Short story of an epic road trip through public transport!!

I started planning a trip for the September-October window in around June when the mid-year blues started to kick in. These blues were so strong that they charged up my neurons and started sending high voltage signals through to my brain to remind it that it needs a break from the routine. Jokes apart, I had been working nonstop since 10 months and really needed a break from everything. So, I started searching for places on Instagram(Yes!!) and zeroed in on Spiti valley in Himachal Pradesh. I had a definite plan for each day but I also knew that such plans never work out and it’s better that way. I did the minimal necessary bookings and left home on 16th September. We were 3 people in total. We were practically strangers(‘friends of friends’ kind of stuff that the millennials talk about these days!!) but became good friends eventually.

I decided to approach Spiti from Shimla side as I knew altitude sickness loves me more than my imaginary girlfriend. We stopped in Reckong Peo, Kinnaur and took the early morning bus to Kaza on the next day. Almost 9 hours to cover 152.1 kms(Reckong to Tabo)including breaks by an HRTC bus. Let that sink in!! We passed through Nako village as well. Next day, we explored Tabo and left for Kaza with a stopover at Dhankhar. We travelled by a taxi that meant I could go berzerk with my camera. The torquise river flowing against the backdrop of seamlessly perfect mountains was a site to behold. We stayed at Kaza that day and did some astrophotography.

Next day we did the Langza-Hikkim-Komic circuit. Though, I wanted to see Demul as well. Maybe next time!! There was a festival at the local monastery of Komic so I was lucky that I got a taste of local life in the grandest form possible. But that day I got some bad headache lately. So, I also skipped Ki and Kibber. I even had to skip Chandrataal due to weather issues. But life decided to make up for it when we visited Pin valley. We stayed at Mudh, a quiet village that offered some unparalleled views of Pin valley. It was raining the whole time for 2 nights and one day. When we were about to leave on the third day, the sky offered to clear up and we witnessed a spectacular view amidst all this play of shadows and sun. Then we had our own little adventure which I will talk about in another post! Reached Kaza finally! Next day we had a comparatively empty bus that took us to Manali while stopping by at every single village we got through. The driver was cool :v

We had almost 4 more days after reaching Manali, so I decided to go to Parvati valley. We stayed in Manikaran and Kalga village on the way and did a 14 km trek to Kheerganga as well. Kheerganga had some magical view to offer in the evening and I also ended up making 2-3 good friends from France. Czech Republic and Finland that evening. Then it was time to get back to home sweet home. The ride was bumpy but the realisation that I would have to wait few more months until my next trip hurt more!! But life has to go on and I said goodbye to the mountains until next time ❤