On the morning of October 2nd, 2008 we drove off from Sonipat at about 5 in the morning and reached Haridwar at about 10:30 AM, roughly a distance of 220 KMs via the Samalakha - Shamli route from Sonipat.
The 'Ghats' were crowded as we anticipated owing to the long weekend ahead. However since it wasn't really a festival season at the Ganges, we could manage checking into a hotel nearby the Ghats (Har Ki Pauri) without much difficulty. The rooms and hotels around the Ghats are fairly OK and quite reasonable too. The city however was just as I remembered it from previous years, crowded and teeming with beggars and rickshaws and filthy streets.
One could find people from the Ganga Trust urging you to donate after every 5 meters and there is a donation box planted every 10 meters there was a severe lack of garbage bins around.
Though there are Pandits sitting in rough shacks on the ghats who are willing to watch over your stuff while you bathe in lieu of their services (Pooja done and mandatory Dakshina given), it is advised that one leaves their personal belongings and any precious items at their place of stay while going in for a dip on the ghats and do not carry them along. Also you should be clear about how and where are you going to change your wet clothes. If you are not too uncomfortable about changing your inner wear in open public view, you should not have any hassles. The changing room provided by the Ganga trust are better not explored. It is for the same reason we were bent on taking a room near the Ghats itself. We decided to come out of the water, wrap a towel around us and then simply walk over to the place of stay and changed clothes there in peace.
While at Haridwar try and wake up early to catch the sun rise at the ghats and check out the morning aarti.
For those who have been to Varanasi, be warned that the sunrise or the Aarti at Haridwar may not be as majestic as Varanasi. There are however, some interesting shots to take, if you like clicking pictures and do not mind being pushed around a bit. A quick tip is to use a telephoto lens and cross the bridge to the other side and watch the Aarti from a distance.
RISHIKESH: Our next stop from Haridwar was Rishikesh. A small township about 20 kms from Haridwar and made famous for its twin bridges (Laxman Jhoola and Ram Jhoola), Chotiwala restaurants and camping and rafting sites.
About 40 kms from Rishikesh is another famous temple of Lord Shiva. The place is called Neelkanth, the name originating from the mythological tale of 'Sagar Manthan' (Churning of the Sea) and Shiva drinking the poison coming out of it and in turn getting his throat blue due to effects of the poison. The route to this temple is simply amazing due to the natural beauty around and even if you are not too religious I suggest that you take this trip maybe just to enjoy the journey. The temple none the less is mesmerizing and tranquil as well.
Overall I would rate the trip at about 7 on a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of its utility to de-stress myself and get away from the humdrum of routine life and I am sure had it not been for all the pictures that I shot it would have been a disaster.
View the pics HERE
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