Shivalik Hills..
.As the Himalayas rose, the forces of erosion kept pace. Detritus and sediment from the rising Himalaya were deposited in a skirt at the base of the growing chain. These sediments were themselves up thrust in the last major folding event as the Indian plate pushed and ground against the Eurasian continent. This narrow strip, which is nonetheless 2,000 kilometers long, and forms a continuous chain, is known as the Shivaliks. Structurally, their sediments reflect the history of the up thrust of the emergent Himalayas and numerous mammalian fossil finds testify to the youthfulness of the Himalaya.
The Shivaliks ,also known as the sub-Himalaya or the foothills, run in a continuous belt from Jammu, through the Kangra valley and then on through the Sirmaur district to Dehradun and further on the Bhabbar tracts of Garhwal and Kumaon. Continuing through Nepal, the only break comes at Sikkim, and then on again through Arunachal. Their width varies from a few kilometers to around 40 kilometers at different places.
Longitudinal valleys lying between the Shivaliks and the main range to the north, are known as Dun valleys. The best known example is of course Dehradun. In these cases the general slope is towards the middle of the valley and sediments brought down from streams from both north and south are called Dun gravels. Dense growths of Sal and riverine forest have been cleared over the years from the Dun valley, to make way for cultivation.etc
The Shivalik hills are well developed along the southern edge of Himachal Pradesh, from the Kangra valley, in a broad belt, to the Sirmaur region on the border with U.P.
The landscape is typically, low rolling hills, bisected by innumerable gullies, seasonal streams, known as choes, which drain this region. Once peppered with small principalities and kingdoms, straddling major trade routes in and out of the interior Himalayan regions, they prospered, till their eventual eclipse commenced during the British raj.
The archetypically romantic landscape, as immortalised by the Kangra and Basholi school of miniature painting, the Shivalik countryside can be enchanting. Solan is one of the lesser known areas of Himachal. Traveling through this unspoilt flora and fauna is a real treat and an opportunity to familiarize with the peoples, culture, of the Shivalik region.