The Confused and The Wandering: The Kangra Fort

All right, here comes. As grand as they come, as old as they come, as romantic as they come and as insurmountable as they come. The Kangra Fort. It was another of those wandering trips. I had no plan of this kind when I left home at 11 am. It just happened.

The valley from the fort.

I have always had a poor impression of the fort. Having seen ruins from the road below, it never seemed inviting. So, when I decided to visit it, I was expecting some ill kept ruins. I reached to see a ticket booth. That was Surprise No. 1. The ticket was a grand total of Rs 5. That was surprise No. 2. The biggest of them all was when someone offered me an audio guide to the fort. Yes, you heard it right. An audio guide to the fort, complete with some literature and 15 stops, cost Rs. 100. Knowing how well the Archaelogical Survey of India maintains its monuments, I did not think twice before taking it.

The palatial ruins inside the fort.

It was a 4 hour trip down the history lane. Listening to the audio guide, replaying some parts, taking down notes in my pad, clicking some shots, picturising how it must have looked in its days of grandeur. Time just flew by. I have tried putting a brief history together on my site. You can read it here. The audio guide was fantastic. I never knew someone has done such good work for Indian history. Because it was so very good, I have no qualms in putting a link to the Narrowcasters site here.

Open grounds across the Ban Ganga from the Fort.

I am not going to spoil the surprise by letting all out here. All I will say is if you are someone who likes a bit of rich history, really, really old history, a picturesque view of the Dhauladhars, a grand view of the valley below, visit the Kangra fort. Its a little off the beaten tourist trail but it is every bit and more worth the trouble you will take for it.