Jispa

Hi, I am Sherab Gyaltsen from a small village called Gemur ( 3kms away from Jispa), District-Lahaul & Spiti, Himachal Pradesh,India. I have completed my schooling from Ladakh T.C.V. and further went to Dharamsala for another two years to complete my school days. In 2000A.D. I finished my graduation from Delhi University. Today I own a camp at Jispa from where I begin my career in the year 2005, I also have a travel agency in Manali and recently own a Toyota Innova car for taxi purpose.






JISPA JOURNEYS WELCOMES YOU....


How could I know if I stay still
And feel the weariness.
To search and find out
The beauty of nature.

I would go to explore
The schedule spot of nature
Knowing that nature never betrays
The heart that loved her.

So, these were the lines I used for my poem when I was in 11th class and felt the need to wander beyond the mountains and just be in the lap of mother nature.

I have been traveling on Manali - Leh highway since it was opened for vehicular traffic in the year 1989. Almost every year I travel either from Leh to Manali or from Manali to Leh. In the recent past I felt the need to share my experiences with my fellow travelers who are interested in driving on one of the most interesting highways in the world. I am an avid biker who loves to travel anywhere. My longest drive was from Delhi to Leh on my LML VESPA scooter. In the year 2009 I begin my journey from Manali to Leh and want to share my views on the route, accommodations and dhabas/restaurants.

As soon as the BRO ( Border Road Organization) clears snow from the Rohtang pass it brings joy to the locals on the other side of the Pir Panjal range i.e., Lahaul & Spiti valley which remains cut off from the rest of the world for almost 6 months. Usually the road is opened for vehicular traffic in the month of May or sometime earlier. Rohtang pass is 54 kms from Manali and takes around 2 hours to reach there if there is no heavy traffic on the way. Another 40 minutes downhill drive will take you to Khoksar, the first village of Lahaul Valley. Please enter your vehicle registration number at the police check post and passport and visa number( if you are foreign national). After driving on the bad patches for the last 2-3 hours you will be surprised to find good roads ahead till Sissu. Sissu has a beautiful waterfall on the other side of river Chandra
( source is Chandrataal Lake). If you are willing to stay in this beautiful village just drop in at Triveni hotel. Sissu is the home for one of the most revered dieties of the valley called Raja Gepan. This valley is known as Tinan valley and many villagers speak a dialect similar to that of Todh valley and Ladakh. The rest they speak Tinan dialect.

On the way you will come across plenty of glaciers. The next beautiful village is Gondhla where you will can see the Gondhla fort. This palace is said to have been built in the 1700 A.D. by the Raja Man Singh of Kullu who had married a daughter of the Gondhla ruling family.The palace is eight storey high with seven storeys having rooms and the eighth storey consisting of a wooden verandah running round the edifice.

Further few kilometers from Gondhla will take you to Tandi ( tsurpak in local terms), where you fill up your tank as this is the only filling station in the valley and there is no other till Leh. Please take some extra fuel in a can for top up.

Keylong is another 8 kms from here. Keylong is the district headquarter of Lahaul & Spiti. You will find hotels and guest houses here. You can check out the following accommodations in and around Keylong. Dekyid, Tashi Delek, Lamayuru, Dupchen, Snowview, Gyespa, Mount Meru, Nordaling and others run by the locals. There is also Chandra Bhaga Hotel run by the Himachal Tourism. So you have many options in Keylong for your stay. From Billing upto Stingri the locals speak a dialect called Ghaari and the valley is called Ghaar Valley. The people have a strong faith in Buddhism and you will find few monasteries within the area namely, Kardang, Tayul , Shashur etc. Spend an extra day in Keylong and don't forget to visit these monasteries.

Jispa is another 22 kms from Keylong. This is small village on the banks of river Bhaga and is one of the most beautiful location in the entire valley. As soon as you cross Stingri ( the last village of Ghaar valley), you will be entering the Todh valley. Kwaring is the first village of Todh valley. Tino is a beautiful village on the other side of river Bhaga. You can visit Khangsar khar( palace) by following a link road towards Kolong and Meh. Gemur is on the way to Jispa. And I belong to this place. Jispa as described earlier is a nice place for your stay. Hotel Ibex is considered as the best hotel in the valley and is also one of the oldest properties owned by the Mr.Ravi Thakur. Jispa also has a lodge called Padma lodge owned by Mr.Bir Singh. Then there is my camp just before Ibex hotel. It was started in the year 2005 and today we have 9 swiss cottage tents and 10 standard tents with a restaurant offering Indian, Chinese and local dishes. This is Jispa Journeys camp at Jispa. From Manali to Jispa it takes around 6-7 hours drive and it is always advisable to stay for an overnight or two days to get acclimatized. You are exactly on 10890 feet above sea level.

Buddhism is followed in Todh Valley and the people speak Todhpa language, very similar to that of Ladakh. We use Tibetan script for writing and reading. Gemur festival is held every year in the summer season.Gemur monastery is one of the oldest monasteries in the valley. The present structure of the monastery is being built in the 1970's as the old monastery was devastated by an avalanche.

Darcha is 6kms from Jispa and this is the last village of Todh valley. Leh is another 336 kms from Jispa and takes around 11-12 hours.At police check post you need to enter you Regd. no. of your vehicle and passport and visa number ( foreign nationals).

Within half an hour you will reach Patseo and come across Deepak taal ( a lake). Hozer runs his cafe during the season. Just stop for a photograph session at the lake and a sip of tea at his cafe. Further you will climb to Baralachala Pass and en-route stop for a tea or snacks at a Dhaba near Zinzingbar. You will find Suraj, Phuntsok and Thinlley running their dhabas.

Baralachala is another few kilometers away and you will reach at the height of 16500 feet above sea level. Suraj/Vishaal Taal is just before the top of the pass.After half an hour later you will reach Bharatpur city ( note that there is no city here but just a cluster of parachute tents offering you tea, biscuits , maggi noodles, rice, chapati, dal etc).Biru bhai is one of my good friend and he has been in this place for the last many years. In 2008 His Holiness the Karmapa also stayed at his place when Baralacha la got closed due to heavy snowfall in the month of mid September.

After Bharatpur you will be heading towards Sarchu. Sarchu is 14400 feet above sea level and you will get lots of tented accomodation on the way. The first on the way is Blue poppy camp. Then comes Himalayan tourist camp, Antrek, Rashpian ( planet himalaya), Goldrop and Himalayan Saga.

If you drive further you will be reaching the boundary of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir State. Here you will find lots of Dhabas offering you bed and meal in dormitory tents.
Sarchu has a wonderful landscape and the nature at its pristine best. My friends Zangpo and Tanzin also run their business near by the police check post.

After driving for another 40 minutes or so you will be climbing the Gata loops( 22 hairpin bends) and then Nakela, Lachulungla and reach Pang for lunch or snacks.Leaving Pang you will be driving through one of the most beautiful landscapes i.e.; Kyangchu thang ( more plains). This is a flat plateau of around 40-45 kms . However the roads are not good atleast for 10 kms. Its bumpy and dusty. Driving for almost two and half hours you will reach Taglangla ( the second highest motor able road in the world at the height of 17,582 feet). Leh is further 111 kms from here and roads will soon improve as you move forward and reach Rumtse, the first village. On the way you will cross Sasoma, Gya, Lato, Miru and reach Upshi. Upshi has a excise and taxation check post with lots of small restaurants. From here there is another road leading towards Nyoma and Tosmoriri lake. Leh is further 49 kms from here.

On the way you will cross Karu, Thiksey, Shey, Choglamsar and finally reach Leh. In Leh there are many options for your stay. There are a wide range of hotels like Grand Dragon ( the best so far), other "A" grade hotels and many guest houses in the Changspa area surrounding Leh town. There are many big and ancient monasteries, high altitude lakes like Pangong, Tsomoriri and Tsokar, then the world's highest motor able road in the world....Khardongla, sand dunes and the double humped bactarian camels in Nubra valley and this place is a trekkers paradise. So, plan accordingly and enjoy your holidays.

In the recent years the flow of the domestic tourists visiting Leh Ladakh has increased manifold and I felt that I should also take my beloved machine and get the feeling on top of the world. Me and My Machine...wanders and make wonders.


Manali - Keylong 115 kms ( 5-6 hours) Keylong - Jispa 22 kms ( 1 hour) Jispa - Darcha 7 kms ( 15-20 minutes) Darcha - Patseo 15 kms ( 20-30 minutes) Patseo-Baralachala 30kms Baralachala-Sarchu 32 kms ( 2 1/2 hours from Patseo to Sarchu) Sarchu-Pang 78 kms ( 3 hours) Pang - Taglangla 64 kms ( 2 1/2 hours) Taglangla- Upshi 62 kms ( 2 hours) Upshi - Leh 49 kms ( 1:15 hours) Total distance from Manali to Leh is 474 kms.