This post describes the second leg of my road trip from Delhi to Mcleodganj. For the first part read here
Part 1 Road trip to Mcleodganj
After 7 hours of road travel from Chandigarh to Palampur, we were finally ready for a day stop before we headed to our final destinition i.e., Mcleodganj. Mcleodganj is based in the foot hills of the magnificent Dhauladhar Mountain Range and is the current base of the Tibetan Spiritual leader, Dalai Lama who took refuge in India after conflict with Chinese authorities in Tibet.
Palampur is 2 hours away from Mcleodganj and is another hill station worth exploring. Every house in this bustling town can boast about the beautiful backdrop of the stunning Dhauladhar Range. Just walking around the streets of this town is a beautiful experience as humongous ancient deodar and pine tress line the narrow hilly streets and green tea gardens can be seen everywhere. The ancient houses with wood work is another treat to see.
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| A hilly road in Palampur |
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| An old house |
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| A view of the beautiful trees and mountains |
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| Green fields , wild roses and mountains in the backdrop |
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| An old house with slated roof |
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| Tea plantations |
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| Humongous Deodar |
Places to visit in Palampur:
1. Local market : great place to pick up locally made Organic Kangra tea or woollens
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| local market |
2. The Taragarh Palace : it is located a bit on the outskirts but the drive to the palace is beautiful and gives a feel of the Royal luxuries. The palace belongs to Maharani (Queen)Tara devi. The palace has been converted into a hotel and rooms are available for stay.
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| The royal dining hall at Taragarh Palace |
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| Portrait of one of the Royal ladies |
3. Neugal Park: This is a small park with a cafe and a beautiful view of the mountains
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| Neugal Park |
4.
Saurabh Van Vihar: another park with a lake and a beautiful view of the mountains. This park is dedicated to a local martyr, Captain Saurabh Kalia (1976 – 1999). He was a brave officer of the Indian Army who lost his life as prisoner of war, while fighting for his country against the Pakistan army during the Kargil war.
5. Drive down to the Neugal river or Beas river and enjoy waddling it water.
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| Neugal River |
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| Beas River |
6 . Norah Richards house: the remains of the mud house and theatre of a European lady , Norah Richards, who decided to settle in this beautiful town have been preserved and are open for visitors to see. She was a theatre artist and a writer.
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| Norah Richards mud house |
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| Norah Richards theatre |
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| Insides of the mud house |
Indeed this small hilly town is breathtakingly beautiful and a must for travel enthusiasts to visit. It offers a lot fun activities to do or just relax and enjoy the beauty from one of the many hotel stay options available.
Lastly, a photo of the guest house I stayed in... We stayed in the of new wing but the interesting part is that the old wing is a 100 years old and was built by the British during their colonisation of the area. A church and a cemetery were located close by.
New wing of the guest house
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| Old wing of the guest house (over a 100 years old) |
24 comments:
This is such a lovely road trip. Road trips are great to clear the mind... The place loves relaxing and serene
Hey I have never been to Palampur. Its awesome for planning. Thanks a lot Dr. Shilpa for sharing.
Taking such road trips is so amazing...I do take these sometimes on my bike too along with my friends.
you are so much in love with places n travelling... hope one day, all these will come out in a book form..
Such a scenic route. I hope you had a good time travelling the road. Thanks for sharing :)
The places you've been through are very country-side and I like it! These are the kind of places we need to maintain! Some people are mislead to believe that city life is beautiful.
What a wonderful adventure. Palampur is such a lovely place. Road trips are so fun!
Its so calming to see those trees and mountains. Its easy to medidate and relax our minds.
It seems there's a lot of peaceful places going to Palampur. You enjoyed as well the views.
This is definitely a unique place. Although it's not the place I will usually go, but somewhere different. Thanks for sharing!
What an amazing road trip - following on from your first post! The picture included of Neugal Park is absolutely stunning - such amazing scenery!
i love the look of norah richards house and everything. such an interesting road trip with interesting scenes
I have always wanted to do same thing.. road trip .. but it seems that limited time keeps me from doing what i like most... hopefully soon...
Stunning tree-lined road and love the river. Can imagine myself simply sitting nearby and relax with a good book.
This reminds me of old towns in the provinces here in the Philippines!! Such beautiful scenery! :D
Beautiful photos and nicely captured it. Palampur is one nice and quite relaxing place.
Lovely and enjoyable road trip! This place is kind of relaxing and good for a road trip!
Such a scenic route. Palumpur is ideal for those people who really need to unwind.
The view of the trees and the mountains is magnificent. The old houses also gives the place a vintage look.
The mountains and view up there are spectacular. I like the old houses, so english feel. Nice photos.
wow would love to visit the place one day! I miss road trips :(
I love looking at photos like these and seeing places that I might never get to visit. Beautiful pics.
such a super cool road trip. I love all of the pics.
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Much of the sites here are almost the same with those in the Philippines. :-) I am reminded of the beautiful places here. :D
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