Mcleod ganj to and through spiti now?

lady3jane · Nov 23rd, 2008, 21:47

Please advise on the plausiblity of this hopefully leg of my journey.

Day 1 - Mcleod ganj to kangra by bus. Kangra to jogindernagar by "toy train" (departure/arrival times unknown). Jogindernagar to Bir or rewalsar by bus (departure/arrival times unknown). Will i be able to find lodging in bir @ the monastery? If spend the night @ nyingma gompa
Day 2 - Enjoy bir or rewalsar in the morning. Bir or rewalsar to mandi by bus (departure/arrival times unknown)? Mandi to manali by bus. Are the roads open? Manali to vashisht by rickshaw or walk.
Day 3 & 4 - Rock climb with himalayan extreme center? Soak in hot springs.
Day 5 - Vashisht/manali to kaza via bus.
Day 6 - Begin pilgrimage through spiti. Desired stops of ki gompa, dhankar, tabo as well as anywhere the bön tradition is practiced.
Day 7 - ?
Day 8 - ?
Day 9 - ?
Day 10 - ?
Day 11 - ?
Day 12 - ?
Day 13 - ?

Am i too late in the year to see spiti valley? I am hoping to further my studies of the bön tradition while in spiti so, the schedule will be as loose as need be.

I realize that i will need to acclimate myself to the altitude, just not sure where. Vashisht or kaza?

Following spiti, i will be moving on to kathmandu for a month or so most likely via flight from delhi.

Any and all advice and contacts having to do with this plan are GREATLY appreciated!

voyager61 · Nov 25th, 2008, 03:27

Hi! The bus service from Manali to Kaza this year was discontinued at the end of September because of the snowfall. Now no bus is going over Rothang pass,and I think the road to Kaza is closed altogether,can confirm that in a couple of days. Nowhere in Spiti the Bonpo is stil alive,there is only one boulder with a strange figure said to be Bonpo near Pangmo village. For Spiti it's not too late,but life is difficult now up there,and most probably you can only go via Kinnaur. So you could just skip Manali and try the hot springs in Tattapani.

vistet · Nov 25th, 2008, 04:05

Doesn´t help you over the Kunzum La , but todays Tribune says that buses ran over the Rothang until four days ago towards Keylong , and that the road is open for light vehicles up to Keylong and Darcha. On the later part they were quite specific , quoting the GREF commander in charge of the road works. Again , doesnt help you over the Kunzum La , as voyager points out , if you want to go to Spiti it will be via Kinnaur.

Brisso · Nov 25th, 2008, 04:20

Accomodation in Bir is available at the Tibetan village about half km down the hill from the post office. Don't know about the Monastery.

rishabh6296 · Nov 25th, 2008, 07:59

with snowfall a few days back manali-Kaza wouldnt be doable.

lady3jane · Nov 25th, 2008, 11:31

thanks for all the advice all!

i headed through bir, made it to mandi and am opting to head to and spend a day/night in rewalsar.

as well, i'm placing some calls to see what heading to spiti up through the pin valley will entale. to clarify, i'm not intending to do a solo trek into this region. i'd be using hired guides (echosphere or spiti holiday adventure (whatever happened to MUSE?)) should i make my attempt.

voyager, thanks for the heads up bonpos in spiti. maybe i'm confused but, i had thought this was the case for this region. do you know of any areas of india which still adhere to the pre-buddhist bon? my initial intentions were to explore this tradition in nepal but, on my way there was drawn to spiti; somehow thinking i would find some of this culture still alive there.

lastly, i'm not opposed to to bagging the spiti venture this time around and opting to get to nepal (my original final "destination").

thanks again!

voyager61 · Nov 25th, 2008, 12:20

Hi! Forget Muse(non existing) and Ecosphere if you want to attempt any serious trek in Spiti, the other agency you mention is the one to use. But right now I think both the Pin Parvati and the Bhaba pass trek are really not an option,it's much too late. I remember people,or a guide book, saying that in Sikkim somewhere not so far from Pemayangtse there was a Bonpo monastery,but I never visited it.

Nov 23rd, 2008, 21:47	#1
lady3jane Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: earth Posts: 4	Mcleod ganj to and through spiti now? Please advise on the plausiblity of this hopefully leg of my journey. Day 1 - Mcleod ganj to kangra by bus. Kangra to jogindernagar by "toy train" (departure/arrival times unknown). Jogindernagar to Bir or rewalsar by bus (departure/arrival times unknown). Will i be able to find lodging in bir @ the monastery? If spend the night @ nyingma gompa Day 2 - Enjoy bir or rewalsar in the morning. Bir or rewalsar to mandi by bus (departure/arrival times unknown)? Mandi to manali by bus. Are the roads open? Manali to vashisht by rickshaw or walk. Day 3 & 4 - Rock climb with himalayan extreme center? Soak in hot springs. Day 5 - Vashisht/manali to kaza via bus. Day 6 - Begin pilgrimage through spiti. Desired stops of ki gompa, dhankar, tabo as well as anywhere the bön tradition is practiced. Day 7 - ? Day 8 - ? Day 9 - ? Day 10 - ? Day 11 - ? Day 12 - ? Day 13 - ? Am i too late in the year to see spiti valley? I am hoping to further my studies of the bön tradition while in spiti so, the schedule will be as loose as need be. I realize that i will need to acclimate myself to the altitude, just not sure where. Vashisht or kaza? Following spiti, i will be moving on to kathmandu for a month or so most likely via flight from delhi. Any and all advice and contacts having to do with this plan are GREATLY appreciated!

Nov 25th, 2008, 04:05	#3
vistet Maha Guru Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Umeå , Sweden Posts: 2,262	Doesn´t help you over the Kunzum La , but todays Tribune says that buses ran over the Rothang until four days ago towards Keylong , and that the road is open for light vehicles up to Keylong and Darcha. On the later part they were quite specific , quoting the GREF commander in charge of the road works. Again , doesnt help you over the Kunzum La , as voyager points out , if you want to go to Spiti it will be via Kinnaur. __________________ high road to ..

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Nov 25th, 2008, 03:27	#2
voyager61 Maha Guru Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: ivrea Posts: 532	Hi! The bus service from Manali to Kaza this year was discontinued at the end of September because of the snowfall. Now no bus is going over Rothang pass,and I think the road to Kaza is closed altogether,can confirm that in a couple of days. Nowhere in Spiti the Bonpo is stil alive,there is only one boulder with a strange figure said to be Bonpo near Pangmo village. For Spiti it's not too late,but life is difficult now up there,and most probably you can only go via Kinnaur. So you could just skip Manali and try the hot springs in Tattapani.

Nov 25th, 2008, 04:20	#4
Brisso Specialist muddler Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Brisbane Posts: 1,084	Accomodation in Bir is available at the Tibetan village about half km down the hill from the post office. Don't know about the Monastery.

Nov 25th, 2008, 07:59	#5
rishabh6296 Maha Guru Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: new delhi Posts: 823	with snowfall a few days back manali-Kaza wouldnt be doable.

Nov 25th, 2008, 11:31	#6
lady3jane Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: earth Posts: 4	thanks for all the advice all! i headed through bir, made it to mandi and am opting to head to and spend a day/night in rewalsar. as well, i'm placing some calls to see what heading to spiti up through the pin valley will entale. to clarify, i'm not intending to do a solo trek into this region. i'd be using hired guides (echosphere or spiti holiday adventure (whatever happened to MUSE?)) should i make my attempt. voyager, thanks for the heads up bonpos in spiti. maybe i'm confused but, i had thought this was the case for this region. do you know of any areas of india which still adhere to the pre-buddhist bon? my initial intentions were to explore this tradition in nepal but, on my way there was drawn to spiti; somehow thinking i would find some of this culture still alive there. lastly, i'm not opposed to to bagging the spiti venture this time around and opting to get to nepal (my original final "destination"). thanks again!

Nov 25th, 2008, 12:20	#7
voyager61 Maha Guru Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: ivrea Posts: 532	Hi! Forget Muse(non existing) and Ecosphere if you want to attempt any serious trek in Spiti, the other agency you mention is the one to use. But right now I think both the Pin Parvati and the Bhaba pass trek are really not an option,it's much too late. I remember people,or a guide book, saying that in Sikkim somewhere not so far from Pemayangtse there was a Bonpo monastery,but I never visited it.