much to ameliorate the stay. Our new friends insisted us to stay up till 12 pm but we were already exhausted for the day still I said I will try. I slept like dead.

The Team

https://youtu.be/NMQFkWZuSJk

Celebration of new year in Garhwal style


Day_10_Map

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 11 (Kartick Swami – Kanakchauri – kausani):

My wife got up when it was dark and dragged me out of my sleep. We cannot miss the sunrise at the Kartik swami temple. The importance of temple is mentioned in mythology but for me what was important was 360 degree panoramic view. We climbed 700 mtrs. through steps from the ashram to reach the temple.

A long ridge formed the path to the temple which was built at the edge of it. This morning’s sunrise was a breath-taking display of radiant colors. Bright streaks of red, pink, and orange slowly overcame the dark blue and purple of the twilight sky. The sky resembled a prism, all the colors blended perfectly into each other. The sun itself was just peeking out of the horizon, and its brilliant rays already shined brightly and began to warm the air. Just before dawn, the eastern sky filled with blended tones of rosy pinks and sandy yellows. The sky has softened to a blue and the clouds were like cotton balls floating in air. It is the perfect dawn, one to be savored instead of squandered. This place appeared to be a platform with the entire world around it. The 360 degree view of the snow clad mountains simply made my eyes go wide open. Starting from Bandar puch in the west, Kedarnath dome, Meru and Sumeru, Chaukhamba peak, Neelkanth, Dronagiri, Nanda Ghunti, Trishul and Nanda Devi group of peaks. Nanda Devi group of peaks is considered to be the most beautiful one. Under this radiant beauty, I can see the path, uncluttered, ready for another day of traveling to the great city.

Few random snaps before and after sunrise at Kartik Swami

https://youtu.be/0NCeiSfCiw8

Early Morning 360 degree PAN from Kartik Swami

Coming back to the ashram Swami Ji greeted us with tea and our friends were just awake and they made their move towards the temple. Meanwhile we bid good bye to them with a promise to come back to their place again. In the morning, many women were seen picking twigs for their living in the jungle. Life is challenging for people staying here with farfetched water and other needful things.

https://youtu.be/bgW29gF2FaY

Trek route while we were down trekking from Kartik Swami

Statue of the Swami Ji who discovered the peak




Some details about Kartik Swami
















Few random snaps during down trek from Kartik Swami

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 11 continued ...

Winding through the meadows the roads turned and twisted along the valley dominated with step cultivation. The lust green valleys seemed like green patch spinach spread on a round brown bread. Just around 15 KMS ahead of Kausani across the river there was a temple and I remember I have seen the picture several times on the site of Himachal. I kept it for the way back trip as we had to trend the same way back.

Few beautiful snaps on the way to AnashaktiAsram from [FONT=&quot]Kanakchauri[/FONT]

With a 150 KMs. valley drive, the roads led us to Anashakti Ashram in Kausani. A small introduction to this Ashram i.e. this is the place where Mahatma Gandhi has put up at during his stay for 2 weeks in 1929 to Uttarakhand and had named the place as Switzerland of India. It was dusk when we reached the ashram so we had to make an adhoc request for hot water for bath. The place was quiet after evening as the visitors to the museum have left.

Inside Asram Premises

After three hard days (Deoriatal, Chopta & Kartic Swami) we actually had bed to sleep on and today I felt my muscles aching when it felt loose on the bed.

Day_11_Map

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 12 (Kausani – Tejam – Brithi – Munsyari):

View of Himalaya from Kausani

The morning was fresh with a soothing sleep after few exhausting days. We were ready to go in no time packed with new energies. I was capering around the ashram capturing the mountains, flowers, birds and people coming and going in the museum. Remember I left a temple while driving to Kausani? This time I quickly got down locked the temple in my camera and then again made a move.

Baijnath Temple, we left last day.

The sky was clear blue and we were on a road all lonely swirling high. The track snaked around the side of a mountain with a sheer drop to the right. The leaves were bright yellow in colour and it gave the mountains strokes of vibrant yellow and rust colours. The roads transverse through the valley of Uttarakhand with floating clouds following us. We took a small break near Brithi Falls to have our late lunch.

Got this quote on the way


























Few random snaps on the beautiful road towards Munsiari.

https://youtu.be/gn9Az_tqpXA

Kausani to Munsiari, Part_1



Brithi Falls on the way.

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 12 continued ...

By the time we reached Munsiyari, the sun was already setting. Munsiyari is a hamlet in the district of Pithoragarh between India, Tibet and Nepal. Nestled in the snow-clad peaks of Himalayas, Munsiyari hill station is a perfect cocktail of serenity and calmness and is also referred to as "Litte Kashmir".

https://youtu.be/e9N9vDargk8

Kausani to Munsiyari Part_2

Munsiyari is famed for the splendid view of Panchachuli, group of five peaks that looks like chimney. Mythological significance is that the peaks are considered as Pandavas 5 cooking hearths. Another story being that initially the place was under Nepal, in Nepal “Chulli” means peaks and hence the name of the group of 5 peaks came up as Panchachuli. Apart from this, there were other peaks like Nandadevi, Nandakot, Rajarambha and mountains of Nepal Himalayas that has encroached the hamlet. KMVN hotels in Munsiyari has a brilliant location but the rooms seemed not well maintained. I managed to get a roof top room in a hotel in Munsiyari and spending the night looking at the sparking Panchachuli is an experience cannot be expressed in word.

Got a rooftop room at Bilju hotel









Color of sunset from out hotel



At a nearby tea shop



View from our hotel in moonlight


Day 12 Map

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 13 (Munsyari – jauljibi – Askote – Pithoragarg - Abbott Mount – Lohaghat):

Nanda Devi temple shows the best view of the Panchachuli with a wide panoramic view in a large open area of the temple. The snow on the mountains seemed to evaporate forming a dense cloud and if I personify it then I can say that the mountain had high esteem to touch the sky. Sitting at the garden of the temple I stared at it lost in my own thoughts. We met some friends again whom we had met last day near Bhriti fall on the way to Munsiyari. He was impressed to see us traveling Uttrakhand in our own car and he himself felt proud to be a resident of Kumaon range.

It was a lazy morning and why not? when you can see such beautiful peaks lying on the bed






Moving towards Nanda Devi temple








Some random snaps at Nanda Devi temple

On our map, we had plotted Pithoragarh as our next stop. The Gorkha Killa (fort) was what we were seeking there and another reason being that we had to make a return trip now and had to head downhill. It is just 130 KMs away and so was short trip to complete and getting to see a historical place lured us towards this place.

Map is important when you do not plan before leaving home.


Lazy Turtle got some favorite road after a long interval


Lazy turtle ready for a quick bath


Rainbow trying to shake hands with lazy turtle




PointZero @ Jauljibi Zero

https://youtu.be/rjclWKWtsq8

Munsiyari to Seeling

However, the fact is that this historical place has lost its importance among its own people as no one could assist us with the direction even in the market place. Only certain people knew the whereabouts as they were involved in the renovation of that place and this was the reason that the entrance to this place was restricted. It was sheer waste of time to venture in this plan and even it was not mentioned on the government monitored tourism site of Uttrakhand.

Finally we utilized the surplus time and drove till it was not dark, meanwhile my wife googled for another place of interest. There was a mysterious place discovered and the history of the splendid place goes a bit eerie. Abbott Mount is a picturesque hill station at an elevation of 6,400 ft, encircled with clusters of 13 rustic cottages of European style. There is a story that in one of the bungalows a doctor named Morrison used to conduct dreadful experiments on the locals in 1920s. The spirits of those local patients is believed to haunt in one of the room of the bungalow in “Mukti Kothri”. We followed a Honda city to be at that place but believe me the darkness of the bungalow made me feel snooky and I declined the plan to put up at that place. The group halted there for a birthday celebration and the place literally had none to refer to for any guidance. I returned from there and searched for a nearby city to stay. We already had the cognizance that if we don’t get a place in one of the cottages in Abbott Mount,we can always drive to Lohaghat for our sojourn for the day. It is just about 10 KMs away from Abbott Mount on nice pitch road and with streetlights of the approaching city my fear was lost. We ended our day trip at Lohaghat; in a jest nothing fruitful for the day.

Entering Lohaghat


Another cozy stay at Lohaghat



Day 13 Map

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 14 (Lohaghat – Mukteswar):


The hotel owner of Lohaghat said just a single line “one should go to Mukteshwar once” and this sentence is enough to head in that direction. Short 4 hours’ drive through the meadows and the step fields, the road swirled to an altitude 2286 mts. Mukteshwar is well known for the ancient old Shiv temple Mukteshwar Dham situated atop the highest point in the town, on the veterinary institute's campus. Close to it lie the overhanging cliffs, locally known as Chauli-ki-Jali, used for rock climbing and rappelling, with an excellent view of the valleys below. The sparsely crowded city is a perfect blend of calmness and serenity. To enjoy this pleasant stay we chose a pleasant resort of rejuvenate for the day. The sunset covered the sky with scarlet colors in the resort. In the morning the dew drops settled on the petals of the flowers of the resort. The peaceful environment of the garden added to the joyous.

Few random snaps of Lohaghat at Morning



Way to Mukteshwar


We met Bahubali at a local tea shop

























Few Random snaps of our stay at Mukteshwar.

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 14 continued .. few pics of Chauli-ki-Jali and sunset at Mukteshwar

On the way to Chauli-Ki-Jali


It's not me








Few snaps of Chauli-Ki-Jali






Returning back from Chauli-Ki-Jali


There are many such British Banglow










View of sunset from our stay


Ready for bonfire


Day 14 Map

To be continued ...

[PointZero]

Day 15, 16, 17 (Mukteswar to Kolkata)

On the way from Mukteswar to Lucknow suddenly I found that one of the leaf spring has been broken just after crossing Bimtal. It was good that before hotting the tyre / fuel tank it came to my notice. Took some suggestion from SS-Traveller Da and went to Bajarang Motor to replace the leaf sprint. Being an outside traveler I got some advantage there and they replaced the leaf spring fast and we were ready to go.

Bhimtal on the way


Leaf Sprint coming out from center position

Repairing job going on at Bajarang Motors

Initially the plan was to complete the long stretch (Mukteswar to Kolkata) in 2 days. However, for the mechanical fault and tiredness it took 2 and ½ days to reach home.

Somewhere at Bihar while returning.


Dat 15, 16, 17 Map

Thank you -
PointZero

[Samurai]

Moving out of Assembly Line. Thanks for Sharing. - Support team

[Saurabh M]

Lovely travelogue and excellent pictures. Loved it.

[Samba]

What a wonderful travelogue! Rated 5*.
Each of the pics shared here are drool worthy. Your Bolero looks to be playing in its home ground!
You just enhance the bar of penning down your travelogue's with the latest ones!

Keep travelling & keep on gifting us with such amazing travelogues.

[VKumar]

Bookmarked it, this one looks just too good to be left without thoroughly going through everything it contains.

[drbones]

Superb travelogue and amazing pictures. This travelogue deserves 5 stars. Enjoyed reading every day details of the drive.

[McLaren Rulez]

The Bolero seems to be the perfect vehicle for this sort of trip! Practical, reliable and simple - it may not be the most comfortable ride but it'll get you there.