The Big Apple

Surrounded by the snow-tipped Himalaya, with the Sutlej river flowing rapidly below, Thanedar’s orchard-studded valley is a peaceful sliver of Himachal, where time is not of the essence.

- Gustasp And Jeroo Irani

Driving to Thanedar, 80 km from Shimla, was a curtain-raiser of sorts—of the scenic surprises and thrills that this apple country serves up for the visitor who ventures beyond the summer capital of the Raj.

Located in the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, Thanedar turned out to be a rustic utopia, accessed via the Hindustan-Tibet Road (now NH 22) that conjured images of the caravans of yore, lurching along with their rich loads of silks and spices.

Not much seems to have changed since then. We too bumped along ravine-hugging, rutted roads even as breathtaking landscapes unfolded and distracted us. In the deep mysterious forests of pine and cedar, jewel-coloured birds flitted while jade-green rivers snaked away into misty nothingness and quaint villages teetered on mountain ledges as they basked in the sun.

A couple of times, we got ensnared in rural traffic jams, thanks to shepherds herding their flocks of sheep and goats as though they had all the time in the world to dawdle and smell the roses. And that’s what is charming about Thanedar—a prosperous, peaceful sliver of Himachal, snuggling in apple and apricot orchards where time is not of the essence.

Indeed, Thanedar at 7,700 ft is Himachal’s fruit basket and Shimla, with its state-capital buzz, did not seem to belong to this world of plump red apples and apricots, saw-toothed mountains and air as pure as nectar. The Banjara Orchard Retreat where we were to stay nestled in a sleepy little hollow and our log cabin with a cosy loft for kids commanded a view of an orchard-studded valley, with the river Sutlej flowing urgently way below, and the snow-dusted Himalaya etching the horizon in wavy lines in the distance.