The last place you expect a hill station is in a state that has a desert. But this is exactly the unique point of Mt. Abu. An if this was not enough it also has a unique feature. The mountain of Mt. Abu are neither nether white nor green, but they are Brown and black in color. Welcome to the one of the unique hill stations of India.
I went to Mt. Abu on a honeymoon trip, and chose it to be my first destination on trip to Rajasthan. The first destination has to be chosen with care as more often than not it sets the tone for the rest of the tour. And I can happily say that I made a very good decision.
To reach Mt. Abu, I took train from Delhi to Abu Road, the nearest station to Mt. Abu. The train reached the station in early morning. From Abu road station the distance to Mt. Abu was about 29 Km. Mt Abu is at the border of Gujarat and hence is an easily accessible place. It’s a four hour drive from the city of Ahmadabad. Mt. Abu offers wide variety of hotels that suit your budget. However few words of caution about the hotels. The hotels of this area are pretty small and have not more than 25 rooms. Also the availability of hot water for bath is only for few hours in the morning, so make sure to bath before its too late
Mt. Abu is a place where you can find lots of temples and religious sanctuaries. It is supposed to be the head quarter of the Brahm Kumaris. I was told that their head quarter has all the amenities used in today’s life but uses age old techniques and natural ways of implementing them.
We reached our hotel at about 8 in the morning. After a quick nap and breakfast, we decided to explore the area.
Our first destination was the famous Delwara temples. It is one of the biggest temples of the Jain sect yet is visited by people of all caste and religions. The prime reason of this is the architectural brilliance of the place. The fact that most of the statues and domes are carved out of single piece of marvel makes it more fascinating. The brilliance of the architects is evident from the fact that these statues and domes still hold good even after almost 400 years of their inception.
The next point of our visit was the Trevor’s Tank. Named after a British officer, Trevor’s Tank is a bird sanctuary and a mini forest. It has a watch tower that can be accessed by the visitors and the walk up to it is a nice trek up the rocky stairs. It also has a tank in between the sanctuary and if you visit it at the right time you might be able to see different species of birds. A board at the tank warned of crocodiles, but I must confess I didn’t see any. The place is not frequented by many people and is very peaceful area. The prime reason for this is the fact that Trevor’s tank does not find mention in most of the guided tours that hotel of Mt. Abu offer. But do ask for it if you visit the place.
The last destination for the day was Nakki Lake. It is one of the well maintained man made lakes of India. You can easily avail of variety of boats to roam around the lake. I personally found it a good excersie and enjoyed the rowing session. Along the sides of the Nakki Lake a small market place has developed which offers some delicious snacks and food.
The next day we started late and went to Guru Shikhar, which is the highest point in Mt. Abu. You can see the entire valley from the height and it offers a beautiful and breathtaking sight.
The next place we went was Trevor’s tank as we decided to photograph few more species of bird.
The next place to be visited by us was the Sunset point. The point has different watch towers which you can perch yourself on to see the magnificent view of the sun setting down in the valley. The place despite being beautiful is over crowded and becomes very tough to walk through once the sun has set. So do visit the place but do expect lots of noise and cacophony.
Late in the evening we decided to stroll through the market place an found it quite interesting. Markets in Mt. Abu have a unique mix of Gujarati and Rajasthani traditional commodities. It’s a good purchase but o not forget to bargain for the best prices.
One thing that should be mentioned about Mt. Abu is its food. The food here is amazing and we just could not have enough of it. Do try the Daal baati chiurma which is the traditional dish of Rajasthan. Also proximity to Gujarat means you can also find lots of Gujarati dishes.
All in all a nice place to visit specially for honeymooners, but do also go there f you have a relgious bend of mind and are searching for peace.