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A full day journey from Shimla to Kullu of approximate distance 280 kms.
We travels through the apple belt and some of the most scenic towns/villages.
Kullu Dussehra a famous International level festival celebrated in the month of October in Kullu District of Himachal Pradesh state in northern India.
to see Kullu Dussehra 2020 live starting 24th October 2020
Click on the link below
Kullu Dussehra - Live streaming
The day when the festivities end in the rest of the country, marks start of festivities at week long Kullu Dussehra, tens of thousands of devotees follow tradition that is nearly 400 years old and pull the chariot of Kullu Valley's chief deity Lord Raghunath from the historical temple in Sultanpur on the first day of Dussehra or Vijay Dashami.
Assembled deities, usually more than 250, from various villages of the entire district,, accompany the chief deity during the procession. They all stay in Dhalpur ground till the conclusion of the festival.
In deities, the gods "live" and they are among the people and "speak" to their followers and tell them what to do. They have families and relatives who join them in celebrations.
The 'devta' summons the 'gur' and speaks through him. The oracle goes into a trance and connects with the deity. The deity's wish spreads and its followers are ready to obey the sacred command.
In 2020, Kullu Dussehra starts from 25th October 2020, this year, Coronavirus pandemic has affected not only mere mortals, but also the divine and various restrictions are in place.
Only seven prominent deities to participate in the Dussehra festivities this year
A maximum of 200 persons who test negative for Covid-19 would be allowed to join in with adherence to strict health protocols.
no cultural shows or commercial activity are allowed this year during the weeklong festival to ensure the safety of the public.
Atal Tunnel is the longest highway tunnel in the world (above 10,000 feet).
The plan for the tunnel was conceived in 1983. The foundation stone for the project was laid by the then prime minister of India Atal Behari Vajpayee in June 2000. Work on the tunnel began in July 2010. It was expected to be completed by 2015, but due difficult geographic conditions and large water stream (seri) inside the mountain, the tunnel was finally completed in September 2020. It is 9.02 kms long
The state-owned Border Roads Organisation will operate the tunnel.
The Rohtang Tunnel is a route that will connect the Lahaul-Spiti valley to the tourist town of Manali in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, India. The tunnel will also form part of an all-weather access route to the mountainous regions of Leh and Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).
The construction of the tunnel was undertaken by Strabag-Afcons, a joint venture between India-based Afcons Infrastructure and Austria’s Strabag. The contractors were selected after the project was approved by the Indian Cabinet Committee on Security in September 2009.
Australia-based SMEC (Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation) will provide design and project management services until completion of the project.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the strategically important all-weather Atal Tunnel on 3rd October 2020. It was a matter of great pride for all us in Kullu - Manali and also the people of Lahaul Spiti.
The tunnel is built with ultra-modern specifications in the Pir Panjal range of Himalayas at an altitude of 3000 metres (10,000 feet) from the Mean Sea Level
The south portal (SP) of Atal Tunnel is located at a distance of 25 km from Manali at an altitude of 3,060 metres, while the north portal (NP) of the tunnel is located near village Teling, Sissu, in Lahaul Valley at an altitude of 3,071 metres. It is a horse shoe shaped, single-tube double lane tunnel with a roadway of 8 metres and has an overhead clearance of 5.525 metres. Atal Tunnel has been designed for traffic density of 3000 cars per day and 1,500 trucks per day with max speed of 80 kmph.
Moment of relief for people of Lahaul Spiti
Before the construction of the tunnel, there was only one route to Lahaul and Spiti via Rohtang Pass. The 13,050-feet high pass receives heavy snow during the winter, cutting off the Lahaul valley from the rest of the state for six months every year. During this period, residents of the valley are dependent on a flight service provided by the state government.
Lack of medical facilities also posed greater risk during winter periods of isolation.
Tashi Dawa, a close friend of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who is remembered for convincing Vajpayee for sanctioning the tunnel. hailed from Tholang village in Lahaul and had come in contact with Vajpayee during a RSS camp in Baroda, Gujarat, in 1942. Dawa used to visit the former prime minister whenever he used to come to Prini village in Manali.
A trip to Pangi was long ovedue. This time while on Dalhousie , Khajjiar tour, we decided to make it happen. We started early in the morning from Khajjiar towards Chamba. It was an arduos and tiring journey of 12 hrs towards Killar, where we stayed for the night.
Sach Pass lies about 127 km from Chamba and about 175 km from Dalhousie. Every year the pass gets open from late June or early July to mid-October, and then the road closes for winters after heavy snowfall.
This was a general route we followed, Chamba to Bairagarh – Satrundi – Sach Pass – Killar.
We stopped at Chamba just for a while and had our breakfast here and post which we started our journey.
The road was not a good one and not dangerous until Bairagarh. A few kms after Bairagarh and gaining a greater height, the road seemed to become deadliest one and everytime thought creeped into my mind that vehicle would crash into a mountain or fall into the ChandraBhaga river below.
We were at Sach pass by 2 pm and it was crowded with tourist from the plains, as Himachal had recently lifted restrictions on entry of tourists to the state.
It was onset of winters in mountains, and the chill could be well felt at Sach pass, and at any moment there could be a possibilty of rain or snowfall. We visited the temple as the pass and lunch at nearby Dhaba, and set of towards Killar, without wasting any time as we were aware that weather in high altitude passes changes quickly.
In the evening we reached Killar and we had booked a PWD rest house. We stayed here for the night.
Next day morning , we had to cover Sural Bhatori and Hudan Bhatori.
Pangi valleys inhabitants were of mixed religions, hindu and buddhists.
Pangi valley is divided into the Saichu, Hudan Bhatori and Sural Bhatori valleys. Tinglotti pass which separates the Hudan and Sural valleys
1) Sural Bhatori: The distance from Killar to Sural Bhatori was said to be around 20 kms.
This village was mostly inhabited by Buddhist people, called a Bhotia of Tibetan descendents.
The locals informed me that there was no homestay in the village but there was a Forest Rest House where a stay could be arranged. This also known as bhojpatra village , here bhojpatra (Betula Utilis trees are commonly found) and in ancient time sanskrit texts were writted on this paper like bark of the tree.
The village itself, was a beautiful one. Very clean and tidy. People were busy in field and wrapping up their work before onset of long winters.
2) Hudan Bhatori
If one doesnt prefer cars and whats to trek, one can reach Hudan by hiking for about 12 km. From Hudan, you can return to Killar by catching the afternoon bus or your car.
There isnt frequent bus service to this place. Just one or two buses ply in a day.
The village itself is devoid of any hotel or homestay but some locals said that there is a forest rest house which can booked from main office in Killar.
So in all, Killar is hub for adventurers and trekker, who can either choose to go towards Jammu and Kashmir via Kishtwar, or towards Manali via Lahaul spiti, or towards the Zanskar valley in Ladakh.
In the evening we returned to Killar for a night stay and next morning we headed towards Udaipur in Lahaul valley on our way back to Manali.
