Delhi is extremely hot and I am always on the lookout for an escape. So when my colleague said that she was planning to go to Munsiyari for two weeks and was I interested, I jumped at the opportunity. The only problem was that I could spare just 5 days. On 20th of this month, Nanku Ram, the gardener, went on his annual leave, which meant that I had to get back to Delhi by 20th to take care of the garden. Five days is better than none was my philosophy when I accepted her offer.
The cheaper way to get to Munsiyari from Delhi is to take the train to Kathgodam. From Kathgodam, you get jeeps going up to Munsiyari. However, given the time constraints and the fact that train tickets were not available, we decided to drive up there. Fortunately, my maid's husband is a good driver (that is to say my parents trust him) and he has a car.
We left Delhi on 15th around 4.30 am and promptly got stuck in Ghaziabad/Sahibabad area. I got a nice view of the apartment complexes being built around this area. I do not know who likes to have addresses as VVIP Address Towers but yes, one of the apartment complex is named as VVIP Addresses.
Once we got onto National Highway, the ride was smooth till we hit Rampur. From Rampur to Rudrapur, the road is horrible and filled with potholes. From Rudrapur onwards, the roads improved and we very much enjoyed the drive. The best thing was we could tell Rajinder, our driver, to stop because we wanted to take a picture of the view or to take a closer look at the bird. The other important thing, from my perspective, was that Rajinder drove slowly so that I did not get nauseous.
We stopped at Jageshwar at a resort that belonged to my colleague's friend who is a tour operator. The resort, Van Serai, was awesome. The rooms were comfortable and completely insulated so that we did not feel the cold seeping through the walls as it happens in Delhi. Next morning, we went around Jageshwar. The place is famous for its temples which are under ASI protection though puja is performed. The main deity is Shiva in the form of Jageshwar and Mritunjaya. These temples are believed to have been built in 12-13th century and are grouped together in one complex.
We left Jageshwar around 8.30 am and started our journey towards Munsiyari.
As we reached DhaulChinna we realized that we might not have enough petrol to get back. At the next stop, Sheraghat, we enquired about petrol and were told nothing is available. We started panicking but a helpful hitchhiker told us that we will get it at the next stop- Berinag. We did not believe him but when we reached Berinag and saw a Maruti outlet, we knew we would get petrol. Which we did both at Berinag and at the next stop-Thal.
The immediate worry over, we sat back to enjoy the remaining drive. Now we could see the snow-capped peaks. We could also hear the blue whistling thrush, and see the Himalayan Bulbul along with the red-capped bulbul.
And a rainbow:
Munsiyari is at 2250 meters above the sea level and the road winds through the mountains. Truthfully, my heart hit the shoes every time we went around the bend which was every few seconds. This is not a road to be ventured on after dusk.
From Munsiyari we could see the Panchchauli peaks beyond which is the Tibet border. In the morning, when I woke up, I pulled aside the curtain to take a peak. We were lucky. It was one of those perfect days, cloudless, and we drank the sight of those mountains.
At Munsiyari, we stayed with a family who does Home Stay. The room allotted to us was comfortable and again well-insulated with all the facilities.
The next day, 17th, a mela had been organized and we climbed up the mountain to reach the venue. The mela was fun, and who knew that the Kumoani men play bagpipes?
My colleague and I were able to do a little bit of bird-watching. We had planned to put in an entire day, 18th, of bird watching but the weather played spoil sport. We woke to the sound of rains and foolishly having left the shoes outside faced wet shoes and socks. The rain did stop but the clouds were there throughout putting nix to our plans. The snowy peaks disappeared as though they had been nothing but a mirage.
Coming back I stopped at Chaukori, about 4 hours drive from Munsiyari, famous for its tea gardens.
And then it was a non-stop drive back to Delhi and the heat.
The cheaper way to get to Munsiyari from Delhi is to take the train to Kathgodam. From Kathgodam, you get jeeps going up to Munsiyari. However, given the time constraints and the fact that train tickets were not available, we decided to drive up there. Fortunately, my maid's husband is a good driver (that is to say my parents trust him) and he has a car.
We left Delhi on 15th around 4.30 am and promptly got stuck in Ghaziabad/Sahibabad area. I got a nice view of the apartment complexes being built around this area. I do not know who likes to have addresses as VVIP Address Towers but yes, one of the apartment complex is named as VVIP Addresses.
Once we got onto National Highway, the ride was smooth till we hit Rampur. From Rampur to Rudrapur, the road is horrible and filled with potholes. From Rudrapur onwards, the roads improved and we very much enjoyed the drive. The best thing was we could tell Rajinder, our driver, to stop because we wanted to take a picture of the view or to take a closer look at the bird. The other important thing, from my perspective, was that Rajinder drove slowly so that I did not get nauseous.
We stopped at Jageshwar at a resort that belonged to my colleague's friend who is a tour operator. The resort, Van Serai, was awesome. The rooms were comfortable and completely insulated so that we did not feel the cold seeping through the walls as it happens in Delhi. Next morning, we went around Jageshwar. The place is famous for its temples which are under ASI protection though puja is performed. The main deity is Shiva in the form of Jageshwar and Mritunjaya. These temples are believed to have been built in 12-13th century and are grouped together in one complex.
We left Jageshwar around 8.30 am and started our journey towards Munsiyari.
As we reached DhaulChinna we realized that we might not have enough petrol to get back. At the next stop, Sheraghat, we enquired about petrol and were told nothing is available. We started panicking but a helpful hitchhiker told us that we will get it at the next stop- Berinag. We did not believe him but when we reached Berinag and saw a Maruti outlet, we knew we would get petrol. Which we did both at Berinag and at the next stop-Thal.
The immediate worry over, we sat back to enjoy the remaining drive. Now we could see the snow-capped peaks. We could also hear the blue whistling thrush, and see the Himalayan Bulbul along with the red-capped bulbul.
Munsiyari is at 2250 meters above the sea level and the road winds through the mountains. Truthfully, my heart hit the shoes every time we went around the bend which was every few seconds. This is not a road to be ventured on after dusk.
From Munsiyari we could see the Panchchauli peaks beyond which is the Tibet border. In the morning, when I woke up, I pulled aside the curtain to take a peak. We were lucky. It was one of those perfect days, cloudless, and we drank the sight of those mountains.
At Munsiyari, we stayed with a family who does Home Stay. The room allotted to us was comfortable and again well-insulated with all the facilities.
The next day, 17th, a mela had been organized and we climbed up the mountain to reach the venue. The mela was fun, and who knew that the Kumoani men play bagpipes?
My colleague and I were able to do a little bit of bird-watching. We had planned to put in an entire day, 18th, of bird watching but the weather played spoil sport. We woke to the sound of rains and foolishly having left the shoes outside faced wet shoes and socks. The rain did stop but the clouds were there throughout putting nix to our plans. The snowy peaks disappeared as though they had been nothing but a mirage.
Coming back I stopped at Chaukori, about 4 hours drive from Munsiyari, famous for its tea gardens.
And then it was a non-stop drive back to Delhi and the heat.
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