WritingNotes on the valley,
Notes on the valley,
from the hill above it.
What we tell people who ring up asking when to come, what is worth the drive, and whether the road is any good. Written down, so you do not have to ring up.
Worth the drive
Planning
The best time to visit Kangra, month by month
What the Kangra valley is actually doing in each season — the clear months, the wet ones, and the weeks nobody tells you are the best of the year.The ValleyThe Devi darshan circuit, from one base
Brajeshwari, Chamunda, Jwalamukhi and Chintpurni are close enough to do from a single room in Kangra. Here is how the days fall.The ValleyTwo days in Kangra: the Fort, Masrur and the tea gardens
An honest two-day itinerary for the Kangra valley — Kangra Fort, the Masrur rock temples, Baijnath and the tea gardens at Palampur.The ValleyBir Billing, as a day trip
Why it is worth staying down in the Kangra valley and driving up to Bir Billing for the flight, rather than the other way around.Getting HereThe Kangra Valley railway
The narrow-gauge line runs the length of the valley, and it is still the most pleasant way to arrive. What the ride is like, and where to get off.The ValleyDharamshala in a day, and back down by dark
McLeod Ganj, Bhagsu and the Dalai Lama's temple are a day out from the valley floor — and a better day when you are not also sleeping up there.Getting HereThe drive up to Kangra
Where the plains end, when the Dhauladhar first shows up, and what the road up to Kangra is actually like.The HotelA day here, from the first chai to dark
Noon to dark on a hillside above the Kangra valley: the pool, the lawns, the kitchen, and the roof when the valley goes black underneath it.The ValleyBirdwatching at Pong Dam, and when to go
Every winter the Pong wetland fills with bar-headed geese, pintails and pochards. When to go, where to watch from, and how to do it without scaring them off.The ValleyBirdwatching around Dharamshala and the Kangra valley
From winter geese on Pong to monal above Triund, the Kangra valley has more than 550 kinds of bird on record. Where to look for them, by height and by season.The ValleyThe two Tatwani hot springs, and how to reach each
Kangra has two hot springs called Tatwani — one on the Gaj khad near Shahpur, one in the forest above Baijnath. What each is like, and how to get there.The ValleyBaijnath temple, its history, and how to visit
A Shiva temple built in 1204, with the Dhauladhar behind it, in a town that never burns Ravana at Dussehra. Its history, the legend, the timings and how to reach.The ValleyThe Kareri Lake trek, and what to carry
A shallow, snow-fed lake high on the Dhauladhar, reached by a long forest walk up the Nyund stream. How the trek goes, when to do it, and what to carry.PlanningThe best time to visit Dharamshala, and what the height changes
McLeod Ganj sits far above the Kangra valley, and its seasons run on their own clock. Month by month: the snow, the rain, the festivals and the clear weeks.The ValleyThings to do in Bir, besides paragliding
Monasteries, a tea factory, a waterfall walk at Gunehar and the landing ground at sunset — what Bir is like on the ground, and on days the wind says no.The ValleyThings to do near NIFT Kangra, on a day off
A day off from the campus at Chheb: Kangra Fort in the morning, Brajeshwari and its bazaar, the valley's own school of painting, the little train, and a pool.The ValleyKalka Mata temple at Samirpur, and its fair
The Kalka Mata temple at Samirpur, near Gaggal in Kangra — not the one at Kalka in Haryana. Which temple it is, its yearly fair, and how to reach it.The ValleyKathla Mata temple, on the cliff near Salol
A clifftop temple near Salol, reached from Gaggal via Tiara, with a chhinj wrestling fair every 16 March. Where it is, when it is busy, and how to get there.The ValleyKalka Mata, Kathla Mata and Tattapani in one day
Two village temples in the morning and the Tattapani hot spring on the Gaj khad after — one easy day on the Gaggal side of Kangra, and what to carry.Or just ask us directly.
Somebody here has driven all of these roads in every month of the year. Message us and you will get an answer the same day.