Gangotri:
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Couched in the magnificent Garhwal hills, Gangotri is at an altitude of 3048 meters above sea level. Gangotri is situated in the northernmost part of the state of Uttaranchal and is very near the Indo-Tibetan border. It is approximately 300 km from Dehradun, 250 km from Rishikesh. The most famous site nearby is the Gaumukh (literal meaning, cow's mouth) glacier, which is at an altitude of 4200 meters above sea level. It is the geographical origin of the Ganges and is at a distance of 18 km from Gangotri uphill. The Ganges is called the Bhagirathi here. |
Yamunotri:
| Yamunotri is the origin of the sacred river Yamuna. Famous for its thermal springs and glaciers, it is one of the most important stopovers on the itinerary of the Hindu pilgrim. Perched at an altitude of 3293 meters above sea levesl, Yamunotri is 278 km from Dehradun and 236 km from Rishikesh. The Yamunotri Temple is the major attraction of this site. The temple is dedicated to the river Yamuna, who is represented in the form of a silver idol, bedecked with garlands. According to legend, Yamuna is the sister of Yama, the God of death, and so anyone bathing in the waters of the river is spared a painful death. The glacial lake of Saptarishi Kund, on the Kalind Parbat, nearby at an altitude of 4421 m, is the real source of the Yamuna River.
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Rajaji National Park:
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Though Rajaji has not been notified as a national park, yet it enjoys all the privileges of one. It will soon be getting the status of a national park. 820 sq. kms of beautiful green belt of Shivaliks is occupied by Rajaji National Park. Spreading across the districts of Haridwar, Pauri Garhwal and Dehradun, Rajaji is actually a joining of three sanctuaries, i.e. Rajaji, Motichur and Chilla. In 1983, these three sanctuaries were conglomerated under Rajaji National Park. Though each of them are different yet together they make a great wildlife reserve.
At Chilla is 16 km from Rishikesh. The park (820 sq km) has abundant wildlife and is especially known for its wild elephants. |
Dehradun:
Dehradun, one of the most important towns of the state of Uttar Pradesh, located at an altitude of 700 m, serves as the gateway to Mussoorie. The town lies in the Dun Valley, on the watershed of the Ganga and Yamuna rivers. It derived its name from the camp ( 'Dehra' means camp ) of Ram Rai, the son of Hari Rai, the 7th Sikh guru. Apparently, Ram Rai was not made guru after his father, and consequently, disputed the decision. Defeated, he came to Dun Valley, where he was accorded a warm welcome by the Garhwal Raja. In the latter half of the 17th century, Ram Rai established a gurudwara in the Jhanda Mohalla area, which still draws hordes of devotees.
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Mussoorie:
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Mussoorie is located in the Garhwal hills. Due to its immense natural beauty, Mussoorie is known as the queen of hill stations. In 1820 Captain Young from the British army was influenced by the beauty of this place and made this place his residence. This marked the foundation of a hill station called Mussoorie. The name, Mussoorie, is derived from plants of 'Mussoorie' which were found in abundance here. After its discovery, this hill station gradually developed as a center of education, business, tourism and beauty. |
Nainital:
Set around Nainital Lake, this ever-popular hill station has scenic vistas, beautiful trails for walkers, boating on the Lake and hospitable people. It is said that G. W. Traill, Commissioner of Kumaon and Garhwal, the first European to set eyes on it in 1823, kept the discovery of this scenic spot strictly to himself because he felt that crowds would violate the sanctity of the place.
Nainital is a lake resort set at a height of 1,938 metres in a beautiful wooded valley. Surrounded by seven hills, the sparkling waters of the natural lake make it a gem among hill resorts.
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Rishikesh:
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Located in the northern part of Uttar Pradesh. It is 238 km northeast of Delhi and 24 km north of Haridwar and on the right bank of the Ganges, at its confluence with the Chandrabhaga stream. Rishikesh abounds in temples. Most of the pilgrims who pass through Rishikesh on their way to the Himalayan shrines of the Char Dham pause for a holy dip and puja at Triveni Ghat, in the central part of the town. The river here looks especially spectacular during aarti (evening worship) when diyas or oil lamps float on the water. Nearby is the Bharat Mandir, Rishikesh's oldest temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The Neelkanth Mahadev temple is believed to be the site where Lord Shiva had drunk the venom that came out during the churning of the ocean. In the 1960s, the place came into limelight as the place where the pop group Beatles met their guru, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. |
Corbett National Park:
| Set up in 1936 as India's first national park and possibly the finest, the Corbett National Park was first delimited in consultation with that great hunter and conservationist, Jim Corbett. The park spreads over some 920.9 square km at an altitude of 600 to 1100 metres about the foothills of the western Himalayas in the districts of Nainital and Pauri Garhwal. In its eventful 64-year life, it has grown considerably in size and now includes the Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary as a part of its 1,319 sq km of reserved forest area. Apart from tigers, leopards as well as other cats such as the leopard cat, jungle cat, and fishing cat are also found here. The sloth bear, Himalayan black bear, dhole, jackal, yellow throated marten, Himalayan palm civet, Indian grey mongoose, common otter, porcupine, and black naped hare are the other attractions of this area. It is possible to see elephants all over the park.
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Valley of Flowers:
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In 1931, Frank Smythe, a mountaineer, lost his way and chanced upon this valley with its colorful fairyland of flowers. Entranced, he named it the Valley of Flowers. Ringed in by snowy, cloud bedecked mountain summits standing sharply against the blue sky, the waterfalls flashing white against the mountainsides, nothing is more striking than the valley's absolute bloom of stunning perfection. On what is a lifeless, frozen wasteland of snow for most of the year, a multi-hued, fragrant, six miles long carpet of exotic flowers unrolls itself, from mid-July till the end of August. As far as the eye can see, down the length of the valley, up the lower mountain slopes, there are flowers and flowers, and still more flowers. More than a thousand Himalayan varieties of flowers, ferns and herbs are massed in the valley in all their frail beauty and scented sweetness. The valley with its dazzling assembly of flowers plays host to gorgeous butterflies and dainty flying creatures by day and to millions of glow worms by night. It is a sight that has to be seen to be believed. |
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