“Theen ghante hain, bhaiyya. Pathankot ka jitna dikha sakte ho, dikha do.” With that, I handed the responsibility of my itinerary to Kaaleye.

Kaaleye was a sprightly man in his mid-forties. What’s probably more relevant is that he was my driver and guide for the day, recommended for the job by the nice old gentleman at Green Hotel. I could barely understand him through the jumble of Hindi and Punjabi that he spoke, but boy, he loved to talk!

“Achha, toh pehle Shani mandir chalte hain…”

Shahpur Kandi fort & the Shani temple

Our first stop was the Shani mandir, inside the Shahpur Kandi fort.

This fort, overlooking the Ravi river, was built in 1505 AD was named after Shah Jahan by his Rajput chief, Jaspal Singh Pathania. Yes, of the Pathanias whose name Pathankot bears. Much of the fort is in ruins and a large portion of it is now a government guest house.

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Kaaleye didn’t seem to care much for the fort ruins and hurried to take me to the more breathtaking views.

The Himalayan view

Not long after, the road began to wind around hilly slopes with a continuous view of the Ravi river right below us and mountains far away. And then I saw it- the unmistakable snowy peaks of the Himalayas!

In retrospect, it seems silly that I was so surprised because Kaaleye had been telling me all the while about his several overnight trips taking passengers from Pathankot to Dalhousie, Dharamshala, McLeod Ganj and all the places that instantly bring mountain ranges to mind.

Mukteshwar Temple

“Yahi rasta hai, bas paanch minat ki doori hai”

Wild shrubbery looked on as Kaaleye navigated the car through a kachha road that would surely leave a stranger to the area wondering if he had placed too much trust on Google maps. Clearly, Kaaleye thought I must be wondering if I had placed too much trust on him. Had I?

Noticing that network was poor in these parts, I looked up from my phone and at him. His furrowed brows made you think of life’s struggles. So, I asked him about his family. Immediately, his face lit up. Little wrinkles appeared near his kind eyes as he spoke of his son with pride. And the whole cloud of anxiety and doubt was lifted.

Sure enough, in about ten minutes, I was looking down a long set of steps leading to the riverside temple.

We counted 280 steps going down to the cave temples of Mukteshwar. It is believed that Pandavas lived in these caves during their exile (Agyaat vaas).

It is hard to imagine someone cutting into the rocky, almost vertical hillside to create these three small pockets, so I am assuming the caves had a natural origin. But the priest baba inside them attributed the various carvings on the walls to the Pandavas.

(I made a quick video tour of the caves, you can find it at the end of the post.)

What mesmerized me though was the amazing view of the river and mountains. If the Pandavas did live here, they sure had a great view to wake up to!

Kaaleye showed me the approach to wet my feet in the river. I stood for a few peaceful minutes listening to the river rushing down the valley, until the thrill of the water against my feet faded and it grew too cold for comfort. A cup of tea from the temple’s langar provided a welcome relief.

The sheer enormity of effort required to produce a cup of tea out here struck me when I saw a volunteer boy carrying a gas cylinder down the steps. And to think the langar serves hundreds during their annual mela!

Ranjit Sagar Dam

Once back in the car, I continued straining my eyes into the blue looking for the white tops when we drew upon this spectacle- the Ranjit Sagar Dam on River Ravi.

Kaaleye informed me that the dam area was closed off for a few days, so we wouldn’t be able to go there. But we were headed to the next best thing, a picnic spot at the lake created by the dam.

The View from Shaheed Bhagat Singh Park

First, we stopped at Shaheed Bhagat Singh Park where a gorgeous sight presented itself. From the view point in the park, you could see a large portion of the dam’s lake. And the lake, the faraway mountains and the sky all merged into one shade of blue.

While I tried to capture the magic of that moment on camera, Kaaleye explained that only half the lake lies in Punjab. The other half belongs to Jammu & Kashmir, he said, pointing vaguely in some direction.

Picnic at the lake

We drove down to meet the lake. A couple of families were there validating the picnic-ability of the spot. Two men sat by a tree on plastic chairs. Some others sat on a bedsheet on the ground setting up a gas cylinder to make lunch. A few little kids bundled up in sweaters ran around screaming and chasing each other, as toddlers are wont to do.

Kaaleye recommended boating in the lake but I was now short of time. I splashed around the water by myself for a little while and took a few selfies before we decided to head back.

Just then, I heard the familiar ping of Whatsapp notification. We had network coverage again. My friend, Priyanka from Bangalore wanted suggestions for an interesting cafe with Wifi.

I was grateful for the Whatsapp notification because it had felt like a sudden jolt back to the here and now. That entire morning had transported me to a different world. I had been with the Pathanias preparing for battle from their strategic riverside fort and the Pandavas meditating in their exile cave-stay.

Just three hours, but it made for a beautiful escape.

If you are inspired to visit this beautiful, ancient city, let me know in the comments below! And I am sure Kaaleye will be happy to show you around too!

Do check out my adventurous bus ride from Amritsar and my walk around Pathankot city with my thoughts for company, if you haven’t already!

The Gallery