Adventurous Road Trip to Lansdowne, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Dehradun and Mussoorie from Delhi : Part-4

Day 4:

With a promise of visiting Mussoorie once again we packed off our bags for our return journey reluctantly as it is last day of our vacation. Having suffered the snarls of traffic jams during the past three days, we wanted to avoid the same predicament again. Hence were very concerned about the road route for our return journey. We hit the Mussoorie-Dehradun road by 8am and there was moderate rush on the roads. We briefly stopped at the Prakasheshwar Mahadev temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and perhaps the only place where monetary donations are strictly unaccepted. The place offers a bird’s eye view of the Dehradun city. After serious contemplation we decided to drive to Delhi via Dehradun - Poanta Sahib - Yamuna Nagar- Karnal – Panipat - Sonepat- Delhi to avoid traffic and bad roads.

Prakasheshwar Mahadev Temple

Drive by road from Mussoorie and Delhi is 285 km but our route was little longer but it was tension-free drive back home. We actually drove through three states to reach Delhi, Dehradun of Uttarakhand, Poanta Sahib is in Himachal Pradesh and Yamunanagar, Karnal, Panipat, Sonepat in Haryana. 

Assan Barrage

Distance from Mussoorie to Dehradun is 35km and Dehradun to Poanta Sahib is 44km. As we were closing towards Poanta Sahib, we stopped near Assan Barrage at the Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh border. Barrage is located at the confluence of Yamuna and Assan River. The dam creates the Assan reservoir also referred as Dhalipur Lake. The Lake is a famous among Ornithologists as it is a natural habitat for various birds including migratory birds of the Himalayan ranges. The drive across the barrage was beautiful as it was very pleasant with exotic aquatic vegetation and lush green trees. The road leading to the Poanta Sahib offers an excellent view with canal flowing on one side and Assan Barrage Bird Sanctuary on other side. Poanta Sahib is a small town bustling with activity and known for the Gurudwara located on the banks of Yamuna River.

Dhalipur Lake

Poanta Sahib

The drive from Poanta Sahib to Yamuna Nagar was undeniably the best stretch we have ever travelled by road as we pass through Kalesar National Park consisting of Sal trees. The only designated national forest in Haryana.  We spotted several troops of monkeys on the road and certainly a dream place for nature lovers and traveller enthusiasts. The road from Yamunanagar to Karnal can be classified as a six lane road since it was very broad and absence of heavy traffic has propelled us to drive much faster. The lush green carpet of fields on the way to Karnal is heavenly and holds the promise of satisfying hunger pangs of millions of starved Indians. As we enter the AH-1, Delhi- Chandigarh highway, the speed limit for four wheelers after the Panipat toll is 90 kmph. This gorgeous highway charters a hope that Indian roads can be World class. Finally we reached home safely after a not so tedious drive, thanks to the good roads and our prudent decision.

Kalesar National Park

Travelling enriches mind and soul with new experiences. More often, spontaneous trips have their own rich treasure troves of joy to offer.

 Highway to Delhi

Few Observations:

During the course of our long tour we visited various places where pristine rivers are brimming with water. Nature has been so generous in gifting our precious drinking water. But we in India have miserably failed in utilising these water resources. Poor water management practices coupled with lack of vision and commitment in interlinking river basins across the country is a scourge on Indian agriculture. It is bizarre that while a part of the country is battling with floods and inundation, other part is parched. In this era of technology and innovation, India should adopt a more aggressive approach towards water sharing and river linking issue to have bountiful supply of food grains.

Indian tourism is bound to reap rich dividends if the concerned department make substantial investments in developing the infrastructure and take aggressive measures in the up keep & maintenance of the monuments, temples and other hall marks of Indian heritage intact.

 

Photography: T. L. S. Bhaskar & Ramaharitha

 

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