Trekking to The Adi Himani Chamunda Temple - Kangra(H.P.)

A magnificent view of Dhauladhar in front - thanks to Tarun for the click -  www.tarungoel.in

Hi, 

Get ready for a short trek story, of a not-so-short trek.

Brief about Adi Himani Chamunda:

Adi Himani Chamunda Temple was a 16th century temple, built mostly with woods, stones and tin. The main attraction of the place is its altitude(2920 m) and natural mountains beauty around the temple. You can watch the Whole Kangra and its nearby places such as Pong Dam, Dharmshala cricket stadium Tibetan monasteries etc.

The reason why I used the word 'was' in the first paragraph is that the temple that we found after reaching the top was not in the state, that it used to be.

Famous Shakti peeth Chamunda temple, is different from this, it is for the trekkers, while other can be visited easily on the NH-20.

There is a 10 km trek from Jiya(village from where it starts on feet) to Adi Himani Chamunda temple. Jiya is at the feet of ascent of this steep trek, no house or dwellings are found after this village.

Other the the ancient wooden temple, another beautiful thing that you could treat your eyes with is the very close view of Talang and Toral mountain passes. These passes can take you to the other side of the mountain to reach Chamba district. Such passes were and still are the best hopes for some pahari(mountain) peoples, especially the Gaddarians(Gaddis), to reach the other sides of the mountains.

Reaching Kangra:

Kangra is connected with the Airways, with its airport at Gaggal, also it can be reached via a broad gauge railways track up to Pathankot, which is connected with direct trains from Delhi, Mumbai, etc. Another narrow gauge track from Pathankot to Joginder Nagar runs along and across the valleys and ridges of Kangra valley. Or one can take direct buses from Delhi or Chandigarh to reach Kangra on the NH-20.

For us, it was not that much far to reach from Sunder Nagar to Kangra. Its only about 4 to 5 hours car journey. On Saturday, 15th March 2014, I along with Mr. Tarun Goel and Mr. Naresh(Tarun's friend), started our  journey from Sunder Nagar to Kangra in a car owned by Tarun. Another one on the way to join us was Mr. Maninder (Manu).

 Naresh and Manu are Tarun's friends. If you want to know more about Tarun, please Google www.tarungoel.in, and you will find him through this famous travelogue of him.

A beautiful spot near to RPGMC Tanda- Kangra (H.P.) - clicked in the evening, 15th March 2014

On the previous evening, after roaming around the outskirts of Kangra town, we stayed in a hotel at Dari(Kangra). Next morning, sharp at 5:00 AM, we were straight on our backs. Another friend of Tarun, Mr. Vipin, basically from Uttarakhand,  joined us at 5:45 AM. He came from Delhi, where he worked with a travel agency.

This is how Adi Himani Chamunda Temple looked before the fire(courtesy: https: facebook.com/iluvhimachal/photos)

Trekking from Jiya to Adi Himani Chamunda:

We reached Jiya at around 8:00 AM  and partly said goodbye to the car. We started to climb on a concrete paved zig-zag path and didn't forget to carry 5 paranthas and 5 bottles one for each one of us in our bags.

We were somewhere mid heights and Kangra plane still looked near, we tried to spot and admire the various scenic spots on the plane below, they started to emerge out of the trees with heights.

 A stage of mini hydro power project -near to Jiya. Kangra (H.P.)- on the trek to Adi Himani chamunda 

 

There was a mini hydro power project adjacent to our trek and on the way back, Tarun clicked it to show it to the Civil Engg. students hoping that they will get inspired to visit this place.

Kangra Valley - a view from the trek to Adi Himani Chamunda temple on 16th March 2014

Our water bottles got a refill at about a 2-3 km height, and beyond that, there was no other source of water except the white snow, so we used it wisely. With each step, snow white mountain view in front of us appeared larger, as if each step resulted in a micro-zoom onto a big screen in front of us. With each step, the screen became larger, wider, clearer, and brighter, and the view was from out of the world. You can't even imagine that, and I can't explain in words.

At the same time, with each step, the view of the Kangra planes, on our backs, became smaller.

Standing before the majestic mountains that hold the Talang Pass."

I was way ahead of everyone, literally trying to compete with others, but cautious enough to be within the eyes of others. Whenever I found myself a little faster, I rested for a while, sometimes on the spongy grass and sometimes on the moraines.

A few animal shelters I spotted on the way gave a totally different feeling, a little horrifying and somewhat amazing. Is it really possible for a person, along with his herd of animals, to climb such mighty mountains and stay there for months?

The factual answer is 'Yes'. It was happening on this mountain for ages. Gaddis are famous tribal people, living on both sides of Dhauladhar in Kangra and Chamba region, who climb up these mountains in summer and roll back down in winters, because of the heavy snowfall.

 Enough grass was available on these pastures to feed their animals, but finding water can be problematic sometimes. We found only one source of water along the whole trek, of course, except for the snow turning into ice at the temple site.

The shelter that I entered was smelly and ugly, but for a Gaddi, it's the best he could afford for his animals.

 The poor building was adjacent to a small water pond that had almost dried up. Seven Cows were grazing nearby it, and they comforted me for some unknown reason.

I drank water and captured myself on a video camera while waiting for others to join me. I guess I had climbed almost 5 km along this vertical trek.

From left: Naresh, Manu, Tarun, Vipin. We ate 1 parantha each (on the trek to Adi Himani Chamunda Temple)- 16th March 2014

Another 5 km was just another 5 km, and nothing eventful happened except eating those 5 paranthas, one for each of us, and that keen desire if somebody could just bring another 3 paranthas. We were tired and needed it badly, but there was not a Dhaba or a tea spot to fulfill my wish. We rested at that place for about 20 minutes and then started again.

Now we could spot the temple with our eyes, and it was located at the top of the mountain. There was no snow till now, and neither did we expect much of it because the mountain was clear, with no snow, and no trees.

Buraansh(Rhododendron) -( A seasonal higher above 1200 m  altitude)- on the trek to Adi Himachi Chamunda (H.P.) - 16th March 2014

Climbed other few hundred metres and we reached a small Hanuman temple. Adjacent to it, we spotted some noticeable patches of snow. I clicked the temple and moved further. We rested for a while, and a young man joined us who was eager to know the amount of damage that occurred due to the fire to the temple. So, he was going to inspect the temple, and he was a native of Jiya village.

clicked from Hanuman temple downward -on the trek Jiya to Adi Himani Chamunda temple - on 16th March 2014

As we reached the ridge of that mountain, the view on the ridge and on the other side of it was completely different. The top ridge was not visible from below, and it actually carried about 3 ft. of snow in places. Then started a photo shoot session, of me clicking others and vice versa.

A beautiful view on the Trek to Adi Himani Chamunda Temple

This was really beautiful, and if something could have saved me from getting wet and soaked, I would have lain and enjoyed a lot on the snow.

Adi Himani Chamunda: in a state that we found

Damaged roof and walls of the Adi Himani Chamunda temple - clicked on 16th March 2014

At the temple site, the snow was a little deeper, and after immersing a six-foot stick inside, we assessed it to be 5 ft. deep.

The temple was damaged due to fire, which was earlier supposed to be a result of natural lightning from the sky, but according to Tarun's investigations, there were traces of a cooking gas cylinder blast, which might have occurred with that stormlight. 

The young man who came along with us thought that it was some alcoholics who fired the temple after losing their senses.

Whatever the reason was, the main temple structure was completely burnt and damaged, except for the blackened, partially standing stone walls. 

The floor was not visible because it was fully covered with snow.

 We rested for another half hour and filled out bottles with the snow-melted water, which was coming from the tin roof of the temple. We spotted eagles sitting on the snow white sheet over the mountain and had another close look at the Talang pass.

I captured a short video of the young man and the temple surroundings, preserving the peaceful atmosphere of the place. Afterwards, we spent some time playing in the snow, enjoying the winter charm that had transformed the ridge into a white wonderland.

The sarayas—the night shelters meant for pilgrims—appeared intact from the outside, showing no signs of damage. Though they were half-buried in snow, their doors remained closed, so we couldn't inspect the interiors. Still, their sturdy structure gave the impression that they were holding up well against the harsh weather.

Rolling back down the Mountain

We started the 10 km descent back to where we started in the morning.

On the way back, our legs were hurting because it was a sudden change for them to walk up a vertical 10 km and then descend it too. We took 5-6 short breaks because the knee joints were really getting pained, and it was necessary. 

Finally, after about another 2.5 hours, we were back at Jiya, where small village boys helped me to purchase 4 biscuit packs from a 30 m. I was too exhausted to walk even that much. In that physical state, walking that much would have been equivalent to a 5 km walk in a total fresh state.

That is  Mr. Sanjay Kumar Sharma :) me - at Adi Himani Chamunda temple, on 16th March 2014

I lay on the parapet of the road, and after eating one pack of biscuits, I got a little strength. Tarun got busy with the boys and showed them the pictures of the temple, and Naresh got busy with his mobile. After a wait of 15 minutes, Manu and Vipin also joined us down the mountain.

Tarun is showing the photos of Adi Himani Chamunda Temple (destroyed one)to the kids

We were hungry enough to eat anything, but we waited to reach this Town dhaba, which offered us Himachali Dham, and we loved it.

For the visuals of this trek, please visit this YouTube video, which I have shot along the trek.

We are back from the place, but I hope that the temple will soon be re-established in a more beautiful way than ever. A religious faith or an adventurous spirit, whatever it is, it is good for our health and peace of mind to get away from the daily routines and climb this 10 km trek.

Thanks for your kind visit!