Travel Itierary : Shri Mani Mahesh Yatra Chamba Himachal Pradesh

Mani Mahesh is the abode of Lord Shiva. Many local stories can be heard regarding the reason behind the stay of Lord Shiva at Mani Mahesh. It is located in Pir Panjal Ranges of the Great Himalayas. In Mani Mahesh Lord Shiva gives Darshan in the form of Mani or a shining object at the time of sunrise on the mountain opposite to the Dal Lake. Dal Lake is the final destination of Mani Mahesh Yatra.

You can plan the Mani Mahesh Yatra in different ways. The main stations to reach the Mani Mahesh are Chamba and then Bharmour. Chamba is a District in Himachal Pradesh. Chamba can be reached by bus or Cab from Pathankot. The nearest railway station is Pathankot in Punjab and International Airport is Amritsar also in Punjab. Next destination from chamba is Bharmour.

It is believed that one must visit the Maa Bharmani Temple at Bharmour before starting the Mani Mahesh Yatra.

From Bharmour Yatra(journey) can be performed by Helicopter or through road and footpath. Helicopter services are available from Bharmour to Gaurikund, which is one KM far from final Destination i.e. Dal Lake. The flight time is appox 7 Minutes. But the flight depends upon the climatic conditions. Hotels are available at Bharmour, but advance booking is advisable.

If yatra is to be performed on foot which most of devotee do, at first on road journey is done upto Hadsar. From Hadsar onwards 13 KM long journey is performed on foot. The path is very steep, challenging and adventurous. The Distance from Hadsar upto Gauri Kund is 12 KM and then 1 KM to Dal Lake. It is very tough Yatra hence good physical condition should be ensured. Body is also exposed to low oxygen level and performance decreased significantly. 

Yatra can also be done on the back of horses which are available from Hadsar upto Dal Lake.

The Mid way camp is located at Dhanchoh, which is around 6 KM from Hadsar. Sleeping and food arrangement is available at langers. One should plan one full day journey upto Dhanchoh and next day journey to Gauri Kund. Stay should be made at Gauri Kund as the level of oxygen is more than Dal Lake although stay arrangements are also available at Dal Lake. Sound sleep can be guaranteed as oxygen level is low. After stay at Gauri Kund, early morning journey to the Dal Lake should be performed so as to reach there at 4.00 AM to attend the Morning Aarti (prayer). The environment is very spiritual there and it is a lifetime moment. You can stay there upto to sunrise and if you are lucky and no clouds are there, you can see the Mani along the rising sun. After taking holy dip in Dal Lake, Parikrama is performed along the periphery of lake. Prayers are made at the prayer points by facing the mountain of Mani Mahesh. 

Back Journey upto Hadsar can be made in 6-7 Hours, which is possible in single day. 

Points to be taken Care: Take sufficient warm clothes as temperature is very low. Rain coats should also be ensured.

Take important medicines, as body malfunction due to deficiency of oxygen.

Asthma Patients should avoid the on foot journey. Helicopter services should be availed, although horses are available there.

Personal Experience : It is a lifetime experience to me. The whole spiritual atmosphere during morning hours is the best moment.

Other Places : If time permits other beautiful places in chamba like Chamba Chaugan, Maa Chamunda Temple, Khajjiar, Dalhousie, Banikhet etc can be visited.

Chaurisi (84) Temple at bharmour is also a point of attraction. There are 84 temples in complex. The main temple is of lord Shiva, which is quite old. The world’s only temple of Lord Yama (Yumraj) is also there.

You can purchase dry fruits and apple from the market. You can take home the special Chamba Chukh ( chilli chutney) and Chamba Chappal from market of chamba.

  

Explore Hamirpur

Explore Hamirpur

Hamirpur district is having its unique importance in himachal. Being the smallest district of state, hamirpur is the epicenter of educational competitiveness and political significance. It is the home of his holiness lord Baba Balak nath ji at Deotsidh, godess Santoshi Maa at Ladraur and lord shiva at Ludder Mahadev and Gasota Mahadev, Maa Awahdevi at Awahdevi.

The natural beauty of this area and very congenial climate attract visitors from extreme hot and cold weather condition areas. The fogless/clear winters and mild summers are the peculiar features of climate prevail here. Monsoon showers and lush green vegetation in rainy season opens the nature’s lap to its best creation. 

Hamirpur district is having very good human resource. Majority of livelihood of people living here depends upon the service sector. Govt has set up various educational and training institution here. National institute of Technology Hamirpur, Sanik School Sujanpur tira, Central School Hamirpur, Jahawar Navodiya Vidayala Tarkwari at Dungri, Govt Polytechnic at Baru and JP Polytechnic at Samirpur. Recently prominent coaching institute Career Point Kota has opened a Private University named as Career Point University at Bhoranj

One of the best hotel available in centre of Hamirpur distt is Hotel sun sky. Hotel Sun Sky is located in Bassi at Bhoranj in District Hamirpur of Himachal Pradesh.

Hotel sunsky is situated almost in between the dharamshala and Shimla, two famous hill stations of himachal. It is very near of places of spiritual, educational importance, the approximate distance is:

Deotsidh	Shri baba balaknath	45 KM	www.jaibabedi.com
Jwalaji	Mata Jwala	65 KM
Awahdevi	MaaAwahdevi	10 KM
Nobahi	MaaNobahidevi	10 KM
Ludar	Lord Shiva (ludarmahadev)	2 KM
Ladraur	MaaSantoshi	11 KM
Career Point university	Tikkar	3 KM	www.cpuh.in
JawaharNavodayavidyala	Dungri	3 KM	http://www.jnvhamirpur.org.in/
National institute of technology	Hamirpur	30 KM	http://www.nith.ac.in/
State Institute of Hotel Management Catering Technology & Applied NutritionHamirpur	Hamirpur	35 KM
Himachal Pradesh Technical university	Hamirpur	25 KM	www.himtu.ac.in
Himachal pradesh subordinate selection board	Hamirpur	30 KM

From 2013 hotel has constructed its banquet hall keeping in view the requirement of customers. Necessary modifications as per occasion are being done as per requirement. Banquet hall is used by customers for performing community rituals, marriage functions, training under govt and private organizations. This facility is only of its kind in Bhoranj area

The restaurant and bar is having special packages for its esteemed customers

Hotel accepts all types of master and visa credit and debit cards. 

Tour to Tourist destination like Kullu, Manali, Bhuntar, Manikaran, Rohtang Pass, Solang Nala, Vashist Mandi and Bilaspur

Kullu Manali Tour

Kullu Manali are very famous tourist destination in Himachal Pradesh. The purpose and motive of visiting Kullu Manali is different than other tourist places in Himachal Like Shimla, Chamba, dalhousie, Kangra, Dharamshala, Mclodganj etc. Where Shimla is famous for British Heritage, Kullu Manali is famous for scenic beauty and enjoyment. It is a ideal Honeymoon destination than Shimla. Lots of fun and sight seeing is there irrespective of climbing the terrines Like in Shimla. Although if the specific purpose is rock climbing then these destination also offer these facility but not the compulsion. Where as in Shimla you have to climb the terrines compulsory to enjoy the beauty.

The places like Kullu, Manali, Bhuntar, Manikaran, Rohtang Pass, Solang Nala, Vashist, Mandi and sundernagar can be reached through National highway 21 or through air at Bhuntar Airport. The road route is Delhi-Chandigarh- Ropar-Kirtpur-Bilaspur-Sundernagar-Mandi- Pandoh Dam- Aut- Bhuntar. From Bhuntar if you want to visit manikaran then there is different route and for Kullu Manali and rest of places other route is there.

Number of good quality restaurants and hotels are in the Kullu Valley starts from Bhuntar. To avoid the traffic of Kullu town by-pass is also available from Bhuntar, which can be used while returning from Manali. The river bank side hotels and restaurants are ultimate facility in kullu valley. If You want to purchase the gift item of Kullu Manali Tour, Kullu Shawls are the best. But to avoid the duplicacy, purchase from local co-peratives like Buttico or the co-operative shops in old kullu town at Akhra Bazzar. It is observed that many road side big show rooms are selling the outside product in the name of kullu shawls.

From Kullu move to Manali many good looking tourist spots are there on the bank of River Beas. The main attractions at Manali are Manali Mall Road, Hidimba Devi Temple, Hot Spring at Vashist, Rotang pass, Solang Nala and many more.

The agricultural Produce of Kullu is also very famous. Kullu valley is known for Apple, Pears, Pomegranate, Kiwi, Plum and many off season vegetables.

The adventurous sports like river rafting, paragliding, hot air ballooning, rock climbing are also available in Manali- Kullu area.

The other tourist spots like Malana (world's oldest democracy) and Kasol are also in Kullu valley.

One more destination you can enjoy is the traditional food served at Ghahas in district bilaspur. The traditional makke di roti is served with urd daal with ghee and curry at road side dhaba near ghaghas  (2KM before ghaghas)in district bilaspur. If you want to enjoy the traditional dham of Khaloor Riyasat of Bilaspur. then there is kalhoor dhaba in main bilaspur town which serves only lunch. The Sweets of Kamdhenu (local co-operative) is also famous. The food outlet is at Industrial area of Bilaspur town. 

Tour program for shimla

Tour program for shimla :

Shimla is called the “Queen of hills”, and it is true so. Shimla is a very beautiful place, if visit is planned smartly.  Now a days lot of tour programs and packages are offered by travel agents and companies. But it has been seen that in some cases it is marketed wrongly, and the tourist did not get true value of their money and time.

Shimla town has may faces which attracts the tourists from all over the world. It was the summer capital of British Raj. It is most nearest place in which you can see snow, it has a very scenic beauty, thick forests and various points of spiritual importance. Hence Shimla offers a complete package of all the blends for all kinds of visitors/ tourists.

There are various monuments and building in shimla, which show the typical british architecture.  Some of them are Geaty theater and town hall at mall road, church at ridge, viceroy  regal lodge (now indian institute of advance study) at summer hill, buildings at mall road, DC office, AG office, Aukland house etc. these all important places are within 5 KM radius from the center of town.

The important spiritual places in Shimla are kalibadi Mandir, Jakhu temple, sankat mochak temple and tara devi temple. All these places have great importance and some story associated with each place. These places are also very approachable from Shimla town.

The most important aspect for which Shimla is famous is its scenic beauty points. The popular ones are kufri, naldera, fagu, mashobra etc.. But these points are very crowdy now. If you want to really enjoy the scenic beauty of Shimla then there is one route from Mashobra to fagu through Bhalku road. Named after baba Bhalku ram, who is instrumental in laying of kalka Shimla rail line. It is a kuchha road, but the scenic beauty is exceptional. It goes parallel to the national highway, but truly in the lap of nature through jungle. Small stations like dak bagla, makhdol and bheklati are very beautiful. The quality of road is not good, but if you have good vehicle, the enjoy of tour can be tremendous. During the return from fagu, other places like kufri and hussan valley can be visited. In kufri, place of importance is the chini bangal and the restaurant of himachal tourism. If kids are accompanying you then the adjoining park will be added pleasure.

The 15-20 KM drive from kufri to chail koti road also add pleasure to your visit. It is a very beautiful jungle road.

So these are the places which tourists should visit during the visit of Shimla and not to become the crowd of tourists on some selected points as shown by the guide or the travel agent.

The toy train to Shimla is also one of the specialties of Shimla. One should enjoy the ride of same. It should be noted that you should have good health if you are visiting Shimla. In Shimla it requires lots of walking and the approach of transportation medium is not possible. Most of tourist points are on sealed or restricted roads.

Keeping in view following plan is suggested to enjoy the Shimla:

Day 1 : take the toy train from kalka to Shimla. it starts around 4.00 am. From kalka

             Have breakfast in Shimla, then visit advance study, kalibadi,

Have lunch then visit Geaty, church at ridge, and other places on mall and ridge.

In the evening visit Jakhu temple and after dinner have a walk on mall and ridge.

Day 2 : After breakfast take the taxi and visit Naldera then mashobra, take the route of balku road to fagu. Enjoy the scenic beauty at fagu, then move to kufri . Have lunch there then visit chini bangala, and 10-15 Km drive from kufri to shilon bagh to koti. Then move to chail. Visit the palace there and move to kandaghat via sadhupul.

Take your dinner at dharampur in Giani ka dhaba or modern dhaba, and then move to chandigarh and further to your destination.

In the above 2 day tour programe you can enjoy maximum of Shimla. You can extend the two day program in 3 days as well depending upon your energy level.

Shimla is a very cool place and weather changes here frequently. It is advice to keep woolen clothes throughout the year. Fluctuation in temperature is very rapid here after sunset.

It is requested not to litter in public places and use the dustbins provided. Donot use plastic bags as it is banned in himachal.

How to drive and walk on snow

How to drive and walk on snow.........

Himachal Pradesh and other hilly states like Jammu and Kashmir, Uttrakhand are experiencing spell of snowfall. Major tourist places like Shimla, Manali, Dharamshala, Kufri, Fagu, Narkanda, Mashobra, Kullu, Chamba, Dalhausie, Kinnaur and Laul spiti areas etc are experiencing good snowfall .Although snow fall is very good for the economy and ecology of state, but along with it, it brings some unwanted aftereffects. Due to snowfall there is problem of connectivity, power, drinking water and other necessary utilities in some areas. 

The early snowfall is more problem causing than later one coming in months of feb. The early snow is very light and gets settled on the surface and take the shape of glass, which poses great problem for walking and driving. It got struck on roof of houses, cars, top of tress and with the passage of time it gains weight. It may cause breakage of roofs, breakage of branches of tress and deep impressions on roofs of cars. The melting of this kind of snow is very lengthy and in some cold zones it may extends upto March April and melts with the rains. Other snow, which comes late is quite bulky and melts easily.
After the snowfall due care should be taken while walking and driving. On settled snow, skidding is the main problem. Proper type of snow boots should be used. Some of best trekking shoes may not be suited to walk on icy floor. It should be noted that the texture of shoe sole which skids on water will also skid on snow. Hence non skidding boots should be use, which may not be even branded shoes. Similarly large groove shoes are also not good, as snow particle fixes in these groove and make it skiddy.  Similar is the case for driving of vehicle. The tyres which skids on wet surface will also pose the same problem on snowy surface. It is recommended to fix snow chains on tyres. 4X4 wheel vehicles are ideal for snow driving. Don’t take the risk with ordinary vehicle to drive on snow unless you are having experience of driving on snow.
During driving one care must be taken that driving should be made with first gear only and speed limit should not be more than 25-30 KM/ hr. don’t imply breaks during driving on snow else vehicle will skid. Special care should be taking while driving on sharp curve, rising or lowering levels. Extra speed will skid the vehicle away from road and will cause serious damages to you as well as fellow vehicles. Don’t exert extra efforts if vehicle stuck in snow. It will damage the engine of vehicle and futher deep struck in snow.
While walking on snow case should be taken that hands should not be parked in pockets. Any small imbalance will put you in trouble. Always take the support of side railings or any stick if walking on snow. People with more weight should take extra care. Never be caught in fall impression when you see the small clear pocket/Patch of path. It seems that it is safe point but in some time there is small icy layer on it which is transparent and can not be judged. When you put foot on it, you will skid. Same is very serious on small and narrow paths/hill climbing paths. Always take small steps during walking.
After the snow fall when sky is clear during the night, the water coming from melting of snow deposits on roads and paths and get freeze, which is not visible and pose great problem for travelers/ drivers. Special care should be taken during this time. Glassy surface of road will skid the vehicle away
If all the above mentioned points are taken care, you can enjoy the snowfall with safety and can encash the memories of lifetime.