Planning of the Trip
We were bored with our routine job of 9 to 5, waiting for a long weekend to come and wanted to explore some unexplored places. Randomly looking for such a place on Google and we found a place named “Shojha” very near to “Tattapani” (located in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh, India). That very moment we made our minds to go there.
Finally, the weekend came….excited to explore this new place!
The Unexpected Journey
We started our journey early in the morning and reached Tattapani crossing Shimla around 1 pm. After having lunch and little rest, we explored this place which is famous for hot water spring’s natural therapy.
Then we wandered briefly in a local market and explored river “Sutlej” around which this village has established.
Explore the hills comfortably with the right pair of shoes:
Next, we headed towards Shojha… our destination guided by trustworthy Google maps. Covering all the twists and turns of the hilly roads as expected came a point where Google map showed us two paths… one along the main road and would take an hour more to reach the destination. The other one looked like an off-road path but Google map showed only 15 minutes to reach the destination. After a brief thought, we chose the off-road and started an unexpected drive. We were having our first ever experience of an off-road driving on very narrow paths on a hillside. There were sharp turns, almost blind curves but then we encountered the biggest surprise… the first time Google map left us in the middle of nowhere and announced: “You have reached your destination!!”
There was a moment of complete silence… “What to do now?”
We came across long distance so not possible to turn back. We decided to go further… in the hope of finding the main road. After driving almost 30-45 more minutes but leading to nowhere. It was like revolving around the same hill.
Check out our video telling this story of a unique experience 👇👇
At last, we saw some local people and asked them the way to the main road. They told us to drive ahead and after covering some distance found more people and other four-wheelers, hoping the main road to be very near. Eventually, we came to know the path which would meet the main road. We had a sigh of relief; unaware of the biggest challenge which we would have to overcome. We saw a steep and rough descent, which really was a challenging task for driving through. Aaah! We couldn’t make it!!… voices in our head. There was a risk of falling down the hill. We took the greatest risk in our lives. We prayed to Almighty to be with us. Driving very carefully, very cautiously… fingers being crossed… finally, we had crossed that path. Our hearts were pounding fast. Uff!!! Thanked God for saving our lives. The famous quote from a commercial was popping in our head… “Darr k aage jeet hai!!”
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OMG! We just conquered our fears and achieved the toughest off-road driving experience on mountains. After covering some more distance and with the help of some locals we got success in locating the main road.
This is how we discovered “Shojha”, a beautiful landscape away from the hustle bustle of the city and peaceful because of a handful of people around.
Next day, we returned back to our home Chandigarh with most adventurous memory with us.
Suggested Read: Narkanda-Beyond the veil of crowded Shimla
How did you find our unique driving experience through hills? Do you have something like to share? Do share your experience here. And don’t forget to share and Pin it. ♥
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I really enjoy the article post.Really thank you! Will read on…
I?d have to check with you here. Which is not something I usually do! I enjoy reading a post that will make people think. Also, thanks for allowing me to comment!
Such a cool experience, I hope to do that too. Love the shots of the river, amazing work
Yes, it was a cool experience but at the moment it was hair-raising too. Thanks! 🙂
Mountain drive is always an amazing thing to do. Look at the sunset you’ve got! Such an amazing view! 🙂
Yes, it was magnificent. Thanks, Antonio 🙂
wow such an adventure!!! I really like to do that also – sometimes just to take the car and drive off is amazing – I love the pictures of the river, they are really nice.
Thanks, Julz. I am glad you liked it. 🙂
Unexpected journeys can be the best kind and we love it when we find unexpected gems and views too. Thanks for sharing your post and beautiful images
Yeah, sometimes unexpected things bring out good experiences that you can share with people.Thanks 🙂
Well done for conquering your fears! I love the photos of the river far below and the one of you with the sun setting. Looks beautiful!
Thanks a lot, Anna. I am glad that you liked it 🙂
We love driving on mountainous roads but it also scares you to bits. I have never heard of this place but it only makes it sound more adventurous. Taking less traveled path is a true sign of an adventurer. I am glad you didn’t freak out and managed to have a wonderful time and take such stunning pictures.
Thanks for appreciation 🙂
Wow! I find myself afraid of situations like this… I would be uneasy. But alas, it is an adventure you will never forget!
Yes, truly said Taylor. It was a hair-raising experience for us.
Google tends to do that, especially in the hills and in smaller towns and villages off the main road. We’ve lost our way several times after depending on Google maps for directions. I’ve often found that asking local people (if they can be found ) are usually better to get better directions in smaller places.
True George. Google gets confused at such remote places. Thank God, we found some locals and they guided us correctly. It was an unforgettable experience for us. 🙂
My, what a journey. Glad you were safe after taking the back road path. It sounds hair-raising and so scary to have Google tell you you had reached your destination. Thanks for sharing the adventure.
Thanks, Lance. Yes, it was indeed scary that time. We literally prayed to come out alive as the road was steep and without a guard rail. Thanks for commenting 🙂
What an adventure! I loved how you randomly chose a spot to visit and went off road to find it. You survived the mountain drive and live to tell the tale. Shojha is so beautiful … spectacular mountain views and the sunset view is gorgeous. The perfect spot for a weekend getaway.
Thanks for appreciating 🙂
Thank you darling, so many options for us now xx
Thanks 🙂
your pictures are so stunning. I always wanted to visit Tattapani…we are planning a trip this year.. your post will come really handy..thanks for all the detailed info.
Thanks, Ritika. Yes, it is a wonderful place to explore. Must visit. 🙂
Looks like a wonderful place to visit. Never heard of this place before but we love exploring offbeats and this looks one of them. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Krupa. Yes, indeed offbeat tracks are always worth to explore. 🙂
It’s indeed an adventurous trip! I also haven’t heard about this place before. I’d love to know more about it firsthand!
Thanks, Linh 🙂
What an interesting way to plan a weekend away. I love the idea. Great that it was a wonderful place as well. Sometimes we have to thank Google 🙂
Thanks, Janine Thomas. Yes, most of the times Google is our best adventure partner. 🙂
I had not heard of this place as well but it looks amazing. Great that you guys decided to explore the unexplored and totally understand that off-road experience, I had a similar experience in Chickmagalur where the drive was through a steep road with no barriers on either side and it was like floating into the sky, ofcourse we had our hearts in our mouth and our cause of worry was that our experienced driver was scared too but eventually we made it and yes Thank God for that !!
Yes, truly said. Such an experience is unforgettable and hair-raising at the same time.
There”s nothing wrong with Essex (the good parts), although Mandi makes you want to move to Spain with a great writing style that engages the reader. Good use of imagery with high quality photos, hexmumblog.com is a site to bookmark for your next coffee break! Good work, next blog pls!!
Thanks for your comment. Let me know what can we do together.
Its a beautiful place…good to see your visit to this wonderful place
Yes, it is indeed a wonderful place. Thanks 🙂