The shimmering silhouettes of Deodar trees remain etched in your mind after wandering through the incredible hill stations of Himachal Pradesh.
The best way to explore the region is by car. Every hill station, every village, every town, every tea stop, every dhaba has stories to tell, experiences to share. The symmetric blend of green and brown - though bustling with life - offers a moment of serenity that you crave for as a traveller.
If you are planning a trip up North, skip the usual destinations and explore what lies beyond the crowded mall roads, the plush resorts and overcrowded tourist spots. Our choice was Kufri. We picked the months just before winter to go there because by the time the season kicks in every sliver of green will be doused in pale white.
Stunning drive
The minute you leave Shimla, the 13-km drive to Kufri itself is a beautiful journey. Bedecked with trees, the hill road widens to reveal a panoramic view.
As you pass by yaks and horses meandering in the gentle warm sun, you are suddenly surprised with the sight of a long range of snow-capped mountains to the north. These form a permanent backdrop to the winding slippery roads and small makeshift shops selling instant noodles and chai.
In places, locals often park vans to put up a table with a stove. This small set-up serves as a fuelling station for tired travellers.
Quiet attractions
Kufri is one of the few hill stations where the quaintness of the British era is missing. In Shimla, the colonial ambience is reinforced by its vintage mansions, tiny shops lining the roads and old churches. But Kufri has something else to offer. The tiny villages around the area, the valley and the quietness are the major ‘attractions’ here. Homestays can be explored if you are on a tight budget. The Kufri zoo is very popular amongst visitors. Families can take their children for a day of fun at either of the two amusement parks here.
Flowing hot & cold
After spending a day peregrinating, you can consider a trip to Tattapani - hot sulphur springs about 65 km from Shimla. It is a climb down and the river flows with all its force amidst overlooking mountains. After the two-hour drive, you can stop at one of the many dhabas which also allow for a beautiful view of the valley. Instant noodles spiced up with cumin seeds, onions, garlic and other Indian masalas is a delicacy of sorts at these local eateries.
The road to Tattapani is through a dense forest that gives way to a multi-coloured valley that leads to the tourist town. Temples dot the river banks while your eyes scour for signs of steaming water gushing out of the ground. It’s a little disappointing at first because when you approach the bank, you realise that there are just streams of water seeping out and not gushing out of the earth in to the river as you had imagined.
The water is hot and in places the sulphur content has left a yellow-green residue of melting stone, grass and other elements over time.
The hot water springs form little pools and merge into the stream, where too the water is warm despite mixing with the cold mountain river.
People sit around the pools of hot water and pour water on themselves trying to better their skin as the sulphur content is believed to have curative properties.
The river is itself a beautiful sight as the sun shimmers on bright colourful stones that show a different colour, cleansed of dirt by the sulphur-laced water. People sit around the river with bottles of the state-produced apple juice.
Hot chocolate fixes
Tattapani takes up almost a full day but the journey back is rewarded with a coffee and warm dinner at any of the restaurants and cafés - remnants of the colonial hill station culture. The food is not very different from elsewhere and there is hardly any local cuisine available. Some Tibetan shops offer momos but the piece de resistance in the hills is always a cuppa warm hot chocolate.