Bijli Mahadev Trek

This short but rewarding climb begins across the Beas river from Kullu town, at the small roadhead village of Chansari, where a steep flight of stone steps announces the start of the ascent almost immediately. The trail climbs through a mixed forest of chir pine and deodar, and within the first half hour the buildings of Kullu shrink into a patchwork far below, replaced by an increasingly open view down the length of the valley toward Bhuntar. Local families making the same pilgrimage often overtake at a brisk, practiced pace, since the temple remains an active place of daily worship rather than only a trekking destination, and greeting fellow walkers with a simple namaste is customary along the way. As the ridge narrows near the top, the forest thins and the Kullu and Parvati valleys open up on either side, a rare vantage point from which both river systems are visible at once. The temple itself sits on an exposed shoulder of the ridge at just over 8,000 feet, its most famous feature being a tall stone Shivling that, according to local legend, is regularly struck by lightning during monsoon storms, shattering into pieces that the resident priest reassembles using butter, which is said to make the lingam whole again by the time of the next strike. Whether or not the storm has struck recently, the priest's account of the phenomenon is one of the most memorable parts of the visit, and older cracks visible in the stone lend the story a strange credibility. From the temple courtyard, the panorama takes in the Dhauladhar range to the northwest and the folds of the Kullu valley receding toward Manali. After time spent at the temple and a packed lunch enjoyed on the grassy slope just below it, the group retraces the same ridge trail back down to Chansari, the descent taking noticeably less time than the climb but demanding care on the worn stone steps, particularly if the weather has turned damp.