NAINITAL
Nainital,
the Lake District of India, located in the Himalayan belt amongst the Kumaons hill, is a paradise for nature lovers. A splendid holiday spot
with a rich treasure of lakes and hills, Nainital is a destination for the
young and the old alike.
Nainital
is referred to as the lake of three sages, or the Tri Rishi Sarovar as
mentioned in the Manas Khand chapter of the Skanda Purana. As recorded in
history, the three sages, Atri, Pulastya, and Pulaha stopped over at Nainital
on their pilgrimage, to quench their thirst. Finding no water, they dug a hole
and transferred some water into it to from the sacred lake of Tibet,
Mansarovar. Thus the famous lake of Nainital came into existence. Another
legend has it that the left eye or Nain of Lord Shiva’s wife Sati fell in this
center and formed an emerald eye shaped lake, and thus emerged the city of
Nainital.
Recent
history records reveal that Nainital was brought into limelight by P. Barron, a
British sugar merchant, in 1839. The beauty of Nainital with the central lake
cushioned among the forests attracted this person to build a house named Pilgrim’s
Cottage and settle in Nainital. Barron gave way to the trend of settling down
in Nainital and soon the city became an important administrative town. Nainital
is known for its famous landslide of 1880 which leveled out the entire city.
MAJOR ATTRACTIONS
NAINI LAKE
Naini
Lake is the backbone of the city of Nainital, for it is after this lake that
Nainital was named. Most prominent of all the lakes, Naini Lake is surrounded
by green hills, the beauty of which is breathtaking and should be captured as a
photographic memory forever.
The town of Nainital is situated around the Naini Lake. The lake was formed out
of the eye that fell out of Sati’s body when she was being taken back to Mount
Kailash by a sad Lord Shiva. The place where her eye or Nain fell formed a
crescent shaped lake, taken to the emerald green eyes of Lord Shiva’s wife
Sati. Hence the name Naini lake.
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. Flanking Naina
Devi are the deities of Mata Kali and Lord Ganesha. 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. The shrine of Naina Devi is a must visit for devout
Hindus. and was reconstructed after being destroyed in the 1880 landslide. One
can also get an amazing view of the hill station, overlooking the lake, from
the temple.
MALL ROAD
Mall road
nexuses Mallital with Tallital and thus is busiest road of the town. During
peak season (May and June) vehicles are not allowed to enter mall road so that
the trade keeps on strolling as this point is famous amongst tourists. Mall
road is now named as Govind Ballabh Pant Marg. The road is filled with hotels,
restaurants, shopping centres, banks, travel agencies and street shops as well.
NAINA PEAK
Naina
peak or China peak as it is known, is located at an altitude of 2611 meters and
is the highest peak of the town. Distanced about six kms away from the town, a
ride on a pony or horses can take you to the Naina Peak. The Naina Peak opens
up to a beautiful panoramic view of the snow laden Himalayas in the west to the
Api and Nari peaks in the east.
An excellent view of the Nainital city in its complete grandeur can be obtained
from the high altitude of this peak.
LANDS’s END
Land’s
End stands high at an altitude of 2118 meters and gives a panoramic view of the
neighboring hills and the green valley surrounding Nainital. The main
attraction of this point is the splendid view of the Khurpatal lake. One can
take a vehicle to reach Barapathar and then walk up a distance of one km to
reach this spot.
True to
its name, the Land’s end is a spot that marks the dead end. Located about four
kms from the town of Nainital, Land’s end is an easily reachable spot and does
not need a long or steep climb.
PANGOT
A 25-min
drive from Nainital covering a distance of about 15 kms takes one to Pangot, a
small village. The drive takes you through an adventure-packed route through
the forested paths of Naina or China peak, Snow View point and Kilbury. Known
to be the main habitats for birds, a variety of Himalayan species such as
griffon, blue-winged minla, rufous-bellied woodpecker, spotted and slaty-backed
forktail, lammergeyers, rufous-bellied niltava and khalij pheasant, to name a
few can be spotted along the route to Pangot. A huge variety of flora and fauna
make themselves comfortably placed at home amidst these creeks.
GOVERNOR’s HOUSE
The
British introduced the concept of Governor’s house or Raj Bhavan, when they
built a residence for the Governor of North West Province. Currently, the
official residence/accommodation of the Governor of Uttaranchal, the Raj Bhavan
also serves as a guesthouse to state guests coming over for a holiday to
Nainital. A prior permission for the stay is mandatory.
The Raj
Bhavan is a beautiful property, well developed and maintained. Golf links,
swimming pool and a splendid garden add to the glamour! Munshi heights, and
Jhandidhar Modi heights are also located in the premises and are worth the
watch! Standing tall at two stories housing 113 rooms, the Raj Bhavan bears a
close resemblance to the Buckingham Palace
SNOW VIEW POINT
A ropeway
or cable car ride is the best-known way to access the snow view point. Just as
the name implies, one can view the snow laden Himalayas from this view point.
At an altitude of 2270 m, the Snow View point is situated on top of the
Sher-ka-danda ridge. At a distance of 2.5 kms from the town of Nainital, this
is the most easily accessible hilltop.
During the months of October and November, a spectacular view of the snow bound
mountains can be witnessed Tea, snacks and other refreshments are also
available atop this hill in case you want to spend more time around.
ZOO
Govind
Ballabh Pant high altitude zoo is situated around 2km from the bus station. The
zoo is set at an elevation of 2100mts above sea level providing high altitude
animals a sufficient and habitat like environment. The Zoo consists of animals
like Leopard , Hill Fox, Siberian Tiger (snow tiger), Palm civet cat, Wolf,
Silver Pheasants, Barking Deer, Sambhar, Monkeys, Rose ringed Prakeet,
Himalayan black bear, Ghoral, White Peacock. The zoo is closed on Mondays and
the entry ticket is of Rs. 10. Feeding animals is strictly prohibited in the
zoo and eatables are also not allowed
HOW TO REACH
By Air - Pantnagar airport is
situated at a distance of 71 km away from Nainital. This is connected to Delhi
International airport. Taxi services are available from airport to Nainital .
Delhi is the nearest international airport (350 km), which is well connected
with other cities in India and abroad.
By Road - Nainital is well
connected to other cities by state public transport buses. Deluxe and semi
deluxe luxury buses ply from Delhi (350 km), Almora (70 km), Ranikhet (60 km)
and Badrinath (340 km). The bus charge varies between Rs 3 to Rs 4 per km.
By Train- Kathgodam is the
nearest railway station, which is 35 km away from Nainital. Lucknow, Agra and
Bareilly are directly connected with Kathgodam by rail.
