From one heaven to another !!

Travelling in a land where the terrain is uneven means that the distance-speed-time calculations get thrown out of the window. The meandering roads, the alternating climbs and downward slopes reminded me of the concept in school Physics - the distance traveled is most often greater than the actual displacement. Here, it was a bit too much for one's liking. However, the awesome views and great weather did not give us much of chance to complain. Our next stop was Udhampur near Jammu from where we had to board the train for Pathankot. This place has the headquarters of the Northern command of the Indian military and serves as an important transit point between Jammu and Srinagar. Its a part of the Kashmir railway which is supposed to reach Baramulla throuh Srinagar by 2017. An engineering marvel indeed - running through mountain ranges with numerous small tunnels and bridges along the way till Jammu. From Jammu onwards, the terrain is less uneven as we enter into Punjab.

It was 8 pm when we reached Pathankot, waking up to a busy railway station. Thankfully a few cab rental outlets were still open near the station and we could soon hire a cab to move about in the Himachal for the next few days. The twisted road ensured that we could hardly sleep alont the way to Dalhousie. We were hoping to find a place in the Youth hostel of Dalhousie. With some luck we and planning we did manage to find a dorm room with bunker beds and soon crashed into them.

Youth hostel at Dalhousie

The morning sun shining through the window woke us up. The balcony offered a breathtaking view of the mountain ranges bathing in the sun right up till the point where they faded in the horizon. The light chill in the air was refreshing. After a breakfast of filling paranthas, we set out in our hired Indica for Khajjiar - supposedly the Switzerland of India. The road to Khajjiar goes winding up a hill. It got increasingly colder as we drove up and snow could be seen at places. Near the peak of the hill, our driver suggested that we try a trekking path. Enthusiastic as we'd been till them, we decided to give it a try. A few hundred feet in the jungle and we started to feel the gripping cold there. Courage was replaced by survival instinct as we unanimously decided to turn back to the car. Once in the open, we realised that hail had started coming down. It was the first time when I saw something solid fall down from the heavens. Soon, the hailstorm grew pretty heavy and we had to take shelter in the car. 

Sumit catching a few hailstones as they fell

Freeze !!

This is when it really started coming down..

Our driver started driving slowly only to find our car skidding on nearly an inch of ice that had formed on the road. We had a situation on our hand here !! Our driver warned us that going ahead could mean getting stuck in the middle of nowhere with snow all around. However, turning back wasn't the easiest thing to do. We were facing a downhill road with ice on it. To lighten up the load on the brakes of the car, we stepped out and walked along the car. The driver was steering the car very delicately. Its weight was enough to make it glide on the slick, grayish slab of ice. He almost ran off the road into the sloping hillside at one turn. To help the hassled driver, we picked up brick sized rocks and started walking ahead of the car. Our driver was to signal us to drop them in front of the wheels in case the car started slipping out of control. If one has ever carried a chunk of ice with bare hands, they'll understand how we felt while carrying these rocks. Holding them for a couple of minutes froze my hands. Yet, we needed to carry them for some distance. 

White roads anyone ??

This game is called 'Walk along the car'

Its raining snow !!

Can't get enough of it !!

Some disgruntled tourists !!

A white bedsheet !!

A fireplace in a shop !!

We heaved a sigh of relief when a few houses came in our sight. There were some shops around and one of them had a fireplace where the localites had gathered. Warming up our frozen hands near the fire, we were still soaking in the experience we just had. Thankfully, they had hot tea available and we gulped down 

(yes...gulped..before it froze) a few cups with biscuits!! A small liquor shop nearby helped us to warm ourselves with some Doctor's brandy. The snowfall had now subsided and we moved back to Dalhousie again. It was time to explore this beautiful small town nestled on sloping hillsides. 

The sun-basking mountain ranges !!

Houses nestled on the slopes !!

I hate power cables at such places..grrr !!

Spotless perfection !!

At the balcony of our room !!

In this whole trip, none of the places that we visited charmed me more than Dalhousie. It must have been a favorite of the British officers. The various Victorian styled villas add a touch of glamor to the narrow roads thickly lined with pines and firs. They are still well maintained look smartly decked up. Many a mountain path go up and down the slopes. There are quite a few churches too. Some are nestled in secluded woods - others near the bustling town center. One of the churches in the woods was closed for visitors and had quite a spooky aura about it. We retired to our rooms to catch up on some sleep.

One of the Victorian villas !!

One of the churches !!

Inside the church

Little puppy !!

Many a tourists had gathered at one of the busy chowks in the evening. There are many shops selling woolen clothes and souveneirs. We wandered around before settling for dinner. The experience of discovering a new place which tugs at your heart can be exhilarating. And with that comes the wish that this place would never change. With that wish in mind, it was time to blow off the candles for tonight !!