Chakrata: The Unseen Land of Uttarakhand

Some experiences stay with you even after you come back home. The sky turning colorful and then fading shades, the scintillating lights in the valley, the cool breeze and that silence at night, well defines our feelings for this heaven – Chakrata in Uttarakhand.

The clouds were roaring and we could see lightning making patterns, MET department had forecasted storm and heavy rainfall alert in Uttarakhand. We were bit anxious to travel to the upper Himalayas but not to the lower ones. To satisfy the arisen wanderlust; we planned to make a weekend trip to the offbeat unexplored gem Chakrata in Uttarakhand.

Historically, Chakrata falls in Jaunsar – Bawar region where Jaunsar refer to the lower part of valleys and Bawar refers to the upper snow clad region. The region is enclosed by River Yamuna in the east;  River Tons in the west; Himachal  Pradesh and Uttarkashi in the North and Dehradun in the South. The habitats of this area call themselves Jaunsaris and trace their origin back to epic Mahabharata.

Tiger Fall

The 312 feet high fall lies completely hidden among the mountains and can be sighted from above just as a normal stream. The waterfall can be reached via trekking 5 kilometers through the oak and rhododendron trees or by car till one point and then walking for almost 1.5 kilometer. The charges for taking vehicle down are mere Rs 30 per person.

Chilmiri Point

The Chilmiri point is a wide, green plateau and locally famous as the sunset point. It lies 4 kilometers from the Chakrata market. The road to the point is steep but well graveled. After reaching meadows, further a steep road goes up towards the canopies and prayer flags. Do walk or drive till there to get one of the best views of the valleys.

Best Season to Visit Chakrata

Chakrata can be visited throughout the year except few areas like Deoban which gets cuts off by road in winters because of heavy snowfall. Rest, the town has pleasant temperatures during summers and freezing temperatures during winters despite being at lower Himalayas.

Summers –March to June and have temperature between 10 -30 degree Celsius

Monsoons -July to September and roads become highly slippery

Autumns– October to November

Winters – December to February and temperature lies between -5 to 15 degree Celsius

Accommodation

There are limited stay options in Chakrata. We could find only 4 hotels – Hotel snow view, Hotel snow valley, Himalayan Paradise and Uttarayan. The Himalayan Paradise is the most famous one and it lies around 7 kilometers from city. We stayed at Hotel Snow Valley which is situated at a perfect location, bit away from the city but still quite accessible. After staying we found that hotel snow view and valley was one property earlier and now is divided into two.