Travelogue by Prarthna Nanda
There is a place far, far away from our capital city, hidden somewhere amidst the magnificent mountain ranges of Jammu and Kashmir, in the Udhampur district- Patnitop (originally known as ‘patan ka talab’); a beautiful hill station sheltered on a plateau in the Shivalik belts of Himalayas.
My college mid-semester breaks had just begun and literally belonging to a family of wanderers, I couldn’t just sit at home watching Netflix all day, so we packed our bags and headed towards Patnitop.
Wheels screeched and the train stopped at Udhampur station and as I got down, a sense of serenity swept over… that place was calmer than I thought it’d be; a clean old railway station, very few people and an army base camp nearby. We booked a taxi up to Patnitop. The excitement for the trip was growing more and more with each passing minute. The roads were silent with a few tea stalls at the corners after intervals. It was the month of October and Patnitop was cold enough to make you put on your sweaters!
As we entered Patnitop, I was amazed to see the natural beauty, long stretches of land covered with lush green grass, tall pine and deodar trees, astonishingly beautiful Alpine forests, cool breeze, quiet roads with a few locals selling beautiful Pashmina fabrics. We checked into our railway rest house around 10:30 in the morning and even the rest houses were made in the local cottage styles. The nearby areas had a few cottages which reminded me of those old English cottages of the countryside of Wyoming, USA.
Ours was a two-day trip to Patnitop and unlike Shimla, it doesn’t offer you much to see and is very less crowded. On our first day, we traveled all up to Nathatop, another valley at an altitude of 2711m. The road to the location was very steep and drive up to there was a thrilling one! And yet the beautiful meadows and breathtaking view of the mountains enchant all who visit there. The joy of Paragliding and High flying can be experienced from the take-off points at Dwariyai and Nathatop till Kud (landing area). 20 kilometers from Patnitop is Sanasar which holds a beautiful lake upon itself and also offers a range of activities like Paragliding, Camping, Trekking, Abseiling, Rock Climbing, Horse riding and scenic nature walks. Its serves as an excellent place for wildlife photographers and adventure seekers.
On the second day, we visited all that was around, by foot. There was a very old ‘Naag temple’ carrying an ancient belief of wish fulfillment to the devotees, a marketplace to buy authentic shawls, bulbul blankets and all winter accessories, an amusement park for children to enjoy. Walks inside the deep woods, was the best part of the place.
The best time to visit is, during winters to see the snowfall and to enjoy activities like ice skating and many more
or during peak summers to ditch the scorching heat of your city.
or during peak summers to ditch the scorching heat of your city.
The main language spoken is Dogri but Hindi is also used.
Food is typically North Indian.
All kinds of accommodations can be found at Patnitop, costing from ₹500 to ₹3000 per night.
Overall, Patnitop is for those who want to escape the chaos of cities for a few days to sleep in the lap of nature, for those who seek adventure and extreme sports. This is a place must to be visited for a memorable, life time experience.
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