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Lansdowne - Walk and simply walk |
The clouds moved in by late afternoon. I looked out of the window, wondering how to spend the rest of the day: go out for a walk or laze around. Undecided, I strolled out of the room. A draft of crisp, cool wind greeted me. I trudged to the lawn, sidestepping the wildflowers. The other guests at the hotel were soaking in the atmosphere, sipping tea, reading books or chatting. The resident dog was curled up cozily under a chair. Everything was picture-perfect but soon enough the alarm clock played spoilsport. Time to get ready for office. Outside, Delhi was sizzling at 44 degrees Celsius.
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Later in the day as the hot summer wind slowly peeled my skin, I knew it was time for a weekend break. Things moved pretty fast from then on: leave was okayed, friends were told to scout for places. A week later, we found ourselves cruising to Kotdwar, the foothill town from where you start your climb to Lansdowne, our destination.The national highway to Lansdowne was smooth. But since you can’t always take such things for granted, a friend was forced to play the navigator. In course of the day, she kept a watch on the route, potholes and bumps while others relaxed, gossiped or simply dozed off. Thankfully, she warmed up to the job pretty soon and kept us on course. |
We crossed Meerut, Najibababad and Bijnore and plenty of mango orchards during the seven-hour drive. Sadly, there weren’t any decent eateries on the route. The only decent one was ‘Monty Millions’, the MTV-equivalent of the typical ‘Sher-e-Punjab’ dhabas. We reached Lansdowne around lunchtime, ravenous and tired. The temperature was around 26 degrees. And, this 18-degree drop and the fresh mountain air was enough to reinvigorate us. Lansdowne is situated at an altitude of 6,000 m above sea level and is surrounded by oak and blue pine forests.
Before I go gaga over this 6.09 sq-km cantonment town in Uttarakhand, here’s a slice of history: The town was named after Sir Henry Charles Keith Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne, 6th Earl of Kerry and Viceroy of India from 1888 to 1894. Today, the Garhwal Rifles has its command office here. And, thanks to the regiment, Lansdowne is clean, green and orderly. There aren’t many hotels around because of the stringent construction rules and therefore it is best to book in advance.
We opted for a 1914 property, a colonial bungalow-turned-hotel called Fairydale, a pretty estate with an old world charm. The rooms were clean, spacious and comfortable. The food was fairly good. The best part of the hotel was its service: warm and homely.
There’s nothing much to do in Lansdowne, in the conventional sense that is. There are no malls, great eateries or things you generally associate with a thriving tourist destination. There is no pressure to do that dreadful touristy thing called ’sightseeing’. Instead, there are numerous forest trails, two old churches and dilapidated British bungalows. The best way to enjoy Lansdowne is to walk and simply walk. Carry some food, water, a book and a raincoat and you are ready for a day out. And, we did just that. The winding roads are lined with Raj-era bungalows, now hidden behind a wall of bougainvillea.
On day one, we took one of the numerous forest paths, chatting all the way to Tiffin Top from where you can see the sprawling valley and the Greater Himalayas. On our way back we saw the St John’s Church, which was converted into an Army museum. The church, we are told, will be handed over to the local parish and religious services are due to start very soon. The second church, St Mary’s, is much bigger and is used for religious services. The Army museum at the heart of this fauji town is a delight even if you are not interested in military history. The well-maintained museum showcases the rich history of the regiment, its efforts during the World War I in France and the numerous awards including the two Victoria Crosses it won.
Coming back from a trip is always the most difficult part. And, this time it was no different. But the weather took us by surprise. Clouds enveloped the town, threatening to rain any moment; the wind was blowing wildly, making all kinds of sound. Just when everything looked so beautiful and enchanting, a very ‘responsible’ friend called from Delhi: “Hi! You guys coming back today? It’s touching 45 degrees here”.
December 4th, 2007 at 4:17 am
Beautiful post. Even in this winter, I sweated thinking about the hot summer and relief you might have felt after reaching Landsdowne.
December 4th, 2007 at 12:42 pm
We went to Lansdowne few years back, I think it was 2002, not too sure. And one big thing which I remember is that we took this real long walk to see the cemetery. There of three of us with one being a gifted story-teller :) so he kept us busy. While on route we almost reached this eerie sounding barren area, with fear stalking, we carried fwd and finally reached cemetery, which was worth it.
While doing all of that, we passed through the town and it was really great fun being there.
December 4th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
Thanks, Manish! Visit and enjoy Lansdowne! It is much better than the post:-)
December 4th, 2007 at 1:39 pm
Hi Kumkum. You have described the place very enticingly. I visited Lansdowne a very long time ago. Our dad was posted in Kotdwar…1989 I think. This was my first hillstation and all those faded pictures in my mind were dusted by your article. My most vivid memory of the place is of the army officers mess where I saw the hunt prizes hanging on the walls and my first pools table. Cold, narrow and misty roads…I walked and simply walked down the memory lane.
December 4th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
Lovely post and a great holiday ..Ive not travelled extensively in the north and I hope 2008 will take me there - making my to do list :)
December 8th, 2007 at 8:14 am
Sanjeev,
Thanks. Yes, we did manage to sneak in and visit the Army mess. Has an old world charm.
Backpakker: Thanks, yes u must visit Lansdowne. An amazing place.
December 18th, 2007 at 7:35 pm
Kumkum,
The road in the pic is tempting enough for me to ignore the mind numbing and bone chilling cold… I guess its time to ease the itch on the throttle palm again… Lansdowne… here I come…
April 25th, 2008 at 11:52 am
Great, briefed abut the place very well , what i feel is that this place is for those who just wants to relax and relax. Will surely visit this place.
November 10th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Hi , was in Lansdowne recently, i.e. 8/9th Nonember,2008.
i stay in south delhi so hitting the highway is really easy. the total to-& -fro was 512 kms including here & there in Lansdowne.
the route is delhi-mohan nagar- modinagar-meerut-bijnor-najibabad-kotdwar-lansdowne.
the road conditions are fantastic . we had left at 5pm and reached around 1.30 am in the morning. we had presumed that the stretch between meerut & bignor & najibabad is a notorious patch, so we were apprehensive. after crossing meerut , we had a quick grub at “monty millions”(has a clean wash room + safe parking + nice garden). has a small Cd shop also.
the road to bijnor –najibabad, and onwards was fantastic , we keeping an average speed of 80 kmph. its very safe , we could actually see cops standing beside the road at distances (in UP ).
there is no bad patch of road throughout the journey though after bijnor, one runs into a jungle patch . there we can have animals crossing the road. (a Neelgay had come in front of our car), so drive very carefully. after Najibabad , one runs again into the jungle patch. so again drive carefully. lots of jungle caution signs , so you will know when you are in the patch.
you enter uttranchal at Kotdwar, so there are barriers of Up police & Uttranchal police there.
lansdowne is a place where one should go for at least 3 days , carry your favourite books/ music/ movie and just chill out. it is not essentially (like shimla, mussorie/ manali, etc) a tourist place witha mall road, eatries, shops, etc. its just a town in the hills. and it is approx 1400 m in height.
book your rooms before hand. there are hardly places to stay there.
at night , everything is closed . NOTHING MOVES AROUND, NO PAN , BIDI , CIGARATTES, CHAI , NOTHING !!!
any specif queries , mail me at : sinha_saurabh@yahoo.com