Golden Triangle: Part 1 Haridwar

This trip would remain as one of the perfect trip in term of itinerary, I ever embarked upon. And the best part of it was that it was not planned. It might have been more than 4 years to this trip but it seems like yesterday when 5 college friends traveled through the nature enjoying each other's company. This trip had everything from uncertainty of the future to the command on the life, serenity of the nature to the adventure of the wild.

And then there were five

Let me start with mentioning the other adventurers accompanying me on the trip. Anuradha, Ashish, Harsh and Tulika were friends of mine from college's initial days. We were gangs of five who shared some good memories together. And when the idea of this trip was pitched, to be honest I don't exactly remember who it was, I was immediately on board. 

The first hiccup we faced when I reached hostel with my backpack and both of the boys were sleeping. You see, I was a day-scholar at that time and hadnever lived in hostel. So I had little idea how boys hostel work. Understanding that this was one of our many plans which was not meant to be executed, I grabbed the blanket and slept myself. But Tulika had already flaunted about the trip in her circles and she made everyone getup from their lazy asses and start the journey.

Being the budget travelers, we had little options for traveling. We took the Haryana Roadways(Bus) from Sonepat to Panipat. Where we switched to bus going directly to Haridwar. It was a 5 hours commute on UP's treacherous roads. Although it was April, time for one of the best weather in the North, we were pleasantly blown away with the weather in Uttrakhand.

Typical UP Transportation Bus

By the time we reached Haridwar it was already dark, therefore first thing we decided was to look for a cheap hotel near Harkipodi. Being an off-season it wasn't hard to find. After freshening up we went for a street food spree. Standing there late night with legs half dipped in cold and healing water of Ganga makes you forget everything and it kinds of soaks you into its serenity. The noise of Ganga flowing in its full intensity had so much calmness that you want time to stop there and want this experience to last forever.

Street food of Haridwar(Unfortunately I had fast that day)

We left for the Mansa Devi early next morning. The little trek presents you with some amazing views of the city and panoramic view of the Ganga. And where there is view, there are photos. And we did take a lot of photographs there.

Chilling morning of Haridwar

Next on the cards was to take a proper dip in the Ganga. Other benefit of going off-season is that you get to spend as much time you want in the holy water and we did enjoy it playing and swimming until we had to leave for the next adventure, i.e. Rishikesh.

Amazing view of the banks of Ganga from Mansa Devi