10. A Walk Through Time to Col Battey’s Home | Barot Valley (18th June 2022).

#soloroadtrip #barot #barotvalley #sleepinginthecar #battey'shome #batteyhouse 18th June, 2022, Saturday…Day (10) Barot (Trek to Col Battey’s Home) (6 km). Solo Road Trip to Barot Valley, Day (9)…Barot (Col Battey’s Home). It was raining when I woke up in Barot. Another night in the car, this time near the Barot Barrage. After tea and a short riverside walk, I drove across to the fountain. Shops were opening, traffic was picking up and Barot was slowly coming alive. I had no plans for the day, but wasn’t ready to leave. Someone suggested a short hike to Col Battey’s Home, a historic British-era rest house overlooking the valley. So I parked at the PSPCL parking and started walking. The two-kilometre trail climbed steadily—past potato fields, village homes and orchards, then deeper into tall cedar and pine forests. With every step, the view changed. The Uhl River, twin reservoirs and colourful houses of Barot appeared below, disappearing and reappearing through the trees. Soon, I reached a quiet clearing with a neat lawn and an old yellow building. A board read “Battey’s Home.” Locked and deserted. Standing there amidst the tall trees, I couldn’t help imagining Barot a hundred years ago—no roads, no traffic, just forests, birdsong and the occasional howl of a wild animal. What a place it must have been for a British Chief Engineer to spend his summers! A little lost in that thought, I eventually walked back to Barot. By evening, the fountain area was buzzing again. I had my meal, parked beside the river and slipped into my Home on Wheels. Outside, the Uhl flowed quietly. Inside, another peaceful night in Barot. For more videos and travel stories, search "Sunil Azaad" on google.