Tirthan Valley, Himachal Pradesh What do you do when your birthday falls in the last scorching June week in Delhi and yet you want to have a cool celebration? You head to the hills of course. It could have been Shimla or Kasauli. But birthdays are special. So it had to be offbeat.

Based on recommendations, Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat, tucked in Tirthan Valley in the remote hills of Himachal Pradesh, was our choice. Tirthan Valley is perhaps one of the best-kept secrets of Himachal. It is enroute Manali.  We took a long-distance bus from Majnu Ka Tila, and in about 14 hours, dropped at Aut 2 hours before Manali. Given the unexpected jams on the road, it took us an extra 4 hours. Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat had arranged a taxi that was waiting for us before the Aut tunnel. In no time we started the last leg of our journey.

We believe Himachal is beautiful in every nook and corner. Additionally, Tirthan Valley is still fairly pristine.

While the roads were a little steep, the rivers Tirthan and Beas flowed alongside and the terrain was straight out of an Amazon themed Hollywood movie. As a bonus – it started raining. In a short while, the area became white and misty and we drove into the clouds. After the trying bus journey, we were half-dead and wondered have we reached heaven? The drive set the mood for our stay at Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat at Banjar, a small village here. The resort is located at a depression from the main road. This involves some steep walk down for about 7 to 10 minutes. From the top, the place looked sprawling and peaceful. There is a lot of free space as the construction is perhaps only on 30% of the area. We could hear the sound of a gushing river on our way down. The Phalachan River, a tributary of Tirthan, winds its way almost inside the retreat. In the next couple of days, the river bank would be our favourite place. The resort has a lot of arrangements beside the river. Bonfire, makeshift bar, barbeque – the guests can enjoy the riverside in many ways. They also have comfy tables and chairs and hammocks and boulders where once can laze, sit, and generally do nothing. Our friendly host Dilsher Mann, owner of the resort, met us when we reached the site and after introducing us to Mr. River, led us to our room. Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat had about six rooms. Although all of these were occupied, the place was not very crowded. The rooms had a stone facade interspersed with wood and bamboo. It sported a very rustic and eco-friendly look. In fact we loved the uncluttered approach while designing the spaces. The French window opened to the mountains like a dream. The attached bathroom was spacious and simple yet functional. They have hot and cold water on the taps. Our luggage was transported down a zipline system and already kept in the room when we reached.

Did we mention that there was no television in the room? This ensured that one was as far as possible from the urban routine and at one with nature and solitude. In fact most telephone connections do not work here. The resort make arrangements if one wants to make calls. They have Wi-Fi connectivity throughout the retreat and the speed was great at the riverside. They have no intercom as well. However, the very friendly and energetic staff was running around all over the place. When we needed something, they always stood in yes. For instance, it was drizzling throughout the second day and the temperature dropped big time. It was piercing cold and we requested for a heater at night when the housekeeping staff were about to turn in. The friendly chappie we spoke to looked a little perplexed. Yet within the next 10 minutes, we had a huge oil heater warming our room. Hospitality makes or breaks a place and Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat seemed to have a solid process in order.

The surroundings are all open with a host of apple, apricot, and pine trees, pretty flowers, exotic birds, and beautiful butterflies. One of them did the whole flapping its wings act in slow motion for us to record. A friendly Froggie came to visit our room. So much for hill swag, we say. The dining room had glass walls and was a collection of arty objects. The tables and chairs were made from asymmetric wood planks. They had sofas, lounge chairs, and a TV here and the space doubled up as a parlour. A host of interesting and old artifacts were kept on shelves. What took the cake were the two Victorian cast iron heaters that had been procured from Dehradun. These were distinctly colonial and added to the hill charm. The dining room overlooked the river. The river is integral to Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat, a rare treat we have not come across in any other lodging during our travels. Trouts are very common fish in the waters of this part of Himachal, till Manali. Since angling is part of this resort’s moniker, we wanted to give it a shot. This was the first time we tried this sport under the guidance of Dev from the resort. Dev handed some angling tack including a very fancy fishing rod with wheels and levers. After some training and perhaps twenty failed attempts, a trout saved us from total embarrassment and bit the bait. We managed to pull it out for a photo-op. Within no time Dev took the little trout off the hook and released it back into the river. They do not encourage the consumption of the fish they bring out from the river. There are special trout farms in this area and we visited one of them. Tirthan Angler’s Retreat procures trout from some of these farms if they have to serve guests. Coming back to where we started, one of us celebrated his birthday at the resort. The guys had organized a fancy black forest cake. Other guests joined in the impromptu party and smiled gleefully at the selfie thereafter. Such is the impact of Tirthan Anglers’ Resort. The good vibes here brought us close to new people and led to new friendships. It is a lot of bonhomie when travelers assemble in the dining area and share their experiences. This post is already very long and we will stick to Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat here. We will have to do part II for the host of activities we did from this place. Dilsher and his team organized cabs driven by very friendly chappies who showed us around. We trekked at Jalori Pass, Khanaag, Sarchi village, and the Great Himalayan National Park of course. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and host of tourists at Tirthan Valley come just to trek here. The retreat folks help with local transport and arranging treks. Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat is a peaceful place with activities around nature. They had an in-house Yoga teacher holding open sessions on the riverside. And how could we forget the food? There was a variety of breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffets. The fare was nothing complex, nothing running into multiple pages of a formal menu but simple vegetarian and non-vegetarian fare, salads, fruits, and dessert. They made a continental spread as well for one of the meals.

We particularly loved the pan-seared trout that was served as a special treat on birthday evening. The Bengali between us was almost jumping with joy.

On the topic, of being travel bloggers, we are fortunate to get a lot of joyous opportunities to travel to known and sometimes offbeat places. But Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat was different from any prior experience. It was no fuss and yet consumed us for the 4-day period that we spent here. The team reflected the ethos of the extremely hospitable Himachal people. We are coming back to Tirthan Anglers’ Retreat whenever we need to escape our hectic urban lives for some holistic detox. >> Click here for more pics <<