Dhanaulti: Mountains, water, snow — all at one destination
If you are looking
for a weekend getaway from Delhi, then Dhanaulti in Uttarakhand is a beautiful
place to explore. It takes around seven hours from the national capital by
road. I share my beautiful winter experience in the snow-clad and trust me it
is worth to give it a try.
Last winter, we had
read in newspapers that there was snowfall in many places in Uttarakhand and to
feel the chill, we chose Dhanaulti this time. We started at 7 on a Friday morning
and after 3-4 hours, we were already crossing Dehradun, situated on the
foothills. As the hilly terrain started and the climb towards Mussoorie began, we
could already feel the temperature going down. I was prepared for it and took
out a thin blanket. I and my sonny were sitting cosily at the back seat of the
car. My husband, who was in the front seat chatting with the driver so that he
doesn’t fall asleep, gave us an envious look.
As we rode up the
hills, the view was getting beautiful, unlike the polluted city that we live
in. After some time, we crossed the turning towards Mussoorie and we remembered
our trip to the Queen of Hills, as it is called, a few years ago.
By then, we could
have a glimpse of the snow-capped Himalayas. The road was narrow at places but
there were no dearth of daredevils on bikes not paying any heed to signboards that
said, ‘speed kills’. The sun was going down slowly and fog was descending at
places. After some time, we could see remains of snow at many places as there
was snowfall a week ago. At some places,
there was a white carpet of snow covering rooftops of resorts, gardens, trees
and the view was breath-taking.
Finally, we reached
our pre-booked resort at around 3 pm. The view was amazing and we were indeed nearer
to the mountains. The white mountains behind the green ones were clearer and
seemed just a walk away. Our room was huge with French windows on one side
facing the mountains. We had a quick snack as we already had lunch on the way and
went to explore the neighbourhood. It was a small town with tourists all
around. The centre of the town had a small market. The famed eco parks were just
at a walking distance. There was no dearth of hotels, resorts, home stays of
all budgets— so in case we hadn’t booked our resort, it wouldn’t have been a
problem finding another.
How many days needed
for Dhanaulti trip?
Two to three days are
enough. You can plan it on weekends. You just have to take leave on Friday or
Monday.
Must-visit places
The first thing we had were roast maize (bhuttas) and then ice-cream. It’s a different experience to have ice-cream in such a cold weather. We saw the Eco Park gate and decided to explore. You need a ticket to enter, which is available on the spot. There were lot of adventure activities for all ages. My son tried flying fox and we enjoyed the sunset.
After some time, we
came on the road again and some locals approached us to enjoy a horse ride till
the Snow Point. We agreed instantly and the next moment, we were on the
hilly terrain surrounded by trees. When we reached the snow point, it seemed as
if we reached a valley covered with snow and our photo sessions began.
On Saturday, we
started for the Tehri dam, which is a must-visit for tourists. It took
around one hour to reach the dam and, believe me, the view was no less than an
exotic foreign locale. The blue water was a sight for the eyes. We immediately booked a motor boat and went
for a ride. I couldn’t stop myself from taking a ride on a water scooter. My
husband was not a daredevil like me and he was happy shooting me.
On Sunday, we woke up
early to have a view of the beautiful sunny morning, had a delicious breakfast of
aloo parathas with hot steaming tea and started for Delhi.
How to reach
Dhanaulti
You can hire a taxi
or take your own car. It takes around six to seven hours, depending on the
traffic.
Dhanaulti can be
reached via buses from Dehradun, Rishikesh, Mussoorie and Nainital. There are
buses from the Inter State Bus Terminus (ISBT) at Kashmere Gate, in Delhi.
The nearest railway
station is Dehradun. One can take the Doon Express, the Sangam Express Slip,
the Mussoorie Express, and the Delhi to Dehradun Shatabdi and Jan Shatabdi to
reach Dehradun.
The nearest airport
is the Jolly Grant Airport, in Dehradun. It is located at a distance of 86
kilometres from the town.
If you are a biking
enthusiast, you can opt for a circular, week-long tour of Dehradun, Mussoorie, Dhanaulti,
Kanatal, Chamba, Tehri, Rishikesh, Haridwar or vice-versa.
Watch the video:
While in Dhanaulti you can also explore:
*Deogarh Fort
*Surkanda Devi Temple
*Potato Farm
*Dashavatar Temple
*There are several adventure camps, you can look for
one
#dhanaulti, #uttarakhand, #Tehridam, #mussoorie, #dehradun, #kanatal, #chamba, #rishikesh, #haridwar
