Shimla Heritage Walks

Blessed with a grand colonial past Shimla is also a walker’s paradise. to know Shimla best you need to explore it heritage walks. every road here has some history every wall hides a story behind it. almost every house has a tail to tell every towering tree has been a witness to the town’s remarkable history.

Most of the lanes and paths has  been carved through the woods of lofty cedar’s ,rattling oak’s ,blooming rhododendrons and whispering’s pines. The old heritage Shimla town area has recently undergone a major restoration work . The original look and glory has been restored with painstaking effort and liberal resources.

Walk 1 :

Scandal Point General Post Office – The Mall – Telegraph Office – St Michael’s Church – St Andrew’s Church, Grand hotel – Kali Bari Temple – SBI Building – Railway Board Building – Gorton Castle – Himalayan Bramo samaj – Vidhan Sabha – The Sanitorium – Cecil Hotel – Climb up to The State Museum – Peterhof – Radio Station – Indian institute Of Advance Study – Yarrow’s Back

This walk is around 6 km along and will take about 2 hour’s . There are level stretches, slopes an occasional steep climb.

Walk 2 :

The Glen Walk | The Glen is Shimla’s oldest and most popular picnic spot . There are oak, rhododendron, deodar, chil and kail pines in and around Glen. Also partridge’s, Barking Deer, Foxes and Leopard’s can be spotted.

This walk is 7/8 km on the round trip and can take around 3 Hour’s .  2km from Knockdrin while the main road continues to Annadale, the path to Glen branches off next to the small stone shelter. You can also reach the Glen via the Cecil Hotel.

Walk 3 :

Te Annadale walk: Scandal Point to Knockdrin – Kumar house, way back through Lower Kaithu.

At Annadale the first plane landed on this ground at the end of the First World War. Today it has a museum of military history, a golf, course and a helipad. You can spot bird’s and animals on this way.

Walk 4 :

Scandal Point to Kamna Devi Temple on Prospect Hill.

From Boileauganj Bazaar – Prospect Hill – Observatory and way back via Summer hill – The home – Manorville. It is about 8 km and takes 2 hour

Walk 5 :

Scandal Point to Chadwick Fall and Back via Potters Hill.

Tis is around 12/15 km long and can take at least 6 hours. It runs along slopes and stretches. Lest 2 km walk is log narrow path in a forest. It covers Boileauganj, Summer Hill Railway , station, Sumer hill Post Office, Manorville and Chadwik fall.

At summer hill there are two historically important house the home was once the residence of the celebrated artist Amrit kaur, Mahatma Gandhi often stayed in this house

There is plenty of water at the Chadwick fall during monsoon season but only trickle during the rest of the year. The water fall is 60m and falls into a small pool, sometimes wild animal come to drink water at the pool.

Walk back : Potter hill ( named after the Potters who once lived here) Summerhill post office, Himachal Pradesh University’s Boy’s Hostel.

Walk 6 :

Telegraph Office via the Mall to Barnes Court and then back to the Ride over the Forest hill Road.

Shopping area of the mall and the route  loops back to the Ridge via Barnes Court, The Forest Hill Road ( Lover’s Lane ) and Ramachandra Chowk. It is around 6 km level stretch and slopes. It take’s approx. 2 hurs. Past the English Home Counties Style The Mall Road The Tow Hall and the Gaiety Theatre. Lift, Willow Bank, Chalet Day School, The Cedar Lodge ( Swiss Bavarian style ornate wod work and filigree metal ) Oak Over, Oldest Cemetry and the Himachal Secretariat.

Walk 7 :

The Two Jakhu Walks. First circle the hill the other climbs it.  It covers 6 km and takes around 2 hours and does not cover the temple. The route is the Ridge Lakkar Bazaar – Snowdon Boys Hostel – Huts of Tibetan – Navahar cross road above St Bede’s College – Forest Hill Road.

The second Jakhu Walk:

This walk cover5 km. The Jakhu hill is at a height of 2455m above sea level.

You Can take a steep1.5 km climb via Walsingham the residence of the Deputy Commissioner – Holy Lodge _ Rothney Castle. A half an hour steep walk from the Christ Church you to Shimla’s highest point Jakhu 2455m. There is a Temple of Lord Hanuman and a Towering statue of Hanuman overlooking Shimla. The spot offer’s view of surrounding Valleys.

Walk 8 :

The Bazaar walk: Walk through the Lower Bazaar, Ram Bazaar, Gunj, Ripon, and Shere Punjab takes around 30 minutes.

Runs parallel to the Mall, Dc Office and winds up at the Shere Punjab. It is mostly crowded with shops on both sides.

Notable Heritage Building in Shimla

• Town Hall : This British era Tudor Style Town has been restored to its original looks. It as once the durbar hall of the Viceroy and a venue for public meetings.
• Gaiety Theatre : The famous Gaiety Theatre was built in 187. Here once Nobel Laureate Rudyard Kipling and Legendary actors Prithviraj Kapoor Balraj Sahni performed. The exhaustively restored buildings now has a multi purpose hall on the top floor. Art and cultural programmes are regularly held here.
• Shop on the Mall Road and step up to the Ridge with its wide views of the Himalayas. Past the Ridge is Lakkar Bazaar with its wood souvenirs and trinkles shop.
• The Ridge has Shimla’s famous neo gothic Christ Church. The First cornerstone was laid in 1844 and the church was consecrated in 1857. The half timbered General Post office building was completed in 1883. Behind the General post office holds, the deconsecrated St Andrew’s Church of Scotland. The building now houses a wing of the state library. Nearby YWCA one of Shimla’s oldest houses.
• The Telegraph office is built of brick and concrete and had one of India’s first automatic telephone exchange line in India. The Lowe portion of the building is a superb example of ashlar work, where each stone has been shaped to e placed in a specific position. Just below is the St Michael’s Church. French Gothic style exterior is of dressed grey stone. A statue of our lady of Guadalupe presented by Mexico is here.
• Cecil hotel and post office is Chaura Maidan. A sharp climb Leads to Inverarm which now house the State Museum.
• Radio Station that once housed the Foreign Office and durig the second world war the Government of Burma (Myanmar) was run from here.
• Hotel Peter Hof by Himachal tourism. This spot is a natural water shed where the water from the southern slope flow towards the Bay of Bengal and from other towards the Arabian sea.
• Viceregal Lodge Now the Indian Institute Of Advance Studies . The interior has remarkable wood work. It was the home of the Viceroy since 1876 after independence in 1947 the building became the property of the President of India. In 1964 the Indian Institute Of Advance Studies was created and house here. The building resemble a Scottish baronical castle built of blue grey stone masonary and tiled pitch roofing. IIAS is open from 9am to 6pm. Visitors are allowed in the laws and a portion of the interior with a guide.