Snowfall Near Delhi – 10 Places to Visit in Uttarakhand

Every winter one of the most common questions many of my friends and relatives asks me is “Brother, can you please tell me some places to see snowfall near Delhi or Snow near Delhi?“

Having heard this question so many times, I thought it is better to write down a couple of articles in DoW where I can pen down such places near Delhi to find snowfall or snow. In the past, I did write one about places to find snowfall near Delhi in Himachal. I am sure it was helpful to many of you who loves snow or snowfall in the Himalayas like anything.

Here is the list of places in Uttarakhand where you can see snow or snowfall near Delhi.

Continuing on the series almost after a year, I will suggest places to see snowfall near Delhi in Uttarakhand in this article.

• Chopta – Tungnath – Deoriatal
• Chakrata – Kanasar
• Kanatal – Dhanolti
• Landour – Nag Tibba
• Auli
• Harsil – Dharali
• Chaukori – Munsiyari
• Kausani
• Khirsu
• Juda Lake – Kedarkantha Peak

Let’s look at them in detail one by one.

10 places to see snowfall near Delhi in Uttarakhand

By November, winters settle in most parts of the Himalayas like Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Ladakh, Kashmir, etc.. It is also the time that many of the high altitude places like Leh – Ladakh, Spiti Valley, Lahaul Valley, Pangi Valley, Zanskar Valley, etc.. will go under hibernation for about next 5-6 months.

However, having said that, the lower hills of Himachal, Uttarakhand, and Kashmir will still be connected. These places become the favorite spots for the lovers of the Himalayas who are fond of snowfall or snow in particular 🙂 …

In these winter months of late November, December, January, and February, there are many places in Uttarakhand where one can see snow or snowfall near Delhi. I will share with you ten places in Uttarakhand to witness snowfall in coming winters 🙂 🙂 …

By saying “Snowfall Near Delhi,” I mean the places which you can cover in 3 – 5 days from Delhi at max or you can say long weekend trips from Delhi for seeing snowfall or snow. Beyond 3 – 5 days, there are more viable options I believe but let’s know some places in Uttarakhand where you can travel over the long weekend from Delhi to see snow or snowfall.

Download your FREE high-resolution version pdf copy of this list of places to see snow in Uttarakhand near Delhi as an infographic guide. If, you liked it and found it helpful, please feel free to share it with your family and friends to help them too.

1. Chopta – Tunganath – Deoria Tal

One of the most amazing places in Uttarakhand to play with snow or witness snowfall near Delhi in winters is the region around Chopta, Tunganath or Deoria Tal. These places are all located nearby each other and are about 450 odd KMs from Delhi.

So, one can reach Deorital or Chopta in a day’s drive from Delhi. You can start early morning and be there by evening. Then the next day, you can play in the snow at any of these places and finally start the journey back on Day 3. If you happen to have a day or two more, then you can cover all three places.

Depending upon the time of travel, you can even visit Chandrashilla peak ahead of Tungnath Temple but that is possible only when there is less snow up there and is safe to trek. You can find snow at these places from December to March and further at Chandrashilla, almost till late April.

The road to Chopta also gets closed due to winters. One has to walk about a couple of miles from Duggalbitta. You can always stay at GMVN, Ukhimath, and make day excursions from Ukhimath to these places. Deoriatal also has camps up there and an FRH, if you are interested to stay up there or do camping on your own.

2. Chakrata – Chilmiri – Kanasar – Deoban

Second on the list of places to see snowfall near Delhi in Uttarakhand is, Chakrata or Deoban / Kanasar Meadows. You can find snow or snowfall at these places easily in the winter months of late December, January & February. Being just 320 KMs odd from Delhi & about 2100 Mtrs in altitude, Chakrata is one of the closest places around Delhi to see snowfall or snow in winters.

You can take the route to Chakrata from Delhi from Dehradun or reach Chakrata via Vikasnagar and can even cover Mussoorie over a 3 day trip to Chakrata. You can leave Delhi by Friday night and reach Chakrata by early morning, play in the snow for a day and either go to Mussorie next day or come back to Delhi if you have just the weekend at hand.

Chakrata is a cantonment town and can be accessed from Paonta Sahib / Nahan route from the Himachal side too. So, in case interested, you can do the circuit of going from Uttarakhand and exiting from the Himachal side. There are meadows/forests of Kanasar, Deoban, and a place Chilmiri around Chakrata, which also gets good snow in the winter months. Especially Deoban, which is almost 3000 Mtrs in altitude, gets decent snow.

There is one popular waterfall by the name Tiger Fall in Chakrata, which is a nice place to spend time in solace. However, in the winter months, it may not be as dense of a waterfall to look majestic.

3. Kanatal – Chamba – Dhanaulti

Kanatal – Chamba, is another place with an overnight journey from Delhi where you can find snowfall or snow in the winter months from late December to mid-March. You need to follow the Delhi – Dehradun – Dhanaulti route or Delhi – Rishikesh – Narendra Nagar – Chamba route in order to reach Kanatal as it is just a matter of day’s drive.

Since, Kanatal is also just about 300 odd km from Delhi and hence, considered among one of the nearest places to witness or play with snow around Delhi. I believe it is less than Chakrata in the distance. So, ideally, you can cover this over a weekend drive.

There is a temple of Surkanda Devi ahead of Kanatal, but the roads are mostly closed due to snow ahead towards it in winter. To reach the top, at the temple, you need to trek about 2-3 km but not that hard trek even if roads are open ahead of Kanatal.

So, even if you do not have snow around Kanatal, the road or trek towards Surkanda Devi Temple, which is at an altitude of about 3000 Mtrs, will surely have snow in reach towards the early and late parts of winters as well. Dhanaulti is also about 20 km from Kanatal and experience snowfall in winters.

4. Landour – Nag Tibba

Next on the list is Landour – Nag Tibba where you can enjoy snow or snowfall near Delhi in the winter months of late December, January & February or even mid-March at least on the trek to Nag Tibba.

Landour is a very easy 8-9 Hrs drive from Delhi via Mussoorie or one can take overnight Volvo to Dehradun and then go over to Mussoorie by a taxi from where Landour is just about 40 KMs away. If you are lucky, you will get the snow at Landour itself. But if there isn’t much snow at Landour, then the next day drive to Devalsari village from Landour.

The trek to Nag Tibba starts at Devalsari village. There is an FRH at Devalsari, so you can reach Devalsari on Day 1 itself & stay there. Since it is a trek of about 13 KMs, making it to the top in the snow is an extreme adventure & difficult to be done in one day.

Hence, you should follow the trail and reach as deep into the snow to play as you are comfortable and then return safely back to Landour or Devalsari. The next day you can return home after enjoying snowfall or snow around Nag Tibba trail or Landour. In summers, people camp up there at Nag Tibba.

5. Auli

Auli is the most popular of the places in Uttarakhand to find snow near Delhi. It is an important but not so famous Ski destination in the Himalayas in India. Auli is located about 510 odd KMs from Delhi. So, you will need about four days to make an easy trip to Auli and enjoy the place with ease.

Auli has one of the best of the ski slopes and many times winter games in India are held up there in Auli. You can even register for a course on skiing in Auli, which starts in January. You can find snow or snowfall at Auli in the winter months of January to mid-March.

To reach Auli, you need to go to Joshimath following the route from Rishikesh – Dev Prayag – Karn Prayag and then reach Joshimath, the portal to Badrinath shrine. Joshimath to Auli, there is a narrow road of about 16 KMs, but in winter months, many times, the road is snowbound.

Hence, the four km long cable car at Auli (Asia’s longest) is the only option to reach it from Joshimath. The cable car takes about 20 minutes for one side ride.

6. Harsil (Sukhi Top) – Dharali

Harsil is about 470 km from Delhi and is a drive of around 12-14 hrs. It is located at an altitude of 2620 Mtrs (7860 Feet) and is about 25 km before Gangotri temple.

Just a few km ahead of Harsil lies Dharali, which is an equally picturesque location as Harsil but has a long market now. So, anything in between can be as good as it can get to be away from the crowd.

You can follow the route as Delhi – Rishikesh – Chamba – Uttarkashi – Harsil. You can reach Uttarkashi if that long drive does not suit you and from Uttarkashi, Harsil is about 70 odd km only. It is a cantonment area right on the banks of the Bhagirathi river. The idol of the Hindu River Goddess Ganga (Ganges) is brought down from the shrine at Gangotri in the upper Himalayas after Diwali and kept at ‘Mukhba’ village near Harsil. It remains there throughout the winter when Gangotri is snowbound and inaccessible.

From December end, it starts snowing heavily around Harsil and beyond Harsil towards Dharali, Bhairon Ghaati, and further towards Gangotri. So, you can find ample of snow in the region all round from December to March.

Since it is not the yatra time, perhaps it is one of the best times to visit this beautiful valley in Uttarakhand. Sometimes, you might not even reach Harsil as the region ahead of Sukhi Top has too much ice on roads for the safe passage. The vehicle tends to skid at Sukhi top due to ice on roads. You can always inquire about road conditions before going in the winter months of January or February.

7. Chaukori – Munsiyari

Chaukori is located in the Pithoragarh district of the Kumaon region in Uttarakhand. It is located about 490 KMs from Delhi and takes about 12-14 Hrs of a drive. It is not recommended to drive in a day from Delhi rather you do the drive to Chaukori in a couple of days with a first night halt at Nainital or Ramgarh / Mukteshwar.

So, a four days trip is recommended to visit Chaukori and in case you want to extend the trip to Munsiyari then adding a day is a much better choice. Otherwise, if you OK with stretching drives then Munsiyari can also be done in four days. You can always refer to my most recommended itinerary of Kumaon.

You may find snow up there at Chaukori in January – February, and Munsiyari, you can find snow from late December to March at least in the nearby short hikes from Munsiyari like Thamri Kund at Khaliya top.

8. Kausani

Kausani at an altitude of 1890 Mtrs, is about 85 Odd km from Chaukori back towards Delhi and 52 KMs from Almora. The route goes via Bageshwar – Baijnath from Chaukori in case you plan to visit Chaukori – Munsiyari too with lovely views of Panchulli, Mrigthuni and Trishul alongside the road.

It is a place which gives a feeling that time has just stopped there, and you cannot stop ogling at the high and handsome peaks in front. Of course, the time of Golden Glow Hour of Sunset / Sunrise at Trishul Peak is just too majestic. If you are interested in sightseeing around Kausani, then you can visit Anashakti Ashram, Lakshmi Ashram, Tea Gardens, Baijnath Temple which are among some of the tourist attractions around Kausani.

Kausani also gets snowfall in January and February. Though it is not that frequent, it does get snow sometimes. So, if there isn’t much time on hands to make a trip to Munsiyari or Chaukori, then you can make a three day trip to Kausani after inquiring about snow presence up there from KMVN 🙂 🙂

9. Khirsu

About 380 km from Delhi ahead of Pauri (19 km), Khirsu is situated at an altitude of about 1700 Mtrs does get snowfall in the winter months of January and February.

Hence, if you are looking for a quick 2-3 day trip to check snow near Delhi, then Khirsu can be a quiet, secluded, calm, little place to enjoy some quality time in the lap of nature. To stay at Khirsu, you should check out Tourist Rest House and Forest Rest House. Snow at Khirsu

10. Juda Lake – Kedarkantha Peak

You can find plenty of snow in the winter months of late December to March on a short trek towards Juda Lake. Further up from Juda Lake to Kedarkantha peak, snow can be found even in April.

Juda Lake is at an altitude of about 2500 Mtrs and is about 440 KMs from Delhi. You can follow the route as Delhi – Dehradun – Naugaon – Purola – Mori – Sankri. From Sankri Village, Juda Lake trek starts and is about 6-7 KMs in length.

You can find ample snow in winters on the trek itself, so there is no need to do the entire trek, and if you are keen on seeing a frozen Juda Lake, then it takes about 2.5 – 3 Hrs to reach the lake from Sankri Village. Purola is the major town of this region, and Sankri is about 50 KMs from Purola.

So, on Day 1 you can reach Purola, rest for the day and next day start from Sankri, do the trek, play in the snow and come back to Sankri and drive back to Purola or stay up there in basic guesthouses in Sankri Village. Or on Day 1 itself, you can reach Sankri for a night stay, enjoy the snow on the trek next day, and then the third day come back to Delhi.

Keep in mind that Juda lake in itself isn’t that beautiful, so in case of absence of snow in summer months, it may prove disappointing in case you are not in love with trekking rather more love natural beauty.

Conclusion

Now, you know about these ten places to visit in Uttarakhand near Delhi to see snowfall or play with snow in the coming winters. I am sure that you are not going to visit them in just a year only 😀 …

So, now I believe that this series two articles for Himachal and Uttarakhand will help you upgrade your winter travel bucket list to play with snow near Delhi in winters for the next 3-5 years.

If you happen to know any other such places in Uttarakhand where we can enjoy snow or snowfall near Delhi over a weekend trip of 3-5 days, please feel free to share them with me in the comments section below.

Feel free to share this article with your friends or families who are planning a trip to Uttarakhand in coming winters to play with snow or enjoy snowfall near Delhi.

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