What to do with your days

Surkanda Devi — the one to do first

A temple on a bare summit at about 2,750 metres, one of the fifty-one Shaktipeeths, and the finest view within reach of us. The drive is roughly 35 km from Mussoorie and about 9 km from Dhanaulti, and the road passes straight through Suwakholi — so from our door you are already on the way.

You drive to Kaddukhal and climb the last stretch: about two to two and a half kilometres, roughly half an hour on foot at a steady pace, on a paved path through deodar. It is a real climb but not a technical one. If the walk is not for you there is now a ropeway — around 500 metres, ten to fifteen minutes to the top.

Go early. The clouds build through the morning and the Himalayan skyline that makes the trip worth it is usually gone by midday. It is busiest during Navratri in October and Ganga Dussehra in June, when it becomes a pilgrimage rather than a viewpoint — wonderful if that is what you want, and worth avoiding if it isn't.

Read the full Surkanda Devi guide — the climb, the ropeway and when to go →

Dhanaulti, without the crowd

Twenty minutes on from us. Most people come for the eco parks and the deodar walks, and most people come at the same time on a Saturday. Because you are staying up the road rather than in Dhanaulti itself, you can go at eight in the morning and have it more or less to yourself, then be back on our terrace for a late breakfast.

Mussoorie and Landour

About 16 km the other way, and a completely different day out. We would skip the Mall Road crush and go straight up to Landour — the old cantonment above Mussoorie, with its steep lanes, colonial-era church, bakery and the four tea shops at Char Dukan that everybody ends up at. It is the walk, not the shopping, that is worth the drive.

The quieter option: Devalsari

If you have already done the temple and want somewhere with almost nobody in it, ask us about Devalsari — old-growth deodar forest with a small temple in it, off the tourist route entirely. Some of the best birdwatching in this part of Garhwal. Take a packed lunch; there is nowhere to eat.

Tehri Lake

Further on, and a full day rather than a half. The reservoir behind the Tehri dam is enormous, startlingly blue on a clear day, and set up for boating and water sports. Worth it if you have three nights or more; too much of a drive if you only have two.

Eating on the road

There are four cafes worth stopping at on this stretch, and we wrote an honest guide to all of them — including the three that are not ours.

Or nothing at all

We should be honest that a good number of our guests drive up, sit on the terrace, eat, read, and do not get in the car again until they leave. The whole point of being a mile off the road is that you do not have to go anywhere. Nobody has ever complained about that plan.