Since the time I can remember, I have always been fond of travelling. And if I do not go out travelling even for a few days, or few weeks, I get that proverbial itch. I become restless, and I just know, it is time I left. Recently, I had just returned from my South India travel, which included places like Munnar (Kerala) & Valparai (Tamil Nadu). I enjoyed that trip thoroughly and I had no idea that once I am back, within 48 hours, I’d be travelling again and this, to the Himalayas!
So, when it was presented to me, I could not say no. Sattal it was, and since it had been years I last visited this beautiful quaint place, I jumped in.
Sattal is situated at a distance of 306 km from Delhi. Also known as ‘Sat-Tal’ because of seven interconnected fresh water lakes present in the region, Sattal is well connected to Delhi by road and train. However, the best way to reach Sattal from Delhi is by road, a journey of about 6 hours by car. The places covered during the journey from Delhi to Sattal are Delhi – Ghaziabad – Babugarh – Gajraula – Moradabad – Rampur – Haldwani – Bhimtal – Sattal.
Most of the road is in really good condition except a 5-6 kms stretch just past Rampur which is filled with pot-holes, off-road, dust and what not. Else, everything else is just perfectly enjoyable. Now, once at Sattal, I drove straight to the KMVN Tourist Rest House as I knew that’d be the perfect place to stay. As luck would have it, I was their only guest as this was the off-season. For Rs.1650/- I got a decently big room with a view, and dinner & next day’s breakfast was complimentary to boot! What else could I had asked for?
I fell asleep in the room for a couple of hours as the entire night was on the road, and was a little tired since I hadn’t slept for the last 48 hours almost. Refreshed, I got out of the KMVN rest-house and explored the entire a
rea, had lunch by the lake-side at one of the numerous food-joints/ dhabas and went back to my room by the sunset. Since I had company of two more people who rested for a while more before they could get out themselves, the night was really filled with talks, fun and what not.
Overall, the trip was really enjoyable. Here are some pictures that I’m sharing. These are clicked with the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. So, please pardon the quality but it should give you all a fair share of idea about the place. If you’re looking for a quiet place to just relax, then Sattal should satisfy that need. Just remember to book a room in advance as during season, it would otherwise be impossible to find accommodation there. Also, it is worth mentioning that phone-network doesn’t work at Sattal. So, there.
...in search of that perfect world. 