Sunshine Adventures Arya Samaj Street, A.B Kullu

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KINNAUR-SPITI-LAHAUL-LADAKH

DAY 01 DELHI Met upon arrival and assisted transfer to your hotel for two nights. Afternoon enjoy a sightseeing tour of Old Delhi. Overnight at the hotel. DAY 02 DELHI Morning enjoy a sightseeing of New Delhi. Afternoon is at leisure for independent and/or personal activities. Overnight at the hotel. DAY 03 DELHI-NALAGARH Depart by surface to Nalagarh. On arrival check into your hotel for 1 night. Rest of the day at leisure. Overnight hotel. DAY 04 NALAGARH-SIMLA Depart by surface to Simla. Upon arrival in Simla check into your hotel for 1 night. Rest of the day at leisure. Overnight at the hotel. Simla - Simla was the summer capital of the Raj and has an air that reminds one of a bygone era. Pine trees abound in the valleys and exude a fragrance that lingers in oneís memory forever. Situated in the north west Himalayas at 7000 ft above sea level, the summer days are pleasant and the evenings nippy. The winter months are very cold and one has to muster all woollens. An ideal place for relaxation. DAY 05 SIMLA-SARAHAN Depart by surface to Sarahan from Simla. Overnight camp at Sarahan. Sarahan an important market town for traders of neighbouring regions. An attractive town amidst apple orchards, Sarahan was the old capital of the local rulers and has a fort and the strikingly carved wooden Bhimakali Temple in a mixture of Hindu and Buddhist styles. It is dedicated to the worship of Durga as the destroyer of asuras (demons). DAY 06 SARAHAN-CHITKUL (Sangla Valley) Depart by surface to Sangla from Sarahan. Overnight camp at Chitkul. . Sangla is one of the prettiest valleys of the Himalayas. The Sangala village - popular village situated on the right bank of the Baspa, is built on a slope with houses rising one above the other with gigantic Kinner Kailash peak (6500 mtrs) dominating the scene. The bewitching scene and the eternal snow are a memorable sight. DAYS 07 CHITKUL Full day is at leisure to enjoy the natural beauty and to explore the area . Overnight camp.. DAY 08 CHITKUL-NAKO-TABO Drive to Tabo - an ancient village 3050 mtrs above the sea level on the left bank of river Spiti. Tabo a 1000 years old gompa is the only living gompa of the western Tibet school which died out in the 12th century. The gompa has murals dating back of the 8th & the 9th centuries AD and is regarded by many as next in significance to the THOLING GOMPA in Tibet. The temple buildings are surrounded by a high wall and the compound of the monastery is about 7500 sq. metres. There are nine important temples in this complex besides large number of stupas

(chortens) within and outside the monastery. Some of the murals are thematically identical to those of Ajanta Caves therefore it is rightly called the Ajantas of the Himalayas. The temples have many murals and the ceilings also depict birds and beautiful floral design. Overnight camp at Tabo. DAY 09 TABO-DHANKAR-KAZA Drive 47 kms to Kaza, the district headquarters of Spiti situated at 3600 meter at the foot of steep ridge on the left bank of river Spiti. Visit the famous Ki (or Kye) & Kibber monasteries. The Ki monastery comprises a large irregular heap rooms with low ceilings and narrow corridors, which are inter-connected by dark passages and staircases. The Ki monastery is the biggest monastery in Spiti and is located between Kibber and Kaza, near the small village of Ki on the left bank of the Spiti river. Hundreds of Lamas receive their religious training in this monastery, which is also famous for its murals and valuable books. Kibber monastery is another famous Buddhist monastery housing large number of scriptures and pieces of art, wall paintings and stucco. Kibber is also one of the highest inhabited villages in the world. Return to Kaza for overnight. Overnight in tents at Kaza. DAY 10 KAZA-LOSAR Drive of 5-6 hrs to Losar en route visiting the villages of Rangrik, Khyurik, Morang, Pagmo, Kayato and Hansa. As the landscape changes in this part of Himachal so do the faces of the people. Overnight in camps at Losar. DAY 11 LOSAR-KEYLONG-JISPA Drive to Keylong, the district headquarters of Lahaul & Spiti via Kunzum-la pass (1600 ft.), Batal, Bara Dora, Chotta Dora, Gramphoo, Keylong can be described as an oasis of green fields, willow planted water courses, brown hills and snowy peaks. Visit three important monasteries enroute the Karding, Shoshun and Tayal, which are well worth a visit. drive to Jispa. Overnight in camps at Jispa. DAY 12 JISPA-SARCHU From Jispa a level road leads to the checkpost to Darcha and further climbs to the Baralacha pass over the Zingzingbar plains. The pass is 4883 meters high with snow bound stretch of about 8 kms long and having a small lake at the top. This lake is source of both Chandera and Bhaga rivers flowing out in different directions and finally becoming one river Chenab. From the pass the peaks of Mulkila and Barashigri are clearly visible. The descend is gradual and barren all the way upto Sarchu (3960 meters). Total distance covered is 85 kms. Overnight in camps at Sarchu. DAY 13 SARCHU-LEH 97 kms from Sarchu , one has to climb the Gata Loopes - a series of 21 hairpin turns which do not seem negotiable at all from the base. The Loopes climb to the Lachung-la-pass (16400 ft.). The descend from Lachung-la is through village which occasionally rise from horizon and diminish as if an illusion rather than a reality. Drive further onto Pang through a rivulet without a bridge or a marked road. Pang is a small army detachment with 3-4 pre-fabricated huts and one helipad. About 22 kms from Pang the road levels off and one drives through the highest plateau of the world - THE MORE PLAINS - which is approx 40 kms long and at a height of 16000 ft. The onward drive is on the steep loops of the massive mountains of Tanglang-la (17476 ft.) which is complete breath taking and make one believe of Rumtse. Drive along the river to Leh through the villages of Gaya Upshi, Karu, Thicksy and Shey, The road is metaled and therefore the driving is smooth and is relatively fast. Upon arrival in Leh check into your hotel for 3 nights. Overnight at the hotel. DAY 14 LEH In the morning visit Spituk and Phyanag monasteries. Afternoon is at leisure. Overnight at the hotel in Leh. Spituk monastery - 10 kms from Leh, there are 125 yellow cap monks at Spituk monastery which stands on a small mountain above the Indus. Spituk head Lama is also the head of the Shankar Gompa in Leh. The monastery or the Gompa has three chapels of which the highest,

the Paldan Lama Temple is the most impressive . The temple is approximately a thousand years old. The monastery has a statue of "Kali" whose face is shown only once a year. Phyang monastery - 16 kms from Leh towards Srinagar, Phyang monastery, with its 16th century gompa housing hundreds of statues on wooden shelves and thangkas, has 15 Lamas and 7 'novices' of the red cap sect and possesses five chapels. DAY 15 LEH Full day excursion to Hemis monastery visiting Shey and Thicksey monasteries en route. Return to Leh in the evening. Overnight at the hotel. Leh the capital of Ladakh, a vast highland desert lying between the Karakoram and the Himalayan ranges. Leh is inhabited predominantly by Buddhists and, accordingly, it is the centre of Buddhist culture. At an altitude of 3500 meters and a population of approx. 10000, Leh today is an important military base and tourist attraction. Shey monastery is about 15 kms from Leh on the way to Hemis. This was the summer palace of the Old Raja of Leh and is situated on top of a hill. There is a two storey high seated image of Buddha cast from copper, covered with gold leaf and is about 80 ft. Kings of Leh were supposed to be born in the monastery. Shey along with Thiksey, is also regarded as an auspicious place for cremation. Thicksey monastery situated on a hill top, has a beautiful location and one can enjoy the splendour of Green Indus valley from its rooftop. This monastery has a number of chambers full of statues and stupas of all kings. There are 60 Lamas in the monastery. Courtyard murals are bright and interesting and provide the novelty of photography with ample light. Thikse monastery is a good place to watch religious ceremonies (usually 0630 - 0730) Hemis - 49 kms south of Leh on the road to Manali is the famous Hemis Gompa. This is the biggest and wealthiest monastery in Ladakh. At karu one leaves the main road crossing the Indus and ascends a side valley to a groove of trees that surrounds the main building. Hemis contains a large number of gold statues, stupas and thangkas one of which is reputed to be the largest in existence and is exhibited once every 12 years. Hemis was founded in 1600 AD. One can see striking paintings on walls of the monastery known as the ëGreat Renunciationí depicting Gautamís renunciation of the worldly life. DAY 16 LEH-DELHI Assisted transfer to the airport in time to connect your flight to Delhi. Meet upon arrival in Delhi and transfer to your hotel. Overnight at the hotel. DAY 17 DELHI/ONWARD DESTINATION Assisted transfer to Indira Gandhi International Airport in time to connect your flight for onward destination.

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