Lahual Spiti Best Taxi Service
Lahual Spiti
How to Reach Lahual Spiti
By Road
Lahaul and Spiti can be reached from either the side of Kullu-Manali or from Shimla. If you come from Shimla, take NH-22 and you will reach Tabo (Spiti). If you opt to go from Manali, the first town will be Keylong, which is also the district headquarters of Lahaul. Though this way remains under snow for around 5-6 months from November to May. One has to cross Rohtang pass to reach Keylong.
By Train
Nearest Railway station is Chandigarh. From Chandigarh you can reach Lahaul & Spiti via Manali or Shimla.
By Airport
Nearest Airport is Bhuntar in Kullu. It is 160 kms away from Keylong. Bhuntar Airport is well connected by flights from Delhi, Chandigarh, etc.
About Lahual Spiti:-
The District of Lahaul-Spiti is a cold desert area as it hardly gets any rain. As you drive up and down the Trans-Himalayan range, you see the region’s stunning landscape. Snow is a common feature here and some peaks never let it go, no matter what season it is. The rivers swiftly flow at the base of these mountains, carrying the water formed by melted snow. The sky here has a special shade of blue that you don’t get to see elsewhere, especially in the cities. Complementing the blue sky well are small, beautiful meadows of the valley. Colorful Buddhist flags can be seen fluttering in the breeze, indicating the culture of the land. Nonetheless, there are many places to visit in Lahaul-Spiti
Places to Visit around Lahual Spiti:-
- Is an ancient monastery that was established in 996 CE. It is considered to be an important monastery and is often referred to as the Ajanta of the Himalayas. The complex has 9 temples and many stupas.
- On the hill facing Tabo village, one can see a series of caves with colorful Buddhist flags fluttering outside. At first, it is difficult to make out whether these are natural or man-made caves. Incidentally, one of the caves up there is also a part of Tabo Monastery complex that is now under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
- Is a small village located on the banks of the Spiti River. It is well known for its monastery that is more than a thousand years old and has amazing Ajanta like paintings. Its caves show that monks lived here even before there was any settlement in the area. It is, however, the carvings on big rocks that tell us that this area was probably inhabited since pre-historic times.
- Is one of the most beautiful villages that you can see in Spiti and is located around 16 km away from Kaza town. Located at a height of 4270 m, the village till recent claimed the status of being the highest village in the world connected by motor able road. The road to Kibber village crosses one of the most popular monasteries in the region—Key Monastery. A number of boards welcome you at the entrance of the village, which has around 60-70 houses on multiple levels.
- Monasteries in Spiti impress you with their unique location—almost hanging on the tip of a peak and overlooking beautiful valleys. It always intrigued me as to how monks chose such a place to build such monasteries. How did they reach these summits when there were no roads to take them to even the base of the hill and with rivers flowing all around Dhankar Monastery, located at a height of almost 3900 feet, is one of the finest examples of such monasteries in Spiti Valley. A serpentine road now takes you to the base of the monastery and with a flight of few steps you will find yourself standing in an ancient space where monks have prayed for centuries-uninterrupted. Dhankhar Monastery was a part of a fort, in fact the word Dhankhar itself means fort in local language. It was the capital of Spiti Valley during 17th CE.
- If you attempt to cross the mighty Kunzum Pass, you are rewarded by the view of Chander-Tala moon-shaped lake with its water changing colors throughout the day. It takes a bit of an effort to reach Chandratal. You can either reach it on foot from either Batal or Kunzum Pass, or opt for the motor able road that takes a little longer route but goes almost till the base of the lake. There are vast meadows on the way where you can camp if you decide to spend a day here. Best time to visit ChanderTal is between noon and 4 pm when the lake takes an aquamarine blue colour. It changes colour as the clouds move over it. I stopped many times to take photographs, to soak in the views from all corners of the lake and to just feel it!
- The Spiti River nurtures the beautiful valleys of Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh. It originates from the Kunzum Range of the Himalayas in a way that it divides Lahaul and Spiti. As this part of the Himalayas are desert areas with almost no rains, the river gets no rain water and all its water comes from the melted glaciers of the Himalayan ranges. Almost all human settlements in Spiti Valley are located on the banks of the Spiti River, such as Tabo, Dhankar, Kaza and Rangrik. Most of these places have existed for at least 1000 years. Many monasteries overlook the river as if drawing their spiritual strength from the water element of the nature around. It is when you go close that you see the river flowing quietly.
- The name always evoked a mystery to me. It was that hidden spot in the Himalayas that I always wondered about. It opens only for a couple of months in the end of June, so even if you want to go there, you have to wait till the time the glaciers are willing to make way for you. Located at a height of more than 15000 feet, Kunzum Pass is often called the gateway to SpitiValley. I reached Kunzum Pass on a bright sunny July morning while driving from Kaza to ChanderTal.