Munsiyari in Spring : A Rhododendron Delight

Delightful spring season in Munsiyari. Day hike / trek to Khaliya Top and walking through a dense forest of rhododendron blooms in pink and red. Clear view of the Panchachuli Peaks is the icing on the cake!

Life in Kasar Devi

Experience of living in Kasar Devi, when we are renting a cottage here in the jungle and the descriptions of work and experiences of nature.

Four Days in Sitlakhet, Kumaon

Spending 4 days exploring offbeat Sitlakhet at Nayalap in Kumaon. Walks and treks Syahi Devi Temple. Ranikhet Cantt. and heritage walk in Ranikhet. Kumaoni Food.

The Charms of Ranikhet : A Handy Travel Guide

It had been an uncharacteristically indecisive day on the road. I was somewhere in the middle of my long summer in Kumaon and had randomly landed in Ranikhet. After wandering to an ancient temple and water source in Someshwar, I’d hopped into a shared taxi to Ranikhet with no plan at all. It was that…

Alternative Living in Kasar Devi, Almora

In hindsight, I can say it must have been a fortuitous moment when I revisited Kasar Devi near Almora. It was the long Holi weekend in March 2018 and the trip had began with great difficulty from Delhi. It is a well known fact that migrating workers from across India go back home for celebrating…

Jageshwar Dham Temple in Uttarakhand

While returning from remote Jhaltola, we had taken a short break at the unbelievable Patal Bhuvaneshwar caves. I was on a hitched ride with a couple and at the start of the day could never have imagined making it to Jageshwar! They were going to Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary via a different entry point and dropped…

Bhimtal, Sattal, Naukuchiatal : Lakes of Kumaon

It was the summer of 2015 and I was in Kumaon’s Lake region where Bhimtal, Sattal, Naukuchiatal lake are located. These pretty lakes all lie in close distance of each other and make for a welcome change from Nainital’s crowds. I’d arrived in Bhimtal after taking a ride from Almora and over the course of…

Slow Travel in Kausani, Uttarakhand

It was the epic year of 2015 and I was still without a permanent home. I’d started exploring Kumaon in the summer beginning my journey from Nainital and was slow travelling in this region as far as Munsyari. I had no fixed plan and reached Kausani after coming back from the Milam Glacier Trek. Kausani…

Attending a Kumaoni Wedding in Kumaon

After a monumental day that began in Kasar Devi, with not-so-pleasant visits to Nainital & Haldwani that somehow ended in Bageshwar, things could only get better from here. After all, when you are down in the dumps the only way is up! And I was going to get lucky in the end; there was a…

Failures on the Road : Running in circles, in Kumaon

It was a difficult time. I was battling my inner demons with regards to travel in the state of Uttarakhand. After a narrow escape with disaster in Garhwal that happened in the month of February/March 2015, I did not have the heart to be on the road for a month or two. And when I finally…