Destination : Lahaul & Spiti

Lahaul is situated in the northeastern corner of the state. It has the Chamba district on its west and the borders of Chamba, Kangra, Kullu and Kinnaur districts on its south. In the north is Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh while on its east is Tibet. The district is made up of two large valleys of Lahaul and Spiti and ‘Keylong’ is the district headquarters.

Lahaul is on the western side of the district and has the rivers Chandra and Bhaga (which later merge to become the Chenab) flow through it. Both rivers originate near ‘Bara Lacha’ in the north of the district. The area hardly gets any rains in the monsoons and is best described as a barren landscape with sparse vegetation.

The Lahaul plateau is very dry and cold, surrounded by high mountains on all sides. It has a vast number of glaciers among which the biggest is the ‘Bara Shingri’. Bleak and wind swept, this land is also described as having a moon-like landscape while some call it the land of the Lamas. Buddhism is the main religion of the district.

Spiti, with its headquarters at Kaza is also called ‘Little Tibet’. It has the Spiti River flowing through it with deep gorges at places. The mountains are unique and the valleys are not that wide. People have fields near their villages where they grow barley, buckwheat and vegetables, especially peas. It has a number of beautiful peaks, valleys and high passes with frozen waterfalls and glaciers. The summers in the valleys can be very pleasant. The fields of crops, grasses and alpine flowers make it a very charming place to visit.