Badal’s journey to Himachal Pradesh turned into an unforgettable adventure. Starting from Delhi, he reached Manali, where he savored local dishes and explored the vibrant Mall Road. His next destination was the majestic Shinkula Peak, a challenging yet exhilarating journey through scenic landscapes, including the famous Atal Tunnel. Traversing from Manali to the serene valleys of Lahaul Spiti, Badal experienced the stunning confluence of the Chandra and Bhaga rivers, picturesque campsites, and the breathtaking vistas of Shinkula Top, where the snow-clad peaks and clear skies left an indelible mark on his memory.
By Sudhir J Kumar
This time, the tour of Himachal Pradesh was very memorable. Badal reached Manali from Delhi .He stayed there for 1 day, roaming the mall road. He tried momos and Siddu, a Himachal dish, which was very tasty. The next day, badal was prepared to go to Shinkula peak, which is 160 km above Manali and at a height of 16,580 feet above sea level.
He got ready early in the morning and took a seat in Himachal Tourism’s traveler from Manali bus stand, which he had booked a day before. He went to their office situated on Mall Road. The weather was bad in the morning, and the travelers stopped on the way to take snow suits. As Badal started walking towards the front, he was amazed by the sight of the Beas river along with the huge cedar trees. Enjoying the greenery in monsoon, he continued ahead, stopping at Atal Tunnel to take photos. Atal Tunnel is the world’s largest single-tube tunnel built at such a height.
Manali is situated in Kullu district, and by crossing the tunnel, they reached Lahaul Spiti. They had breakfast at a point in their journey. Had tasty coffee and cheese parantha and moved ahead to see the waterfall and lake. After reaching a little further, he came to a place where they could see the confluence of the Chandra river and Bhaga river, and heard the story of Chandra Bhaga. According to the story, Chandra river is Chandrama’s daughter and ran to the son of Surya Dev. They both fell in love with each other, which was not successful, so they took the form of a river and came to the earth, where their confluence happened in Tandi. He stopped for a while and then reached Kilong and Jispa, which are beautiful camping sites in Himachal. He stopped here for a day, but he had to return to bus at night.
When badal reached the check post, they had to get the entry done before proceeding. The vehicle got the entry done, and he started towards SHINKULA TOP. The clouds started spreading over there, and the cold desert began. In a few days, the sun appeared so bright, like a shining diamond in the sky. Many water streams started appearing, and he went off-road. Finally, when snow started appearing on all sides in the month of July, badal experienced the beauty of Shinkula top with less oxygen in the vehicle. He walked more and talked to a few people, completing the journey to Shinkula top.
