A week in Uttarakhand: Adventure, Snow, Serenity

We landed in New Delhi around 3:30 AM and took our ride from the airport parking. After a little bit of refreshment, we left for a religious start around 4:30 AM. As expected, there was dense fog on the highway, so we got a forced tea break too. We reached Haridwar around 9:30 AM, checked into our hotel, and freshened up.

Our main agenda for the day was to cover the temples of Mansa Devi (goddess of snakes) and Chandi Devi (goddess of Shakti). Both are part of the Panch Tirth within Haridwar. On the right bank of Ganga on Bilwa parvat, Mansa Devi temple is situated from where you can see the populous bit of Haridwar. On the left bank of Ganga on Neel parvat, Chandi Devi temple is situated from where you can see the course of Ganga and the vast plains around it. There are options to either trek or take a ropeway at both the places. We went to Mansa Devi temple first (trekked) and then Chandi Devi temple (took the ropeway). After Chandi Devi darshan, you can go for a 270º view of the city by following a thin trail just outside the temple.

Ideally, Har Ki Pauri can also be visited on the same day, but we shifted that to Day 2 and went to visit Lakshman Jhula and nearby areas in Rishikesh. During the night, the lighting on the Jhula and Trayambakeshwar temple makes them spectacular. Moreover, the crowd is less so you won't feel the rush. There are many cafes nearby where you can have snacks, or plan for dinner altogether. We went to the well known German Bakery and Little Buddha Cafe. Both met our expectations well, especially the view from Little Buddha Cafe is superb.

After rafting, we had to head back to Haridwar to witness the Ganga aarti. This time, we took a different route. This is a less-traveled road that goes parallel to the Chilla Canal providing a better view than the usual traffic. The gate after Bhimgoda barrage was closed for the general public, so we had to opt for the Ganga bridge ahead to enter Haridwar.

We were just in time for the Ganga aarti, which started around 5:40 PM as the Sun was setting. Even in January, there was so much crowd, no wonder people can't catch a single glimpse of the aarti in peak season. We found a lucky spot with a direct view of the aarti just in front of the temple. We stayed there for some more time after aarti as the crowd had dispersed within minutes. Some of us even took bath at the ghat.

Tip: If you want to carry Gangajal for home, better fill it from Rishikesh. Water in Haridwar may not be so clean as people take baths across the entire ghat.

Dehradun was supposed to just have a "via" entry in our travel plan, but we took some time to visit Sahasradhara. Though not one of the top places in Dehradun, it was just a casual spot we added on our way. It is famous for its sulphur water springs with great medicinal properties. The springs are near Lord Shiva temple, reachable via ropeway (opens mostly in peak season). People come here to take bath for curing a variety of skin ailments and you can see enough arrangements for the same across the stream (no need to go till springs for the bath). We reached here at 10 AM but didn't stay for a long time.

After this refreshing break, we started for Mussoorie visiting the iconic spots as they came by. We stopped for tea at Mussoorie lake as it was on the way. The tea was good but the lake was a big disappointment. It's not even as big as an Olympic swimming pool. There are lots of Maggi points as you climb up the hills, I would recommend them for having a break as most of them are near some viewpoint.

We went directly to Cloud's End from here, which is a scenic spot known mostly for the pleasantly cold atmosphere. Depending on the weather, you might witness the green valley below or layers of clouds floating just beneath the viewpoint. Similar to its name, the road also ends here (for people at least, it is a fenced private property thereafter). We reached here around 1:30 PM and spent some time enjoying the view (actually the weather).

Back from here, we started for Lal Tibba scenic point, which is the best place in Mussoorie in my opinion. Mall Road of Mussoorie was covered in light snow. Having low tyre pressure should be enough for most vehicles to pass without much issue. (Of course, you need good clutch control in case the car gets stuck at any point). This was the first point in our trip where the temperature went below freezing point. It was -3º C when we reached, which was around 3 PM. There is a big eating joint here where you can have lunch. Its roof is itself a viewpoint from where you can enjoy the view while having food (you don't need to buy food just to go on top though).

After having a heavy lunch, we headed off from here to our stay at the Kempty Falls Resort near Kempty Falls. The roads inside Mussoorie are narrow in some places with sudden steep corners, so you should be comfortable in manoeuvring your car front and back on steep slopes with no rollback, or max few inches. We saw a Mercedes getting its rear bumper completely torn (watching that was painful), but again it's not about the car it's the driver's skill that matters. Around 6 PM, we reached the hotel and immediately got into the blankets. It was raining lightly at that time which continued for more than 2 hours creating a magical atmosphere. The downside of that was that we had to cancel the bonfire which the hotel staff was ready to set up if the rains stopped.

Tip: Google map shows two locations, one spelled Dhanaulti and one spelled Dhanolti. For all navigation purposes, use "Dhanolti". The other one will take you to the opposite side.

By 10:30, we reached Dhanaulti which was full of snow all around. We got to know from the people who had stayed the night here that there was good snowfall during the night. We could see people enjoying on the sides of roads which had ankle to shin-deep snow at some places. The whole Dhanaulti to Kanatal stretch was like this. Just after crossing Kanatal, we saw that BSF had stopped all traffic coming from New Tehri towards Dhanaulti/Mussoorie due to last night's snowfall. I guess we were among the first few ones to reach from Mussoorie, they released the traffic after confirming with us that the roads till Mussoorie were in driving condition. After Kanatal, the roads were snow-free again but fog persisted.

Next on our list was Tehri Dam, the highest dam of India built on the Bhagirathi river (one of the two headstreams of Ganga). After all the snowy breaks, blockages, stoppages, etc. we reached Tehri Dam around 1:15 PM. To be honest, we were astonished seeing the serenity of the place. The combination of calm, teal water, the vast expanse, the cleanliness in the area, the silence, the mountains, the clouds, and the tall trees was just perfect. If we had not gone to Auli the next day, this would be the most memorable place on the trip. Roads are built parallel to the reservoir so you can enjoy driving next to this beauty.

Tip: Photography/videography at the dam and nearby constructions is strictly prohibited. You will find cameras and BSF guards everywhere near the dam. Even if you are crossing over the dam (not required, you can cross from Zero Bridge also), you cannot stop between the gates. Enjoy the place following all the regulations.

From here onwards, we just had to reach Rudraprayag enjoying the scenery as and when they came by. Many areas had signs of recent landslides, and some repair work was also going on which slowed us down a bit. By 4 PM, we were crossing Srinagar (the one in Uttarakhand). For the remaining stretch, the road goes parallel to the Alaknanda river (the other headstream of Ganga), and we could see thin sheets of ice had formed in patches. Near Bagwan Laga Chaupda, there is an open beach (by the name Open Beach) where you can climb down and go to the river. Devimanda was another scenic spot just 10 km before we enter Rudraprayag.

The route till Joshimath is the continuation of the same highway going parallel to Alaknanda till Joshimath. The 3rd prayag Karnaprayag (where Pindar joins Alaknanda) and the 2nd one Nandaprayag (where Nandakini joins Alaknanda) are the major places on the way before reaching Chamoli, the largest district of Uttarakhand. There were multiple places on the route where landslides had happened in the last few days, so repair work was going on.

As we went further ahead, we stopped by near Pipalkoti for some pics. A line of red trees caught our attention and there was a viewpoint too nearby. A random stop at its best.

As you start nearing Joshimath, patches of snow start appearing. A very common sight in Joshimath is the transition of mountains from green/brown/yellow to white. It is at the appropriate height after which snowfall becomes a routine for the people residing there. We reached Joshimath around 2 PM and went straight to the hotel for a little rest.

Even if roads are open, I would recommend using the cable car because with your vehicle, you will miss the aerial view, which amplifies the appeal of the place. Through the ropeway, we crossed over several houses where people were on their roof clearing out snow from last night. I guess that's a part of their daily chores. Then there was a thick layer of clouds and when we emerged out of it, there was a large forest, more white than green, but extremely attractive. The skies were clear after that and we could find only snow-white peaks till wherever we could see. Then came the ski slopes where several people were practicing, and after a few mins, we landed finally.

We climbed on the cable car again at 2:30 PM for the return journey. Now, we had to bid goodbye to the snow and leave for Karnaprayag. We could have stayed in Joshimath itself but since the next destination was far, we wanted to cover a part of the stretch. And there are seriously no more pics that we took on that day. Not sure if we were still in awe of Auli's beauty and everything else seemed dull, or if it was because we were going down the same route as yesterday. By the time we reached Karnaprayag it was already late, so we just went to the hotel and slept.

We started this day by spending some time at Karnaprayag. The morning sunshine was very satisfying after yesterday's icy treat. We were facing some issues with the door lock also, which we tried to get fixed in Karnaprayag, but couldn't. Around 12:30 PM, we left from here for our next stop, Kausani. The reason we left a little late was to reach Kausani around sunset because that's the appeal of the place.

We reached Kausani a little before sunset. We stopped at a point where there was a good wide view of Trisul peaks and surrounding mountains. We had to go some 50m inside a thin pine forest to get a clear view without the trees. We waited here for some time to get a better view of the sunset. After some time when we had got some good snaps, we left for Almora.

It was already night by the time we reached Almora. There was some issue between Oyo and the local hotel owners, so our booking got canceled and we had to look for an alternative. Hotel Shikhar, one of the oldest hotels in Almora, was the only one that was open till that time so we opted for the same and had dinner there itself. The hotel also has a nice view from the balcony.

As our trip was coming to an end, we woke up early as we had to leave for New Delhi. We did not want to delay our journey, as we had to catch our flight back to Bengaluru. Before leaving, we watched the beautiful sunrise amidst the hills, had breakfast, and left.

Since the way was long, we did not plan for any visits in between. Nainital was the one spot that fell on the way so we took a couple of shots. After Nainital, the highway was 6 lane and there was nothing much left to do except . . . drive.