India Tourism » Cities » Lahaul Travel

Lahaul and Spiti are two remote Himalayan Valleys of H.P. lying on the Indo-Tibet border. Strange, exciting, primitive, these valleys are unsurpassed in mountain scape, in the rugged beauty of their rocky escapements and the splendor of their snow covered peaks.

Lahaul is marked by a central mass of uniformly high mountains and massive glaciers. The two rivers, Chandra and Bhaga which rise on either side of the Baralacha La, flow through the narrow Chandra and Bhaga valleys. Lahaul is a land of fascinating Buddhist art and culture. The monasteries of Lahaul-Spiti are rich repositories of ancient murals, thankas, wood carving and golden images of Padmasambhava. The valley lies at a height of 2745 metres above sea level. Summer in this valley is cool and pleasant with green grass and alpine flowers. There are little monsoon in both these valleys and this enables climbers & trekkers to enjoy a long and unbroken season in perpetual sunshine to explore the wilderness and grandeur of the inner Himalaya. This unique feature makes Lahul-Spiti as an ideal destination for tourists and trekkers in the month of July, August and September. Keylong is 115 kms. from Manali and is the District Headquarters of Lahul-Spiti District

Patch of Green
Leave early for Keylong, district headquarters of Lahaul Spiti. This is over a rugged road past the Kunzam pass (4,551m). A chunk of green in an arid area, Keylong has willow lined watercourses, fields and a market.

En route, sights include a frontal view of Shigri peak from Kunzam pass, while a trek route brancehs off to Chandra Tal (4,270m), a lake almost a kilometre long and between a low ridge and the main Kunzam range.

Gramphoo (51km short of Keylong) is where the roads to Kaza,Keylong and Manali meet, and Khoksar (5km ahead) has a major festival every january. Sissu (3,120m , 28 km short of Keylong) has marshy plains that are a stopover for migratory birds and its monastery houses an image of Lahaul's patron deity, Geyphang.

Gondhla 3,160 m 16 km short of Keylong, has an eightstoreyed timber and stone tower and every July the village hosts a large fair and masked dances commemorating victory over the Tibetan King Langdarma, an enemy of Buddhism. Here a sheer cliff rises over 1,500 m from the riverbed and forms a spectacular sight. Keylong has hotels and rest houses

Oldest Gompha
Based at Keylong, visit Buddhist gompas and savour nature's spectacular sights. Some suggestions are Guru Ghantal (8km) regarded the oldest gompa in Lahaul and said to have been founded by the religious leader Padmasambhava in the 8^th century.

Kardang (5km) has a library of Buddhist scriptures and houses exquisite thangka paintings, Shashur (3km) is surrounded by a rare patch of woodland and its 17^th century gompa hosts Shashur Tseshe festival in June. Tayul (6km) means the 'place that is chosen' and has a huge statue of Padmasambhave.

Baralacha La (4,890 m 75 km) is an 8-km long pass where the paths from Zanskar, Ladakh, Spiti and Lahaul meet; Suraj Tal (4,800m) is a lake just below the summit of the pass and is the source of the river Bhaga. Sarchu, on the route to Leh, is the last point in Himachal and has a tented colony for tourists. Trilokinath (53 km) has fine stone carvings and Udeypur (53 km) has an ancient temple