It was the first day in Manali. My plan of visiting Hidimba Temple got washed off due to rain. I took shelter in a café in Old Manali and treated myself with a hot cup of coffee. The day was all eager to embrace the evening. I was still sitting in that café, waiting for the drizzle to stop so that I could step out and roam in the streets of Old Manali. Suddenly, the people I met at the café made plans for a road trip to Solang Valley, Atal Tunnel, and Sissu village. It was no less than a wonderful opportunity for me who just visited Old Manali with nothing on the to-do list. So, I just gathered myself and tagged along.
Read Here – Tripura Sundari Temple Naggar
Old Manali is a quaint old-world charm place with cafés, restaurants, and shops. Not that much chaotic as Manali, Old Manali still enjoys its natural vibes. I never had planned to visit Manali especially since I wasn’t much into this place due to its crowd, but while I was staying in Naggar; I thought to give it a shot and see if my doubts were genuine or not. Well, yes my doubts were genuine for Manali however, that wasn’t the case with Old Manali; it was a little different. While the plan of a road trip to Solang Valley sounded interesting, but I was traveling with other people and that wasn’t something I could control. I had always loved to travel alone but traveling with them was fun too.
Read Here – A Day in Manali
A Road Trip to Solang Valley and Atal Tunnel
So Atal Tunnel caught my attention when it was opened to the public and made some records. Since I never planned on visiting Manali, at least during those days, I never got to visit here. Moreover, due to my job, I was traveling during weekends only and never got to come here. Though I had visited, I had been visiting Aut Tunnel several times, especially when I visited Shangarh (I have visited Shangarh thrice) and Manali isn’t too far from Aut Tunnel. So that road trip to Solang Valley turned into a beautiful journey with friendly people I met who were kind enough to arrange this trip.
Read Here – The Caslte Naggar
So our first stop was a momo shop outside Manali, a shop on the road. And from here, we headed to Solang Valley. Atal Tunnel had gained great attention and if you are in Manali, you should plan to visit Atal Tunnel. The tunnel has shortened the distance and now it has become easier to travel across (however at the cost of disturbing nature). The more we were moving forward, the more I was getting hit by the ‘awe feelings.’ It was green everywhere. Considering, that it was the time of monsoon, nature has sprawled its greenest colors which looked soul-soothing. Though Himachal Pradesh remains green most of the time of the year (except snowfall) but monsoon brings a different vibe.
Read Here – Roerich Art Gallery and Musuem Naggar
Passing through enchanting views, I felt extremely thankful to these guys for planning a road trip to Solang Valley. Though I love to travel in local buses and interact with locals; but this journey was too an exciting one. We had crossed Atal Tunnel, Solang Valley, and reached Sissu. After spending nearly two hours at Sissu waterfall and the lake, we made our way back to Old Manali. It was then that we stopped on the way back to Old Manali and embraced the natural ambiance of Solang Valley. The generous guy was driving, stopped the car by the roadside at a safe place, and I took a short hike up on a roadside hill along with one more friend.
Read Here – Chamunda Devi Temple Nashala, Naggar
It had started to get darker and also it started to rain so reaching back to Old Manali was the only thing on my mind. It was a fun road trip to Solang Valley, Atal Tunnel, and Sissu. Had I not met those people, I would have come back to Naggar just like that. I would have just roamed around and that’s it. But that road trip and spending time in nature’s lap for a while not only filled me with a sense of peace but also filled my phone with wonderful photographs which are a treasure to cherish forever.
