Kasol is an interesting place in Himachal Pradesh and is famous for trekking especially to Kheerganga.
Travel from Delhi
Kasol is around 550 kilometers away from Delhi and it takes around half a day that is 12 hours to reach Bhuntar, which is where you need to get down. There are 3 modes of transportation like air ways, railways, and roadways to reach Kasol. But the most affordable and faster transportation is roadways via bus. However, there are no buses from Delhi to reach Kasol directly. If you are coming in your own vehicle then it’s well and good. But you must take a bus from Delhi in order to reach Bhuntar and then reach Kasol via another bus or taxi nearby. It is better if you travel at night for long distance travel as you can sleep in that bus comfortably and by the morning you will be at Bhuntar. So, you can start the journey to Kasol from Delhi at around 9pm heading towards Himachal Pradesh. You will be reaching Kasol by morning at around 6am. The best part of opting for a night journey is that you can experience some of the beautiful natural vegetation and snow covered peaks along with Parvathi river early in the morning with fresh breath.
Life at Kasol
After reaching Bhuntar you can find the buses now and then that can take you to Kasol. It takes 2 hours to reach Kasol from Bhuntar in that local bus. The bus will then drop you off at the main center of Kasol. You can either book a room near Kasol or you can take the option of camping in Kasol.
After your check-in, there are many German and Israeli food dishes in Kasol that you can try for your breakfast. Then you can proceed your journey to the Kheerganga. From Kasol you can take another local bus to Manikaran. It is around 3 kilometers from Kasol. Manikaran is an abode having a Gurdwara and is popular for hot water springs. After your spiritual visit to Gurdwara, there is also a choice of exploring the market of Manikaran where you can find a great variety of handicrafts.
By the way, you can either opt for Manikaran Sahib or start your trek to Kheerganga directly. On the next day of Manikaran visit, trek to Kheerganga commences. The same bus which takes you to Manikaran will also take you to Barshaini, which is the base village for Kheerganga trek.
Either Kalga or Nakthan
There are mainly three different routes to take from Barshaini to Kheerganga. They are the Tosh route, Kalga village route, and Nakthan village route. However, Kalga and Nakthan are main routes to Kheerganga. The Kalga village route goes through a pine forest route and you can see the famous Barshaini dam. It is also a long route of 16 kilometers but you can consider it as an easy trail. Though the Nakthan village route is relatively small with 12 kilometers, the trail is steep and difficult. So many people use this route as the back route from Kheerganga.
The Kalga village route is mostly surrounded by forest and has some wide plain areas. After around 5-6 hours trekking you will be at the top, having so many camps. You can either opt to rent a camp or pitch your own one and enjoy the sunset view of Kheerganga. The cold breeze of Kheerganga can be mitigated by hot water springs, where you can swim and enjoy. Since the sunset happens early in Kheerganga the night also sets early. One side there are cool breezes around and on the other you will experience hot water springs that will moderate the breeze which brings an amazingly unique experience.
Kheerganga
After a deep night sleep with a cold breeze, the morning in Kheerganga welcomes you with a great sunrise relief. You will get to feel an incredible experience with Kheerganga and the journey it offers. After this joyous journey to Kheerganga it’s time to descend from here back to Kasol.
You can descend from Kheerganga crossing over Nakthan village now which offers a completely different landscape from that of Barshaini. You can reach Barshaini at around 4pm if you start around 9am. Do come early to catch up with the last bus. In order to enjoy the complete trek of Kasol you can also visit Chalal village. So overall it would be a great relief from the urban congestion and filth to this naturally close world, Kheerganga. Do make Kasol and Kheerganga as part of your bucket list to make some meaningful moments in your life.
