Perfect Weekend Getaways in Uttarakhand

If you’re looking for a weekend getaway from Delhi on a budget, nothing can beat the famous Uttarakhand trail. Depending upon the number of days in hand choose from Haridwar, Rishikesh, Dehradun and Mussoorie, and get going! You’ll surely come back rejuvenated, like I did.

Our drive started at 4.30 am on a foggy, ‘almost winter’ morning. We stopped in Meerut for the love of the famous elaichi and adrak wali chai that my Meerut wali buaji makes.

An hour later, we were back on the road to Haridwar, an offbeat holiday destination. All you need here is a comfortable home stay close to the Ganga River, where you can soak in the weather and the quietness of the place. Also, it helps to be travelling in a group, like I was. It’s always fun.  We decided not to stay overnight in Haridwar. Our plan was to catch some water play at Hanuman Ghat, our favourite amongst the many ghats here. The other reason for it being our favourite was its proximity to Pandit Ji’s, where you get awesome kachoris with masala chai.

By the time we were done feasting, it was time for the evening aarti at Har ki Pauri. Needless to say, it was beautiful. It’s an experience to see million illuminated prayer diyas placed on lotus leaves floating in the dark waters under a dusky sky with the hum of holy chants in the background.

Later in the evening, we headed on a 25 kms drive to Rishikesh – our destination for the night.

Rishikesh wakes up early and so did we. At 6 a.m. on a Sunday morning, we got ready and were all set to go river rafting at Shivpuri, the starting point of an exciting expedition. One can also choose to camp here. Though we never have, the campsites on the riverbank looked like a lot of fun. What’s more exciting is, besides the usual rafting, one can also enjoy kayaking, trekking, rock climbing, abseiling, volleyball, trampoline jumping, mountain biking and nature walks in the area.

All geared up, we headed to our raft. This time we chose the 17 km stretch, which offers the scariest of rapids like the Roller Coaster, Golf Course, Club House, Initiation, Double Trouble and Hilton. Every time a rapid came, the guide instructed us on how to carve our way through it. ‘Fauward Fauward’ (forward), he’d command and all of us would put all our energies in to rowing the raft ahead. It surely was fun. We managed to cross them all without a flip to reach the cliff jumping spot, which was about 30 to 40 ft above the water’s surface. There was a horde of people lined back to back and the instructor was practically throwing people down to manage the crowd and save on  time. I was pushed, too, and for a fraction of a second, I thought I was dead! But I popped out of the water - alive and victorious.

When all of us had our chance at it, we got back on the raft and rowed our way back to Rishikesh. We changed our clothes, hogged on samosas at a nearby dhaba and started for Dehradun at noon.

Dehradun is about 43 kms from Rishikesh and the roads get better that side. The distance is coverable in an hour if you drive without a halt. We rolled down your car windows to enjoy the breeze and scenery. On reaching Dehradun, we headed straight to Sahastradhara. It is a lovely waterfall, with a depth of nine meters. The mere sight of the sloshing waters here fills one’s spirit with an enlivening energy. There are a number of good restaurants and budget hotels around if you’re interested staying in the area.

This town welcomes you for a leisurely stroll almost any time of the day. Enjoying one such walk, I happened to reach the Tibetan Market and checked out some handicrafts, jewellery and ornaments and relished delicious steam momos. Besides the weather, if there’s one thing that attracts me to Dehradun every year, it’s the food. You can enjoy unbeatable parantha and lassi among other traditional dishes at awesome prices and most of these dhabas are lined on Rajpur Road itself.

Early Monday morning and it was time to head back to Delhi. Only if we had one more day, we surely wouldn’t have missed driving up to Mussoorie. But there’s always next time!