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| Naukuchiatal from a distance |
A total silence, occasionally broken by the chirping of birds! Oh, what a lovely singing sound. Wish I could understand. There was a gentle cool breeze caressing my face. I looked up. The clouds were descending over the mountain in front of me across the lake.
I was sitting on a spacious
varandah of
The Hotel Parichay of KMVN. Located on a hill above, overlooking incredibly beautiful lake-NAUKUCHIATAL on the lower lap of south of Himalayas at the height of 1300 meters in the state of Uttarakhand, it was a beautiful property. There was a small garden on the lower grounds with a slope eventually merging with the lake. The garden had blooming flowers of vibrant colors with some exotic trees.
It was late afternoon. I turned my gaze to my right. A family of monkey was playing with the chairs and a table kept for the guests on the southern part of the garden. I smiled. A happy family, indeed!
I had come to
Naukuchiatal (a lake with 9 corners) form the northern city of
Lucknow by an overnight meter gauge train to
Lal Kuaon, a small station and though you can take a taxi exclusively for you to
Naukuchiatal (Rs. 650 or $ 15), I preferred to travel as an Indian villager and took a seat in a sharing tempo to the city of
Haldwani (15 kms), then a roadways bus to
Bhim Tal (20 kms) and finally a share taxi to
Naukuchiatal ( 6kms).
It was 9 in the morning. The first sight of the lake from the lawns of my hotel stunned me. Silent, serene and surrounded by forested hills! Wow! An excitement ran over my body removing all the tiredness and pain of my self imposed difficult travel.
After a sumptuous breakfast of
Puri Bhaji and tea, I decided to trek around the lake. Walking on a narrow path which went down from my hotel, I was in a green forested narrow lane. The smell of earth and leaves ( probably it had rained) with a gentle breeze was intoxicating. I was just drifting! A lovely sight of submerged trunks and roots of the trees in the lake! The trek was a private property of a resort-"The Lake Resort" but pedestrians are allowed to go around the lake, I presume!
Passing through the beautiful resort, I reached the southern end of the lake where the boats were lined up to take tourists into a vast (of 16 kms diameter) of most unforgettable journey. I sat at a small tea stall, facing the lake, enjoyed eating a "
Bhutta"(roasted field corn).
The time passed. A honk from a car suddenly broke my day dream! It was 1 p.m. I sighed, rose and walked back to my hotel encircling the lake. Another 1 km of now a metal road.
A simple lunch of fried
Cauliflower and Rotis. Delicious!
I must have dozed off while sitting on an easy chair in the
varandah. It was a sound of some car on the upper level of the hotel which had woken me. Took a stroll on the back side of the hotel where I had earlier noticed monkeys playing. The dusk was settling. I just stood and looked at the nature's wonder. It was my life's one of the most beautiful "sunset". Between the forested hills and the western part of the lake were the mountains shrouded in the gray of the evening shadows and there it was-The Sun, a crimson ball slowly going down between two cliffs. My goodness! I couldn't resist. Went to my room, gulped a shot of vodka came back to the stunning scene and started singing-
"Kuch na kaho...kuch bhi na kaho....(Don't say anything...just don't say nothing....)
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"Naukuchiatal is, perhaps, the most beautiful of all the lakes in Uttarakhand. A unique nine-cornered lake, it is situated 24 km away from Nainital, in the foothills of Kumaon, at an altitude of 1,219 meters. The beautiful lake is alimented by an underwater spring. Naukuchiatal Lake is surrounded by dense oak forests from all the sides. The first sight of this tranquil lake is mesmerizing and eye-soothing, sure to leave you wanting for more. A famous perception amongst the locals is that whoever sees all the corners of the lake at the very first shot attains ‘Nirvana’, a state of complete bliss, delight and peace."
http://www.bharatonline.com/uttarakhand/nainital/naukuchiatal.htmlHow to reach Train: overnight train from Delhi to Kathgodam and from Lucknow to Lal Kuaon and then by taxi to Naukuchiatal.
Road:
300kms from Delhi and takes around 9 hours 28 kms from famous lake resort of Nanital
Stay
PARICHAY- a kmvn rest house. Good location but don't expect too much. Basic amenities only
THE LAKE RESORT-
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