The World of God

That is how Rudyard Kipling described Spiti in Kim and that is what I experienced when travelling to this mountain valley

- Rajan Pathak

Dozing in the desolated region of Himachal Pradesh, far away from hustle and bustle of city life, Spiti Valley is less heard by the majority. Situated near the Indo-China border, the region has nature’s blessing in abundance as rivers, valleys, apple orchards, lakes and mountains envelop it. It is breathtaking a view.

When I visited Kalpa in 2015, I could not succeed in my attempt to visit Spiti Valley due to time constraints. I am glad that I made up for it this time. I had heard a lot about the ‘World’s Most Dangerous Road’ from Pooh to Kaza and now it was time to take the roughest terrain. It was the most adventurous and exciting journey for me as well as for my 10-year-old son. The road was very narrow, which meant only one vehicle could pass at a time, even as the Satluj river flowed along the road.

The terrain is such that landslides are common. The role played by the Border Roads Organisation and the ITBP jawans is commendable to clear the traffic and ruble in quick time. We could have been stuck for a long time but the jawans were a blessing in disguise. You feel the nature every moment and no matter how much I write, you need to experience it to feel what it is all about.

Tabo and beyond