[//M]

Still round the corner, there may wait, a new road or a secret gate - J R R Tolkien

This saying in particular holds good for the many small quiet lesser-known valleys in the Himalayas which have not yet been able to draw in crowds like their popular cousins, Manali or Shimla or Kinnaur Valley. One such paradise is the laidback Tirthan Valley, nestled between tall mountains and bespeckled with villages along the Tirthan river.

Also known as Inner Seraj, Tirthan Valley is a quaint little valley dotted with charming riverside villages and natural forests offering great Himalayan walks that promises plethora of short hikes as well as plenty of flora and fauna. Home to the beautiful Great Himalayan National Park, this delightful valley is essentially a hot destination with anglers thanks to the abundance of Himalayan Trouts in the meandering mountain streams.

Now, it also stands as a hot destination for people who want to stay away from the usual crowded Himalayan destinations.

Few years back, myself and a few friends happened to be in Delhi during the onset of winters. So it was decided that we take a few more days off from work and spend some time away from the hustle bustle of the daily grind.

The only place which came to our mind for a quiet little 4-5 days break was Tirthan Valley.

[//M]

There were multiple questions in our mind regarding place of stay, mode of travel, route to be taken etc.

Since we all were in Delhi for a short while, none of us had a personal mode of transport available readily. Back then, I had just moved in to Gurgaon from Pune and was yet to get a car here. So we decided to take a rental car and drive down to Tirthan Valley instead.

Regarding the place of stay, we scouted a few online portals and came across a nice homestay situated on the banks of the Tirthan River, called the Sunshine Himalayan Cottage. Since there were no reviews of this place, we were a little sceptical to book it at once. We however contacted the owner and he replied that the place had come up only a couple of months back and hence there were not many reviews on the web.

He shared a few pictures with us over whatsapp and we decided to go ahead with the booking based on just seeing the pictures he had shared.

Route was not a major issue anyway. We decided to drive towards Manali via Panchkula - Pinjore - Nalagarh and branch off towards Banjar before the Aut tunnel.

The next morning we started early from Gurgaon and hoped to reach our destination by early evening. However, the conditions were not very favourable and we encountered a lot of traffic everywhere. We also stopped at a friend's place in Karnal which added some precious time. The road conditions were not an issue though, mostly straight highway till Pinjore and thereafter state roads till Nalagarh. Post Nalagarh, the straight roads and traffic gave way to serpentine mountain roads and beautiful scenery.

By the time we reached Mandi, it was already dark. Thankfully there was not much traffic so we proceeded towards Banjar. Soon after we branched off the busy Manali highway near Aut, the road got narrower and there was barely any traffic movement around. The last few kms from Banjar towards Tirthan Valley was the only bad stretch of road we had encountered in the entire 550 km drive.

We reached our destination very late, tired and hungry. Due to no natural light, we couldn't really see the surroundings so we just decided to meet our host, grab a meal and call it a night.

Some pictures clicked on the way near the foothills

[//M]

Next morning, I was still deep in my slumber when my friends rushed in to wake me up. All they wanted me to do was to come out and see the place. I was too lazy and sleepy, and comfy inside the quilt thanks to the cold winter morning so I shrugged them off.

However, soon I mustered the courage to come out of the quilt. As soon as I walked towards the window, a beautiful mountain scenery awaited me. I walked down to the living room and saw my friends outside, near the river. I went out and what I saw left me spellbound.

The beautiful mountain stream and the scintillating mountainscape left me in awe. We went around the property and realised that this place has such a fabulous location right on the banks of the river, with tall mountains on either sides and a nice little backyard to enjoy some solitude.

I will rather let the pictures do the talking.

A bonfire setup for the cold winter nights



The kitchen and dining area






A reading area with plenty of books pertaining to the flora and fauna of the region




A room with a view




Our favourite place in the entire property - the backyard along side the Tirthan River












Our place of stay - Sunshine Himalayan Cottage - in a small little village called Pekhri

[//M]

We had a good time exploring the immediate surroundings of our cottage. Our host shared some lovely stories of his hiking adventures around the Great Himalayan National Park over breakfast and we all were a little mesmerised. Since hiking inside the Great Himalayan National Park is off limits, we decided to hike upto a nearby waterfall called the Chhoie Waterfall. It is about an hour's hike from the last motorable point and the trail offers stunning views of the valley down below.

We reached Chhoie Waterfall and realised that it is a very small waterfall, nothing like some of the bigger waterfalls we had seen elsewhere. However, this place was secluded and quiet, and the water was icy cold so we really enjoyed the short hike. After spending a couple of hours there, we returned back to the cottage.

Dinner time was spent with the hosts, listening to their stories about the place, folklore regarding local beliefs and practices followed by the villagers as well as the initiatives taken by the locals and regarding the kind of sustainable eco-tourism they want to promote.

Some pictures clicked at the cottage




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Few clicks from our short little hike to a small secluded waterfall, called Chhoie Waterfall






























Some clicks of the property at dusk

[//M]

The next day was spent driving to Sharchi, a remote village inside the Tirthan Valley. Since Sharchi is situated higher up in the mountains, we could see some beautiful some capped Himalayan peaks around. I wonder how beautiful this village would be in peak winters when the adjoining peaks receive fresh snowfall. The narrow mountain road to Sharchi was really beautiful, as it went through Pine and Cedar forests and then as we climbed higher up in the mountains, we could see the sun basked Himalayan range in all its glory.

While at Sharchi, we enjoyed playing cricket with the kids and walking around the village to reach a vantage point to see the beauty of the massive mountains surrounding us.

Stunning views of the Himalayan ranges en route Sharchi


















Sharchi, a quaint Himalayan hamlet at the far end of Tirthan Valley
















Pine and Cedar forests en route






Our steeds during this trip - Hyundai Creta and Ford Ecosport

[//M]

We got up very early next morning as we had planned to drive down to Jalori Pass and if possible trek to Rewalsar Lake as well.

Some of us got up really early hoping to catch a glimpse of the dawn in the valley. While we were rewarded with some really pleasant views, somehow we couldn't document them on camera.

After an early breakfast, we started our climb to Jalori Pass. The narrow mountain road was fairly crowded, against our expectations. However, once past Jibhi, the last climb to Jalori Pass barely had any traffic movement. We were hoping to encounter some black ice but thankfully there was none.

We reached Jalori Pass pretty early however the locals warned us that hiking up to the Rewalsar Lake may not be a good idea as there was simply too much black ice on the entire trail so it was apparently a little unsafe for hikers. We were a tad bit disappointed but we anyway decided to climb up the mountain peak at the pass which offers scintillating views of the adjoining valley.

For the movie buffs here, it came to my notice recently that some sequences of the hindi flick, Ye Jawaani Hai Deewani, was shot at Jalori Pass.

After spending some time over the slopes, playing with snow, we retreated and drove back to our cottage in Pekhri.

Some pictures clicked near Pekhri at dawn








The scintillating Jalori Pass




































Creta and Ecosport parked at the driveway, ready to undertake the long journey back to Gurgaon the next day

[//M]

The plan for the next day was simple - drive down to Gurgaon. However, we all were so overwhelmed with the peaceful environs of the valley that none of us were willing to pack up and leave. So we did spend some more time around the place, basking in the sun and enjoying a warm cuppa next to the river listening to the roar of the stream, which felt like music to our ears.

We interacted with the lovely hosts one last time over an extended breakfast session and left Pekhri for Gurgaon around noon.

Post Aut tunnel, we again had a lot of traffic for company and the usual truck traffic ensured we do not make swift progress. We decided to skip the Nalagarh route and take the Mandi - Rupnagar - Ambala route instead. By the time we reached the foothills near Swarghat, it was already dark.

We still had over 300 kms ahead of us. So we decided to take it slow. We stopped at roadside dhabas frequently for tea breaks and enjoyed some good time with each other before everyone flies back to their respective cities and gets back to their daily grind.

We stopped at our friend's place in Karnal for dinner and for a quick nap, post which we left for Gurgaon in the middle of the night as some of us had an early morning flight to catch from Delhi the next day.

The next morning I dropped off my friends at the airport and slept like a log the whole day. The Tirthan hangover was not over, infact it is still not over yet.

Despite the pandemic creating havoc across the globe, I secretly wish to escape to this beautiful valley and spend a good couple of weeks there, enjoying the clean air and reading my favourite book sitting along side a mountain stream.

Thanks for reading.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Stacko]

Lovely shots and a great write up. Leaves me wondering what I have explored myself being in Himachal for all these years. Well it’s never too late.

Hats off to you guys, who make it possible coming all the way from different parts of the country and exploring things here. Taking time off, getting together and having some fun, that was a well spent holiday. Definitely good to see some fresh trips in these bogged down Covid times.
Cheers mate, happy travels ahead.

[//M]

Originally Posted by Stacko

Lovely shots and a great write up. Leaves me wondering what I have explored myself being in Himachal for all these years. Well it’s never too late.

Hats off to you guys, who make it possible coming all the way from different parts of the country and exploring things here. Taking time off, getting together and having some fun, that was a well spent holiday. Definitely good to see some fresh trips in these bogged down Covid times.
Cheers mate, happy travels ahead.

Thank You Stacko.

Tirthan Valley is very scintillating and must be extremely pristine around this time considering the fact that there would have been barely any tourism influx in last so many months. You must exploit this opportunity to go around parts of the state where you have not been before. You, being so close to these valleys, can actually consider doing such short trips every week and I so envy you for this. Infact I am pretty sure many of us would envy you for staying around such magnificent mountain destinations.

[AdityaDeane]

Having been living in Manali and working in a Christian Mission Hospital here for the last over 1 year, I have been fortunate enough to visit our satellite Clinic in Jibhi at least 3-4 times, and I love the place every time I go. Glad to hear about the place through a different lens. Even in these times of pandemic, we had an opportunity to visit the place and also Jalori Pass in July IIRC. Keep driving and keep posting such wonderful travelogues in the future as well.

[shaheenazk]

Originally Posted by //M

We got up very early next morning as we had planned to drive down to Jalori Pass and if possible trek to Rewalsar Lake as well.

How far was snow from Sunshine resort? Can one drive up to the point or trek?

[//M]

Originally Posted by AdityaDeane

Having been living in Manali and working in a Christian Mission Hospital here for the last over 1 year, I have been fortunate enough to visit our satellite Clinic in Jibhi at least 3-4 times, and I love the place every time I go. Glad to hear about the place through a different lens. Even in these times of pandemic, we had an opportunity to visit the place and also Jalori Pass in July IIRC. Keep driving and keep posting such wonderful travelogues in the future as well.

Jibhi is beautiful and the proximity to Jalori Pass really makes it special. The next time I am around, I would love to spend some time in Tirthan Valley and atleast couple of days in Jibhi. It would be exciting to explore the pine forests and the inviting trails surrounding this narrow valley.

Originally Posted by shaheenazk

How far was snow from Sunshine resort? Can one drive up to the point or trek?

The Sunshine resort is situated in Pekhri, just a couple of kms shy of Gushaini. Jalori Pass would be atleast an hour's drive from Pekhri, maybe a little more depending on road conditions and traffic.

[Raaj*]

Really a mesmerizing place on the banks of Tirthan! Was not aware of the place during my Kullu_Manali_Manikaran_Chandigarh trip 4 yrs back. Adding this to my bucket list. Being in south, i envy people living in north for the places they have in HP next to them.

[avi_swift]

Nice travelogue and great pictures

I went to Tirthan in the summer of 2016. At that time we had moved to Delhi less than 1 year back, and I was still not confident about driving in the highways, so we went by bus. It's a lovely and quiet place, and is my favorite place in all of Himachal. We also went to the Sereolsar Lake from the Jalori Pass, the views were lovely. But the best part was the hotel that we chose (forgot the name): you had to cross the Tirthan river on a human operated miniature rope way to reach the hotel. And as you mentioned, sitting on the rocks by the river was indeed a memorable and peaceful experience.

Your pictures brought back lots of memories for me.