It was February 2017, I had heard a lot about this place but wasn’t sure if it will turn out well. Many of my friends have recommended Sattal and some even said that it’s a paradise for bird lovers. With a mixed mind, I decided to give it a try. I reserved 2 seats in ‘Ranikhet Express’ and the journey started on a Friday night from Old Delhi Railway Station. Train started at time and we have nothing to do but sleep and wait till we reach our location.
We reached Kathgodham at 5 AM on Saturday (it’s a small station and one can clearly see the hills surrounding this small city). We took our bags and went outside. There were many Taxi Drivers waiting and asking if we need to hire taxi. There we met Khalid Sir (a very decent person and didn’t ask much for Sattal). He charged us Rs. 500 only from station to our campsite in Sattal. I will share the details of driver and campsite etc. in the end of this blog. We reached in 45 minutes. We had already booked YMCA Campsite for stay. Because we reached very early, there was just a guard who asked some details and let us enter inside the campsite. It was not a small campsite but a huge area having a variety of stay options available (Lake View Huts, Safari Tents, Alpine Tents)
We checked-in into our Safari Tent and quickly refreshed ourselves. Then we went out for birding. We explored the vicinity for an hour and a half and returned back to the campsite for a quick breakfast (as we were already in love with the peaceful surroundings and bird songs). In the morning session, we covered some of the locations like the Sattal Studio, the waterfall area, and nearby areas. Then we came back to the campsite and had lunch. Then we took some rest and went out again after 3 PM. We were out for almost 3 hours. Then, we went to the cricket ground and opposite side of the Sattal lake via a small hilly footpath which villagers use.
After coming back to the campsite, we enjoyed the high tea and then we had an early dinner. We went out for a night walk as well but came back in just 10 minutes and it was pitch dark and the guard told us that there is a high chance of us encountering with a Leopard(thrilled and frightened at the same time). We slept at 10 PM as we were expecting a big day the next day.
The next morning, we woke up early(5:30 AM) and straight went to the Garuda taal. We were mesmerized to see so many lifers in just 3 sessions and still getting surprised. We were out for almost 5 hours and came back at 11 AM. After having breakfast, we took some rest and went to the Aashram side and then explored the YMCA campsite’s premises only. Then we took an hour for Kayaking in the Sattal Lake (the vendor charged us Rs. 100 per person).
As it was already 5 PM, we went inside our tent and did the packing. We already had a talk with Khalid sir and he agreed to pick us up from the campsite at 6 PM. We had tickets booked for a train at 8:40 PM and reached back in Delhi by 4 AM.
It was an amazing trip, full of lifers (link for the checklist is in the end) and heart-pounding views. Till then, I’ve visited the same place 6 times as of now (still can’t get over it).
Here are some important names and numbers and links:
- Mr. Khalid (Cab): +91-9997432778
- Mr. Noel Philips (YMCA Campsite): +91-9368002081
- EBird Checklist(November 2017: https://ebird.org/checklist/S39246166?share=true
Good one.