Brief History
Himalaya Discovery has two hotels in this tribal village and also a large self-contained cottage (see ‘our hotels’ section for more details).
As with Sangla Valley, which is the other side of the surrounding Kailash mountain range, it has been home to tribal communities living harmoniously in scattered farms for thousands of years.
Kalpa has an average elevation of 2,960 meters (9,711 feet). Today, its main source of income is from tourism, apple orchards and pine-nut forests. Because of its close proximity and access to the Tibetan boarder, and the fact that it has a strong holding of military posts in the town of Recong Peo below, it was only open to the public in 1996. Consequentially, there has always been an air of mystery about its history.
During the time of British rule, those in the army with lung problems, such as Tuberculosis, were sent to this area to be cured by the purity of its air. In ancient times, Kalpa formed a part of what was referred to as ‘Kanaurra.’ Locals swore allegiance to the kingdom of Magadha which was later annexed by the Mauryans during the 6th century B.C.
In those times, the inhabitants of this remote region were the Valhika, Kamboja and Panasika tribes. The region was later divided into chiefdoms and a power struggle ensued. A host of small fortresses such as Kamru, Labrang, and Moorang still stand testament of this to this day.
Kinnaur later passed into the hands of the Mongols’ with Akbar’s conquest of the region. After the fall of the Mongols’ and British rule, Kinnaur was formally established but was initially called Chini-Tehsil. Later it merged into the Mahasu district for administration and remained so until 1960 when it was re-organized and formally came under the heading of Kinnaur.
Reorganization was put in place owing to ethnic and cultural considerations. As with Sangla Valley, Kalpa and its surrounding villages still has the tradition polyandry. But with the growth in education and developing mindset, this is rapidly changing.
One of the most stunning and easy 2 km walks on the flat in the remote Himalayas is from Kalpa to the tiny tribal village of Roghi; and the road to it begins directly outside Himalaya Discovery’s ‘White Nest’ Hotel.