History can be so astonishing even in its inconsequential corners,
like for example how do you name a place and then that place for eternity is
known as such, without anyone to question.....I was so amazed to know
that Dharamshala was so named coz when the
British annexed that empty piece of land in the middle of 19th Century, it only
had 1 Hindu rest house, dharamshala and so came along the
name....McLeod Ganj came some years later to accommodate the bulging crowds
at Kangra. The
British moved two regiments to Dharamshala, in few years it had two important places of civilian
settlement, McLeod Ganj and Forsyth Ganj, named after their Divisional Commissioners.
But all this was to change in the post-Independence era when, Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, set up the Government of Tibet in exile in 1960, McLeod Ganj became his official residence
and home to several Buddhist monasteries and thousands of Tibetan refugees. This place is today bustling with tourists and is a sought
after holiday destinations for many across the plains.
For me
Dharamsahala & McLeod Ganj were both disappointing as I am neither a
religious traveler neither appreciate the
half-heart-ed-ugly-urbanization of the hill-stations. So like most other hill
stations in the country this place is over-crowded, unsymmetrical and chaotic,
but it was notably clean in most parts and the weather comfortably cold and
rainy making it very misty; and the mist hiding away the ugliness and making
the place feel magical!
To beat the disappointment I goggled up
and found a favorite trek point that could be done in a day - The place was
called Triund and is about 9-7-5 kms one side
walk up depending on where you start your trek from. As we missed the first
half of the day to the rains we took the easy way out at 5kms.
(You can start the trek frm McLeod Ganj (9kms), near the Tibetian
school (7kms) or the Goolu Temple (5kms).
Almost all the blogs (amateur/picnickers) mention this one as a
'easy day trek' and trust me there is nothing easy about it and I am still
nursing my aching body! The trek from Goolu Devi temple is a medium steep till the mid-point
(abt 3kms and took us abt 1hr 15mins) and from here it’s a very steep climb up
and it took us equal time to cover the next 2 kms. The view through the trek
was a mix of dense forest and open valley and settlements below; The
Cricket Stadium @ Dharamshla makes a spectacular focal point
to the view. (You can do the trek on your own or hire a local guide)
After a lot of huffing-puffing we made it to the summit; there are
3 makeshift shops selling hot tea, maggi and daal-chawal,
very basic but delightfully warm and comforting after the climb; No toilets so
you are on your own; On a good-weather night you can camp beneath the stars and
you won't be disappointed. We were late and had to walk down before sunset as
its difficult and slippery to walk in the dark and there are dangers of meeting
the original inhabitants (bear,
cheetahs) so either you stay-put and climb down the next day (in an
off-season you can easily rent a tent & sleeping bag and there are 2
permanent structures as well) or climb down before sunset. In season you might
have to book in advance, as the place gets really crowded.
Apart from the eventful trek, all that I remember of the trip is
F-O-O-D, the place is bustling with eateries and you can get everything from
continental to PAN Asian (Chinese/Tibetien/Korean to even Vegetarian Japanese)
apart from the very Indian daal-chawal-kukkad-shukkad!
Seems like the place is very popular for weed and everyone knows
how and where to get it (except for us,coz no one picked our clues); While
HOMP(highway on my plate) has a lot of recommended places, I wasn't
particularly impressed with any so the trick is to try everything out!
In that category(trying everything) 2 of the places made it to the
top of my list- 1 small tucked in bakery - 'Tibetian Bakery' was a real
surprise, specially the Yak cheese cake, never had anything like that before!
And then there is the Mandala Café close to the Bhudhist Temple; The Yogurt
Cake was worth a try there.
I wasn't particularly impressed with the momo’s either, I still
dote on the ones @ Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.
So in-all McLeod Ganj is for foodies who want to enjoy a variety of food and not feel guilty about it, as the weather there is perfect and the steep
lanes will help you digest well.You can just eat-sleep-relax....and if you are going in off season you don't need to book in advance, just walk in and negotiate...We stayed at a small and cozy home-stay-kind of hotel called 8 Auspicious Him View and it was an absolute pleasure.(Review on tripAdvisor)
What to eat - Momos, Thukpa, bakery items(cheese cakes, carrot cakes etc), Fish fry and Chicken from the street vendors, continental stuff- pasta etc, Korean and Japanese food..and the list goes on!
And don't miss to spend a day strolling the markets
up to the Buddhist Temple lined up with amazing food outlets and
curios @ bargain!
What to buy - Buddha's of all size, shape, postures and colors, Yellow Chilli powder(A lady next to the prayer wheels in the market sells it for 20 rupees a pack), Incense stick holders and Tibetan incenses and hand woven woolens..!
Travel Trivia:-
You can reach McLeod Ganj from Delhi (522 kms) by road (bus/car)
or flight (closest airport is Gaggal) or by train. We chose the train option;
took a late night (22:45pm) train (Dhuladhar Express) from Old Delhi Railway
station and reached Pathankot by 8am; From there its a easy-breezy 130 km/
2.5hrs ride to McLeod ganj; Jullandhar is another close by rail head about 4-5
hrs away (196 km , we took the Shatabdi back
from there;
Nearby places/towns you can include in your itinerary
4.Dharamsala
5.Bhagsunath
But what ever you, just don't dirty the place...if you are trekking, pl carry back your waste!
full on writer! ;)
ReplyDeleteassuming its my kind of statement and not GOswami type :p ;)
DeleteFor me and my Motorcycling Club, Mcleodganj holds a very-very special place...I was able to ride to Mcleod after 2 failed attempts! and on the way had a horrendous accident too and rode through a night full of rains and hailstorms on NH-1! luckily I survived and reached!
ReplyDeleteIn 2009 when we went there it wasn't still very touristy and was relatively calm! plus lucky as we are it snowed on Triund Top the day we reached so when we trekked and reached the top we had fresh snow for company! we camped in the middle of it too!
Loved the place and would love to go back again...
And here is my Travelogue: http://cheguevaraontheroad.blogspot.com/2009/04/mcleodganj-mavericks.html
Cheer to Life,
Che