Prologue:
I have been a mountain guy for as long as I can remember. There is something about being amidst the giants. The only place where I truly experience peace is when I am in the mountains. I can go on and on endlessly but then I will reserve that for a different piece. It was the month of May when the plains sizzled with heat and heading to the mountains became a natural phenomenon. Though I can head to the mountains any time of the year why let go of an opportunity of beating the heat as well. Being in the Delhi region also helps because getting to the hills is just a matter of a few hours.
The destination:
May and June are the summer vacation months in Delhi NCR so that is when the people rush to the famous hill stations of the north. I avoid going to touristy destinations as the rush is just too much to enjoy anything. With that in mind, I started looking at possible destinations. I had a weekend to spare for this trip. One of the family trips that I did several years back came to my mind and I decided that it would be the perfect destination to go solo this time. The destination that I am referring to is Dhanolti (or Dhanaulti) which is in the state of Uttarakhand. It seemed perfect to me as the distance was not too much and also it would be less crowded.
The plan:
I have a simple mantra while travelling (at least when solo), leave early, take fewer stops and reach the destination early. With that background, the plan was simple i.e., to leave at around 5 AM and reach by early afternoon. By doing that, I will still be able to explore things in the second part of the day. Dhanolti does not have too many places of interest, you can safely term it an offbeat destination. If you like being in quiet places away from crowd, then Dhanolti will surely appeal to you.
Mode of transport:
I have been riding motorcycles (bike for the rest of this blog) for the last 17 years or so (though not actively). But the bug bit me after 2017 when I got my new one, the Yamaha FZ25. It has been by my side ever since and I have done some rides on it. I just love the sense of freedom while on a bike. So, my trusted machine was going to be my companion on this journey.
My luggage:
During my earlier days when I started to travel, I used to carry my house with me and most of the things would return without being used. Now I have turned wiser and travel light. I had recently purchased a tank bag (to be slapped onto the tank of a bike) with a decent amount of storage. So, this will be my only piece of luggage. I was carrying one set of clothes, a light fleece jacket and rain gear. Also in the bag were the electronics and accessories for capturing moments on the trip, including one action camera, mounts and power banks.
The tank bag that I carried is of the brand Guardian Gears. You can read the review here.
Just before the start:
Checked my bag one final time to make sure everything was in place. I had a light dinner and went to bed by 10 PM and set the alarm for 4 AM as the plan was to leave by 5 AM. I do not know about others, but I have never been able to sleep well the night before travel. You can call it anxiety or excitement, whatever the name is but that is what happens every time. This time was no different and I was left awake for most of the night. I would have just caught a wink for about an hour when the alarm rang.
Just for a moment, I was thinking, do I need to do this? The obvious answer was a big “Yes” and I pulled myself out of the bed to get ready. Had a quick shower and a cup of green tea before dressing up to leave. The early mornings are a tad cooler but then getting ready and then hauling the bag, mounting it on the bike made me sweat like anything.
Anyway, the time was 5.15 AM, my tank bag loaded onto the bike, and I was ready to roll.
The ride begins:
The route to be taken as you would have seen from the map above was Faridabad-Noida-Ghaziabad-Meerut-Muzaffarnagar-Saharanpur-Dehradun-Dhanolti. Maps were showing an estimated journey time of around 7.5 hours, but my realistic estimate was 9 -10 hours.
As soon as the bike started to roll, my heart was filled with happiness and within no time early morning cool breeze had blown away all my sweat. It is always a great feeling to be riding and today was no different.
An early morning start also has the benefit of facing negligible traffic and I was soon riding alongside the Agra Canal en route to Noida.
Then came the Okhla barrage with the Yamuna River flowing beneath though it barely resembles it. This route is choc a block during peak hours, so it was a nice experience with minimal vehicles alongside.
Riding through Noida is always a pleasure with probably the best roads in the NCR. Soon I was on the road alongside the Meerut Expressway. Two-wheelers and several other categories of vehicles are not allowed on the expressway, but you can ride on the road which runs in parallel for some time.
Once I left the expressway, the roads became a little bit narrow (6 lanes to 4 lanes) and the traffic also increased. But the progress was decent, and I managed to keep my average speed at a decent level.
All through the ride so far, the sun did not shine, and it remained cloudy. I was accompanied by open fields on both sides of the road and the weather was holding out. I was thinking what else could one ask for while riding. But then while I was just about to reach Muzaffarnagar, the skies opened up suddenly and I was caught unawares. I did not get enough time to put on my rain gear and had to take shelter under a tree to do so.
In about 10 minutes or so, the rain slightly relented and I decided to move on.
The rain finally stopped when I was about to take the diversion towards Saharanpur. I took off my rain gear as it was getting a little bit warm in there.
I stopped just after a toll plaza closer to Saharanpur to take a water break. The time then was around 9.15 AM and I still had roughly 160 km to go to my destination. Though the maps were showing another 4 hrs of ride I knew it wouldn’t be that simple.
After riding for some more time on the highway, I got to a point where there was a diversion towards Dehradun.
The road to Dehradun i.e., till the point where the hills start is butter smooth and is most made of concrete.
I thought that with these kinds of roads I could even beat my estimates and reach early and was really upbeat about it. But then…
The Dehradun debacle:
I quickly hit the lower hills leading up to Dehradun. This was when the signs looked ominous to me. There was a huge rush of vehicles leading up to the city. That was when I realised why the maps were showing the estimated time as such.
By then it was getting a little bit warm as well though there was a partial cloud cover, a bit ironic that I was feeling the heat while getting closer to the mountains. I then made my way into Dehradun and all hell broke loose. There were traffic lights at very close distances and too many bottlenecks, even with the benefit of a two-wheeler I was struggling to get past. To make it even more interesting (read worse), the maps sent me into by lanes of the city and I was STUCK.
I then turned to the traffic cops and asked them for directions who in turn put me on to a different course (shortcut according to them). Luckily, better sense prevailed, and I kept asking for directions frequently (not relying on one source). I was finally on to the Mussoorie road and started the climb. This experience left me bitter, and tired and took away some of my excitement.
The Climb towards Mussoorie:
I stopped for a quick water break just when I started the climb to refresh myself after that tiring experience. After some distance, I again encountered a massive traffic jam. Remember I mentioned summer vacation and the people flocking to the popular hill stations, well Mussoorie is one of them. But this time I was able to bypass all the traffic (perks of being on a two-wheeler). This traffic was till a check post for paying eco tax to enter Mussoorie. I duly paid the tax when my turn came and continued ahead.
The final push to Dhanolti:
Post that tax barrier, there were no major hurdles and the going was smooth. The scenery just kept getting better and the weather more pleasant as I was climbing higher.
I soon reached that intersection where I had to take a right turn towards Dhanolti (left goes towards Mussoorie). The distance left was 30 kms.
From here on the traffic thinned considerably as very few people headed towards Dhanolti. But the progress was slow as the roads also became quite narrow and there were lots of blind turns. The bigger vehicles always try to bully the bikers so had to be extra careful on these narrow roads. There were several small villages en route which were so pretty that one gets an instant feeling of leaving the city life behind and settling down here (only if wishes were horses…).
As I was inching closer to Dhanolti, the weather also started to get colder but then I loved the cool and fresh breeze flowing through my open helmet visor. The roads got a little rough but none of it mattered now. The excitement was back as I got closer. Finally, after riding for almost 10 hours, I was at the entry point of Dhanolti.
The next task was to find a hotel. I mainly travel on a budget while solo so, it was quite a task finding a budget one. Since it was the peak season, no hotel was willing to let out on a budget even if they remained vacant. After scouting the whole town for about 30 minutes, I finally managed to get accommodation which was slightly over my estimated budget.
During the day, I did not stop for food so after riding continuously for 10 hours I was tired and hungry. I enquired from a few locals and headed to a dhaba to satisfy my hunger pangs. I had simple dal, tandoori roti and lemonade.
Eco Park, Dhanolti:
If you strictly talk about places of interest in Dhanolti, then you will be just left with only one i.e., Eco Park. Well, there are two of them, one while entering the town (named Dhara) and the second at the exit (named Amber).
There is an entry fee of Rs.50/- for adults and Rs.25/- for kids from 3-9 yrs. I paid my fee and entered the park. As soon as I entered, I was greeted by lush green flora consisting of tall deodars and lots of medicinal shrubs. Many of the flora inside the park are labelled by the forest department for easy identification by visitors. There is a small Ayurvedic shop inside on the right side as well. For kids alike, there are few paid adventure activities inside. But I was more interested in nature, so I proceeded further. There is a small nature hike that leads you to a clearing at the top. The hike is quite gradual, but it took my breath away ever so slightly (Dhanolti is at an altitude of 2200m).
The walk took me around 20 minutes to reach the topmost point on this trail. It is an open clearing where you can see some fields and since it was a cloudy day, the panoramic views were obscured. I guess it would be magnificent to visit on a clear day to get views of faraway peaks.
I just sat there for about an hour doing nothing, taking in fresh air into my lungs. It was such a peaceful experience.
It was almost 5.30 PM by then and I decided to head back to my room. Before returning to my room, I did one full walk from the entry point of the town to the exit. It takes just 15-20 minutes to cross the town on foot, that is how small the place is (and the reason I came here). There are a lot of hotels that have come up now in the last 8 years or so, but it is still some distance from being fully commercialised.
I returned to my room after this walk and took some rest.
I then decided to have an early dinner, so I headed out again at around 7.30 PM. Although there are many restaurants in Dhanolti, I decided to skip the usual food and have Maggi. The Maggi in the mountains tastes a lot better than what we make in our homes (no logic or reason). I had a vegetable Maggi and a hot cup of tea and retired to my room at around 8.30 PM. Put all my gadgets on charging and lay down to sleep. It was such a satisfying experience lying down in a cosy bed after all the things done during the day. I must have dozed off at around 11. Woke up intermittently and could hear heavy rain all through the night.
Day 2 – Surkanda Devi Temple
The sun was out, and it was a very clear morning after all the rain in the night.
The second thing that one can do while in Dhanolti (other than Eco Park) is to visit the famous temple (at least to the locals) of Surkanda Devi. This temple is roughly 6 km away from Dhanolti and has a steep hike of 3 km.
I woke up at 5.30 AM, switched on the water heater (yes it was cold) and had a nice hot bath. The time was 6.30 AM, and I was ready to leave. I quickly checked out and mounted my tank bag on the bike and started exactly at 7 AM. The distance of 6 Km was covered in around 15 minutes. The village/town from where the hike starts is known as Kaddukhal. There are a few shops there mainly selling prasad for devotees visiting the temple. I parked my bike and started my hike.
A few of the locals whom I was chatting with earlier told me that the hike is very steep and could take more than an hour. It seems to be a foregone conclusion (somewhat true as well) that people living in cities are unfit. The hike was indeed steep, and I was out of breath as I started the climb. I loosened up my fleece jacket a bit which helped me breathe and was better after that.
There is this cable car facility that started not long back (cost of Rs.177/- per person) and it helps people who find it difficult or who are short on time. However, it starts only after 9 AM. I would any day prefer to hike rather than use any other mode. Earlier mules used to carry people as well but not so sure if they are operational now.
The trail ascends rapidly and in no time, you are quite high up.
I huffed and puffed (not that much, just trying to be dramatic) and was soon at the entry gate of the temple. It took me roughly 45 minutes to reach there (not bad at all).
I had excellent darshan as it was quite early in the morning and not too many brave the steep trail. The feeling is something else visiting a temple and that too at such a height where there is purity in everything.
The views from the top blew my mind (would have been even better on a clear day). I was at an altitude of 2676m and felt like I was on top of the world. If you are in Dhanolti, then I would recommend visiting this temple as well.
I would have stayed there for about 30 minutes and as usual, did not want to leave. But then reality bites and with a heavy heart started walking back down. I reached my bike at around 9.15 AM.
The fail and the return home:
My initial plan was to visit the New Tehri Lake, which was around 30 km from the temple, before returning home. I proceeded as per my plan and after about 20 km I was in the town of Chamba (not the Himachal one) which I found to be quite a big one. From there I started the climb for New Tehri which for some strange reason was just climbing and not descending to the foothill as it should have been if it were a lake. I then reached the town of New Tehri and wondered where the lake was.
I enquired from the locals and found that the lake is further 14 km away downhill. That was when I realised my folly. I had entered the location on the map as New Tehri and it duly took me to the town rather than to the lake. Had I known that the lake was even further, I may not have considered going.
Now, the time was just over 11 AM and 14 km on one side would mean I would not return to the town before 2 PM. I had another 9 hours of ride back home and I always avoid riding in the dark. So, I decided that it would not be worthwhile to just rush to a place just for the sake of it and I started my way back. So yes, that was a big fail.
I retreated my steps and came back to Chamba. From Chamba, there is a direct road to Rishikesh which I jumped onto. The road from Chamba to Rishikesh is in great shape and I would recommend it to anyone going to Mussoorie over the route that crosses Dehradun.
I reached Rishikesh without much effort though it was getting very warm by then. Rishikesh was a mess with the Char Dham yatra at its peak. There was a huge rush with people just sitting in their vehicles and not moving an inch. Thankfully, I was on a bike and cruised past all that. The next problem was Haridwar which competed with Rishikesh for the amount of traffic.
Once I was past Haridwar, it was a dash to my home. The weather was very cruel once I got past Haridwar. I had to take a lot of breaks to hydrate myself. The roads were excellent post then and I safely returned to my concrete jungle at around 5.30 PM.
Epilogue:
One could argue what was the need for such a short journey and that too getting punished on a bike. But then, as I mentioned before, the freedom that one gets while riding a bike cannot be matched (only a bird that flies knows the feeling). And the combination of being on a bike and riding in the fresh air of the mountains, I would take that no matter what my body goes through in the process.
So, that was an account of my short weekend trip to Dhanolti in May. Till the next ride/journey, stay safe and enjoy your life.