The next leg of our journey took us into the northern province of Himachal Pradesh. Here, crowded streets gave way to winding mountain roads on which Kanwar’s uncle Titu drove  with the skill and precision of an F1 driver. Gripping corners in a way I didn’t think were possible in a Toyota minivan. We ascended into the mountains as the towns grew smaller and smaller. Eventually turning into a scattering of brightly coloured houses located intermittently throughout the ridges and valleys of the Himalayas.

On our way we stopped to visit the Chamera hydroelectric dam, which was built with the help of Canadians.

We spent the night in the small mountain town of Dalhousie, an old British fort hence the name. The next morning we set off further into the mountains towards Khajjiar.

Passing through the town of Chamba a larger mountain town nestled along a beautiful river valley.

Khajjiar, a popular destination for local tourists, is located on a saddle between two peaks at 2050 m. Activities here include horse back riding and paragliding, we opted for drone flying.

Following Khajjiar, we drove 6 hours to return to Jalandhar. A big kudos to Titu for putting in several consecutive long days behind the wheel and getting everyone safely through the narrow mountain roads.