A HEAVENLY PLACE CALLED KALPA.

We moved away from Sangla valley to reach Kalpa. The road follows Baspa river to climb down the mountains to reach Karcham. After crossing a bridge across a reservoir at  Karcham, we moved to the right to travel on the national highway which seemed a much better road than we had anticipated, going by our previous experience. We followed Sutlej river for sometime. After taking a left turn at a place called Powari and climbing up a mountain, we reached a place called Reckong Peo.

Road towards Reckong Peo. Beautiful snowy mountains seen.

Reckong Peo. The major market closest to Kalpa.

Reckong Peo is the headquarters of Kinnaur district. It is situated at a height of about 7500 feet. It has a fairly developed market which sells woolen clothes, shawls, dry fruits and other necessities. We purchased red beans(Rajma) and almonds here. The place is famous for red beans which are available in a variety of sizes. The same is true for almonds as well. Reckong Peo presents a beautiful view of Kinner Kailash mountains in the background. After some shopping and visiting a tall Buddha statue and a monastery, we left for Kalpa.

Kinner Kailash mountain and Hotel Kinner Kailash.

 Hotel Kinner Kailash belonging to HPTDC.

Kalpa is located at a height of 9700 feet.Kinner Kailash or Kinnaur Kailash is the main attraction in Kalpa. Lord Shiva is believed to have stayed here and so the name Kailash, a mountain inhabited by the god. There are two religious spots on top of this mountain-a natural rock made Shivalingam and Parvati kund, a lake near the top.Both, Buddhists as well as Hindus worship this mountain.

We stayed at Hotel Kinner Kailash, a government(HPTDC) owned hotel which presents a great view of Kinner Kailash mountain. The hotel has a multi cuisine restaurtant which serves veg as well as non-veg food.

We visited Kalpa village in the evening. Its a beautiful village with sparse population and few shops which have basic necessities to serve the villagers. The village is very clean. It has a Hindu temple as well as a monastery. The walk from our hotel to Kalpa village was quite tiring as the roads are small and steep. It was worth the efforts however.

Kalpa village with Kinner Kailash mountain in background.

The clean and neat Kalpa village.

The next day morning we drove towards village Roghi, about 8 kms away.The roads are pretty steep over here. There is a point known as suicide point on this road. This part of the mountain has a steep vertical fall.

Roghi is a small village having apple and apricot trees. One can see Kinner Kailash mountain behind the village. The village has a few temples and monasteries.

We returned to the hotel to spend the rest of the day at the hotel and watch the beautiful sunset over Kinner Kailash.

Its a beautiful sight to see Kinner Kailash mountain early in the morning. The mountain appears crimson colored. The air is very fresh to breathe. There was snowfall in the mountains last night and so the atmosphere was pretty chilly. We went for a drive to Reckong Peo for purchasing a few shawls and articles of wood carvings, we returned to the hotel to spend rest of the day relaxing at the hotel. A short stay for three nights at Kalpa was very refreshing. It was one of the most beautiful experiences I ever had!!

Early morning view of Kinner Kailash mountain from our hotel: Click Here.