A Photo Journey to Spiti Valley & Kinnaur in Himalayan State of India with Astha Mittal


Being a big mountain lover, I had been wanting to the picturesque spiti valley from a very long time. I had wanted to explore this alone and hence needed  deep study (the lonely planet guide is my bible) and some research before i could head on with my expedition to this not widely traveled destination.


I started my bus journey from Delhi to reach shimla at six in the morning.

Took the local bus from the new bus stand of shimla to reach reukong peo(11 hours from shimla). One needs to take the local bus to kalpa(30 mins) from reukong peo which was my first pit stop.

Kalpa is a small beautiful village in the kinnaur valley where i stayed for two days. I walked to the "roghi" village(4kms from kalpa) to enjoy the flower laden apple trees and natural beauty on both sides.


From Kalpa i went to the village called nako(6 hours)which has a 1100 year  old monastery which made me feel highly  serene and at home. I stayed at a home stay in nako for one day and they serve amazing home cooked local food.

Being a passionate cook i would have million questions to ask about the cooking and they would answer with a big smile each time. 


Moving forward i went to kaza(6 hours) from nako which is a favourite place for a lot of travelers to stay while at their visit to the spiti valley.

With various guest house options to choose from and hot piping food to feed my tummy,i called it a day.

The next day i booked a taxi to go to the "kih monastery" and the kibber village(the 2 nd most highest village in the world after checham).


My visit to the kih monastery was my most favourite part of the trip. It was an embodiment of peace, happiness and sheer joy. I love the different cultures and traditions that i get to see through travel. The monks in the monastery very sweetly offered me "chai" and khicdi which was hearty and amazing. 


Then i started my journey to the kibber village which has only 20 houses and has very amazing sweet people. The village people believe that god gives special power to this particular person whom they call the "kibber village god". People of this village mostly grow peas, have homestays as a profession.




I walked for few hours around the villages seeing the monastery and interacting with the locals ,only  to be greeted with a pristine snowfall as i retired to bed having eaten a comforting home cooked meal of dal,chawal,sabzi and papad.



This was and will be one of the most amazing journeys of my life, having said so you should definitely goto spiti as soon as you can!

















Comments

BRILLIANT !

It was great to know about your solo trip to Kinnaur region and Spiti Valley. I have lot to say after going through your Photo Journey.

Did you find safe to travel solo in this region? Did you have bookings to stay at various places on the way or you decided on the run?

Did you come back via Manali or followed same route?

Yours journey is really very inspiring and would like to know how many days are sufficient if I plan to do the same trip?
Vibha said…
Very inspiring indeed! And I am so glad it turned out this beautifully for you. Your account of this journey has inspired us so much that we may be planning such a trip soon...Thanks for sharing the experience.
Kumar Shailove said…
So refreshing. Four of us travelled exactly the same route 3 years ago. One of the best experiences in my life.
Kumar Shailove said…
very refreshing. I had a trip three years ago exactly the same route. One of the best experiences I ever had.
Reeta Skeeter said…
wow Astha! This makes for such an amazing read...love your spirit!
sangeeta said…
So good to see you writing about it Astha. I want to go there backpacking too. I know these places are really safe for solo women travelers.
Hema Adurty said…
That was so inspiring. Please share the details of your travel with us. I was planning such a trip either solo or with a friend but did not know how it will work. Looking at your experience it seems to be a do able thing.
Deeba PAB said…
Just AMAZING and awe-inspiring Astha. You are one inspirational young lady! WOW!! Thank you for sharing this so beautifully!
Anonymous said…
well done

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