[H0RSEPOWER]

Purple haze in snowy Himachal

Our last trip to Himalaya in the northern part of our state in October was just finished. And soon an itch to go to the Himalaya again started. This time I wanted to go a bit further, to the North western parts. Time was during the Christmas holidays. Initially thought of Spiti, but had only 8-9 days in my hand starting from Calcutta to Calcutta. So skipped Spiti & planned for some other places in Himachal itself.

Even before 10 days prior to the travel, we did not do any booking! Then eventually booked for one night in Narkanda, next night in Shangarh & next in Manali. Rest were not booked. Well, booking on the go has it’s own share of excitement during any roadtrip! I was already super excited but just a week prior to the trip, a huge roadblock arised! Due to the bad AQI, GRAP 4 was implemented in the NCR region, banning all BS4 diesel vehicles there. And I was planning the trip with my BS4 diesel Ecosport! Then I had to plan a route bypassing the NCR. For the planning of the routes around those areas I took help from various TBhpians. Many thanks to Bonniver, Predatoronwheelz, Samba, Mile_Breaker & others who helped me a lot for the planning for the alternative routes without which the trip would have been really very tough to plan!

Posting few teaser photos from the trip-

Narkanda








Shangarh




Manali

[H0RSEPOWER]

23rd night& 24 th December: Finally we started on 23 rd December night. And our return was planned on either 31st night or on 1st Jan. Our first stop was at a gas station somewhere in Bihar. For the car lovers, it’s likeable to spend their time in the car as much as possible, well I implemented it very deeply indeed during this trip! I have bought an inflatable bed & had set it up in the back seats. I took a nap of couple of hours there while my wife was sleeping in the front seat. (This bed really helped us a lot during the journey!) Then we started again & in the early dawn we were in the fringes of Varanasi & I again felt sleepy, so quickly parked the car in another gas station & took another round of nap, this time my wife went to the rear bed & I was sleeping in the front seat. Then after getting freshened up we had some sandwiches that we brought with us & continued our journey. We took the NH19 instead of PEW as suggested by both Bonniver & Predatoronwheelz. Our lunch break was just after crossing Kanpur. Then we continued till Agra. Road conditions of both the NH19 & ALE was superb. Only in Bihar some stretches were in bad conditions. After reaching Agra in the evening we tried to visit the Taj Mahal, but it was closed for the day already. So chose a nearby hotel & finally checked in a room after 1300 km long drive in past 24 hours!

25th Dec: We woke up early in the morning. We had plans to reach Himachal on that day but did not have any booking & moreover as we had to avoid entering NCR, we planned to go via Alwar in Rajasthan & then take the trans Haryana expressway till Chandigarh. But before starting with the journey I really didn’t want to miss to visit the Taj Mahal! It was my first visit to Taj Mahal & I was really spellbound with the beauty if Taj! I have seen so many photos of the mausoleum earlier, but visiting that marvellous piece of art in person was really superb! Well after getting out of the Taj mahal we started our journey towards Himachal via Rajasthan. During the drive I enquired of the snow chain from a store called Halte in Chandigarh. They earlier told that they could arrange it for my wheel size, but on the D-day, they informed they don’t have it in stock! Then as suggested by Mile_breaker, I went to the motor market in Chandigarh to search in the shops. Finally in the evening I could find a shop where they told that they can make it but they would ship it to Narkanda the next day by a bus. And I need to collect it in the mid of night there! Anyway with no other option left I ordered it, & then started to plan for the place to stay in the night. I searched tge HPTDC site & booked Ross common in Kasauli. The road from Chandigarh to Kasauli after finishing our dinner at Chandigarh. The road was good apart from the last few kilometres to Kasauli. Well, the thing I least expected was a group of policemen checking for the offenders with a breath analyser in an empty road in Kasauli at 11:30 pm! Anyway after passing that test ( well, in my mind I was murmuring that hey I didn’t come all the way from Calcutta just to do some drink & drive here!) , we eventually checked in to the hotel. It was an old colonial bungalow converted to a hotel. Even after driving for more than 2000 kilometres in last two days, billions of twinkling stars in the backdrop of dark sky compelled me to gaze at them standing outside shivering in cold! I was trying to find the Orion. It was awesome!

The bed in the car to take some rest while feeling too sleepy to drive!


The marvellous Taj Mahal!


Look at the work of art!


The HPTDC Kasauli


Inside HPTDC Kasauli

[H0RSEPOWER]

26th Dec: We started early in the morning. Initially plan was to take the route to Narkanda via Chail. But the resort owner told to take the Shimla route. But little before Shimla we saw that the map is showing a substantial part of the route marked in red with increasing congestion. So took the Shimla bypass(Shoghi bypass) & eventually went back to the Chail road itself with some bad roads in between. In the Kufri it was full of maddening crowd for the snow activities. The crowd reminded me of Calcutta streets during the Durga pujo time! Anyway, we continued our journey, in some of the places it was having heap of snow beside of the road. But the road was mostly clear. Some vehicles were deployed to sprinkle loose soil on the road to make it less slippery. Finally in the afternoon we reached near our resort in Narkanda. In Narkanda the roads were covered with snow. But the tyre marks were there and I was driving slowly following the same. But the approach road of the resort was having some amount of black ice. Without any snowchain it was not possible to move the last stretch. So finally in some areas the ice had to be shovelled away. And then only we could proceed further!
The resort was really nice. We were staying at the alpine cottage with a great view of the mountains ahead. the sun was setting. Initially the sky was getting painted with scarlet & then gradually with crimson hues. After the show of setting sun with the riot of colours, we sat in the cottage with numerous stars above visible through the large glass area of the valley side wall of the cottage.

View from Narkanda!


The approach road to our cottage in Narkanda





A study in scarlet!


The inside of our cottage in Narkanda


The mesmerising view from the cottage


Posing for a few photos in Narkanda

[H0RSEPOWER]

27th Dec: Today our destination was a lesser known place called Shangarh. We came to know that the usual road towards that via Jalori pass is closed due to heavy snowfall. And we need to do a detour via Mandi. In the morning some flurries started & we didn’twant to get stuck. So we started early. The road till Mandi was okayish. Road after Mandi till Aut tunnel was simply too good! I am not used to drive in this kind of good roads in the Himalayas as per my roadtrips to hills of North Bengal & Sikkim! But after crossing Aut tunnel we had to take the route of Shangarh via Sainj. Conditions of this road was really bad. And the last 20 Kilometres were in very poor shape. We arrived just after the sunset. We stayed at Into the wild resort. The nomenclature was so apt! It was right in the towering cedar forest. The front lawn was covered in snow. Throughout the evening & the night it sleeted there.

Just after starting from Narkanda!


A drone shot of the road


In the evening in front of our cottage in Shangarh




Walking in the mystical & lonely roads in Shangarh


Valley of Shangarh


Taking a photo break on the way

[H0RSEPOWER]

28th Dec: In the morning the surrounding of the resort looked absolutely amazing. We were the only people there in the cottage on that day. A cottage surrounded by jungle of conifers, the front lawn covered in snow & the far mountains playing hide & seek due to the clouds! And light sleet outside. Just imagine the scene. It was so serene! You can get an idea by looking at some of the photos. Though we were too indulged in the nature to click much photos! After completing the breakfast while enjoying the vista we started towards Manali.

Our cottage in Shangarh


The splendid view from the cottage in the morning






Somewhere in Banjar


Again from Aut onwards the road was in great shape. But just after reaching Manali the traffic jam was terrible. It took more than couple of hours to cover less than 5 kms in Manali to reach our resort! We stayed at The Himalayan resort near the Hadimba temple. After reaching there we saw that everything was covered with a blanket of snow. Even the swimming pool was frozen. We checked in & just spent our day leisurely there itself. In the evening sipping a cup of coffee sitting beside the warmth of the fireplace while listening to the sound of snow falling outside & the crackling sound of the woods of fireplace it felt really awesome. It was a magical day indeed!

Few photos from our resort in Manali, the pool was also frozen




Bird’s eye view of the resort & the surroundings






The warmth of fireplace on a snowy evening

[H0RSEPOWER]

29th Dec: Our initial plan was to go towards Sissu crossing the Atal tunnel. But we heard that due to heavy snowfall a lot of vehicles got stuck, some had minor or even major accidents skidding in the ice. And after a few kilometres towards Solang valley only 4WD vehicles are being allowed for the weather & road conditions. We didn’t take any chances & spent the entire day in Old Manali mall doing some shopping and roaming here & there.

A leisurely day spent in & around our resort in Manali





30th Dec & 31st Dec: Again today we didn’t have any booking & planned to move as much as possible. The road condition was too good throughout the journey today. But there were a lot of speed cameras in Himachal with a speed limit & got a speed ticket too!

During the return leg from Manali




And just after entering Punjab initially at one junction a policeman told me something in Hindi with some local accent, initially I heard ‘Mirinda’, but without seeing any bottle or any container nearby with any orange drink inside, I assumed he was telling us something else, and then I guessed he told to take a different route to all the ongoing vehicles. So continued & soon comprehended that he was actually asking us to take a detour via a place named Morinda! . Within a while we saw that the toll plazas, flyovers were blocked with tractors due to the ongoing farmers protest. We came to know that there was a statewide strike till 4 pm. So had to wait till then. Initially we tried to take some rural roads to proceed. But finally we had to stop. After 4 pm we could resume our journey. You remember about the snow chain that I ordered in Chandigarh? No, it didn’t not make to Narkanda or any other place in Himachal. And finally I just collected it from the shop in Chandigarh now while returning! Well at least I won’t need to bother about it the next time I go to any snowy destination! Our plan was to go till Lucknow as we thought of taking the PEW route while returning. But due to the time lost waiting in Punjab, it got delayed. We continued till Murthal where we had the dinner & then in the dhaba parking lot itself I slept in the car. I was quite tired & slept for around 4 hours. Then after getting refreshed we again started our journey by 4 am. Eventually we reached Lucknow by 11 am. We went to Dastarkhwan for some lip smacking food. And then after filling our tummy with those delicious items within a short span again started to feel sleepy! So we again slept in the car for quite some time.

The lip smacking Awadhi cuisine in Lucknow








And then in the afternoon we resumed our journey. We took Purvanchal expressway, continued till the Sultanpur exit. Then reached Varanasi via Jaunpur. The road after the exit was single lane road with some congestion, but was manageable & what I heard from others, it was better than the other exit roads to connect with NH19. We reached Varanasi in the evening & planned to continue instead of stopping. After crossing Aurangabad again I felt a bit sleepy. It was middle of the night, just stopped our car at a toll plaza little before Sherghati & slept there for some time. Then by the dawn we started our journey again. And finally reached our home in Calcutta in the noon on 1st day of this year. And thus we concluded our trip of 4500 kilometres crossing 10 different states & union territories in total in a span of 9 days! The journey was surely an awesome one which would be itched in the chamber of our memories forever! It was a fantastic trip, but for my spouse, she likes the mountains to be covered with vibrant greenery instead of this snow white cover, so maybe someday we would come again in these wonderful places in summer to see the majestic landscape covered with tender velvety green grasses!

Concluding the travelogue with a few parting shots!

Somewhere in Narkanda


Majestic Manali


Splendid Shangarh


Fire & ice




A bird’s eye view of the beautiful roads in Narkanda


The trip meter after the completion of the trip

[Aditya]

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

[Samba]

This travelogue looks dreamy!

Kudos to both of you for successfully pulling out a snow drive, and that too in a 2-wheel drive vehicle. This speaks a lot about your confidence and driving skills.

Loved the pictures. Plus the customized color on your Ecosport looks stunning on the snow.

I was once in Narkanda during the winter, which looked nothing less than a wonderland.

[Neversaygbye]

An awesome account of a trip to a winter wonderland! Your drone shots really added a different dimension and just as Samba mentioned, I'm also super impressed that you did this trip on snowy terrain in a 2WD vehicle without using snow chains. I have been to many of the places and your TL brought back fond memories. Kasauli in particular was a favourite getaway of ours when we used to live in Delhi. My last trip was in July 2006 though, which was a lifetime ago, and your TL has stirred in me the desire to visit Kasauli again. Here's a pic of my (then) car on the road to Kasauli.



Your pic of the Taj is also interesting in that you seemed to have found it less busy than usual. The concept of the bed in the car is a really cool one and one that I'm planning to emulate. Also, kudos for making this truly a driving trip - from what I could make out, you managed to cover a lot of ground in very less time because you rested in the car itself rather than in a hotel. I'm not sure that I'll be able to drive 1300 kms at a go even with a bed in the car, but it's an interesting idea for sure.

Really, hats off for doing this trip in about a week! If you do go back, you may like to go during the apple season - places like Narkanda, Sangla, Chitkul, Fagu have lots of apple orchards on the route and they make for a beautiful sight in peak apple season.

Btw, did you have any issues with cold starting your car? Since I also have a diesel (two, actually) that is one thing that worries me a lot when I think of planning a trip to a place where the temperature will be sub-zero.

[H0RSEPOWER]

Originally Posted by Samba

This travelogue looks dreamy!

Kudos to both of you for successfully pulling out a snow drive, and that too in a 2-wheel drive vehicle. This speaks a lot about your confidence and driving skills.

Loved the pictures. Plus the customized color on your Ecosport looks stunning on the snow.

I was once in Narkanda during the winter, which looked nothing less than a wonderland.

Thanks Samba da for your appreciation! Your Winter Spiti trip was just too good! And thanks again for the tips that you have provided for the trip!

Originally Posted by Neversaygbye

An awesome account of a trip to a winter wonderland! Your drone shots really added a different dimension and just as Samba mentioned, I'm also super impressed that you did this trip on snowy terrain in a 2WD vehicle without using snow chains.
Your pic of the Taj is also interesting in that you seemed to have found it less busy than usual. The concept of the bed in the car is a really cool one and one that I'm planning to emulate. Also, kudos for making this truly a driving trip - from what I could make out, you managed to cover a lot of ground in very less time because you rested in the car itself rather than in a hotel. I'm not sure that I'll be able to drive 1300 kms at a go even with a bed in the car, but it's an interesting idea for sure.

Really, hats off for doing this trip in about a week! If you do go back, you may like to go during the apple season - places like Narkanda, Sangla, Chitkul, Fagu have lots of apple orchards on the route and they make for a beautiful sight in peak apple season.

Btw, did you have any issues with cold starting your car? Since I also have a diesel (two, actually) that is one thing that worries me a lot when I think of planning a trip to a place where the temperature will be sub-zero.

Thanks Sumanta da for your appreciation! As we went to the Taj Mahal before the sunrise itself & that too on a winter morning, it was comparatively less crowded. And surely that added to the astonishment that I had as I was visiting this for the first time!
And regarding the cold start, luckily we didn’t have any issues in any of the places in spite of having sub zero temperatures, though it was within -4/-5 degrees, not colder than that when I started the car. During my visit to North Sikkim also in the Ecosport I faced similar sub zero temperatures, but didn’t face issues in starting the vehicle there as well apart from just taking few seconds longer to get started.

[ABHI_1512]

Stunning locales, beautiful pictures and an awesome journey to the winter hinterland. The addition of drone shots has made the travelogue even more exciting. Keep travelling with that incredible machine and keep sharing these gems with us, loved going through the log.

Regards,
Abhi.

[Maverick Avi]

Wonderful pictures and the drone shots add a different dimension!!

I was at Narkanda in 2nd week of Jan and most of the snow had melted. But could find snow enroute Hatu peak. Had my Ford Aspire for company and the trip was a bliss. Snow and black ice can definitely be a bummer here. On our last day when we had to return to Delhi it snowed overnight and roads were blocked towards Kufri. Had to take a alternate route from Theog to Solan which was absolutely gorgeous and was a blessing in disguise.

I carried my drone too but during the 1st flight itself it was shaking heavily due to winds so didn't get a chance to explore it more as everyone wanted to enjoy snow more. Sharing a few pictures from my trip below.

[Mile_Breaker]

Amazing photos of the trip ! The recent trend of drone captures has also got you that I see, but the drone really gives a new perspective to an already seen place. When you first time mentioned about your plan of this trip in the snow with the purple love of yours, i was concerned how the 2WD will behave. But you both have managed it so well and that too without snow chain. I must say that you are a braveheart to take such a risk. Such daredevil journeys are an experience. Lets see where you plan next ! Bring that bed along in one of our weekend meet, i am sure it will be a big hit !!!

[TheHelix0202]

How do you have a purple EcoSport? Looks sick! Nice travelogue too!

[Auberon]

This travelogue made me feel quite nostalgic. Although I myself backpacked across Parvati in 2017, as a kid we used to go to Himachal almost every month. I remember Kasol when it was a small village and a little German kid stuck with my family and refused to go back to his parents!

Also recall getting stuck in the rain at Narkanda and meeting some Norwegian teens there who were shocked that Indian families all shared one computer. We accidentally crossing Rohtang cuz dad was expecting a challenging road and didn't find it to be one lol I don't recall if it was the same trip or a different one but it was a hairy experience crossing a rickety bridge with Baspa river on one end and Sutlej on the other, specially on the way back since we knew psychologically it was going to be harrowing.

At Sangla I remember bus drivers asking us if it was safe to go ahead when we were returning! And the bridge across Sutlej-Baspa got washed out a week after we crossed it so we were right to be scared, there was a permanent army bridge installed there later IIRC.

These are events from more than around 2.5 decades ago when I was a little kid. Another vivid memory is a mother primate running after and scratching my arse as I was admiring its kid at Jhakhu. Barog was another memorable trip for us.

My late father was quite an excellent driver with sharp reflexes but on several trips we took along a driver anyway in case any mechanical issues crept up or he needed some rest, and on some we did not. No snow chains were used and can't recall anyone else using them back then either. However I do remember the locals looking at our little hatchback with wonder past Sangla as they had not seen any of those around there, and strongly advising us to hire a jeep or take a bus if we planned to go further as any tiny rivulet or landslide would take our car out, we needed their advise and headed back on that trip.

Almost all of these were accomplished on a carburetted Maruti 800, though dad and I had a trip by ourselves to Bharmor and beyond in our then new-ish Wagon R VX quite excited with the prospect of seeing how a first hand 1061 cc 65 bhp MPFI engine would fly compared to our pre-owned 800s.

Man, how time flies. Sorry for the long post. I travelled to Mauritius, Cambodia and Thailand last year and also Uttrakhand, Taj Mahal and Bharatpur with a now ex who had flown over twice from Estonia but what wouldn't I give for those roadtrips in the Himalayas with my parents and sister again.