Haridwar travel

Haridwar is one of the seven holiest places in India, and one of the oldest living cities. Located at the foothills of the Himalayas in Uttarakhand, it's particularly popular with Hindu pilgrims who come to take a dip in the holy waters of the fast flowing Ganges River and wash away their sins.

Haridwar is the gateway of god. According to legend, Prince Bhagirath performed penance here to salvage the souls of his ancestors who had perished due to Sage Kapila’s curse.

Haridwar is located in Uttarakhand. Trains from major cities all over India stop at Haridwar on their way to Dehradun. For those coming from Delhi to Haridwar, it takes a minimum of four hours to get there by train or six hours by road. The nearest airport to Haridwar is in Dehradun, 40 kilometers (25 miles) away. This makes air travel a less preferable option.

Hardiwar Festivals:
The most famous festival to take place at Haridwar is the Kumbh Mela, held there once every 12 years. It draws tens of millions of pilgrims who come to bathe in the Ganges and be absolved of their sins. In addition to these melas, many religious Hindu festivals are celebrated in Haridwar. Some of the most popular ones are the Kanwar Mela (July-August) devoted to Lord Shiva, Ganga Dussehra (June), Kartik Poornima (November), and Baisakhi (April).

Attractions:

Haridwar's main attractions are its temples, ghats (steps leading down to the river), and Ganges River. Take a holy dip and cleanse your sins. As the sun sets, head to Har ki Pauri ghat to witness the magical Ganga Aarti (prayer) at around 6-7 p.m. every night. Fiery lamps combined with the chanting of mantras, clanking of bells and enthusiastic crowd, is very moving. Haridwar is also a great place to come if you've got an interest in Ayurvedic medicine, as many roots and shrubs that are grown in the Himalayas are readily available there.

Har-ki-pauri:
The sacred ghat was constructed by King Vikramaditya in the memory of his brother Bhartrihari. The    golden reflection of floral diyas in the river Ganges is the most enchanting sight in the twilight during the Ganga's aarti ceremony at the ghat.

Chandi Devi Temple:
This temple is on the top of a hill called the Neel Parvat, on the other side of the river Ganga. The story goes that Chanda-Munda the army chief of the demons Shumbh-Nishumbh were killed by Goddess Chandi hence the name Chandi Devi.

Chandi Devi is a 3 km trek from the Chandi Ghat. Chandi Devi Temple is now accessible by a ropeway also, by the name of Chandi Devi Udankhatola, which starts near Gauri Shanker Temple. There is a dense forest on the other side of the hill inhabited by elephants and other wild animals.

Mansa Devi Temple:
The  temple on  the  top of  Bilwa  Parvat is dedicated to the Goddess Mansa Devi. Here, one statue of  the Goddess  has three mouths and five arms while the other  statue  has  eight arms. A beautiful view of the city can be had from this place. There is a Ropeway service by the name of Mansa Devi Udankhatola from lower station to the Mansa Devi Temple which takes only 5 Minutes to reach the Temple. The length of Ropeway is 540 mts and height 178 mts.

Daksha Mahadev Temple:
This temple is an ancient shrine located at Kankhal, and is one of the five sacred places around Haridwar. It is associated with Sati, the spouse of Lord Shiva who immolated herself to preserve his honour on being insulted by her father, King Daksha Prajapati. This incident provoked the disciples of Mahadev and killed King Daksha. But later Lord Mahadev brought him back to life. The temple is an attribute to this legend. Daksha Mahadev Temple is also known as Shri Daksheshwar temple.

Sapta Rishi Ashram:
The Ganges flows in seven streams in front of this Ashram, hence this place is also called Sapt Sarovar. It is said that Saptrishis (Seven sages) trapped the Ganga and agreed to release the River on King Bhagirath's request. The Ashram commemorates the event. This is about 5 km north of Hari ki pauri, where the Ganga had to split into seven streams to avoid the displeasure of Sapta Rishis.

Nature and Wildlife:
The wooded Rajaji National Park, a wildlife sanctuary, is within the bounds of the district and is accessible through different gates; Ranipur and Chilla Gates are just about 9 km from Haridwar.
It is an ideal destination for wildlife and adventure lovers. Sureshvari Devi Mandir, a temple of Goddess Sureshwari, is situated in the midst of Rajaji National Park.

Cheela Dam is a picnic spot with a dam and a man-made lake nearby, elephants and other wild animals could be easily spotted here. Neel Dhara Pakshi Vihar is a bird sanctuary, situated on the main Ganges river, or Neel Dhara, at the Bhimgoda Barrage; it is a paradise for bird watchers and home to many migratory birds during the winter season.

Golu devta

Golu Devata is the legendary historical God of the Kumaun region of Uttarakhand. Golu Devta Chitai, temple is about 4 km from the main gate of Binsar wildlife sanctuary & about 10 km. from Almora.

Golu Devata is thought to be as an incarnation of Gaur Bhairav (Shiva), and is worshipped all over the region and regarded as the dispenser of justice by the devotees with extreme faith.


He is the brave son and General of Katyuri king, Jhal Rai and his mother was Kalindra, and his grandfather was Hal Rai and great-grandfather was Hal Rai. The origin of Golu Devata is accepted at Champawat. His mother Kalindra is believed to be the sister of two other local deities Harishchand Devjyun and Sem Devjyun and both these deities are regarded as uncles of Lord Golu.

The most popular story about Gwalla talks of a local king who, while hunting, sent his servants to look for water. The servants disturbed a woman who was praying. The woman, in a fit of anger, taunted the king that he could not separate two fighting bulls and proceeded to do so herself. The king was very impressed by this deed and he married the lady. When this queen got a son, the other queens, who were jealous of her, placed a stone in its place and the child in a cage and put the cage into the river. The child was brought up by a fisherman. When the boy grew up he took a wooden horse to the river and on being questioned by the queens he replied that if women can give birth to stone then wooden horses can drink water. When the king heard about this, he punished the guilty queens and crowned the boy, who went on to be known as Gwalla devata.

Golu Devta is seen in form of Lord Shiva, his brother Kalva Devta is in form on Bhairava and Garh Devi is form of Shakti. Golu Devta is also prayed as key deity(Kula Devta) in many villages of Chamoli. Normally three days pooja or 9 days pooja is performed to worship Lord Golu Devta also known as Goreel Devta in Chamoli District. Golu Devta is offered Ghee, Milk, Curd, Halwa, Poori, Pakauri and head of Goat sacrificed. The sacrificed goat is received as Prasada of pooja. Golu devta is known as God of justice and prayed with great pride and enthusiasm. Golu Devta is offered with White Cloths, white pagari and white shaal.

There are many temples of Golu Devata in Kumaun, and the most popular are at Chitai, Champawat, Ghorakhal.

Dunagiri Temple

Dunagiri is situated 400 km North of Delhi, it takes 10-11 hours to reach Dunagiri from Delhi. 100 km from Nainital, 43 km from from Ranikhet and about 50 km from Kausani. Dunagiri is within short driving distance of other popular destinations such as Almora, Mukteshwar, Bageshwar, Jageshwar, Munsiyari.

 

Dunagiri is a historic area in Almora district in the state of Uttarakhand in India. It is known as Dunagiri, Drongiri and Doonagiri. 116 such villages combine to form the Development Block of Dwarahat, which falls under the District of Almora. Dunagiri is famous within Kumaon for its temple of Shakti – known here as Dunagiri Devi.

In the epic Ramayan, during Treta Yuga when Lakshman was hit by the arrow of Indrajit, Hanuman saved his life by bringing divine herb sanjivani from this mountain which was then known as Drongiri or Dronagiri.

During their period of anonymous travel, the Pandavas of Mahabharata took shelter at Dunagiri. Pandukholi is said to be the place near Dunagiri where they stayed for a period of time.

Pandav's Guru Dronacharya also did tapasya at Dunagiri. Dunagiri is mentioned in Manas khand of Skanda Purana. Dunagiri Devi is described as Mahamaya Harpriya (Manaskhand, 36.17-18). Manaskhand of Skandpuran bestows Dunagiri with the title of Brahm-parvat (Divine Mountain).

Nainital Tourism

Nainital is a glittering jewel in the Himalyan necklace, blessed with scenic natural spledour and varied natural resources. Dotted with lakes , Nainital has earned the epithet of 'Lake District' of India. Some of the important places in the district are Nainital , Haldwani , Kaladhungi , Ramnagar , Bhowali , Ramgarh , Mukteshwar , Bhimtal , Sattal and Naukuchiatal.

Nainital has temperate summers, maximum temperature 27 °C (81 °F); minimum temperature 7 °C (45 °F), during which its population increases more than fivefold with an annual influx of tourists predominantly from the plains of northern India. In the winter, Nainital receives snowfall between December and February with the temperatures varying between a maximum of 15 °C (59 °F) and a minimum of -3 °C (27 °F).

In the Manas Khand of the Skand Puranas,  Nainital Lake is called Tri-Rishi-Sarovar, hinting at the story of three sages (or rishis), Atri, Pulastya and Pulaha, who, upon finding no water in Nainital, dug a large hole at the location of the present day lake and filled it with water from the holy lake Manasarovar in Tibet.

Tourism

Tourism is the most significant segment of the Nainital's economy. Following are the places most visited by tourists :

Nainital Lake- Also known as Naini Lake, it is situated in the heart of the city. The eye-shaped lake is a tourist hotspot and acts as a magnet for all those visiting the hill resort. The northern end of the lake is called Mallital, while the southern one is called Tallital. The Lake Bridge that connects the two banks has quite a few shops as well as a post office, the only one in the world to be located on a bridge.

Naina Devi Temple- The temple is located on the northern shore of Naini lake. The presiding deity of the temple is Maa Naina Devi represented by two Netras or eyes. Nainital is believed to be one of the 64 Shaktipeeths, where one of the body parts of Goddess Sati fell, when Lord Shiva carried her body. In Nainital, the eyes (naina) of the Goddess are assumed to have fallen. One can also get an amazing view of the hill station, overlooking the lake, from the temple.

St. John in the Wilderness, a church established in 1844 and is located on the north end of town (Mallital), about half a mile north-west of the Naina Devi temple. A brass plaque on the altar is inscribed with names of the victims of the Landslip of 1880.

Governor's House also known Raj Bhavan and formerly, Government House was built in 1899 and designed in the Victorian Gothic domestic style by the architect F.W. Stevens. Originally built as the summer residence of the governor of the North West Province, it later became the summer residence for the Lieutenant Governor of the United Provinces. Currently, Raj Bhavan is the official guest house for the governor of Uttarakhand and for visiting state guests.

Snow View is situated at an altitude of 2,270 m (7,450 ft) and located atop the Sher-ka-danda Ridge (north by north-east of the town centre), is easily reachable by cable car.Charges for cable car is Rs. 150 per person, Rs. 75 for child. Charges are for stay for one hour at the point. Timings are 10.00 am to 5.00 pm on a clear day, it offers spectacular views of the snowbound high Himalaya, including Nanda Devi, Trisul, and Nanda Kot. The best time of the year for viewing the mountains is late October and November. (See excerpts from Joseph Fayrer on the Literary references to Nainital page.)

Naini Peak also known as China or Cheena Peak or Naina Peak is the highest peak in the town, with an altitude of 2,615 m (8,579 ft). From atop the peak, one can not only see a broad swath of the snow clad high Himalaya, but also obtain a panoramic view of Nainital town itself. The summit is an invigorating hike from Nainital town; in addition, for the less energetic visitors, ponies can be hired in Mallital or on Snow View and the Great Wall of China.

Tiffin Top also known as Dorothy's Seat This terraced hill top (2,292 m (7,520 ft)) on Ayarpatta hill is a 4 km (2.5 mi) hike from the town centre and commands a nice view of the neighbouring country side. Dorothy's Seat is a stonework picnic perch on Tiffin Top built as a memorial to a British Army Officer's wife, Dorothy Kellet, by her husband Col J.P. Kellett DSO MC, City of London Regiment, and admirers after her death from septicaemia aboard a ship bound for England to be with her 4 children, Elizabeth, Joan, Barbara and Richard. She was buried at sea in The Red Sea in 1936.