One late evening of mid-September, my friend Tapas aka Topshe called up said, “Hi, we are planning to go to Chitkul, will you be interested?” I had absolutely no idea about the geographical location of Chitkul but knowing Topshe since long, I assumed it was somewhere up north in the hills. And I was right on that account. He further informed that Gora, Pulak (aka Pulki) and two more people have already confirmed. I tentatively confirmed but said I will take the final call closer to the departure as there were certain issues needed sorting. I discussed with Deepika and Ayush and both said, “You must go”. Deepika further said, “I will be in Bangalore at that time, so there’s no point for you stay at home and brood like an old man.”

On 27September, Deepika’s Bangalore program had a setback due to a strike called on 29^th  (on account of Cuveri water dispute), the program got cancelled at the last minute… with Ayush busy in office she wasn’t in a mood to go to Bangalore and cancelled the journey. I asked her to come along with me but she was hesitant… said, “Except Gora, I don’t know the others too well, I won’t fit into the group.”

The group strength had increased with the inclusion of Suranjan aka SuroKhuro who came over to my place in the evening. He too requested Deepika to join us but she was still hesitant. Then I told her, “तुम अकेली घर बैठ के चिंता करोगी, इससे अच्छा साथ चलो… मेरा दारू consumption पर भी नज़र रख पाओगी” I think the last point clinched the deal and she agreed to come along.  

DAY ONE

Topshe had created a Whatsapp group wherein he informed all that we must start latest by 5:15 am from respective places. He was driving his 7-seater SUZUKI ECCO while I wanted to test the endurance of my JEEP COMPASS.  Meeting point was between Nigambodh and ISBT to take on Pulak in my jeep.

We left around 5:45 am from Navjeevan Vihar and Topshe confirmed they too are on their way. We encountered a traffic jam just after Ashram Chowk till Sarai Kale Khan (ISBT) that too because we ignored Google advise to take an alternate route. Anyways, we still managed to reach the approximate spot and sent our location to Topshe who arrived within 10 minutes. Pulak came in our car and we met the other passengers… Mitali and Amal DuttaGupta. Mitali is the younger sister of my friend Manas… I have last seen her as a kid of may be 10-12 years… I had an instant liking of Amal-da with his soft demeanor and calm temperament. After the pleasantries, we set out for the Zhilmil Dhaba, Karnal.

Topshe had done his homework well and knew all the good food joints on the route. We ordered for Aloo Paratha, Gobi Paratha (for Deepika) and a Egg Paratha to be shared by all… as it turned out, the Aloo-Pyaz and Gobi Paratha were finger lickingly delicious while the egg paratha was below par, my housekeeper makes better anda-paratha. The kadak chai was what we needed after the sumptuous breakfast. From the kiosk outside the dhaba, I picked up bottles of Jeera Goli and Aam Laddu, both being excellent digestive.

Our next stop was a restaurant in Dhalli, just outside Shimla, however, due to traffic congestion near Panchkula, we got delayed which got further aggravated because of an unexpected event for which I am partly to be blamed… the day before the journey, I had topped up the tank and checked tyre pressures but did not check the water level in the radiator… the jeep was serviced only 2 months ago and one expects the oil, water and coolant to be in order. Just before Parwanoo (Timber Trail Resort), the dashboard of the jeep lit up with warning message that the engine has heated up. I immediately stopped and opened the bonnet to cool down the engine. The coolant jar was devoid of any water… slowly I poured water into it… almost 4-4.5 litres… after 20-25 minutes, checked the engine temperature which thankfully had stabilized by then… but we needed the Red Coolant to ensure balance of coolant to water ratio. The Indian Oil petrol pumps had Green Coolant while Bharat Petroleum was selling Blue Coolant and neither of them is compatible with the Red. After almost 50 km we found a auto-parts shop having the Red variety which we bought immediately and poured about 100ml into the jar which indicated it was filled to the ‘max’ capacity.

We had planned to reach the restaurant at Dhalli by 2-2:30 pm for lunch but now with all the unplanned halts, it was out of question… we wouldn’t make it before evening. Topshe was driving ahead of us and he looked for an appropriate place to stop for lunch. I had made some “Chicken Ham n Cheese” sandwich for such an eventuality. We had those along with banana and delicious moist cakes made by Mitali. Thereafter, continued our journey to Narkanda for night halt. Google indicated we should reach our destination by 7:30pm. We were on course till we encountered evening rush in Shimla which slowed down our progress. The road to Narkanda is a mix bag with beautiful stretch of well laid roads and then washed out patches that narrows down to single lane allowing only one vehicle to pass at a time. In the hills, night falls very quickly and soon we were driving in the dark. We reached Narkanda around 8:00 pm. Our night halt at Prem Holiday Home was a Spartan accommodation… it had neither a kitchen nor any kettle in the room for making tea-coffee but was clean with fresh linen. The parking was outside in the lane and it took some maneuvering to park our vehicles in the narrow lane.

After freshening up, Topshe, Gora and I ventured out find an eating joint for dinner and came across Piyush Residency Hotel which was centrally heated and had a bar cum restaurant. We told them that eight of us will come around 9/9:30 for dinner.

We had our adda in Topshe-Gora room and opened the Paul John bottle that SuroKhuro had brought along and enjoyed the tipple with the namkeens (puffed rice mixture and roasted flat rice mixture) that Mitali had prepared at home… both were very tasty. We got the ingredients and recipe from her but are unlikely to replicate the taste. Meanwhile, Topshe had gone down to the small food stall next door and got us omelets as snacks as well as arranged for hot tea in the morning around 7:00 am. 

The food at the Piyush Residency was average but we were hungry so devoured the food in double quick time. The weather was chilly when we came out and we quickly went inside our room. Having travelled all through the day, we were tired, so bade goodnight and retired for the day. The bed was very hard as if made of stone and it took some time to adjust but eventually I slept. Deepika on the contrary had a fitful sleep.

DAY TWO  

I woke up at my usual time of 5:00 am but couldn’t even make a cup of tea though I was carrying teabags. Slowly, rest of the gang got up as well to enjoy a cup of sugary tea. We decided to have bread-omelet for breakfast and accordingly informed the lady. Deepika had an hour long coaching session starting 8:00 am. While she was at it and Mitali getting ready, we guys decided to take a walk in the woods. Topshe had brought a drone to do aerial photography but due to poor network it could not be operated… actually it refused lift off!! We went to a clearing which during the winter months gets fully covered with thick layer of snow and is used as a skiing slope for the kids and amateurs. Being in Delhi, I have never seen the sky so blue… here without any pollution, it was true azure and with balls of white cloud it was a surreal. SuroKhuro went up the slope probably to slide down but wisely did not attempt.  

We loaded our bags in the car and had a simple breakfast of Bread-Omelet with hot tea and were on our way to our final destination, Chitkul, the last village of India at Indo-Tibetan border. But before that we went to see HATU MATA MANDIR located on top of the hill approx 10000 ft above sea level. The road to the mandir was single file (of cars) and steep climb. I let Topshe go first but not before muttering some expletives and allowed sizeable distance between us… it was time to test the Jeep’s (automatic) ability to climb on loose soil and pebble and negotiate hairpin bends while climbing. Thankfully, it was early morning and no incoming vehicle… still it took us 30-35 minutes to cover the 6 km journey. The Hatu Mata Mandir is a small, open-air temple offering an ornate wood-carved interior & scenic view from an elevated peak. According to local belief, the famous Hatu Mata temple is the temple of Maa Kaali. On the first Sunday of Jyeshtha, groups of people arrive in large numbers to engage in rituals. Hatu Peak is the highest mountain point in the Shimla hills area at a height of 3400 m where the Pandavas reportedly stayed during their one year Agyat Vas (unknown residence), built a temple for goddess Durga, and Bhim made his massive oven for cooking. The temple is decorated with ornamental carvings.

Topshe had been on this route (Delhi-Shimla-Narkanda-Chitkul) thrice earlier and knew the roads well… he also knew that the Narkanda-Chitkul road (highway) is classified as one of the “most dangerous” roads of the world. The road ran alongside the Sutlej River from Luan and continued till Karcham from thereon its tributary Baspa carried on till Chitkul and beyond. The phase-1 wasn’t bad at all, though it was really winding road but mostly going down to the valley of Rampur Bushahr… we stopped at Hotel Atul Residency, Sainj Crossing for a cup of tea with some Pakodas and stretch our legs before the next part of the journey.

The road to Chitkul from here on was not only steep climb but some stretches were in a precarious condition after the massive landslides during the monsoon season. The first congestion we experienced was on Deothi-Mashnoo Road just before Jhakri… the traffic was controlled by the HP Police who allowed one side to pass while holding the other side. What worried me is when I saw the policeman looking up at the hill as if to check if any rock is rolling down!! Even though the road surface was bad, the beauty of the nature more than compensated the discomfort. I could only see what was in the front but my co-passengers fully enjoyed the 360 degree view. We passed through the stretch known as the Gateway to Kinnaur Rock Tunnel where the rocky mountain is carved in such a way that the road has a roof and gives a feeling of passing through a tunnel. The road led us to Nigulsari where the maximum devastation had happened… the road is practically nonexistent in this stretch and again the traffic was being monitored… one side of the traffic opened for an hour and then the other side. While going up we were lucky as our side opened up as we approached it. We were not so lucky while returning and had to wait for close to an hour at this point.

We had hoped to reach Chitkul before sundown but with the bad road condition resulting in frequent congestion, it was going to be another hill drive in total darkness. Moreover, after we crossed Nigulsari, Vodafone signals were gone and my Google Map became offline (good thinking on my part to save it as offline) and continued to show the path but could not tell me if there’s congestion ahead. In a way it was good because my focus and concentration on the road became 2x without the distraction of sightseeing. We tanked up at the Army Petrol Pump (the last one on our route) just before Karcham for the climb up to Chitkul. The drive from Karcham to Chitkul was like Dakar Rally… you are driving on a strip of land with a visibility of less than 25 meters (the range of the Jeep headlight in dim position)…and then in that narrow strip of a road you encounter a herd of sheep and lamb, we tried to count but after hundred odd gave up. it must have been in thousands as we were stuck for more than 30 minutes. Gora later said, “After this experience, never had to count the sheep after hitting the bed, but a realistic opportunity all gone in vain”. It was tiring but the thrill of driving on such stretch gave me an adrenalin push and we made it to the summit… Chitkul Bus Stand… behind which was our homestay accommodation. In the hills, people run hotels/guesthouses in the garb of homestay to avoid cumbersome govt formalities in establishing and running such services. The RR Homestay was refreshingly better than the one we stayed at Narkanda, it was a full service accommodation. The only negative of the place is the “approach to the entrance from the main road”… it was nonexistent… we had to go through a makeshift path which was not safe at night. Earlier, when we were negotiating the treacherous Narkanda-Chitkul road, the owner Mr. Negi had called up Topshe to find out our approx ETA and had prepared food accordingly… Egg Curry, Aloo-Gobi Sabji and Dal with hot chapattis. The food preparation was delicious.

We opened the bottle of Paul John and realized the Chakhnas are in Topshe’s car, so he & I went down only to realize that the rear left tyre of his vehicle is flat with a puncture. At that hour with dark surrounding it was not possible to change it and we left it for the morning. We had early dinner and called it a day. The rooms had reinforced wooden walls as well as floor so it was not very cold compared to the outside temperature hovering around 5-6 degrees Celsius. Even though the owner Mr. Negi claimed to have wifi connection (JIO), for some reason wasn’t working and we were technically cut off from the world!!

DAY THREE

We got up early having slept soundly for 7-8 hours and got ready for the day. The hot tea and the biscuits in the cold morning felt delicious. I checked on Topshe about his flat tyre… he tried to change it with spare wheel but his spanner wasn’t working properly… slipping on the nuts… he decided to inflate the tyre and take it down to the next town/ village to find a tyre repair shop. I offered him to take my inflator which was electric but he said that he has one. Unfortunately, he had the manually operated inflator and had to stop every 2 km to inflate the tyre… he had to go down to Sangla (25km) where he found the Puncturewala but then he (and Pulki) utilized their free run and met with his friends which would otherwise have been difficult with all of us together. They came back carrying loads of Kinnaur Apple which he distributed amongst us. Pulki was proudly wearing the Green Kinnaur (Himachal) cap which was presented to him by Topshe’s friend.

While they were away, we went to the river (Baspa) front… actually, SuroKhuro, Mitali and Deepika went down all the way, Amal-da, Gora and I stayed put at the halfway mark realizing that climbing back would be tough for us. While sitting there on the rocks, we saw a large group of Bongs of varied age going to the river front. Gora and Amal-da advised the older lots to stay put there only as it will be difficult for them climb up later. We found out that they are from Kolkata, on a 10 day trip. I couldn’t help comment that wherever I had gone on vacation, I have encountered Bongs from Kolkata and the groups were very vocal!!

After about 30 minutes, we saw our team members returning and looking at their huffing n puffing it was a good call not to go down all the way. We went to the other side where there’s a Tibetan Monastery at a height but halfway through Gora and I decided to go back to the hotel where both us had a nice nap before lunch at the Aakhri Dhaba, as the name suggested it was the last dhaba before the Indo-Tibetan border. The dhaba was run by the maternal uncle of Mr. Negi who also supplied the mutton for our dinner. They had a Thali system comprising of dal, kadhi, sabji and rajma with rice or chapatti. The food was average… rajma being the most tasty followed by dal. While we were having lunch, it started to drizzle which prompted us to rush back to the hotel. Soon the drizzle turned into heavy downpour foiling our sightseeing ventures. We arranged a pack of cards and played the favorite game of Bongs, TwentyNine till Topshe and Pulki came back from their excursion. Topshe called us to come out of the room to witness some amazing views. The mountains at the distance were all covered in snow after the downpour. We haven’t seen any snow covered mountains this close and the scenery was way beyond words. All I can say is that our trip to Chitkul was very successful and the memory shall remain etched forever. Later we drove down to the BSF post at the Indo-Tibetan border (though the actual border is further 40+ km away). On our way back we encountered a herd of cows that refused to budge from the road… it took lots of honking and cajoling before they relented.

The mutton curry prepared by the young chef was delicious and we had our stomach full… thoughtfully he had prepared aloo sabji and dal as well especially for Deepika who was the lone vegetarian in the group of eight. There was nothing more to do as the temperature have plummeted to around 4 degree Celsius, we paid up our dues to Mr. Negi since we planned to leave early in the morning around 6:00 am. He arranged for some aloo paratha for our breakfast as well.

DAY FOUR

We drove down to the Baspa river for up close view… it was flowing with vengeance to meet Sutlej many miles down at the Karcham… after spending around 15 minutes we started our journey towards Shimla. In the daylight we could see the road and the surroundings and could only praise the nature. We also realized how bad the condition of the road was after the monsoon and landslides. Since it was early morning, there was hardly any traffic allowing us to drive at sedate speed of 50-60 kmph at most of the stretches. We made it to the Karcham Dam in 2 hours time while it had taken us more than 3 hours going up. We took a detour from here for two reasons: (1) to pick up Kinnaur apple from where Topshe & Pulki had taken and (2) Topshe wanted me to drive through the road nicknamed “Indian Grand Canyon”… it’s the road going to Rekongpeo from Karcham along the Sutlej river and range of mountains on either side going up straight giving a feeling that one is driving inside a canyon. We stopped at roadside eatery and ordered tea and consumed the aloo paratha that Mr. Negi had given along with the residual cakes of Mitali.

We drove for 10-12 km and reached a Y fork and still there was no sign of any apple seller. Topshe suggested we take the left road and go up to Rekongpeo where there are quite a few kiosks selling apple… it was another 15 km uphill drive on winding road and at least 1.5 hour each way. We would have been very late reaching Shimla, so we and turned around. On the way back, at the petrol station, the guy informed that there’s one apple seller a kilometer ahead on the right side of the road… we had missed it while going. Deepika, SuroKhuro and Mitali picked up a box each… SuroKhuro negotiated the price which was less than at what Topshe bought previously… which prompted him buy another box!!

We reached Narkanda around 6:00pm from where SuroKhuro and Mitali picked up 2kg each authentic cow ghee… thereafter we continued on our way to Shimla in total darkness but thankfully, Vodafone network was back on track to show us the congestion(s) ahead… there was no worries about getting lost because it was just one road NH5 which we had to follow. This was a new achievement for me… driving on the hills after dark for the third time in four days and I found it quite comfortable except the times when an idiot would come from the opposite side with blazing headlight in high beam. We reached our hotel, Meridian, Shimla around 8:30 pm. Topshe had chosen this hotel for the sole reason that it offered car parking within the premises otherwise it’s a real headache to find parking space in Shimla… one may have to park few kilometers away from their hotel.

We parked our cars on the surface level and was told to go down the stairs 2 floors below… wondering how suffocating it would be to spend the night in underground rooms… to our surprise, the rooms were quite decent, airy with windows opening from where one could see few floors below there’s habitation and road running. Our designated attendant Mr. Mahender realized that it would be a challenge for us, the senior citizens to climb up for dinner and offered to set up the table at the corridor of the rooms. The hotel deal was AP (American Plan) which includes breakfast and dinner with the room tariff. The food was average but the service was first class.

We retired for the day after an inconclusive discussion on next day’s program… originally it was planned that we would visit the Shimla Kalibari and then start our journey back to Delhi… but then what about a visit to the famous Shimla Mall? Opinions were divided so we decided to sleep over it.

DAY FIVE

Between Deepika and me we were certain that we are not for the mall visit because it would mean spending at least half a day and thereafter reaching Delhi around midnight. Gora also wanted to reach home in good time… SuroKhuro after much thought decided to join us, so after breakfast four of us started our journey back to Delhi while Topshe, Pulki, Mitali and Amal-da decided to extend their stay and enjoy the Shimla completely… Kalibari and Mall.

It was 2^nd October (Gandhi Jayanti), most shops were expectedly closed but surprisingly many petrol stations were shut too… my tank was half full which would take to Panchkula/ Zirakpur but I didn’t want take that chance and at the first option topped up the tank. There was a shop of HPMC selling Apple Wine next to the station but on closer look found that to be closed. Somewhere between Dharampur and Parwanoo, we stopped at a place for coffee but ended up having chilled Green Apple non-alcoholic Beer and picked few for the road as well… we also picked up pickle, jam and juice.

We decided to stop at Puran Singh da Dhaba Shop #14 at Ambala Cantt. for lunch… whenever I had travelled on this route, I have tried to stop there for food… it serves one of the best North Indian Cuisine. We reached there around 2:30 pm just in time for lunch and ordered Kaali Dal, Kadhai Paneer and Special Mutton Curry (boneless) with Tandoori Roti. We ended up eating much more than our normal intake. We didn’t realize but it was almost an hour break we had taken, in a way the rest and the food rejuvenated us to drive straight to Delhi.

As we were getting closer to Delhi, traffic increased on the road, it seemed everyone from Delhi had taken a short vacation and now returning home. We crossed into Delhi around 6:30 pm but soon got into a massive traffic jam because of some religious congregation at Khatu Shyam Dham on the outer Delhi road… we lost at least 30-45 minutes. I had planned to drop Gora at Topshe’s home where his Scooter was parked but he insisted to be dropped at the Supreme Court Metro Station. After that our next stop was Haus Khas Metro for SuroKhuro to take Ola/Uber to his home in Dwarka. I told him stay overnight at my home and go in the morning… had he heeded to my call, we would not have had the next harrowing experience…

SuroKhuro couldn’t get a cab so took an autorikshaw from Hauz Khas Metro Station Gate #1. I was in the car ready to roll when Deepika got down to get her purse from the rear seat and checking if her mobile phone is inside it (she has a habit of misplacing her phone and looking for it casually). Once satisfied, she got in the front passenger seat and at that moment 2 bike-borne thieves snatched her purse and sped away in the wrong direction. She started screaming for help… it took me few seconds to realize what has happened but I could do nothing. Unfortunately, there were many autorikshaws standing but all of them were on the other side of the fence unable to block the motorcycle, moreover it being a holiday the road had very scarce traffic which allowed the thieves to zoom away. I dialed the police control room and soon 2 PCR vans along with 2 motorcycle borne policemen came to the spot and registered our complaint. We were advised by SI Doongadarshi to reach Hauz Khas PS under whose jurisdiction the area comes under, to file an FIR.

While we were filing the FIR, the SHO Shiv Darshan came to us and enquired what happened. We explained in as much detail as we could remember but except that the snatcher was wearing white t-shirt/ shirt we did not have the (most important) motorcycle registration number. He asked for Deepika’s mobile number and tried to connect but it rang, nobody answered. We requested him to track the mobile which he promised to do. Meanwhile, I called Ayush and told him about the mishap and asked him to block the credit/ debit cards. The thought of the harrowing time ahead to get her Aadhar, PAN, Voters card besides some other documents that were gone with the purse was too disturbing. As we had gone to remote area, she was carrying over 10K INR in cash which we knew will never be retrieved.

Deepika persistently asked the IO to track her iPhone and we were informed the process would take at least 4-5 hours as first a request will be sent to the Central Cyber Cell of DP which will ask for permission from their ACP who based on the severity of the case may allow or refer it to the DCP who may or may not give the permission. We were lucky, the SHO Shiv Darshan was in Crime Branch before being posted to this PS and he requested his ex-ACP there to put the phone on tracking immediately (Crime Branch has the authority to track any phone at any time). He also kept calling Deepika’s number… initially there was no response but suddenly someone answered and when questioned said he was at the Hauz Khas Metro Station… at the same time his other phone buzzed to inform that the phone has been tracked to Hauz Khas Metro Station within a radius of 100 meters. We immediately rushed to the spot in the police Scorpio but the area was even more deserted than before. We spread out to search the area and called her phone… on my second try Deepika answered the call!!

Apparently two guys on a bike threw the bag on the road and sped away… the young guy (27-28 years old), a pharmacist by profession was on his way home when he witnessed it. He heard the phone ringing and picked it up to answer the call. We thanked him profusely for his good gesture. At the police station, Deepika checked her purse and confirmed that all the cards and other docs are in there but all cash including the coins are gone. She also lost her earpods and headphone besides 2 expensive lipsticks, goggles and 2 silver coins with God/Goddess’s image. We were relieved that she got her phone back as well as the important documents. We did not register the FIR as we felt wisely or unwisely that the culprits even if caught will not get convicted (in this case) as they have not kept anything incriminating with them that can be held as evidence against them. Moreover, we haven’t had a good look at their face to identify them in front of the magistrate/ judge.

We thanked SHO Shiv Darshan for his quick thinking and actions and came back home around 10:30 pm totally exhausted physically as well as mentally. It was a life lesson for us and unforgettable…