Chilling in Jilling

Chestnut leaves covering the forest floor

Somewhere in the middle of nowhere in the hills of Kumaon, there lies a pristine forest, zealously guarded for over half a century by a family of nature lovers who are a fast vanishing species in modern world.

Jilling Estate spread over 100 acres is owned by Lall family. It is not on the regular tourist circuit, and that's the saving grace. We had a week long stay booked in what is referred to as New Cottage on the estate. There are 4 such cottages which they run as homestay. 

We started from Delhi, around 7 in the morning and only stopped enroute for mandatory Chai, Breakfast and Lunch. As time was plenty on our hands, we decided to stop at Kaladhungi before hitting Matial village, the base for Jilling.

At Kaladhungi, we visited the less frequented Jim Corbett Museum at Choti Haldwani. It's the former home of Jim Corbett. Various pictures of shikar and letters in Jim's own hand are preserved, as also few of the porcelain dishes the great man used. It's a humbling experience to stand face to face with larger than life bust of Jim Corbett, the man this nation owes a lot to. There's a souvenir shop selling charming little curios and local food products.

Stuffed with Gahat dal, White Rajma, Apricot jam, fand few books by Jim Corbett that we didn't already have, lapel pins, Tiger printed on T-shirts, we decided to round off our little detour and headed straight for Jilling.

Once on the hills, numerous hair pin bends and sights of deep gorges running alongside had our hair stand on end. Finally, we reached the small roadside shop in the hamlet of Matial. This was the address where we were met by Ramlal, the workhorse of Jilling. When Nandini told us Ramlal will meet us and help us with our luggage uphill to the cottage, I had pictured a young pahadi lad. But here was a 4 ft few inches tall, 200 yr old Santa-esque man, politely greeting us and introducing himself as Ramlal. Over the next hour, Ramlal (ji) was incharge and guide and our hamdard, as our urban smog tainted lungs gasped for air on our uphill climb while the dainty Ramlal moved brisk and lithe. We were in awe. Till the end of trip, Ramlal's actual age remained a mystery as each conversation pegged him either above 60 or 70. 

At the cottage, we were greeted by the care taker Deepak who promptly arranged for lemon tea and lit the fireplace. Cottage was charmingly decorated and well provisioned. Like Hema Malini's room with a view in Johny Mera Naam, this new cottage had windows on all sides, including from the loo. Perfect for birdwatching while sitting on the pot. Night falls easily in the hills, so before we knew, it was dark all around and we decided wisely to crash early.

Next morning and the mornings hereafter, were spent marvelling at the peaks of Nanda Devi, Chaukhamba, Nanda Kot and few others that can be seen clearly behind the rolling hills in front. Every morning before dawn and at dusk, Blue Whistling Thrush sang it's song on the Oak tree next to the cottage. Two daring Khaleej Pheasants showed up at the door the very next day, as if to check if we were guests alright to be hosted on their property. They seemed to approve and departed soon.           

We went to meet Steve and Parvati Lall, owners of the estate and were charmed by their life stories. Steve flew fighters in the Indian Air Force and then left it to nurture the estate. He has biked all around the country and has many stories to tell. Any mention of even a remote corner of the country and Steve knew it like the back of his hand. His life partner, Parvati is the true lady of the soil. Up early every day, she is a compulsively busy soul. She had delightful tales to tell Alisha about her mischievous childhood. When not serving Sri Lankan tea out of an old English tea pot, she was found tending lovingly to her cattle and her 5 dogs.

Steve and Parvati's cottage is an eclectic mix of odds and ends, including a telescope and astrophotography equipment of his equally worthy son-in-law Kartik. But what I loved the most was a little bird table which hosted a whole contingent of hill birds every morning, noon and evening. White-throated Laughingthrush, Streaked Laughingthrush, Black-headed Jay, Rufous Sibia, Green-backed Tit, Black-lored Tit, White-browed Scimitar Babbler, Black-winged Blackbird delighted us everyday as we sat soaking in sunshine at their charming cottage.

In the surrounding hills, forests are preserved all around and it's clear Steve and Parvati and their next generation Nandini and Kartik have doggedly fought against all odds to fend off the so called modern development. They have fought and continue to fight politicians, arsonists, poachers as the demand on our forests continues to spike.

I get asked many times, what activities did we do on our vacation and I struggle to piece it all in a modern way. We walked in forest, we trekked uphill to the ridge, we admired the many colours of forest bed, filled with dried chestnut, Oak and Pine leaves, we walked on morning frost, we ate hearty home cooked meals, drank cups after cups of tea, sat hours and hours in sunshine, chatted, dozed off as we heard birds all around. At nights, we watched the stars stitched on the navy blue velvet sheet above and heard calls of Himalayan Owl and barking deer in the distance and we sat hours in front of the fireplace.

We didn't spot Leopard but we were told there are 4 that roam the property currently. Within a week, we were different people. Nourished by the cold clean crisp mountain air and the simple old styled living, we felt completely detoxed.

But all was not over yet. Christmas was Bonfire time at Steve's cottage. Nandini and Kartik arranged for a wood fired Pizza party for all guests.

It's important to mention they take only few guests and are selective about who they allow on their fragile estate. That keeps any reckless and damaging behavior in check. Soups and snacks flowed freely with the yummy hand made pizza as more tales of biking, trekking poured in near the bonfire. Kids were having a time of their lives with dogs.

No trip to Jilling can be complete without mentioning their staff. Their staff is like an extended family, so much so that they have grown up together and lived their whole life together. Steve refers to them as son. Staff is equally empowered to take decisions. No wonder we saw each one of them have a sense of ownership that's hard to find in today's material world. 

Ultimately the day of our departure was upon us. Scanning the weather forecasts that predicted rain in the day, we got our breakfast packed and started early in the morning and after a day's road trip of nearly 10 hours, reached Gurgaon late evening.

Jilling Estate will remain etched in our memory and hopefully for Alisha too. As a 9 yr old, she experienced the joys or boredom of "do nothing" on Indian hills and invented ingenious games with stones and wood. She trekked everywhere with great ease and grace, which earned her a nickname of mountain goat from everyone, much to our delight and surprise.

And she pestered auntie (Parvati) to open goats and cows for her to play with all day. There's something very soothing to see kids play in natural surroundings without modern gadgets. It's like rehashing the eternal bond between humans and the very nature we came from.

With a wish to be back in the hills soon, Happy New Year 2022.

ebird checklists of birds seen easily through our stay

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99795043

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99494745

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99436980

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99497794

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99394360

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99390260

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99355240

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99346717

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99355051

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99343880

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99307878

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99307117

https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S99494745