Exploring Nainital and Beyond, the Adventurous Way (Part 1)

Some of the best trips of my life have happened when I was between jobs.

From spending 3 months in the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia to taking quick, worry-free trips to Kasol to taking this one, that I'll talk about here - 9 days in Nainital and beyond.

I have to be honest. Before I actually made this trip, I saw Nainital as nothing but a tourist trap, hordes of people scattered all over the valley and lake, never allowing you a minute's peace. Me being a peace lover to the core, was always quite wary of this place. But when a 9 day break opportunity presented itself during my notice period in one of the companies I had worked for, I thought it best to make the most of this time with a multi-city vacation.

So with lots of hopes and dreams in my eyes, I sat in the cab in the morning from home to the NDLS Railway station, worrying whether I will make the 6 am Kathgodam Shatabdi train, all the while scolding the driver who took the wrong turn, but later realising, with remorse, he was just doing his best to get me to the station. Like Kajol's Simran from DDLJ, clad in white Chikan suit with waving dupatta, I ran frantically at the platform, determined to board the train and caught the attention of some TTs standing near the train. Mine was an aisle seat and upon one single request from the TT, I was rewarded with a smile and seat change to the window one. I feel femininity is revered everywhere and it reminds me of a line from Premchand - No man can deny the gentle request by a woman made with softness in voice and kindness in heart. or something like this.. :)

So the trip was off to a great start. Enjoying the views on the way, I cherished the good food of Indian Railways and in no time (5 hours) reached the Kathgodam railway station. A 300 rupee shared cab drive got me to the market square at Nainital, where I hopped on a chauffeured scooty that took me to my hotel - Whispering Oaks. Reaching this property was not very tough, the views from my tent room gave panoramic views of Naini Lake, and since it was nestled on a hill, the lush greens surrounding my 'cottage'. I was hungry by now and ordered Malaai Paneer with Roti, which was both sumptuous and heavy.

Still wearing the same salwar suit in the chilly air of Nainital, I decided to make my way to the Snow View Point, famous for its panoramic views of snow-capped Himalayas. The good-old Scooty rider came to the rescue again as I did not want to waste the rest of the day walking at the Mall road. The Scooty kid arrived in no time and took me to the Snow VIew Point via the road covered with pine trees and beautiful vistas of the valley. The temperature drop was giving me goosebumps, but so was the adventure of this bumpy ride to the top. When I reached the view point, it was a far cry from what I had imagined it to be. A small house with a terrace view looking out to the Himalayas was what I saw at the much hyped Snow View Point. But as I sat there, staring at the distant Himalayan range, I do have to admit I was mesmerised for a moment.

But the best part was yet to come, while I was sipping my tea, and overhearing the raucous conversation of a bunch of teenagers sitting nearby, the Tea stall Owner quietly came to me and asked me if I wanted to see a deer baby? Yesss, I almost jumped out of the chair and then was directed to the alley behind this house where the wilderness began. A beautiful spotty dear, innocently grazing on the grass, with birds making mellifluous sounds. It was the bliss of wilderness, experienced from the edge of civilization. How I longed to climb down the meadow and hug the little fellow. Adorable :)

I had asked the scooty boy to return to the city as I wanted to walk my way back and it was a great decision. With the now mild sun, almost preparing to set behind the beautiful CamelBack mountain, I walked for an hour, witnessing the sunset hour's beauty, rescuing myself from the monkeys and unknowingly ignoring the plea for a chat from Pahadi women who were standing nearby, only to be reminded by them in a later rendezvous how they kept calling on me earlier when I had my earphones on and I was lost in some Taylor Swift song. It was astonishing to hear compliments on beauty from them as I thought Pahadi women were the prettiest themselves, even in the dusk of their lives.

As I walked a little further, asking for directions to the hotel, I found myself at the entry point to Whispering Oaks, which was quite a surprise as I was weary from the day and just wanted to retire for the day. The Caretaker at the hotel set up the bonfire for the single me and I enjoyed the solitude of the twilight hour with some French fries and loads of memories from the day.

Although the night's sleep was briefly disturbed by the telephonic scuffle of lovers (the caretaker was dealing with his girlfriend's commitment issues), the exertion from the day drifted me to sweet sleep within a few minutes.

Next day brought some culinary desires to the fore. I often end up traveling on an empty stomach to avoid nausea, but once in, I truly reward myself. So that's what I did, walked into a nice dhaba for scrumptious Chhole Bhature and awesome ginger tea, my favourite beverage since childhood. with a belly full of satisfaction, I made my way towards the hiking point to Tiffin Top. But on my way, I was blatantly and wrongfully discouraged from taking the trek alone as Leopard attacks are common, they attack when you're trekking alone, it's a steep trek, I won't be able to do it.

Blah Blah Blah...! Liar Liar, bum on fire. :)

With a mixed bag of fear and determination in my heart, I began my trek. The roads were elevated to a steep 45 degrees which did make the initial hike difficult but after some time while trying to control my breathing, I managed to find ground and continued this 90 minute arduous trek to some of the best views of Nainital. The famous Dorothy seat gave gorgeous vistas of the lake and nearby mountains.

While waiting for my photo-op, I met Mayank, a gypsy with a guitar who played Passengers' Let her Go for me and strung up fond memories of Ben, who once painfully made this song our relationship anthem. Acoustic guitar is always soulful and with such grand views, I just wanted to get lost in the beauty.

After enjoying another yum cup of tea and frolicking in the presence of horses, petting them and having my pics clicked with them, I inquired again, for my peace of mind, whether a leopard attack in imminent, It wasn't and so I troddled my way back with nothing but pure joy in my heart, listening to Billie Eilish's 'Everything I Wanted'.

So I reached the Nainital Mall Road. I was too tired to take up any traveling project for the rest of the day so I decided to enjoy some Gajar ka Halwa for lunch, followed by a beautiful and soulful twilight-hour boat ride at Naini Lake.

Time stood by when the blues of the evening mist began surrounding the lake, making everything surreal and bittersweet. You need the warmth of man's arms around you in such beautiful moments. Suddenly, the melancholy of loneliness started enveloping me, making me crave interaction with someone, anyone. But when you decide to travel solo as a woman in India, you must, at all times, have your guards up. You never know, a simple smile to a stranger might just cost you too much, especially in the dark of the night.

It was now freezing cold and I was unable to bear it despite another cup of my favourite tea. So I picked up a beautiful pink shawl to keep me warm on the way up to my hotel. Walking up, panting, fearing the unknown, I somehow made my way back just in time to enjoy the now lit up views of Nainital at night. It is hard to describe how I felt in that moment, standing in the middle of the forest, witnessing one of the most beautiful night skies and listening to Barbie's What was I made for?

Very few things match the solitude of such moments. Upon reaching the hotel, I decided to skip dinner and went to sleep straight away for the next morning was about to unravel more adventures.

I sometimes feel like giving myself a pat on the back at how proficient I have become in doing my makeup in any circumstances whatsoever. Even if the circumstances involve a poorly lit tent with no place to keep brushes and foundation and lipsticks. Urghh. But While the end result was such that even my Makeup artist friend complimented me, the general start to the day became very bright.

It was such a bright and sunny early morning.

I was not in the mood to sit for my breakfast so I decided to pick a cup of kulhad chai from a roadside tea stall with bun butter and started roaming around the lakeside, asking for directions to the base of Naina Peak. I am not one to waste an opportunity to enjoy the gorgeous views by compartmentalizing me inside a car, so I went for a bike ride up to the mountain base, and what a ride it was. Just 200 rupees from the smile-face Abhishek set the route for a rocky terrain with lots of twists and turns, but I wasn't one to complain, instead I enjoyed making slow motion videos of wind in my hair with beautiful valley views in the backdrop.

In no time again, I was standing at the base of Naina Peak. After paying 50 rupee entry fees and hearing a word of caution from the ticket collector, I carefully made my way up. Leopards usually come out at night but if they spot a single traveler, they do attack sometimes. I had just spent 10 minutes on my trek and I already started getting paranoid by the sudden sounds of leaves or usual ambience of wilderness that I always crave for, but was understandably scared of, given the circumstances. But with every step taken, I was a more confident woman.

Sometime ahead on this trek, I saw a mountain deer in full flight jumping over me towards the gorge. My heart stopped for a moment, thinking it was a leopard but within seconds, I found myself fortunate enough to have witnessed such a beautiful creature prancing around. Soon I could spot traces of civilization, the forest officer's house, giving me a sigh of relief.

I had done it, I had made it to the top and the views were so rewarding. A bird's eye view of Nainital, Pangot and surrounding Himalayan ranges. Such beautiful views, etched in my heart. The trek was so arduous, a mere 30 minutes of nature's admiration didn't suffice so I ventured to the other side of the Naina peak view, the much less explored side with views of Pangot and dense forests. I found a spot there to sit for 10 minutes while inhaling the fresh mountain air. On my way back,

I saw the weather changing to the perfect overcast that I love so much. The dense forests made denser with the sudden vanishing of sunlight. SInce I was the first one to trek the peak that day, I met a lot of fellow trekkers on my way back and also got a frantic call from the HR of the new office, who, after watching all my travel statuses on whatsapp began freaking out whether I am joining the organisation or not since I was vacationing in my notice period. I assured her I was and gave my mother a quick call before reaching the base. I called the now trustworthy Abhishek, Bike rider, to take me back to the hotel and as he did, I said my goodbye to Nainital before heading to greener pastures of Bhimtal and Pangot. As bike rides are always a preferable mode of commute for me, especially in the mountains, I asked Abhishek to drop me to my next accomodation in Bhimtal. He promptly agreed and with a heavy bag in my lap, I set out to the beautiful town of Bhimtal where more adventures awaited me.

Part 2 Cming Soon