A little adventure from Kalka to Shimla

It is 4:00 AM. The surroundings still dipped in the darkness of the night. My family and I got down from our taxi at the small railway station of Kalka in Haryana. Sleep stubbornly sitting on our eyelids we made to make our way to the platform in our dazed condition where our train was supposed to arrive in the next 1 hour. Crowding our luggage on the ground near a bench, we sat down and so began our wait. I took the time to look around the platform. Unlike the cities' railway station, this one was minutely occupied, mostly asleep and unbothered like it's a daily thing, excluding me, and my folks. The excitement to travel in the infamous toy train, the Shivalik Express, was racing through my veins. I was ready to go on one of the most scenic routes in India from Kalka to Shimla.

The opportunity to travel on this train was added to my destiny cart when my mother insisted upon it for two reasons, first the scenic route and second, motion sickness. Being one of the victims gladly agreed to the train journey, but for three reasons, scenic route, motion sickness, and a new adventure. Having been to Shimla as a child by the same train, this experience, however, was going to be a fresh one altogether as I barely remembered the trip.

One of the many bridges on the Kalka-Shimla train route.

Two hours were gone, and there was no sign of Shivalik Express's arrival being announced or seen to get ready for departure. Idleness boomeranged the sleep that had vamoosed after the early morning episode of thrill. A group of kids were having the time of their lives racing end to end on the platform, taking quick intervals to grab a bite of food their mothers from a potla-kind bag. The family was probably waiting for the same train as we were. It is still a mystery to me how kids achieve such extraterrestrial energy, particularly in the winters, to actively run around any given place. I would have preferred becoming a burrito instead. It was a family of three brothers, their respective wives and children, and two senior citizen - a grandmother and a grandfather. A ticket collector popped up from the farther end of the station. His arrival awoke our lying hopes to depart soon. Unfortunately, the hopes fell into a ditch as he abruptly turned right and entered the station master's cabin.

Dawn was now waking up on the horizon, filling up the dark spaces with sunlight. Kalka station was slowly coming into the light, and I realized how much more there is to this station. The station seemed to end in the two platforms, and an administration room was now revealing its actual boundaries. The setup took me back to the 50s because of the vintage architecture. A small building, perhaps an office quarter had a dwarf height wall surrounding itself with two small gates, two-door window system, and matchbox houses. Everything seemed to match the toy trains running to and from the platforms here. As the day was coming up, the routine commutation was also picking up its speed. Finally, after a whole 3 hours of wait for the announcement of Shivalik Express was made. The toy train steadily trotted into the platform made up of a cute engine and four miniature passenger coaches attached behind it. We picked up our luggage and made for the door. Luckily the noisy kids went into the other coach and spared the exclusivity of enjoying the views to myself. Settling in our seats, we were ready. The adventure was about to begin.

After the announcement, the train gave its ritualistic jerk and set on its day's journey up on the hill. To make it up the beginning steep patch a rear engine was also attached for the extra push, not forgetting all the weight it was carrying inside! Regardless, the speed was slow enough for anyone to hop in even when the train is moving. I found it funny and incredibly tempting to try but gave up on the daredevil idea eventually. As the train climbed up and up on the hill, the views became better and better. The beginning of the journey offered a view of Kalka town laid out at the foothill. Cube-shaped one/two-floor houses were picking up the morning pace, carrying on with daily chores, oblivious to the fact that some travellers travelling in a toy train were watching them. The train took a turn around a corner of the mountain and Kalka was soon left behind. The scenery was hinting a change of atmosphere and the views. Chilliness still cloaking the skin but, now it was pleasantly balanced by the morning sunlight. The views out of my window were so mesmerizing that the morning delay and unfinished sleep were all forgiven. Leisurely chugging its way up to the top, crossing bridges after bridges the Shivalik Express was proudly boasting its grand train journey. Suddenly I noticed how every bridge we on this route have numbers. It turns out this route covers a total of 101 bridges that connect the tracks and take us up to Shimla. Would you believe that? 101 bridges! Most of them built with vintage stonework.

The Shivalik Express was now passing through the dense green forest of deodar trees and other pine varieties. Imagining all of this capped with pristine white snow in the winters made the invitation to retake this trip in the winters very much tempting. The train reached its first junction. Composed of a long stretched platform, multiple crisscrossing tracks, and a few sloping roofed houses, it was a junction for sure. Painted light blue and white these railway quarters vaguely reminding me of Santorini where the whole island has unanimously chosen to paint the town in these two colours. In the background of dark green and dull brown of the mountain, the junction completely stood out like a painting.

We had covered more than half of our trip by now, and the proof lied in the picturesque valley on one side and thick forest on the other. The Bollywood fan that I am, this panorama certainly put Parineeta's 'Kasto Mazza Hai' on loop for me with me playing Saif Ali Khan in my life's movie right now! Before entering Shimla station, the train took us from the thickest patch of the deodars. That 15-minute route was the highlight of the whole trip. With tall trees on both sides and the sunlight sifting through the little gaps was the perfect description of a cosy mountainous afternoon spent wrapped up in a warm blanket, hot cup of coffee sitting on the table invitingly, and the breathtaking view Shimla spread on the mountain.

Like every magnificent journey, this one too came to an end. Our Shivalik Express entered the Shimla station. We got down with an intoxicating memory of the toy train journey we just took and made our way to our hotel for some more adventures.