23rd June -27th June 2017
Reaching home from office at 8.30 pm, convincing Dad, booking tickets at 9.30, packing by 10.00 and in bus by 11.00. I love sudden plans and that sudden plan made me find Jibhi- an unspoiled place in Himachal.
With every new journey I evolve a little, with every new journey I find a little new me. And I know that travelling solves everything for me. It was a long weekend when half of Delhi was going to Himachal but I was lucky enough to find one seat for me in a Volvo bus. Tired from the hectic day in office, I immediately slept in bus and with such an unplanned trip and no place to stay I started googling for places to stay in Jibhi. After 6-7 unsuccessful attempts I came across Mr Sandeep who runs Jibhi Camps & Cottages. Denying any vacant space initially, when I told him that I was travelling solo he ensured to arrange a place for me in his cottages. I had a sigh of relief.
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| View from my room- Jibhi Camps & Cottages |
HOW TO REACH
Delhi- Aut (Bus)
Aut to Banjar (Cab or Bus)
Banjar- Jibhi (Cab or Bus)
THE JOURNEY AND THE EXPERIENCES
I meet so many helpful people during my solo journeys. But then there are certain people who could not do anything for you but are always ready to give free advises. So as I proposed my idea of going to Jibhi solo, a "friend" of mine messaged me on 'social media' that I should be careful as this is "India". Probably he does not know that India is unsafe because of negativity the guys like him possess. It was not an advise, it was an attempt to create fear in mind. However, I continued my journey and like all other journeys I met beautiful people on this journey as well- Sonali, Sandeep and Rahul.
SONALI
A 22 year old solo traveller, I met Sonali in bus from Delhi to Aut. It started with a simple 'Hi' and ended with hugs and goodbyes. With Sonali, this solo trip turned into a duo trip where we both were together but still we had our own space. Seeing Sonali I thought that I started travelling very late, but then present is the right time to start anything and I am happy that at least I am doing it.
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| Me and Sonali- Jibhi Waterfall |
SANDEEP
Well I have less words to describe Sandeep. He is the owner of Jibhi Camps & Cottages and he came as a rescue for me when I had no place to stay in Jibhi. The long chats over beer and tea, listening his stories, discussing economy and philosophy, the jokes and his morning teas, he clearly considers that 'The guest is equivalent to God'. The one line which Sandeep said very casually but I could not forget it is that, " It is easy to earn money. But it is difficult to digest it. And that is why money is the cause of all diseases in the society."
RAHUL
Before Jibhi Rahul was my facebook acquaintance whom I used to follow to get to know about different travelling places. So it was Rahul's facebook post which made me decide to travel to Jibhi. But I had no clue that I would get a chance to meet him on this trip. So all this happened because of long weekend traffic jam in Manali, when Rahul decided to find a peaceful place and ended up in Jibhi. We got in touch on messenger and he was staying just beside Jibhi Camps. We had endless chats but still there is so much left to talk about. I hope I will be meeting him soon again to talk more about places and our journeys. Indeed it is a small world.
PLACES TO SEE
SEROLSAR LAKE TREK
From Jibhi to Jalori Pass via Sojha village- in Cab or bus (I took a cab and shared it with three more people who were staying in the camp)
A 6-7 kms trek from Jalori Pass to Sarehul Lake
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| The trek to Serolsar Lake |
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| The trek to Serolsar Lake |
It was beautiful 6 kms trek, very serene and calm. While I was walking there were so many thoughts running through my mind. But there were times when my mind was totally free. There were no thoughts. That was the time when I found myself totally elated. That was the time when there was complete silence and I could hear myself in that silence.
It was moderate but a long trek. I took a maggie and tea break in between. It was picturesque.
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| Way to Serolsar Lake |
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| Way to Serolsar Lake |
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| Way to Serolsar Lake |
I finally reached Serolsar Lake. I sat on a stone, closed my eyes and in that silence the cooing of Himalyan crows touched my ears. Meanwhile the lake was playing hide and seek amidst the clouds
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| Serolsar Lake |
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| Serolsar Lake |
While returning back I wondered that any new trek creates an excitement, anxiousness and curiosity in beginning. But the same trek while coming back creates totally different feelings- feeling of tiredness and a feeling of 'known' which makes it little boring. Probably all known people and known things become boring after sometime and that's why we humans keeps running after 'change'.
JIBHI WATERFALL
The regular showers became too boring for me and Jibhi Waterfall became my daily shower on this trip. My day used to start and end with Jibhi Waterfall.
In the end I could realise, "That this is my journey and I have to fight it, enjoy it and complete it on my own."
