Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand has two large divisions, each with its own culture and language.

Here are nine of the most notable cities.

• 🌍NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Dehradun — the capital, called the "Oxford of India" for its boarding schools

• 🌍 Almora — a hill station

• 🌍 Haridwar — a holy city on the Ganges and one of the sites of Kumbh Mela, the world's largest festival

• 🌍NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Mukteshwar — a small town made famous by Jim Corbett who penned the novel "The Man Eaters of Kumaon"

• 🌍 Mussoorie — famous hill station near Dehradun known for its scenic beauty and panoramic views

• 🌍 Nainital — picturesque hill station in the Himalayan foothills known for its 150+ year old schools
• 🌍 Pithoragarh — a city in Uttarakhand that is close to the borders with China (Tibet) and Nepal

• 🌍 Rishikesh — the yoga capital of the world

• 🌍 Auli — ski resort
• 🌍 Badrinath — temple of Vishnu
• 🌍 Chakrata — picturesque, less frequented hill station
• 🌍 Corbett National Park — oldest national park of India
• 🌍 Dunagiri — nature retreat
• 🌍 Gangotri — source of the holy Ganges river
• 🌍 Kedarnath — temple of Shiva
• 🌍 Munsyari — End of the Indian road and start of trekking routes into the montane wilderness
• 🌍 Yamunotri — source of the Yamuna River
• 🌍 Rajaji National Park — National Park and Tiger Reserve
• 🌍 Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Park — a UNESCO World Heritage Site, famous for its outstanding natural beauty, endangered animals and endemic alpine flowers

Uttarakhand, which is in the Himalayan region, is one of the most picturesque states in the country and has tourist destinations that range from hill stations to popular towns to pilgrim destinations.

The local languages are Kumaoni and Garhwali, but everyone also speaks Hindi. English is not so common, but well-understood and spoken in some parts.

There are many ways to enter Uttarakhand. If you are interested in seeing the Garhwal region you can enter through either Haridwar or Kotdwar. Haridwar is the more popular entrance. For both options there are regular bus and train services available from New Delhi. Entry in Kumaon is through Ramnagar, Haldwani or Tanakpur. Major entry points of the state include:

• If entering from Dehradun, you can head towards Mussoorie, Chakrata, Barkot and Yamunotri.
• If entering from Haridwar, you can head towards Rishikesh, Tehri, Uttarkashi and Gangotri.
• If entering from Kotdwar, you can head towards Lansdowne, Satpuli, Pauri, Srinagar, Rudraprayag and Kedarnath.
• If entering from Ramnagar, you can head towards Ranikhet, Chaukhutia, Karnprayag, Joshimath and Badrinath.
• If entering from Haldwani, you can head towards Nainital, Almora, Kausani, Bageshwar, Chaukori and Munsyari.
• If entering from Tanakpur, you can head towards Champawat, Lohaghat, Pithoragarh, Askot, Jauljibi and Dharchula.

Public transport mainly consists of buses and shared jeeps that ply the major north-south pilgrimage routes during the day. Travelling between or away from these routes may require a long wait, hitchhiking, or hiring a private vehicle. In the higher mountains, most drivers are friendly and will take extra passengers if they have empty seats, often in exchange for a small payment (similar to the bus fare).

Rockfalls are frequent during monsoon season, and can delay travel for several hours. The main north-south routes are also the main access points for the Indian Army to its border with China, so rockfalls tend to be cleared quickly (i.e. within the same day) on these roads. Rockfalls on minor roads may stop traffic for days or sometimes even weeks.

Uttarakhand is an increasingly popular destination for motorcycling and cycling, and walking is an option in pilgrimage season, when thousands of pilgrims walk the major pilgrimage routes.

Private taxis and jeeps are available in most towns.

Nainital, Mussoorie and Ranikhet though it's better to treat these slightly overcrowded, touristy 'hill stations' as base camps to explore lots of other hidden jewels further afield in Uttarakhand. In Garhwal, Pauri and Gwaldam there are very peaceful & scenic places. In the Kumaon region, if you are near Almora and want to stay in a secluded area, try Peora or Mukteshwar.

• Jim Corbett National Park -The oldest national park in India, this wildlife sanctuary has been a hot-spot for plenty of nature lovers. The humble abode of Sambar deer, elephant, golden jackal and many others, the park has surprises in store for all. It is inhabited by at least 300+ tigers, 600 species of birds, 50 mammals and 25 reptile species. From abundant flora and fauna to green foliage, there is beauty all around.

• Rajaji National Park - Rajaji National park always attracts to wildlife enthusiasts and nature lovers. This place is located around 248 km from Delhi and around 6 km from Haridwar. This park remains open from November to June for the tourists.

• Badrinath Temple - This beautiful temple is located near to Alaknanda River, at an altitude of 3133 meters above from the sea level. This temple is dedicated to the Lord Vishnu.

• Bhowali - Bhowali is situated at a distance of 12 km, from Nainital, at an altitude of 1,706 m, from the level of sea. This place provides a panoramic view of the nature. This place if famous for its panoramic view as well as hill fruit mart, which was established in 1912.

• Dehradun - Dehradun is the capital city of Uttarakhand. This is one of the oldest cities of India, located in the Himalayas. This city is also termed as the “Oxford of India”, as it is best known educational centres of India.

• Dunagiri - pristine and tranquil ancient forests.

Kumaoni food is very simple but very nutritious and completely suits the hard environment of the Himalayas. Pulses like gehet are fashioned into different preparations like ras-bhaat, chains, faanda and thatwaani – all are unique preparations from the same pulse. Jholi or curry seasoned with curd. Chudkan

• Aaloo gutuk and Pinalu Gutuk are fried potatoes or pinalu, seasoned with spices.
• Bal Mithai is a brown chocolate-like fudge, made with roasted khoya, coated with white sugar balls.
• Bhatt ki Churkani is a soup like preparation of bhatt pulses eaten with rice.
• Chains is a preparation of whole urad which are first roasted then ground and then seasoned into a soup.
• Dubka is a simple dish made from various lentils, which are ground and made into a curry-like dish with a few local spices available in the Kumaon hills like jamboo and jakhiya. It's usually made in an iron wok and eaten with rice.
• Jholi is a curry seasoned with curd and curry leaves.
• Kaapa is a dish prepared with spinach leaves crushed into a paste and cooked with other condiments.
• Saag is a fried dish of green vegetables. Can be made from any of the various green vegetables like palak (spinach), lai, methi (fenugreek leaves) and so on.

The types of food here include Garhwali, Indian, Chinese and Tibetan. In the tourists centers such as Badrinath, Gujarati, and Marwari, other regional cuisines are available for the hordes of pilgrims that descend on the holy sites every summer.

Uttarakhand has high excise taxes on beer and alcohol: a bottle of beer can cost ₹150-₹250, nearly double the price of some other states in India. Quite a few holy towns including Haridwar and Rishikesh are officially dry. Cannabis is illegal, but widely used anyway.

The roads are a bit tricky, and taxi rides in the hills may appear dangerous, but otherwise Uttarakhand is a pretty safe place for tourists. However, tourists are known to encounter problems in the urban centres and the plains districts such as Haridwar.

One may take up one of the trekking tours to have a walk in Chopta, Tungnath, Deoria Taal and Chandrasheela. Or, simply dive into the natural garden of Buransh - a destination considered to be the Switzerland of India.