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Cedar trees have captured this valley from every part & you will find green powder of Cedar tree leaves all over you, if you are stoned for some time. This place has a dense forest with abundance of variety of flowers & of course harmful insects.

It’s situated at more than 4500FT above sea level & lies around 35 Kms off route to Mandi – Kullu highway. From a small town Aut, you get direct buses to Banjar Valley & Jibhi. A peaceful & less crowded place with very high literacy rate. If you are travelling by local buses after Aut; you will certainly have a chance to meet & talk to students travelling to achieve their academic dreams & talking about a different Himachal culture unlike other cities- Shimla & Manali. Kind & helpful locals will give you a life perspective which is far outlandish to materialistic world.

There is a small waterfall in Jibhi & reaching on top of this will give you very fast pumping heart as a steep ascent is waiting for you. Coming down is easier if you choose to do water rappelling arranged by a local facilitator (Lalit-Leena’s Palace) here. This is one of the reason, I visited this place but believe me there was more to explore & be a part of, in this valley. Biking, Cycling, Fishing & Jungle treks are some other options worth trying in this place.

Jalori Pass-Himalayn range & an old temple inside fort which is only left with stone walls now. A small water tank in centre of fort with full of flower bouquets gives this places an aromatic touch. Though with stormy waves at this place, you might not feel it much. If you are lucky, you can experience clouds touching your feet & sunlight closing your eyes at the same time. Sarehul Lake, Chiri fort & Chaini village are some other important places to visit around Jibhi & forest trek make these places little adventurous. I guess winters could make these places more beautiful with snow, which I surely missed this time. Don’t forget to eat Siddu (a local dish of Himachal) here which definitely has a different taste from other parts of Himachal.

Nice and relaxing place for solo or family travel. Have a good one…

At 12000 ft it feels like another world when cold breezes touch your face & make it numb, same way your heart & mind will stop thinking anything when you will see the amazing beauty of this place.

We started from Delhi in a chilled morning of December and without deciding the destination. After continue driving & passing Haridwar & Rishikesh, we decided to go to Tungnath but keeping 4 days for this trip encouraged us to visit Deoriya Taal also. We travelled in December 2012 so lots of things changed after 2013 UK Floods.

On our way at Rudraprayag we saw the confluence of Alaknanda & Mandakini River & Chamundi Temple is located in between both rivers. Flow of both rivers on joining was at its best. Our first night stop was at Syalsaur Government cottage 170 Kms from Rishikesh which is now vanished after flood. It was a very decent cottage on the bank of Mandakini River. After a full day more than 400 Kms drive, this place actually provided a peaceful stay & sound of river water was giving soothing music. Second morning we headed to Sari Village, it’s a small village from where the 3.5 Kms trek for Deoriya Taal starts. We stopped by here to fill ourselves with maggi & parantha & it was a good decision, we realized later. 3.5 Kms trek from here was more difficult for us than we thought but lush green forest around trek helps little. We took around one & half hour to trek it. You get couple of shops over there & they provide everything starting from tea to camping stuff, everything you might need. We decided to camp there, once we get to know about facilities these people providing. This place gives 300 degree view to Kedar Range Mountains & mirror image of mountains on Deoriya Taal. It’s a small lake of natural water at 2387 mtrs above sea level. Camping at this place in month of December thrilled us & chilled our veins. A group of bikers joined us on Bon fire & made it a musical night with their songs. Next day we drove to Chopta to start our final day trek to Tungnath- Lord of peaks. All shops were closed because of winters & camping was also not possible there. It was 4 kms moderate trek from Chopta & full of snow in winters. The 1000 years old temple of Shiva at 12000 ft looks amazing & gives an iconic view covered with snow. You get the full view of Himalayas from here. Temple gets closed in winters so we missed to view it from inside. It is definitely a place to visit & would like to save that view in your memories forever. This place gives a peace of mind & forces you to believe the power of almighty. After spending few hours in silence & happiness we moved back towards life of New Delhi, keeping Tungnath in mind & heart.