Indian Road Journal

Nainital, Ranikhet – A Winter Trip n Travelogue – Part I

I had been to the quaint little hill stations of Kausani,Ranikhet,Almora when I was in my 10th standard with my parents.The serenity of those places left a strong impression to visit Nainital(which we missed during that time), and Ranikhet yet again – this time with my wife. The purpose was simple – relax. And relaxation […]

I had been to the quaint little hill stations of Kausani,Ranikhet,Almora when I was in my 10th
standard with my parents.The serenity of those places left a strong impression to visit Nainital(which
we missed during that time), and Ranikhet yet again – this time with my wife. The purpose was simple –
relax. And relaxation it was – this was one damn good tour which we made.

The Roadside Dhaba where we lunched

Tour Plan
Day 1  : Kolkata – Delhi. Flight. Travel to Nainital that night.
Day 2&3: Soak in Nainital
Day 4  : Travel to Ranikhet.
Day 5  : Ranikhet “walks”
Day 6  : Early morning. Depart from Ranikhet and board train from Ramnagar to Delhi.Train No. 25036.Go pub hopping.
Day 7  : After noon flight, back to the daily grind.

Chevron Fairhavens, Nainital

Scene1:
It was a cool December morning, 5-ish, and we were speeding down the empty stretch to NSCBI Airport
from Lake Gardens in a hired cab.The vacant roads ensured that it took only 25 mins to cover the 30
kms.
Scene2:
NSCBI Airport. Waiting for the spicejet to Delhi.Boarded the 7.20 AM flight.Watched the himalayas from
the window seat.And before it was long we were exiting the Delhi airport where our transport(a Tata
Indica) was waiting for us.
Scene3:
We made a brief halt at a MacD – ordered a burger and cola – packed it and we were right on the
road.Delhi roads, needless to say were great.

Cacti on the hills

Maggi Break

Himalaya between the conifers

The driver saab, Om Prakash was an efficient chap.We stopped at a Dhaba, had lunch and were on the
road again.Thereafter the road condition deteroriated badly and traffic was way too slow. We were
stranded at near Bilaspur due to CRPF recruitments.As the evening waned into the night, the cold was
getting hard at us. Later the Uttarkhand permit was done and we reached Hotel Chevron Fairhavens at
Nainital at 8.30 in the night, where we had booked for our Nainital stay.
The early wake up and good 12 hrs travelling ensured that we were off to sleep immediately after
dinner.

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