Heaven on Earth

Destination: Khaptad Region
Entry point: Silgadi (Doti) , chaukhutte (sanfebagar)
How to get there: You can either take a bus or a flight to Silgadi or even trek your way around the area.
Best time to go there: July-August or September-December.
Cost: Rs 6000-8000 for 5-7 days minus the airfare.
What to take: Since the area hasn't yet seen tourism boost its best to take your tent, sleeping bag and cooking utensils. It is also advisable to pack dry food along with warm clothes.

Perfectly manicured flatlands covered with grass of exact length greet you as far as the eyes can see. It seems as though someone has laboriously trimmed them. The random sprouting of colourful wild flowers paints a picture of a multi-coloured carpet spread out to welcome the traveller. The weather seems to play its part too, for one moment it's bright and sunny and the very next minute it gets gloomy and starts to drizzle. Add to that white powdery snow if you visit between October to February and the geography changes into a monochrome painting - white hills, white forest, even the flowers are white. It seems as though Mother Nature is in deep slumber snuggled under a white blanket.

Gone are the days when dreaming of rolling on a snow-covered field came with the price tag of going all the way to Switzerland. We can do that in our very own backyard of Khaptad. September to December is the best time to visit this famous destination of the Far East. Apart from 25 flatlands, there are 53 small hills in this region which are known as jhoti in the local dialect. Legend has it that Bhim, the second brother of the Pandavs ploughed the land and that these hills were formed from the mud he piled.

This area is situated 2,400 to 3,700 meters above the sea level and in the middle is the 12,000 feet high Khaptad mountains. Surrounded by the Khaptad National Park, this area touches four districts - Bajura, Doti, Bajang and Achham. Like almost all the hills in Nepal, the Khaptad region too has its share of temples. Not only did a traveller named Shivanath Dogre who came from Jammu Kashmir 53 years ago become famous as Khaptad Baba but it also made this region very popular. Places such as Trivenighat, Sahasraling, Babukuti, Fintedhungo are the popular holy sites of this area. Sociologically, Khaptad region is said to have been the place where Nepali civilisation started.

Although there are many routes to get to Khaptad, the road to Silgadi is very popular. Nearly 53 kilometres away from Silgadi, it takes one or two days on foot to reach this region. A five to six day trip from Silgadi to Khaptad would cost about Rs 5,000. One can get to Silgadi either by travelling on the East-West Mahendra highway or taking a nine hour bus ride from Kailali. Silgadi is as accessible as an hour bus ride from Gaddachowki at the Atariya border and it's easy to catch a bus from any place on the East-West highway. The cost of a one-way bus ride from Atariya to Silgadi is Rs 550 whereas it will cost around Rs 1,000 per person from Nepalgunj. And all this is accessible by well-tarred roads.

Another way to get to Khaptad is to take a flight from Nepalgunj to Doti. One can also charter helicopters thus getting off on the Khaptad soil isn't an unachievable task because gone are the days when the only tourists or high ranking officials of the national park took this form of transport. With the building of Silgadi- Saafebagar road it will be very easy to reach the outskirts of the Khaptad region by car in a few years.

But for now the journey on foot starts from Silgadi. On the first day, the walk will get you to Baglek at lunch time and Jhigrana by the evening. Resting here for the night to recharge for the next day's walk is advisable. An early start on the second day will get you to Bispani once again around lunch time and it's possible to reach the guesthouse in the Khaptad National Park by evening.

Khaptad offers many sites for visitors to enjoy, which are culturally and naturally very rich. The Khaptad baba's kuti, the horse race course, Nangdunga region, the view tower called Baldajodi, Saharsaling, Ganesh field, Bhimghatt, Bhimlauri, Sitapaila, Chintedunga are some of the places to visit while at this part of the country. Though these places can be visited within three days, one has to come back to the guest house at the National Park every evening to spend the night. But if you want to see more of Khaptad, one option is to walk the banks of the Triveni River and go to Bhelchaddo and bathe under a beautiful waterfall and spend the night there. From there one can go to Saeel and then catch a bus to Dipayal.

If time is not an issue for you, two days walk from Khaptad can take you to Surma Sarowar and Sundar Taal in Bajang or Ramaroshan in Achham or Badimalika of Bajura or Badikedar of Doti. On visiting the different places in Khaptad, one can return to Saafebagar of Accham and then return back. "Keeping the Khaptad tourism in mind, a direct flight from Kathmandu to Dipayal and Saafebagar is also in the offing," 

Even though Khaptad is a popular travel destination of the country, it is also considered one of the most difficult ones. As a result there have been only 252 foreign tourists who have visited the area between 1986-2007. This data proves that this region is not for the lazy or a traveller who looks for comfort. But the natural exhibition one is treated to will make anyone forget the difficulties of getting here. It truly is a piece of heaven on Earth.