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              RANIKHET TRAVEL GUIDE

Ranikhet is a hill station and cantonment town in Almora district in the Indian state of
Uttarakhand. Ranikhet is at an altitude of 1829 metres above sea level and within
sight of the western peaks of the Himalayas.

Ranikhet gets its name, which mean Queen's meadow in English, from a legend
that an Indian queen visited the site and built herself a palace here, though no
palace exists in the area. In 1869, the British established the headquarters of the
Kumaon regiment here and used the station as a retreat from the heat of the Indian
summer. Ranikhet is a cantonment town and is the home for the Kumaon (KRC)&
Naga regement and is maintained by the Indian Army.

Ranikhet becomes very cold in the winters and is moderate in summers. One can
enjoy the Himalayan view from October to March. Ranikhet gets snowfall in the winter
season, maily in the months of December, January and February. It offers a vast
diversity of flora and fauna with vast forests of Pine and Deodar. One can see
leopards in Ranikhet as well

The local language of this town is Kumaoni. Ranikhet is well connected by buses
from Delhi and Lucknow. The nearest railway station is Kathgodam which is
approximately 80 km from Ranikhet.


PLACE TO VISIT

Golf course - Ranikhet's golf course is a natural nine hole course.and is one of
the prime attractions of Ranikhet.

Jhula-Devi Temple - is a temple of goddess Durga. It is 8th century old
temple and it is believed that if a person asks for something he gets it and on
fulfillment of his desire ties a bell in the temple. Very close to jhula devi is the Ram
Mandir temple of Lord Rama.

Chaubattia Garden - It is a famous apple orchard. Besides apples, It is also
possible to buy honey and fresh fruit juice from the sales counter of the
garden.*Garden photos and location

Hairakhan Temple - is situated 4 km from Ranikhet Town at Chiliyanaula is
the Hairakhan Temple which was established by Shri Hairakhan Maharaj who is
said to be incarnation of Lord Shiva. One can have a good Himalayan view from this
place.

Binsar Mahadev - is 15 km from Ranikhet town is the Binsar Mahadev Temple
which has a beautiful stream flowing close to it. Apart from a Shiva temple, an
ashram, Binsar Mahadev also has a lovely cedar forest surrounding it.

Dronagiri - is 52 km from Ranikhet lies the 1100 century old Dronagiri Temple. It
is said that during battle between Rama and Ravana, when Laxman got hurt with the
Arrow of Meghnadh, Hanuman went to obtain Sanjiwani Buti from Himalayas. On his
way back, a part of Sanjiwani Buti fell at the place called Dronagiri. Five kilometres
away from Dronagiri is the famous cave of Pandavkholi where it is believed that
Pandavas stayed during their exile.

Baijnath Temple - has a black stone Idol Goddess Parvati which is an
exquisite work of art. This place is about 70 km from Ranikhet ahead of Kausani.
This place is on the bank of river Gomti in the Garuda valley. At this place one can
enjoy feeding large number of fishes but fishing is strictly prohibited.

Katarmal(Sun temple) - is about 25 km from Ranikhet. A beautiful trek leads
you to one of the two sun temples of the country, first one being Konark, Orissa. This
temple is a 12th century creation and the ancient idol of Sun God is presently
preserved at the National museum Delhi. The temple is now protected and
preserved by the Archeological Survey of India.

Jageshwar - is about 80 km from Ranikhet (Closer to Almora) is the famous
cluster of 124 temples, prominent of them being the jyotirling jageshwar and the
Mahamrityunjay temple which is the only temple of this incarnation of Lord Shiva in
the world


HOW TO REACH

Air - Nearest airport is Pant Nagar. l99 kms Rail: Nearest railhead is Kathgodam,
85 kms and Ramnagar 96 kms

Road - Well connected by road with all major towns of Kumaon hills and nearby
districts. Almora - 44 kms. Nainital - 61 kms. Kathgodam-56 kms, Pithoragarh -161
kms