Khajjiar

Trip: Dalhaousie > Khajjiar > Chamba > McLeodganj

We moved towards Khajjiar before it was noon. Khajjiar is a popular tourist spot some 15 miles from Dalhaousie as well as Chamba. The charm of this place is a large meadow land that would come at sight while moving towards Chamba town. Khajjiar is often referred as mini switzerland of Kangra region.

Khajjiar Meadows

My first visit of this place couple of years ago is something that will remain in my memories for long. We were trekking from nearby peak called Kalatop and after some 10 miles in forest this vast green area just opened up. It was all the more surprising since nobody told me before about it.

Lake @ Khajjiar

It is said that this area was once singed by a meteor fall and later on only grass grew over this area. A little pond at the centre adds to the charm. Piyush had heard too much from too many people about this place which actually spoiled the surprise factor.

Sports @ Khajjiar

All we did was taking pictures around in our brief stay at this place. As such there is nothing here. There is a trek that links Khajjiar with Chamba that takes around two hours. I consider it to be one of the most beautiful treks I have done.

Dalhousie

Trip: Dalhaousie > Khajjiar > Chamba > McLeodganj

The four of us took the 9 PM Jammu Mail from Old Delhi Station. A vehicle was waiting for us at Pathankot station and we were able to hit Dalhousie at 10 AM as per our plans. Piyush had done extensive preparation to make us comfortable. Our further plan was to move as quickly as possilble to Chamba via Khajjiar.

Dalhousie is a small cloudy hill station with the market place starting from Subhash Chowk and ending at Gandhi Chowk within like quarter of a mile. We loved the weather. In the army guest house we were staying, clouds would come in through doors.

Last time I was in Dalhousie in the December of 2006 on a trekking expedition. It was dead cold then. The three days were fun as I was a part of a big group and we used to make little treks around the town as a part of acclimatization exercise.

We had our lunch with Piyush before starting for Khajjiar via the Mall Road of Dalhousie. As it was a weekday in off-season, most of the shops were closed. We ended up having just a cup of tea near Gandhi Chowk which I kept suspecting was made of goat milk.

Hebbe Falls

• Visit after the rains. The gushing waterfall at its full flow is an amazing view to behold. Take a bath. The sprinkles gives you goosebumps. 
• Take Maxx from Chikmagalur city. Regular vehicles can't reach this place with the mountain terrain and bad  roads. They charged us 500 bucks and it was worth the experience.
• You have to trek the last mile up to the waterfall. The last turn when the waterfall opens up to full view is magical or at least I thought so.

The first time I visited Chikmagalur, the four of us - Vivek, Sumeet, Ashutosh and myself started from Bangalore for Kemmengundi. It is a newly popular hill station near Chikmagalur  It was our plan to stay here for the night and visit nearby waterfalls among other things.

Windmills@Chikmagalur