He call himself as “Pahadi Banda” and well, he indeed is one, from heart as well as from soul. A core traveller at heart, a core traveller by soul, an ardent lover of Himalayas and a true pahadi whom devils (we) loves more and more πŸ™‚ :)… His blog “Loop Whole” is aptly named after his traits. Well, enough of flattery now, so I will introduce him to all of you finally by his name β€œTarun Goel” πŸ™‚ πŸ™‚ …

The Traveling Duo - Tarun with his wife, trekking in Himalayas of Himachal
The Traveling Duo – Tarun with his wife, trekking in Himalayas of Himachal

Well, I am sure Tarun is one those rarest kind of hard core travelers we have in our country. I can say that with high confidence because of being in travel community for almost last 7 years and knowing many known names. He may not throw any bells and whistles on offer to many but if you get to know him, his blog, his way of travels, his travel stories, far flung places he has been in Himachal and the deep coverage of Himachal he has put up on his blog, you will be amused by the in-depth knowledge and easy going traits he has to offer to the travel community in India. He travels alone, on his own with least external support but only with the help of local villagers to the deepest parts of Himalayas in Himachal and boy, he does it well, very very well. As we say, Himalayas are most beautiful from the eyes of a trekker and being a hard core trekker, Tarun is one of his own kind. If you are a trekker and you have missed his blog, well, I am sure you are missing the meat of trekking in Himachal.

The Traveling Duo - Tarun with his wife, restoring the breaths for further journey
The Traveling Duo – Tarun with his wife, restoring the breaths for further journey

Ever since I met him, the respect for his grit and passion for travel in Himalayas has grown year after year that being over flowing it in my heart, I had to pen down my thoughts about him to share with all of you in this article πŸ™‚ πŸ™‚ … I always wanted to dedicate a blog for him but never felt the right words in my mind to appreciate the efforts of massive offbeat information he has penned on his blog. I hope I am able to express my feelings to some extent with this article. He has been to places which we may have rarely heard by names and the views such places offer are just jaw dropping at times. We have a special privilege of having him in our DoW WhatsApp group where he keep sharing the wonderful details and pictures of the places he travels every now and then. Many a times he will remind us with complete maturity in a vocal way, β€œBhai logo pahaad wahin rahenge, fer chale jana” (Mountain will always remain there, first take care of yourself and plan your trip some other time). The sentence is simple but has real meaning when people like us foolishly try to make trip in odd circumstance or try to over run that thin line between craziness/stupidity and adventure. These words of Tarun bhai always keeps me content in such situation and also help me guide many members of our community as well to be in content and not attempt anything foolish.

Personally, he is simple and pleasing personality, vocal and pretty straightforward on his beliefs about the travel and other general things happening around us in life. He was a professor by passion and now completed his masters. Presently enjoying cycling and trekking in Himalayas.

Enough of theory, in the end, I will request you guys to make sure that you do check and subscribe to his travel blog to know him in real and learn more and more from his amazing travel experiences of Himalayas in Himachal Pradesh. You can also check out his Facebook Page, follow him on Instagram at @pahadibanda or troll him on twitter at @tarugoel πŸ™‚ πŸ™‚

Rohtang Pass - I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done - The Dhammapada!
Rohtang Pass – I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done – The Dhammapada!
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I am Dheeraj Sharma - a traveler, techie, and Himalayan lover. Since 2009, I have been helping thousands of travelers every year plan memorable & budget-friendly trips to the Himalayas - Smartly, Safely, and responsibly.

11 Comments

  1. mridul tiwari on

    dheeraj bhai can u add me in ur wats app group plz…. 9838501005 mridul tiwari

  2. ajay bhimani on

    Dheerajbhai useful information provided for himachal and pahadi banda tarun goel.

  3. You are right . Tarun is a true Pahadi Banda and whatever I know of him after interacting a few times, I find him to be a quiet and helpful person & definitely ‘lambi race ka ghoda’. πŸ™‚ We have even decided to meet when I am in his area. πŸ™‚

    Cheers to more of his adventures, may he bring more stories & pictures.

    Thanks for sharing this, Dheeraj

    • Very true Nisha, please do visit him whenever you pass through Himachal and his area of Mandi/Sunder nagar in particular πŸ™‚ … I am sure it will be a great fun sharing travel stories in person too. Though sitting in one corner now, I do miss all this stuff πŸ™

      Cheers !! πŸ™‚ πŸ™‚

  4. I have always known him as an avid trekker, a guy with a grit as high as the mountains themselves. Many of us don’t even know the real meaning of trekking. He along with his gang has unfolded so many trails that were not known to the most of us. Love going through his tales and learning more from his experiences.

    Cheers!!

  5. Thanks for sharing Dheeraj bhai… yes Tarun is a true Pahadi Banda and I have been following his posts for long.. one of the best features of his blog is he shares some of the earlier forgotten books that documented the hardships of life in these remote ranges and introduces us with early Himalayan travelers

    • Very true Prasad bhai, he is a gem. Do meet him some day when you travel to Himachal. Vast, abundance knowledge pool about Himalayas and monasteries around, you would love to stop for whole day and listen to the knowledge πŸ™‚