Five friends. Four days.
Four days were all we had to spare. All the nearby options and touristy places had already been explored by us. We had planned to go to Jibhi once before, in August last year, but couldn't because of the bad weather.
But not this time.
This time the plan was successfully executed.
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Jibhi
Situated in the Banjar Valley of Himachal Pradesh, Jibhi is a small village. Often called Backpacker's Paradise, the place is famous for its tranquil setting and serene views. With Great Himalayan National Park here, the place has a lot of hiking trails. This is a perfect trekking and hiking place for beginners.
Why Jibhi?
Well, some of us wanted to explore some place which was quite and serene. Some of us wanted to hike. Some of us wanted to just chill and de-stress ourselves of the everyday hustle and bustle of life. Jibhi checked all of the boxes.
Beautiful views - Check
Peace and serenity - Check
Away from the crowd - Check
How to reach?
* By Car -
Distance from Delhi - 497 kms.
It will take you around 15 hours to reach Jibhi by car. This 15 hours journey includes 2-3 breaks for breakfast and lunch.
* By Bus -
There is no direct bus from Delhi to Jibhi. You have to board the bus to Manali, then disembark at Aut tunnel. You can get an overnight bus from Kashmere Gate, both private and roadways buses can be boarded from there. You can also book a HPTDC Volvo, which leaves from Himachal Bhawan in Mandi House.
From Aut, you have two options -
1. You can hire a taxi to Jibhi, which is going to cost you around Rs. 1000 per person.
2. You can board a Himachal Roadways bus to Banjar Valley and from there, hire a taxi to Jibhi.
* Nearest airport - Bhuntar in Kullu district
* Nearest railway station - Shimla
* It is recommended to travel either by car or bus, as these two options are more feasible and hassle-free when compared to airways and railways.
Day 1 - Delhi to Jibhi
Day 1 was all about reaching the place. It's a 12 hours long journey in ideal conditions and if you don't take a break. However, with breaks, this journey becomes 15 hours long.
We left Delhi around 6:30 a.m. on Thursday. We had decided to leave at 5:30, but that didn't work out, as always. However, I would recommend you to leave Delhi as soon as possible.
En-route Jibhi, we took three stops. First for tea, second stop around 11 a.m. in Ambala for breakfast and a third small stop in Himachal Pradesh.
We reached Jibhi around 9:30. There was slow traffic after Aut tunnel because of the road construction going on. We had already booked rooms with a home-stay called Peppy Nomads, and had informed our host about our arrival time and placed our dinner order over the phone.
We had booked two rooms at Peppy Nomads, which cost us Rs.9000 for 3 nights. Soon after we reached, we were served with our freshly prepared meal. After a scrumptious dinner, we dozed off to efface the travel fatigue.
Places to Stay:
1. Peppy Nomads: This is the place where we stayed. I highly recommend this for a comfortable stay. Apart from the rooms, the place also houses a restaurant and a really cool sitting area.
2. Mud house, Jibhi: Mudhouse in Jibhi is a really affordable option to stay. If you have no problem with living in a dorm, this place can really bring down your accommodation costs.
However, I won’t recommend this if you want privacy. Also, if you are planning on partying in the night, with music and all, this place is not recommended.
**Apart from this, accommodation in Jibhi is never going to be a problem. There are variety of options to suit every traveller’s needs and budget.
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Day 2 - Exploring Tirthan Valley
I was the first to wake up. As we reached late in the night, we couldn’t take in the view from our stay. The first thing I did upon waking up was get out and soak in the view.
Soon, everyone woke up and we started to get ready. We ordered our breakfast from the homestay itself, and soon were ready to head out.
We had decided to visit Chhoie Waterfall first. So, we set our GPS and reached the starting point of the hike to the waterfall. It took us 20 minutes to reach the place.
Places to Visit
Chhoie Waterfall
Named after Chhoie Devta, a local deity of Tirthan Valley, this is a beautiful waterfall in the Sharchi village of Tirthan Valley. A 15-20 minutes hike from the main road into the area of Great Himalayan National Park takes you to this waterfall.
By the time we came back from the waterfall, we were feeling quite hungry. It was also lunch time, so we decided to visit a café. After searching on Google, we came to know about this café called the Reverberate Café, and decided to visit it. It is near Jibhi waterfall.
Reverberate Café
Located just ahead of the Jibhi waterfall, this café is also known as Negi’s Place. Highly recommended for its food. We weren’t disappointed by whatever we ordered. You can also visit Jibhi waterfall on the way to this café.
Note: This place is not situated on the road. There is a very short downward hike to it from the road. There is a small board on the road directing towards the café. So, keep a look out for that board. We weren’t careful and ended up at some other restaurant first. Don’t commit the mistake we did.
At the end of the day, we returned to our homestay. Then ensued a night of loud music, dance and tasty food. We sat in the homestay restaurant, played loud music and danced our hearts out (We were the only group there, benefit of travelling in the off season).
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Day 3
We had set aside Day 3 for Jalori Pass. Our homestay owner had already told us that there is snow at the pass and it is a must visit place right now.
We woke up quite late and had brunch at the Reverberate Café (the good food dragged us back to the place). After having a hearty brunch, we set off to Jalori Pass.
Note: Before going to Jalori Pass, have a good heavy meal. There aren’t many shops or cafes up there. Also, there is always a possibility that the limited stock that they may have gets over, or they may overcharge.
Jalori Pass
Jibhi and Jalori Pass share the same relationship as Manali and Rohtang Pass. Located 30-45 minutes (12 kms.) away from Jibhi, Jalori Pass is the ideal place to experience snow and snowfall in Tirthan Valley.
During December, January and February, there is heavy snow at the pass and on the route to it as well. Therefore, it is advisable to park your vehicle at some suitable location where the road is wide enough for a U-turn, preferably 2 kilometres before the Pass. That’s what we did. We parked our car and hiked all the way to the pass. I would advise you to do the same.
The road is often covered with snow, and driving on it becomes very tricky. Many people who had driven their cars were having a very difficult time in making a U-turn, because of the narrow and snow-covered road. Their cars were slipping because of the lack of friction due to snow.
If you are a new driver or if you don’t have much experience of driving in the hilly and snow-covered regions, it is advisable that you either park your car 2-3 kilometres before the pass or hire a taxi to come here. Local taxi drivers are experienced and possess the skill to navigate through these tricky roads.
When we were halfway done on our hike to Jalori Pass, it started snowing. Although the hike became more difficult, it was all worth it as the place became even more beautiful. Also, hiking during the snowfall is one experience you definitely should have.
After a hike of 1-1:30 hours, we reached the point. We spent a lot of time there, playing with the snow and getting our photos clicked.
However, one disadvantage of the heavy snow was that we weren’t allowed to hike to Serolsar Lake. So, we couldn’t cover that place. This disadvantage is something that should be kept in mind while planning your trip to Jibhi and Jalori.
The car brakes issue:
After descending from Jalori Pass, we realized that our car brakes aren’t working. The brakes had failed. We decided to drive our car slowly and try to reach our hotel. On the way, we asked a person if there is any mechanic nearby. He asked us where were we coming from. When we answered Jalori Pass, he inquired if there is an issue with our brakes. He then told us that this is a common issue, and develops because of the over-usage of brakes while descending down a hill. He advised us to leave the car still for an hour or so, and the brakes would start working properly.
Must Read: jibhi waterfalls
Therefore, this is something that should be kept in mind while driving. Do not over-use your brakes and do not descend down the hill using your brakes only.
Day 4: Return to Delhi
On the fourth day, we left Jibhi for Delhi. We left early, however, we had to take a detour and a different road because the main road was closed owing to some construction work.
We kept our breaks to a minimum because of the long journey. Had Chhole-Kulche for lunch from a roadside stall at Bilaspur. We had one good break in Punjab for dinner.
We reached Delhi late in the night.
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That's it folks!
Until next time.
Ciao!!