Tirthan Valley – Kullu (Himachal Pradesh, India)

Tirthan Valley : It is one of the hidden treasures of Himachal and is also the gateway to the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP).The valley is located at an altitude of aprox 1600 mts on the banks of Tirthan river. A long walk through the rugged woods next to the river whispering with the meddling fog is what makes this place so charming. Bonfires, camping and music will only elicit your already developed bias for this place. Follow the lazy roads through the forests and unwind into tiny hamlets of Nagini, Ghushaini, Banjar and Shoja. These are equally beautiful and you would be charmed by their serenity. The valley is known for trout fishing and if you spend some time here and you might just get lucky with a trout.

Location Map: Tirthan-Valley-Map

 

Road Map

 

What to do:

Angling: Tirthan River is one of the few rivers in Himachal that doesn’t had a dam built on it and therefore remains one of the few rivers where Rainbow trout is actively found. Tirthan Valley therefore has becoming an hot angler destination over a period of time.

Chehni Kothi: Chehni Kothi is a 1500 years old building and was the fortified residence of Rana Dhadhia. Initially it was 15 storeys high but after the earthquake of 1905 only 10 storeys were left. Presently this structure is built of stone and wood only stands around approximately 60 feet high. The ground floor is bigger in area as compared to the upper floors giving it a cone like appearance.

Great Himalayan National Park: The Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) was initially constituted in 1984, GHNP was formally declared a National Park in 1999, covering an area of 754.4 sq kms. In June 2014, the Great Himalayan National Park was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. The Unesco World Heritage Site Committee granted the status to the park under the criteria of “exceptional natural beauty and conservation of biological diversity. It takes a minimum of 2 days to get into the park. So an overnight 2 day trek is the minimum.

Waterfalls: There are two lovely waterfalls around an hour walking distance. Both of them are very shortly separated from each other and are on the same walking trail.

Jalori Pass : Jalori Pass, at an altitude of 3120 meters, is one of the steepest passes to drive in Himachal separating Kullu valley and Shimla Valley. You need to cover almost 2500 meters in less than 25 KMs to reach the top . Expect his place to be covered with snow from December end till March end.

Serolsar Lake: Enjoy an easy trek of 5 kms from Jalori pass amidst pristine surroundings of forest cover. Walk to Serolsar Lake through forests full of oak, blue pine, spruce, fir and Deodar.

Day Hikes: There are a few day hikes which you can consider like Dingcha and Tinder Hike , Nohanda – West, Himalayan villages hike, Hike to park’s gate.

Best Time to Visit:

The best months to visit the Park are March, April, May, June, and then September, October and November.

Weather:

Avg. summer temperature: 14 to 20 °C

Avg. winter temperature: −5 to 10 °C

For current weather conditions you can also refer to http://www.accuweather.com/en/in/banjar/198355/weather-forecast/198355

How to get there:

By Air : Bhunter near Kullu is the nearest Airport and there are direct flights from Delhi to Bhuntar. Please be advised that due to weather and other issues Delhi – Bhuntar flights are often canceled at the last minute. It will be better to have an alternative plan ready just in case this happens.

By Train : Chandigarh (296km) is the closest major Railway Station. From there you can either take a cab or bus. If you would like to enjoy Toy Train ride, then you can come all the way up to Joginder Nagar (100 kms), in Mandi from Pathankot, and take a cab or bus from there.

By Bus : You can take any Manali bound bus and reach Kullu / Aut (12-13 hours journey). Daily Volvo bus service by Himachal Roadways is available from ISBT Kashmiri Gate to Manali/Kullu. Once at Kullu/Aut you can hop on to another bus to Tirthan or hire a cab. Bus Service may not be frequent on this route.

By Car: Delhi – Ambala (188 KM) – Chandigarh – Roopnagar (282 KM) – Kiratpur – Bilaspur (371 KM) – Mandi (440 KM) – Pandoh – Aut (481 KM) – Larji – Gushaini – Tirthan (511 KM)

From Dharamshala: You can take any Manali / Kullu bound bus and reach Kullu / Aut (205 kms) 5 – 6 hrs and then hop on to another bus to Tirthan (35 kms) or hire a cab.

From Shimla: Shimla – Narkanda (60 Kms) – Kingal (87 Kms) – 6 kms after Kingel on Rampur road take left for Kullu road – Ani – Khanag – Jalori Pass (153 Kms) – Shoja (159 Kms) – Banjar (173 Kms) – Tirthan (183 Kms). A very scenic route but very narrow with steep gradient, avoid travelling in low ground clearance vehicles. Check road status beforehand as there are a couple of landslide prone points and route can close down unexpectedly.

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3 thoughts on “Tirthan Valley – Kullu (Himachal Pradesh, India)”

  1. Hi All!! Recently I.e. 10-13th May 2015 I along with one friend rode through Chandugarh-Cgail-Kufri-Luhri-Ani-Khang-Jalori Pass-Shoja-Jibhi-Ghuagu-Larju-Aut-Kasol-Pandoh-Biaspur-Chandigarh. Explanation of Beauty and Adventure is beyond Words. Just Ride through the Route and feel the nature!!

    1. Thanks Yadvinder,
      Yes indeed it’s a beautiful route.2 of our members took the same route while going to Sach Pass ride in Oct 2014.
      You can read their complete story under the rides section.
      We hope to travel again on this route very soon and will be glad if you can join us on the ride.

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