Every single thing which has started has an end, and so was our Spiti Trip. We explore the surrounding villages of Kaza including Chicham, Kee, Hikkim, Langza, Komic and even Kaza. We were there for 3 nights in Kaza and finally it was time to end our journey in Spiti Valley. But mark my words, those few days spent in Spiti are the best ever days of my life. Every moment spent there was worth living.
So after a long expedition of Kinnaur and Spiti Valley, now it was the time to head back out of Spiti. We always try to follow a rule that never take back the same route and hence we planned to reach Manali from Kaza through the Manali-Kaza Highway. Another way is via Peo to Shimla, but as our initial journey was on the same route we decided to skip it.
HRTC service between Manali and Kaza was already stopped and hence we had to take the taxi from Spiti Union. Sumo was ready at sharp 6:30 AM and we boarded right in front of the bus stand. The morning was extremely cold and the beautiful town of Kaza was totally silent all around.
The Spiti River Plain
We fueled up on the highest fuel outlet of the world and started our journey. We were again heading parallel through the plain Spiti River. There wasn’t much water as it was the beginning of the river. It’s basically a vast wet plain with small lines of water flowing silently. But the beauty of the river plain with the surrounding mountains was unreal.
The Last Inhabited Village – Losar
The road after Kaza was pretty good until Losar. We didn’t gain much altitude, but crossed many small villages. Very tiny and silent villages of Spiti Valley. After some time we reached Losar, one of the major villages on Manali-Kaza road. We had a small halt for breakfast with all the other taxis and trucks on the way.
After crossing Losar is the real challenge of Manali-Kaza Highway. The 80-90 kms stretch is near to hell. It’s very risky, exhausting as the road is in very bad condition. After Losar we started gaining altitude very quickly. But the road was wider and some parts of the road were being constructed. But we gained height in a very short time and all of a sudden were at a height of 15,150 ft, at Kunzum Pass, the highest point in Spiti Valley.
Kunzum Pass – The Highest Pass of Himachal
So this is the highest mountain pass in the entire Himachal Pradesh. It is said to be the starting point of Spiti River. So there is a small diversion from the main road and there is a temple named Kunzum Mata where all the drivers stop by and visit the temple before continuing the journey. Even HRTC is not an exception.
This is a very beautiful location as it’s very far away from inhabited places and there literally exists none except the vehicles to and from Kaza. The surrounding tall mountains are fabulous and it’s actually a treat to eyes watching the entire scene in the winters.
The Deadly 70km stretch on Manali-Kaza Highway
The real fun starts after crossing Kunzum Pass. The road between Kunzum Pass to Gramphu is near to hell. From Losar, for next 80kms there doesn’t exist even a small village or any hotel. This 80km stretch is very deadly, in most parts, there literally exists no road at all. Most parts are just rocky surfaces and vehicles just pass through them.
What if I say that HRTC literally takes 7+ hrs. to cross this 70-80km stretch. Now you start losing altitude very quickly and there comes a stretch of extremely narrow hairpin turns which are extremely narrow and completely rocky in nature. This is one of the most exciting parts of this journey. You see a diversion to Chandratal Lake, one of the highest lakes of India.
Chandratal Lake
It is another very famous tourist destination of India and just a few kms away from the highway. One can take their own vehicle or trek from a place named Batal which is close to this diversion to Chandratal Lake. But it’s closed on most of the days in a year, especially in winters as it’s a very sensitive region and weather is very unpredictable. There have been many instances where tourists had been stuck due to sudden weather change and Armed Forces had to come to their rescue.
The famous Chacha Chachi ka Dhaba
There is a very famous dhaba named Chacha Chachi ka Dhaba which you might have seen in the reels and even in Youtube. They have their dhaba in Batal and this is the only place where you see human beings other than tourists in this journey. They weren’t there when we had come as they aren’t here in winters. So, they are very famous because they allow tourists to stay in dhaba who come to visit Chandratal Lake.
The Bad Road Conditions
The upcoming journey was very uncomfortable with very bad road conditions and strange weather. Though the views all around were literally very cool. The mountains were slowly receiving snowfall and started glowing in the sunlight. Even here you travel parallel to Chandrabhaga river. It’s not at all recommended to get your vehicles here unless they’re fit for adventurous roads.
The Biker’s Paradise
Many bikers agree that this road is way more dangerous than the roads to many deadly Mountain Passes in Ladakh as well. If you’re someone who loves adventure then this is your real paradise. Try to visit here as soon as possible, as the road construction has already been started and hence will be a metallic road soon. These roads are maintained by BRO and as these roads are not so close to borders, this comes at a very low priority making it hard to finish the roads.
After a long terrible journey, we reached the Manali-Rohtang main road. So on the main road you see a diversion to Kaza and literally you can’t believe that this kind of narrow broken road actually takes you to some lovely destination. We had lunch there and continued our journey.
Atal Tunnel – The Gateway to Lahaul and Spiti
We finally reached the Atal Tunnel, one of my dreams for a very long time. So if you don’t know the geography here, once you cross the Atal Tunnel from the Manali side, right after the tunnel there is a diversion where one road leads you to Ladakh and other to Rohtang Pass, Kaza. There is another road from Manali to Rohtang Pass, but this road is always closed in winters and there is snowfall even up to 15-20 ft making it impossible to reach Rohtang Pass and Kaza from Manali side.
About this Tunnel
This tunnel is named after the late PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee is a highway tunnel built under the Rohtang Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas on the National Highway 3 in Himachal Pradesh, India. At a length of 9.02 km, it is the highest highway single-tube tunnel above 10,000 feet (3,048 m) in the world. 
Road Connectivity before this tunnel
The tunnel reduces the travel time and overall distance between Manali and Keylong on the way to Leh. The route, which previously went through Gramphu, was 116 km (72.1 mi) long and took 5 to 6 hours in good conditions. A traveler now reaches the South Portal of the tunnel from Manali, a distance of 24.4 km (15.2 mi) in about 45 minutes, goes through the 9.02 km (5.6 mi) long tunnel in about 15 minutes, and reaches Keylong which is 37 km (23.0 mi) away in about 60 minutes.
The new connectivity
The new route via the tunnel brings down the total distance traveled to 71 km (44.1 mi) which can be covered in about 2 hours, a reduction of around 3 to 4 hours when compared to the earlier route. Moreover, the tunnel bypasses most of the sites that were prone to road blockades, avalanches, and traffic snarls. This has made an all weather connection to Ladakh and Spiti Valley from Manali, reducing the traveling time to both Ladakh and Spiti.
As a tourist destination
Not just about the connectivity, but it also has been a very popular tourist destination because of its scenic location and surrounding views. Hats Off to everyone involved in this major project. Even the safety features inside the tunnel also has been very interesting making it one of the modern marvels of engineering in recent days in India.
Final Journey to Manali
After Atal Tunnel, one loses altitude and we finally reached Manali and were extremely tired due to back ache and our luggage on the top was completely dusty as well. But this is what happens when you come across adventurous destinations. But journeys are the best part of traveling and though it was terrible, it was one of the most adventurous journey ever and I have added this in my bucket list to complete it on a bike trip through this road and entire Spiti Valley.
