Manali Forest

 

 

MANALI FOREST

 

 

 Walking through tall Deodar trees and wet…winding pathways…you would surely experience the ‘feel’ of a real jungle.

 

Once inside the Manali forest…you shall start feeling good !

 

You can enter from the bazaar side and it would take you gradually along the river Manalsu…where the forest ends…near Old Manali village.

 

At the beginning you have a clear view of the Rohtang road and the Vashisht across the hill.

 

The forest has a wide variety of colours and different shades of green all along ! And amazing trees !

 

Sunlight filtering through the tree -tops… adds on to the magic !

 

You can go to the very edge and get a breathtaking view of the river Manalsu….and also the far away peaks clad with snow !

 

 

An interesting tip :

 

Have tea from a small tea shop outside the exit gate at old Manali… ah !its heaven !…sitting on a cane chair…sipping hot home-made ‘chai’…overlooking the thick forest !

Manali with a difference !!!

         Different Manali !

Every time I visit Manali….it is even more beautiful !

It looks different…….but this one is a sure wonder !

Can you recognise this place ? ( it is a computer trick !)

MANALI TRAVELOGUE….

 

Excerpts from travel experiences of Ashirvad … his trip to Manali…Rohtang Pass….Naggar……in June 2008…

“I returned from the Manali trip yesterday and I must say it was “AMAZING”.
Four of us had left for Manali on Thurday nigt via Ambala. We had booked a taxi from Ambala that was took us all the way to Manali Rohtang and back.
We reached Manali by friday evening. We lost much time in traffic jams close to Bilaspur. Friday night we just spent time at the mall.
Next day we left for Rohtang pass. The route is amazing. Though it was raining most of the time. We reached there at around 2 pm noon. The Rohtang Pass area, at present is in a pretty bad shape. The ice (not the snow) is dirty, squishy..muddy.

On the way back we did para sailing at Marhi. That was an awsome experience though a very short one.

We reached our hotel at night and just relaxed. Next day we checked out and went for Rafting at Raisen.

After that we went to Naggar Castle. This I must say is THE best place to enjoy silence. Take a good novel and relax on the balcony overlooking the Beas and the Himalayas.

For our return journey we took the route that is on the opposite bank of Beas viz-a-viz NH 21. The route took us through the scenic rural Himanchal. On the way we stopped at a Buddhist Monastry. The place was beautiful with a Buddhist Temple in the center, surrounded by living areas for the Lamas.

There after it was all the way back to Delhi with a few stoppages for picking apples or filling up bottles with fresh natural water.
That was it.

In essence an amazing trip. It has just ignited the hunger for more trips, if possible on my bike. “

…….Hope more of you guys would be inspired to go …..!!!

TRAVELLING TO MANALI BY ROAD…

An Amazing road journey …

You can take your own vehicle …..car  Bike or Jeep etc. and start having a wonderful drive….

But I would recommend a VOLVO bus of Himachal Tourism….that starts from Chandralok Building,Connaught Place… in the evening at about six….

Night journey would be mainly in the plains….so you won’t miss much….in case you sleep….

… on the way you can have dinner at a ‘dhaba’…somewhere near Karnal….where the bus would stop for half hour or so… You can try ‘dal-makhani’…and ‘tandoori roti’…but dont forget to try local ‘milk cake’….that is being sold….almost at every dhaba point.

When you wake up….next morning….you shall be in the hills….somewhere near Sundernagar or Mandi….

The road journey from Mandi/Pandoh to Manali is simply breath taking and most of the time , you are travelling next to the BEAS river…..the landscape is amazing…. but try and find a seat on the ‘right’ side of the bus….where you shall find the best view….most of the way .

The Volvo might reach by eleven….and you have just experienced a memorable journey !

(…Although when you are nearing Kullu….there are  a lot of traffic snarls….and this can be a bit frustrating !)

In case you are driving in your vehicle….it is recommended to stop somewhere between Mandi and Kullu…by the river side….and you might get the first glimpse of the snow peaks….and you might even find plum/apple orchards………