Located at the foothills of Shivaliks and the himalayas
Dehradun (Doon) capital to the Land of Gods needs no introduction but some of
the places in Doon yet portrays why Doon still stays what it means to us.
Located in the vicinity of Himalayas and home to us we`ve been exploring on
wheels, going of foot making it to the very remotest of the beautiful Doon
encountering the very insides with pebbly stones, mountain trails, rickety
paths and riversides. Thus penning down few ''places we`ve been to in and around Doon''
1) Chamasari
Route : Dehradun—Sahastradhara—Chamasari
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| Waterfalls at Chamasari |
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| Trails amid Deodars to Chamasari |
Road to Chamasari leads from Sahastradhara to the left after
crossing the bridge. The road runs and climbs along the river ending in the end
through untouched areas of Doon (not very motorable). Off shoots at this route
might lead to various waterfalls and less visited forests and beautiful spots.
2) Shikhar Falls and more
Route : Dehradun—Rajpur—Shikharfall
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| Shikhar Falls |
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| White Capped Redstart |
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| Falls above Shikhar falls |
Very well known and home to many weekend excursions of the
locals. The place enriched with rivers and waterfalls also gets to boast a very
vivid variety of bird life and foliage. Peace dwells with trails (non motorable)
reaching very deep into forests accompanied by small bridges and extreme steep
gorges alongside ending further to a local village with a bunch of houses max
perched at the very top.
3) Rikholi & Kimadi
Route : Dehradun—Purukul—Pundir Gaon—Rikholi
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| At Nagdevta mandir (RIKHOLI) |
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| Rikholi top |
Very less known and less explored place around Doon. Road
leads from Purukul and also from Bijapur Dam bridge up to the old route from
the back to what goes to Hathipaon. Midway a diversion to the left leads to a
village called Rikholi. Beautiful place with beautiful people (Pundirs mostly)
and also with a temple of Shiv (Nag Devta Mandir) situated at the top of a
potential meadow mountain which gets a annual carnival hosted every year around
May. Best place closest to Doon for witnessing serene landscapes and sunsets.
4) Benog Tibba
Route : Dehradun—Mussoorie—CloudsEnd—Benog
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| Bandarpunch in all its glory from BENOG top |
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| Trails to Benog Top |
Aka the Mountain
Quail Scantuary (Benog east) at 7400 ft a high peak that’s sits just adjacent
to the George Everest but a little higher is a one day trek of majestic vistas
through the very deep pines and deodars ending at the surreal Benog top bestowing
the views of Bandarpunch Range. Benog less visited and thus beautiful still got
saved back in 80`s due to a public outcry demanding the ban of limestone mining
(after the devastation of Hathipaon) considered to be the purest of the planet
here. Also people used to see mountain Quail bird (thus named the sanctuary ),
now extinct.
5) Barlowgunj Falls
Route : Dehradun—Barlowgunj (Jhadipani)
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| Pristine roads to the falls |
Road from Doon to Jhadipani diverges just after the post office
to the right leading to deep forest (motorable halfway). A km or two walk
thereon will lead to a small water stream which climbed alongside, later to a waterfall.
High ad tucked deep into and between close triple stories building size rocks
glides down is this waterfall creating a small pond which branches off into
rivers.
Catch more of the vibrant, beautiful and unexplored Doon
with us. Ride along !!
Check out more at this years Scouting/Exploring Dehradun 2016 album
Previous :
Scouting/Exploring Dehradun : 2015
Scouting/Exploring Dehradun : 2014
