Kalpa is a small town in the Sutlej river valley, above Recong Peo in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh, Northern India, in the Indian Himalaya. Inhabited by Kinnauri people and famous for its apple orchards.It is located 265 kilometres (165 mi) beyond Shimla on the NH-22 in Kinnaur district. It is located at the base of the Kinnaur Kailash snow-capped ranges. The Shivlingpeaks rise up to 20,000 feet (6,000 m). Kalpa is among apple orchards, pine-nut forests and the stately deodhars. It is above the town of Reckong Peo, the district headquarters of Kinnaur, which has a hundred-year-old Buddhist monastery.
Before my travel to Kalpa, one day I found a photograph of moon-rise at Kalpa, but after visiting this place I understand that referred photograph was false, but that is another issue, I have no headache on this. Because after visiting this place I got a totally different experiences in Sun rise, Moon rise and Sun rise. I traveled through out India in last fifteen years, but I never found this beautiful type of Sun rise, Moon rise and Sun rise at any other places.
So, I got to hear about the weather, the roads, the people, the rivers, the food, the vegetation, the various mountain ranges, the monkeys, the treks, the hotels, the temples, the local culture, apples, snow, wildlife… But all of them missed out on telling me about the breathtaking Kalpa Sunrises, Moonrises and Sunsets or for that matter.
The first sunrise and sunset that I saw were at Rakcham and Sarahan respectively. They were beautiful and I may have even termed them as spectacular, if I had not gone to Kalpa and seen the sunrises, Sunsets and Moonrises over the Kinner Kailash range; they redefined the words “spectacular” and “breathtaking” for me.
On my first evening at Kalpa, me and my family was busy to watch the snow caped Kinnaur Kailash range. Suddenly I saw the Moon is rising just back side of Sarong Peak (6060m) at Kinnaur Kailash and the moon from behind a mountain peak getting ready to make its appearance for the night. . Its breathe taking beauty stoped my every word to explaining it.And over the next few minutes, I was witness to a Moonrise like none that I had seen before and, perhaps none that I am likely to ever see.
Next day, it was the full moon night and I saw the moon rise again at Kalpa. The sight of moon bathing the entire valley with a silvery light as it rose was a magical and unforgettable sight and rising point and time also different from previous day.
Before I start waxing eloquent on the Sunsets at Kalpa, I must clarify that I never actually saw a single sunset there. What I saw was the light of the setting sun play out on the snow-clad peaks of the Kinner Kailash range. While I was oohing and aahing over the Moonrise, the Sunset colors on the mountain and snow were equally mesmerizing. Words are inadequate to describe what I felt like. Two different colors Red and White totally camouflaged each other other, in simple words the colors of sun rays and moon was busy to play with mountains peaks. "everything is on fire! All the rocks are burning, and the great snow mountain and the sky".
The Sunrises were no less spectacular and I saw three of them at Kalpa. Every morning, I would be up before sunrise, wrap myself up well against the cold, sit to the balcony of The Hotel Apple Pie, make myself comfortable on one of the seats there, and wait for the sun to rise.
It would begin with the gradual lightening of the skies and the peaks of the Kinner Kailash range getting highlighted as jagged silhouettes. The first rays of light would start appearing from behind the peaks lighting up portions of the valley. And then a tiny diamond of the sun would become visible and within a couple of minutes the sun would be out bathing the entire valley in a soft golden light. That would be the cue for me to get a cup of tea and enjoy the morning sunlight for a little while before getting ready for that day’s explorations.
I enjoyed all the Moonrises, Sunrises and Sunsets that I saw during my stay in Himachal Pradesh. But the ones I experienced at Kalpa were really special and unique and left me feeling really blessed and lucky by Kailash ji (Lord Shiva).
Have you been experienced by a similar Moonrise / Sunrise / Sunset in anywhere? Do share your experiences with me.
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