I always feel that road trip enthusiasts have to be whimsical. The moment you have this kind of thought coming to your mind, pick up your vehicle, gather companions, and get-set-go !!
My family demanded an outing, and I thought let’s go for a drive. While taking the car out of the parking lot, I asked my wife,” Which way, right or left ?”.
Pat the answer came, ” Always keep to the left.”
Well, we headed toward the left- which was the way to Kufri, Narkanda, Rampur, Sarahan and Kinnore. The destination set was Sarahan, Bhimakali temple. On the way, we passed through Kufri, Kaithu, Theog, Narkanda and Kumarsain.
You all have heard a lot about Kufri. I am not going to talk about Kufri.
Have you heard of Theog? A mountain village, chosen by Taj Group of Hotels for their premier property. We took a diversion toward the hill and the link road took us up the hill to Taj Hotel. We decide to have our lunch here and chose an open terrace overlooking the entire valley. Apple orchards were seen covered with white nets to ensure a bumper harvest.
Daafi- along our road trip
Next, I noticed one more signboard that read ” Daafi”. The architecture was captivating & could not resist requesting the manager to allow me to go around and take pictures.
Daafi has Vernacular Architecture looks- high stone walls lined with wooden spars. I even noticed the spars extruding out of walls to provide the real Vernacular Architecture looks.
Kudos to the Architect & Owner, who hail from Himachal itself, for finalizing such a design. More than the architect it’s the owner who has to have such kind of liking.
The property seemed clean & well-maintained. The luster of the property was intact, and window glasses were clear & transparent. The approach road is narrow & dusty.
The frontal of Daafi is outstandingly scenic. Apple orchard in close proximity and mountain ranges crisscrossing. Staying close to Shimla, not in Shimal city could prove to be a good decision. Daafi is a property where you can unwind and breathe fresh air.
Rooms & Tariff
Bishnog 1/ Rs 5000/- per night
Bishnog Attic/ Rs 5000/- per night
Deori 1/ Rs 5000/- per night
Deori 2/ Rs 5000/- per night
Sarion Cottage/ Rs 10000/- per night
* All the rooms have air conditioners installed.
While staying here you will be tempted to venture into outdoor activities.
By the time we reached Kumarsain, it was late afternoon and we were famished. We didn’t get any decent place en route. HP Tourism restaurant at Narkanda was blocked due to snowfall, and we didn’t want to climb the curled knolls formed by the snow cutter.
Lucky us, we got ” Happy Bhojnalya ” near Kumasain. I could spot a ladder to reach the terrace of the restaurant. I decided to request the owner to set our lunch on the terrace which he agreed to. The menu was none other than the “Default Menu” of all the Bhojnalya’s – Dal, Kadhi, Dry Veg/Mix Veg, Rice and Chapatis. While on a journey, we all prefer Kadhi. I don’t know the reason but it keeps your mood okay and your stomach light for long journeys.
From the terrace, we were able to see the snow-capped mountains, the gorge through which we imagined the mighty Sutlej flowing. To see the river flowing we were to go a few kilometers more. I was curious because I knew; now my daughters won’t forget the name of this very river when asked in the History exam. Seeing is believing !!
We were done with our lunch, and now the further journey was down the hill from an elevation of 1762m to 1021m, to district HQ Rampur Bushehr. As we crossed Kingle, Sutlej started showing up through the gorge. I was surprised to see the impression engraved on the banks of the river indicating how much it gets swollen.
The river divides Shimla & Mandi districts. We collected beautiful river stones from a site under excavation. Later I found, these river stones are sold on Amazon for 10-15 $ a pack. Here it will depend upon you, how much you can carry to save a few dollars. It’s all available for free to ornate your lawns/planters.
Further, we hit Rampur Bushehr, Padam palace standing prominently as a testimony of time. The palace is the private property of Raja Vir Bhadra Singh, six times Chief Miniter of Himachal Pradesh. Not to be compared with the sprawling palaces of Rajasthan, this palace has its own beauty of wooden carvings.
Since we were now late to travel back to Shimla all the way, we decided to see our relatives on the way. It was, no doubt, a good decision. The next morning, after having a good breakfast, we started back to Shimla.
Conclusion
After having tried this we were now fresh to take on our respective chores. Drive through mountains is always exciting, unlike the drive-in plains which go monotonous. We will have to try this again as we could not touch Sarahan which was my target destination.
This route is worth giving a try.
I am sure you would love it.
