Our life is a representative of daily hustle-bustle tangled in weirdness! Every day, we strive for materialistic pleasures that would showcase us being superior to others and sustaining a lifestyle that is an epitome of; we living well!
But all that changes when it comes to travel. Well, at least for me!
Last year, I visited Katagla; a small town near Kasol, Himachal Pradesh, to play in one of the music festivals. Now, my genre being Psychedelic, hills are the best place to unravel all those crazy tunes on people who appreciate it and love it.
But once we (the artists) are done with that, we look for our own solace away from the crazy atmosphere of hundreds and thousands of people around. And that takes me to Tosh, a small village about 2 hours drive away from Kasol; every year!
Situated above 2400m above sea level, Tosh can be best described as a virgin, that never wants to get married, but host visitors who would just admire her and not try to sleep with her. I say so, because, like it or not, we city people have a tendency to destroy every beautiful and scenic place for our pleasure. Tosh; does not need any of it!
You can either take a pre-paid taxi from Manikaran till Tosh (which would cost you around INR800) or take a bus till Barsheni and then walk a trek of about 90 minutes (approximately 4 km), to reach Tosh, stairs for which can be found, right opposite of Shiva Temple. I would any day opt for the trek from Barsheni for two reasons. One just to live a bit longer with nature and its beauty, second, it is a very simple trek that allows you to soak everything that is around you.

We did visit the place the next day too and had a proper meal there with a countless number of varieties ordered between 6 guys. Afraid that it would cost us a bomb, we were I for a surprise when the bill that came was just of INR 1900. You can actually have a blast of an eating session there at a very low cost. Oh, you must try their Pizzas, which would shame all the leading joints here in Delhi.
The houses in Tosh are mostly made of wood and have slate roofs, with few modern houses with tar roofs visible in between. There are certain families that offer you home stay too, but those are limited in numbers and you might find it hard to find a place there because people have been visiting this village for long and such homes are generally reserved for regular visitors who go there often.
Me and my friends stayed at The Hill Top, which is one of the more organized hotels there, along with Blue Diamond.
The rooms there would cost you no more than INR700 with up to 3-4 people able to share it, thus bringing your staying cost down! The view early in the morning is absolutely majestic, with the sun rays falling on the mountains covered with snow. So my suggestion would be, get up at around 5 am in the morning and do live that experience, which we don’t get to in our city life.
We decided to have our dinner on the first day at Pink Floyd, a restaurant right adjacent to The Hill Top, and believe you me; the food there is absolutely cracker-jacker.
The café remains open to orders till around 11:30 with everyone talking to everyone. Pink Floyd, is always busy and crowded with people who do not mind hanging out even with strangers. You definitely need to have their Lazania and hot potato chips, which are absolutely delightful and satisfy your taste-buds in the best possible manner. For me, I had a veg platter to go with fresh pineapple juice, which was heavenly, to say the least.
There is a temple of Jamdagni Rishi at the center of the village which is opened only once a year either in the month of January or February and only one primary school in the village, which means the older kids, have to trek down to Barsheni, for higher education.
Green pastures, snow-laden treks during winters, and friendly people, these are the general traits of Tosh, which to me is the synonym to peace.
Before I sign this post off, I want to share a beautiful memory with you!
While walking down to Pinky Auntys’ café on the second day of our trip, I saw few kids playing in the compound of the primary school. I started talking to a kid randomly about his curriculum in school and asked him to recite a poem if he could. Once he started the other kids soon joined the gang and in no time and suddenly we had around 25-30 students, singing their class poetry at their loudest volume.
And then came the moment of the trip!
I asked them if they could sing the national anthem to which one kid just started singing it and soon it was around 30 kids singing our national anthem at the top of their voice.
That one moment of selflessness and that one moment of being an Indian, who is away from the craziness and materialistic life of the cities, made my whole trip a different experience altogether. One that we (me and my friends), had never experienced and might not; ever again!
Most of the pictures in this post are taken by me, Maneet Gogia and Vaibhav Malik
What a beautiful post and I love the pictures! I love Himachal and keep exploring quaint towns there, would go to Tosh next. And, I am going to try Pinky Aunty’s cafe for sure coz food does taste a lot better at that altitude!
Thanks a lot buddy … appreciate that… do check out my personal instagram id @wanderer_sav for more travel pics… went through your blog… good stuff mate… only wish if i could travel more
Great post and lovely post,I am in love with Himachal Pradesh too.Shall visit Spiti valley soon.
Experience the highs and lows with snowfall and hill station sports with Ajinkya tours Shimla Manali tours package and Himachal Tours packages at unbelievable prices.
very nice blog thanks for sharing. i wish i visit in India .
Very nice blog. I love the snowfall and the adventures of the Himachal. Thanks for sharing this blog about the various destinations of the himachal tour.
Hi friends, you provide effective knowledge to the views via this blog. You blog is nice and images also very amazing. Dharamshala is one of the best hill stations in India; if you are planning a trip to Dharamshala then you can visit us. Dharamshala Tour Packages
Hi friends, you provide effective knowledge to the views via this blog. You blog is nice and images also very amazing. Dharamshala is one of the best hill stations in India; if you are planning a trip to Dharamshala then you can visit us.
I should state really rousing. In spite of the fact that I’m wanting to go to kasol.
Travels in Port Blair
Travels In Andaman
Thanks for sharing information on himachal tour and travel
Beautiful ….. Specially the kids singing the poetry and National Anthem all together. This selfless things can only be seen at such beautiful places only.. Worth reading this blog .. Loved the way you express. 🙂
soo beautiful pics.
love to come there
Just visited Tosh and the pictures you’ve posted makes me want to go back
http://www.thatgoangirl.com
Thank you Jade… appreciate you liking the post and the pics
Great Blog very well written! Another popular place is Naina Devi JI in Himachal Pradesh. Where cable car ride of dril ropeway gives amazing panoramic views of the hill station.
Fantastic post mate. The planning of your post is superb. So- you rock for sharing this amazing post. Visit in Himachal Pradesh and go to the Hotels in Dalhousie. https://www.indraprastharesort.com
Hi. I’m reaching to visit Kasol, Shimla n Manali. Please counsel an idea. My period of time is five days. for more details:- visit our site:- http://himachalstory.com/
Super information you will provide thanx for sharing
http://Www.kulluhills.com/kaisdhar
Nice Post. Your post is very helpful for me because we offer Taxi Packages for Himachal Pardesh. Thanks for sharing. For best taxi packages for Himachal Pardesh Visit:
http://www.kalkataxiservices.com
Nice blog and great information for himachal pradesh.
Bir Billing, Bir Billing Paragliding, Bir Billing Paragliding Cost, Bir Billing Paragliding Packages
great travel tips. Almost got a complete itinerary for shimla manali tour package Shimla Manali tour package.
Awesume stuff. Really informative. Beautiful pictures. We provide taxi services from kalka to shimla , manali, kinnaur, dharamshala, dalhousie, chail, narkanda, mcleodganj, manikaran taxi at affordable and best price comparison to local price.
best travel tips and thnks for sharing
http://thetravelius.com/tour-category/hong-kong/
wow. great post, I love traveling
Before going to anywhere guidance is really important .The way you wrote about blog that’s really great i like this blog.
Thanks for sharing this with us . We offer the most amazing Himachal tour packages . Since we operate from the state of HP, our Himachal Pradesh holiday package prices are unbeatable.