Before New Year, Uttarakhand Turns Fairytale Winter Destination For Tourists

Snow-capped mountains in Chakrata, Mussoorie, Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag and Chamoli of Garhwal district which are major attractions for backpackers.

Dehradun: The onset of winter brings snowfall in Uttarakhand as the Himalayan state gears up to welcome the New Year. It's the second week of December and the state has been witnessing snowfall, which has been a major attraction for domestic and foreign tourists. Canopied with white snow, valleys of Devbhoomi as the state is known turned a picture-perfect winter retreats.

For backpackers willing to enjoy snowfall, some places can be hot favourites. These are Chakrata, Mussoorie, Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag and Chamoli of Garhwal district. Snowfalls have been witnessed simultaneously in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. People in Harshil Valley, Gangotri and Yamunotri of Uttarkashi and Lokhandi of Dehradun experienced the same.

As soon as the news of snowfall was received this morning, tourists started leaving for hill stations to have a glimpse of snowfall. The footfall of tourists suddenly shot up in tourist places as many of them were seen playing with the snow, while in many places people were seen waiting for snowfall.

They cheered the first snowfall. “The weather despite the drop in the mercury is not freezing. Snows are not hard yet as the season is just heralding the beginning of the snowfall which has not happened on such a scale,” a tourist said.

According to the Meteorological Department, snowfall can also occur in other places of the state after December 11. In such a situation, tourists can enjoy snowfall in a better way in the coming days.

Tourists enjoy light snowfall in Uttarakhand. (ETV Bharat)

Chakrata

Chakrata in Dehradun can be perfect retreat for tourists who want to experience the snowfall. There has been a lot of snowfall in the high altitude areas of Chakrata. Snow can be found especially in places like Lokhandi, Koti Kanasar and Devban etc. Good home stay and hotel facilities are available for tourists in Chakrata.

Harshil

The view of Harshil valley on the Gangotri route in Uttarkashi is worth seeing. Tourists can reach there by traveling for about 7-8 hours via Dehradun or Rishikesh. There has been good snowfall in Harshil this time. Enjoying the snowfall in the beautiful valley here gives a different experience.

Auli

There has been heavy snowfall in Auli of Chamoli district too. A white blanket of snow is also seen in the skiing slope of Auli. There is a ropeway facility from Jyotirmath to Auli, on which tourists can sit and enjoy the snow-covered views. Tourists can also reach here after a journey of about 8 hours from Rishikesh.

Mussoorie, Dhanaulti

When it comes to snowfall, the name of Mussoorie comes first. There has been snowfall in Mussoorie and Dhanaulti too. On Monday, Mussorie witnessed hailstorm and light snowfall. The 35 km distance from Dehradun to Mussoorie is covered in one and a half hours by vehicle.

Snowfall in Char Dham

There was heavy snowfall in Hemkund Sahib along with Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath Dham. Although the doors of Char Dhams including Hemkund are closed at this time, there are many places around these Dhams where tourists can go and enjoy the snowfall.

Kedarnath Temple. (ETV Bharat)

What does the Meteorological Department say?

According to Bikram Singh, Director of Uttarakhand Meteorological Department, light snowfall is being witnessed in many places. There is a possibility of rain in many places on Monday night as well. This includes both Garhwal and Kumaon districts. Along with Rudraprayag, Pithoragarh, Bageshwar, Chamoli, Mussoorie and Dehradun, light rain may also occur at night in Tehri. Whereas, snowfall may occur in areas with an altitude of more than 2500 meters. At the same time, there are indications of snowfall at many places on December 11.