Its not very common for me to not rush my road-reviews. Yeah thats two nots, read again. Its not very common for me to not rush my road-reviews. But as you grow up (and old) you sort of start to mellow down. In my case I would still blame on office-work, home-work, in-transit-work for my procrastination rather then this mellow philosophy, after all in the end we did drive all the way from Delhi-to-Shimla-to-Kaza-to-Manali-to-Delhi. So here’s a road review of Shimla-Kaza circuit. Delhi-Shimla is already covered here and any updates on that route are best to be found there.
Shimla-Kaza is a long one and its not a single day-light drive. We did in two parts, first Thanedaar-Sangla and then Sangla-Kaza. Both took a great part of day.
Himalaya, Rocky Mountain High
The route can be divided into following 7 sections
1. Shimla – Rampur
2. Rampur – Wangtu – Karchham
3. Karchham – Espillo
4. Espillo – Khab
5. Khab – Nako
6. Nako – Chango – Sumdoh
7. Sumdoh – Tabo – Dhankar – Kaza
1. Shimla – Rampur
Distance – 100+ KMs , Driving Time – 2 hours 30 minutes
As you approach Shimla, you would find a fork, the right of which goes to Rampur via Shimla-bypass. It seemed like a obvious choice but our confirm-at-next-turn experience made us take a U turn. When we asked few bus drivers, we were almost forced to go back since the bypass road is much more longer or so it was told. As a result of that U turn, we entered Simla city, after a while took a left which goes through a tunnel kind of thing and then it was Simla everywhere. Being the capital city, Simla is pretty big and if not it being a hill, it would compete very closely with other bigger towns in terms of overall chaos, garbage, haphazard development and what not. We had started from our home at Indirapuram, Ghaziabad sometime around 0530 hrs and it was already beyond 2, so we ignored the city and after a 30 minute slow but moving drive, we carried on towards our destination of the day viz. Thanedar.
Thanedar is the apple country of India and I would try to do that story separately. As we went past Kufri, I called up the hotel guys and was told that it would be at least 3 hours away, so we stopped for lunch at the roadside dhaba. It was a fairly clean dhaba and our steward-waiter had this high-pitch tone, made us wonder that probably Pankaj Kapoor researched this accent for ‘The Blue Umbrella‘.
We reached Thanedar which is not on main highway and left next morning at around 1000 hrs. We were on inside roads and with couple of clean-the-windshield-using-stream-water and giving a lift to a lady, ensure that we spent close to 2 hours before we joined NH22 again. It was lovely driving through winding inner roads, flanked with apple orchards, with no traffic and hardly any movement.
As we drove further, the road gets wider and better. There is a large Power Plant thing being done and from now till Spillow, power plants were constantly accompanying us, seemed as if HP is going to be the power capital of the world. Gradually Pines gave way to Eucalyptus and it was difficult to believe that we are really in Hills. Later we figured out that Rampur is at 900-1000 m while Shimla is at 2200-2300 meter. Thats quite a gap.
So courtesy non winding wide roads, we picked up speed and with in no time we found ourselves at Rampur. Rampur seemed more industrious then Simla.
2. Rampur – Wangtu – Karchham
Distance – 70 Kms , Driving Time – 2 hours
We were now in Kinnaur. AS we approach Wangtu, you would encounter a massive power plant project by JayPee group. Roads are all gone, probably for a better future. You gain height and roads jutting out of rocks becomes a more common sight. As you go further from Simla, the vehicle density keeps going down and while there were lot of truck movement because of power project, we started to see less of roadways buses, jeeps and other local transport.
The landscape is green, rocky and big. The canvas is beginning to grow and you now can see far and wide. We took a break post Wangtu and had our thought-fully packed-lunch which our hotel guys gave us. It took just a small request to a small sweets shop to let us sit inside and have our food. We did try to buy a coke and few munchies to keep him in good humor but guess that was not needed. We carried on. Its so much different to be in a shop with no rush. A couple was enjoying the soda pop waiting for the next bus, the guy must be in late twenties and from the conversation which I could gather, he seemed to be in a mood to stretch it and ensured by convincing his partner to skip the bus which came while we were not done with our food.
More of Kinnaur in Pics. Its beautiful.
A note for my fellow ghumakkar, biker dude, Indians do not need to take any permit in Recong Po or infact till Kaza, as you pass through Espillo you do need to get registered and again at Sumdoh.
Our destination of the day was Sangla, a beautiful valley and Karchham was our point of detour. The road from Karchham to Sangla is best left unaccounted. Well, its a single lane narrow road with a gorge on one side and towering rocks on the other. The road is as winding as it would want to be and if there is an oncoming vehicle and if you are on the gorge side, well it does test your nerve. A miss or a slip or a push can make things end. Sorry to scare you but if you are ever going towards Sangla, ensure that you reach Karchham when its broad day light.
When we reached our camp, it was almost 5 PM, it was heartening to listen to other folks on how dangerous the drive was. You are never alone.
3. Karchham – Espillo – Khab
Distance – 80 Kms , Driving Time – 2 hours 30 minutes
You come back to Rakccham to join the main road which would be with you till Sumdoh. There is hardly any traffic till Rakccham but as you hit it, the power-plant-caravan catches up. Keep driving among tall mountains, an accompanying river to keep the monotony away.
Take extra caution to fill-up the tank at Powari since that’s the only petrol station you would find before Kaza. It was noon and we passed several very small villages which in fact could hardly be noticed but owing to a little bit rough terrain, hills and almost none traffic, we were not going too quick. Sometimes absence of rush makes you go slow, strange.
On the way, you see some of the huge falls, portions of roads which have never seen two vehicles side-by-side ever, since their width can’t accommodate them (ok ok.. poor joke, move on) , tall huge rocky mountains, a LOT of clear Sun and occasionally a snow-peak. I am not a sun-glass guy but sometimes its so bright that you better use them.
It was not too late when we reached Espillo and there you get into the protected zone. There is a small barricade and you log your credentials with the Army there. A small quick conversation and we move further. Its gets more lonenly post Espillo.
5. Espillo – Khab
See 4.
Though the distance is not too much for this section but I would rate this section as the most demanding. It could see the best of your patience, grit and perseverance. The driver in you need to take the front seat and the video-gamer would have to wait for a while. This section has the famous Khab zig.
As you go further and survive some of the real bad patches, you notice that you have started climbing. And after a while you would see that you are actually going in a zig pattern with one side having a not-so-high mountain rubble wall and the other side down-looking at the previous zig-arm which you just left. Though this may not sound too harsh but each arm of zig is fairly long, probably a Km or may be less so at that scale you are climbing and as you would have guessed its a 1.5 lane road. So if you get company from the other side and you are on the dont-look-down side of zig, you have it. Its not uncommon to occasionally run into a Army caravan with their ‘Shaktimaans’ in a big long line.
The views though makes up for the challenges. There are more than many places where you can pull in and take a eye full of the mammoth surroundings. I say mammoth because the mountains are like real big tall huge mountains, the Himalayas, you can see as far as you want to, as deep as you want to and sometimes feel strange to find just you, your spouse and your 4 year old as a company.
You get that ‘Waiting for Godot’ kind of feeling and you really don’t think that this road can ever go to a dusty town, it might appear so much of out-of-world that you better try to get out of it and start driving again.
We tried to capture the zig. Look at pictures and try to get the scale.
You go all the way up and are at 3000 mtr, the place is called Ka, I believe. The snow peaks are at the same eye-level. Just be there, look around, feel special and move on.
6. Khab – Chango – Sumdoh
Distance – 40 Kms , Driving Time – 1 hour
Khab has nothing more than a few auto shops but there is a village down the road, a monastery where you can stay for the night and I believe some lodges. We kept moving and noticed a raised hand looking for a lift. We let her in. She was with us till Chhango, another village few KMs away. I was surprised to find her speak very good Hindi and we got wiser about the local terrain and ways. We bid goodbye to her at Chhango and gave ride to another lady with a small baby. We drove a few meters and noticed these two backpackers. I stopped and they requested for a ride till Tabo. The journey from Khab to Nako sees much more habitation but you are really in an arid land now and you can’t miss it. We dropped the lady with the baby at some place and our conversation with the two backpakkers continued. The roads are good, not too wide but its simpler to drive, you do get long stretches of straight strip of tar.
Booking.com
The guy was Peter and the lady was called Lucy, with such common names, you would not believe them assuming that it can’t be true, reminds of Badal Sircar’s ‘Evam Indrajit’ play where the protagonist says that his name is Nirmal when the other three who are accompanying him are called Amal, Vimal and Kamal. Peter and Lucy are originally from Czech but working in Afghanistan. For last three months they have been traveling in India and it was probably their 4th or 8th trip. They were with an NGO and take up assignments, save money, get out to travel. Because of their extensive traveling there were very well versed with India, Indian names, a bit of culture and all that. We did share our common interest around ***ching things we do not like.
Now we were traveling amid total arid, rubble mountains. The area looks more like a part of China than India, from names to features and probably that’s what this whole country is all about, with varied cultures, varied terrains and what not.
At Sumodh, we stopped again to get our vehicle registration logged. Peter and Lucy had to undergo a little more detailed procedure since their permit needed to be scrutinized. All this happened in not so much time and we moved towards Tabo by 4ish.
7. Tabo – Dhankar – Kaza
Distance – 60 Kms , Driving Time – 1 hour 30 minutes
Their being with us ensured that we got the much needed company and its not much a distance to cover from Tabo to Kaza where it would be back to three of us. We dropped them at Tabo where they were to stay there for the night at the Monastery and were planning to be at Dhankar the next day and finally at Kaza. Tabo looked like a small town with a Buddhist gateway welcoming you. Not many rather any people.
We quickly shot this assuming its a Yak. True City people. Its a cow.
From Tabo, it was to be to Dhankar. You keep going, it was getting dark by now but now we could find longer stretches of straight strips. Dhankar came and went as another small clean town with the Monastery and the last leg was spent wondering on how Kaza would be.
It was almost dark, 7 PM or so, when we entered Kaza and it took a bit of asking around to reach our destination. When I finally reached our hotel, and shook hands with the manager, It was hard to imagine that we have come that kind of distance from Delhi.
The Kaza-Manali, the reason for which we did all of this was still left and the roads were not yet open. As I lay flat in the bed, looking around the humble room, with all our bags scattered and my spouse giving some hot-water leg-massage to our 4 year old, it was getting difficult to believe that we have finally made it.
Thanks for reading this far. A day well spent.
Wowwwwwwww , once again a very detailed & informative write-up. I must appreciate here that traveling on such road with a small kid really need lot of courage & passion.
Thanks Mahesh.
Actually the plan was to do Kaza-Manali which is probably the tough one, it opens only three months of a year and there is no road per se, and we thought that Shimla-Kaza would be a breeze (the websites report it as an All weather road) but that was not the case.
The day we reached Kaza, that road was still not open and next day was spent wondering whether we have to go back all the way through teh same road or would we be able to cross over to Manali using the shorter Kaza-Manali stretch. :-)
Keep tuned in on what happened next. :-)
Great Job!!!!!!!!!
Although I am from uttranchal , I use to drive a lot on hills but thinking to drive on such road really tuff for me.
Looking forward to see such write-up so that , Ghumakkar’s like me could be motivated.
Great description, memories relive and linger on….
Very nice post and as always very methodical approach !
It might be useful to know the season when you travelled. Actually my request to all Ghummakars would be to mention the month of their travel as it helps when you are planning your own trip.
Again thanks for this virtual road trip!
(Though I don’t see myself ever driving on these routes, I enjoy all the road reviews posted here)
-Manisha
Great write up. was like a virtual drive for me seeing all the pictures. post the next one quickly..
Thanks for the wonderful trip. Did you take this trip in a Jeep or car?
Smita – Indeed. Though we decided to not do this again but I dont mind being there again. :-)
Manisha – Sorry for not mentioning it. You are so right about it. We did this trip in first week of June’2009. Kaza-Manali only opens in June and then is again closed by September.
We also didn’t see us doing Kaza-Manali but it happened so dont rule out the possibilities. :-)
Rajan – Thanks. Would try my best.
Pankaj – Thanks. Mahindra Scorpio. Any car with a good ground clearance (Indica for example) would be able to do this as well.
Very nice Descriptions and Pictures Nandan.
Nice Accomplishment.
Thanks Vibha. Its been a while you wrote something here.
Great job Nandan..!! I have travelled in our wagon r 2 years back upto sangla, chitkul & kalpa. It was great fun driving in such roads which throws challenge at you every now and then. We were 5 and went all the way upto hatu peak also.Though it was real scary and my elder bro ( lives in Kol) advised me not to be so brave.
what about your regular tonic (?) topic..!! i missed them in this story !!
keep the work going sir..
Glad to see your comment Nayan. Hope SG is keeping you occupied (If I am not forgetting).
I thought that mentioning bubbly for a high altitude drive may lead to a crazy concoction :-)
Whats SG..!! may be i am forgetting this time..
No its my bad. I mistook you for another friend with same/similar name and he works out of Singapore (sg) for a design company (and your id made me connect the dots but I was wrong). Ignore.
ok…nevermind…infact i also own a design company…though in India..lol.
Hey nandan
wonderful pictures – wheres the mandatory route map?
wow i wish i had wheels!
superb pics dude:)
The other Patrick – No good maps and the route is fairly simple, go all the way to Shimla and then be there on NH21 till Sumodh. At Sumdoh go towards Kaza.
Divya – Thanks. I checked your blog page, write travel stories at Ghumakkar and your wish might come true.
Sharath – Thanks man.
Spectacular views of mountains and mountain roads, and a fitting description of the roads traveled by a dedicated travel writer and photographer. Well done!
Jerry
nandan u r one good writerz and text/pic fitter-welder
as far as my journey is concerned, i was stuck with other two at batal for a night (from 3-00 PM 3-June-2009 till 1-00 PM 4-june-2009) waiting for the snow to be cut. atleast 60-70 people got stuck for the night at a spot not meant for night out. If bychance present around, atleast some ppl might have heard about the misformation of snow wall on river side (the dozer threw the wall inside the river) on 3rd june and the breakage of the gear lever of the clearing dozer on 4th-jun-2009 just before clearing the last 2 metre chunk of snow. We were lucky to get our bikes, a pulsar and a bullet thru the space between the snow wall and the dozer blade (luckily it was cutting snow in inclined position so left a 1&half foot space) helped by the good local people at 3-00 PM or 3-30 PM and reach all the way to our manali hotel inside the bazar area. I am so happy about the aftertaste as we were the few people who crossed the snow before it was fully cut and reached the destination for the day.
Jerry – Thank you.
Guri – Thanks. We crossed that on June 6th. You guys must be the first one :-) but probably I might still fall in first top 100 to cross that route for this season.
The call of the hills is always irresistible and your post makes it even more so. Looking at the wonderful pix, I began to wonder why I’m not there!
Thank you for sharing your experiences. Enjoyed the pictures too. The mountain scenery, especially after Espillo – Khab, looks superb.
Wow! it refreshed my memory! very nice writeup…
Patrick – Thanks. Dont wonder too long.
Celine – Thanks. Its fairly similar to Leh.
Pronil – Thanks. All the best for Leh. :-)
An excellent write up, equally well supported by some fabulous pictures.
Going to places like Recongpeo in itself is not an easy task. Moving further up and that too with a four year old child must have been an uphill task.
Your mention of Kinnaur took me down the memory lane. Around two decades back, my next door neighbour who belonged to Kinnaur used to tell me some awesome stories about that region. His wife is from Sangla valley and they shared some pictures of the region too. During one of our conversations, I casually mentioned about the gossip I had heard about the prevelence of poly-andry in the Kinnaur area. I was surprised to be told that the practice still continued, since the inhabitants of that area consider themselves to be the decscendents of the legendary Pandavas. I was all the more shocked to learn that even in his own family, the four brothers had one wife. I wonder if the practice still persists.
Nandan, you did post this before I left… unfortunately, my clients started arriving and I got tied up… karol bagh bike market, showing them delhi and generally chauffering them around in the Dinky Lil Trusty Alto… must have been an expereince worth a lifetime for them :-)
I figured the permit thing after talking to people in Peo… but had to go coz I was riding with 4 foreigners… Needed to get permits for them. The day we got the permits, we were riding to Tabo… from Sainj. 300 kms in that place is nightmare… especially during the night time… Scary but worth it and besides… we did not have an alternative.
Will be posting the experience here soon… just tied up with the closure of the tour and settling the accounts and bills and everything else which comes with having fulfilled a couple of dreams (Riding and conducting a guided motorcycle tour!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Amazing post.
Regarding-
“We quickly shot this assuming its a Yak. True City people. Its a cow.”
## I think this is a “Dzo” or “Jhabbu”. A Cross-breed of Indian Cow and Yak.
Ram – Thanks. It was mostly a case of ‘Ignorance is Bliss’. While we did have a clue on whats on offer, we took refuge in the fact that Shimla-Sumodh is an all terrain road :-) which all the tourism sites very blatantly published. The road was ok and probably once the Power-Plants work finishes it would get better but frankly we didn’t know.
I hope my review doesn’t dissuade more people since now its all there in print :-)
Polyandry, interesting. I have no idea whether its still there but considering that the place is really remote, I wont be surprised if some of the weather-hidden hamlets have their old practices going.
Dude – Looking fwd.
Rahul – Thanks. Good information. Been a while you wrote something.
Hey Nandan,
That was very informative and an awesome explanation of the whole route. Really enjoyed reading it. I was just wondering, what happens in winter, is there anyway of getting into the Spiti valley via this route?
Thanks Somak for the appreciation.
This road is open in Winters too , of course there would be times when you might get stuck because of extreme-weather around Ka etc but in general its a all weather route.
Thanks Nadan, thats really great to hear that it is open all year round… i was thinking of making a trip this feb or march, really looking forward to it…. Thanks again
Great. Just ensure that you have made enough arrangements to remain warm. It would be pretty cold in Feb, at least.
Loved this road review! its amazing how at 24 and a half you made me feel so small. Damned I just have to ride there myself now!!
When I was 24, I didn’t even know how to ride a bike :). To each his own. Thanks for liking it.
This is exactly the kind of travelogues that I like to read! simple, straight forward, and with the human touch that takes you to the place yourself!!!
Wonderful work and a good trip!!!
Thanks Prashant.
I am sure Ghumakkar are going to enjoy some good hot chai from the master. Why not write your travel stories at Ghumakkar as well ?
Hi there,
The above discussion & photographs have actually inspired me & my friend to go for a trip to Kaza by this December (2009) for about 10 days on two bikes. My plan is to take route No.1 while approaching Kaza & coming back along with route No.2. However I have few doubts on the same.
• Are the routes actually different?
• If so, will both the routes be opened in December ?
• Which road will be better as far as safety / hassle
free bike riding is concerned ?
• Will there be accommodations available (especially on
return route) across places in December?
Route No.1 :-
1. Kalka – Shimla – Rampur (via Thanedar)
2. Rampur – Wangtu – Karchham
3. Karchham – Espillo
4. Espillo – Khab
5. Khab – Nako
6. Nako – Chango – Sumdoh
7. Sumdoh- Tabo – Dhankar-Kaza
Route No.2 :-
1. Kaza
2.Tabo
3. Puh
4. Kalpa
5.Chitkul
6.Sangla
7. Sarahan
8. Fagu / Shimla
9. KalkaHi there,
Pls suggest ASAP.
Andy,
the trip you are planning is not doable in December. If you want safety and sure shot success in doing this route, I suggest the period from June to September end-Oct beginning.
If you want to ride in the winters, you might just be able to reach Sangla and then that too after a fight against the weather and Mother Nature. Also, the wind chill factor would play a major role in riding comfortably.
To be able to ride comfortably, the lesser the clothing on you, the better. thick jackets and multiple layers result in restricted movement of the torso and upper body, which can have catastrophic results.
On motorcycles, I would follow the following itinerary:
Kalka – Rampur
Rampur – Sangla – Chitkul or you could go to Kalpa
Sangla – Chitkul/Kalpa – Jangi – Spello – sumdo – Tabo
Tabo – Dhankhar – Lalung – Kaza
Kaza – Keylong
Keylong – Manali
Manali – Kalka
I am gonna be running a motorcycle tour during the month of June. Let me know if you would be interested.
Regards,
Manish
Let me know more about the motorcycle tour
Andy – Thats the reason I requested you to comment here and get a response from the man himself, rather than the disciples :-)
Manish is been with Ghumakkar since beginning and I can’t recommend him enough.
All the best.
hi nandan,
What car did you drive to Kaza? I drive a Swift and will it be ok?
Regds,
abhijit.
Mahindra Scorpio. Swift is fine for Shimla to Kaza. From Kaza – Manali, I would suggest that you avoid it, though there are folks who have done that section in a Swift too.
I am guessing that you are not planning to drive down anytime soon, wait for a better weather.
Thanks Nandan. Will fo it only after summer. I have driven to Rohtang in Swift from Manali. Is the road conditions and drive similar or tougher?
OK. Summers make much more sense. Its a interesting road to drive on, for a large part of stretch you would not find 1/20th of the traffic which you might have encountered on your Rohtang stretch.
Drive safe, dont drive fast, respect the local-eco system and have fun.
@Nandan, Ghumakkars
Need some info.
Planning a Delhi-Chitkul-Delhi trip, early April 2010, by car (swift or accent).
1. Would this be a good season?
2. What would be the best route?
3. What is the typical time for Delhi – Chitkul, over this route?
If (and when) I go there, promise will put up a post :). Its been too long have been a taker from this site and not a giver (other than update comments :)
Thanks a bunch !
Sushant
Sushant,
1. Would this be a good season? – It would be a little cold but it would be clear so better to go when you can go, rather than waiting for perfect season.
2. What would be the best route?
Delhi – Shimla – Rampur – Wangto – Karchham – Rakchham – Sangla
3. What is the typical time for Delhi – Chitkul, over this route?
I would not recommend a non-stop drive. If you start early (say 5 AM) then you can make all the way till Wangtu or a little further before it starts to get dark. Beyond Wangtu, it would be 4 hours drive. Karchham – Rakchham stretch is best done in full sun-light.
And Sushant, a comment is the most encouraging thing one can do to a fellow writer so keep them coming.
@Nandan,
Thanks a bunch for the info. Will start planing accordingly.
Kudos to User Generated Content :)
Thanks,
Sushant
Dear Nandan,
This was very well written. Thanks for this wonderful post.
I am little unsure about the timings you mentioned though. Are they like 100% correct or estimates that you remember? I went to Karchham, Chhitkul and Sangla in November last year. I remember Shimla-Karchham taking me around 7 hours (with about 45 minutes of break), while you put it down to around 4 hours. Was it our slow driver to blame or is it something I am missing here?
Thanks a lot for your article btw. I’ll be visiting Sangla Valley again in April this year and plan to go up to Kaza this time. Won’t be able to do the Kaza-Manali strech in April, will I?
Ankit – Thanks for liking the post.
A lot of Shimla-Rampur section is big wide roads and a lot of plains so one can go a little quick in that stretch. The distance is about 170 odd KMs, out of which first 100 KMs are probably close to 2 hours of drive and the rest of 70 can take another 2 hours.
They look reasonable to me but as you would know, there are always a lot of other factors (no of breaks, time of day etc). A slower drive is always safer, more pleasant and memorable (in all senses) :-)
In April, Kaza-Manali would be closed.
Thanks for the prompt response Nandan. Do you have any clue as to how far I can make it on this route in April? And can you enlighten me on the Malling Nallah? A lot of people on the internet seem to find it as a big hurdle … is it a small rivulet? Why is it a problem?
I am planning to drive down in my own car this time. Your blog looks pretty handy for my travel plans. Thanks .. :)
In April, probably you can make a day trip to Losar and be back to Kaza.
I heard about Maurling Nallah as well but frankly, I do not remember getting into one. Later when I read bikerdude’s trip (https://www.ghumakkar.com/2010/03/10/the-trans-himalayan-experience) , I came to know about it. As per him, now there is a new road and only 25 meters of bad road is left so it should not be a problem.
Thanks again for liking the blog. I am guessing that you would see a lot of snow around the zig, Ka areas.
Also, it would be useful to get some advice/thoughts from Biker Dude, just leave a comment and he is usually very prompt. All the best.
Hi Nandan,
Went through this very interesting post. The description does transport one across to those majestic Himalayan folds.
Kaza is a distant dream, which we hope to turn into a real thing in future. The post here undoubtedly aids in providing valuable information, as well as moral support in planning any such venture.
Keep up these wonderful visits and great writing.
Auro