Khali Estate - 1989

Our journey

When my daughter left for USA for further studies, we first went to Nainital. We flew from Mumbai to Delhi by Plane.

An Interesting Episode - On reaching Delhi we decided to travel by bus from Delhi to Nainital. There we met two German ladies travelling by the same bus. We tried to help them but they were familiar with where they were going, Ranikhet was the place where they had come to work at Hindu temple. So when we were travelling by car we stopped to meet them - the temple was at the edge of Ranikhet. We reached there - the temple was very beautiful. To find them was difficult because they adopted Indian names. The person at the temple pointed to her and she was painting the wall. She came down to say Hello. We stayed one night at Ranikhet and from there we reached Nainital.

Khali Estate, is  near Binsar, beyond Almora in Uttarakhand.

There was a main bungalow, with several cottages scattered around the compound. So it was not simply a historic estate, it had become a place where visitors could stay and enjoy the hills.

Mahatma Gandhi visited in 1929, when the property was considered as a site for an ashram. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Jawaharlal Nehru’s sister, also lived there for some time.

Over there we met a friend from Mumbai whom we knew. We met there accidentally. We also met a Parsi couple from Mumbai, who worked for TATA group.

We all stayed in the main bungalow at Khali Estate, while two other couples from Mumbai were also staying there. The six of us travelled around together, making it a shared holiday rather than simply a visit to a historic property. 

Our Outings

Binsar

From Binsar, we had a wonderful view of the Himalayan range. Through a doorway, we could see the majestic mountains rising in the distance. It was a beautiful sight, almost as though nature had placed a picture of the Himalayas within a frame. Yet, it was not comparable to the magnificent panorama we had enjoyed at Kausani, where the mountains seemed to stretch endlessly across the horizon.

Binsar had its own quiet charm. Surrounded by forests and the peaceful beauty of the Kumaon hills, it offered a different experience of the mountains. The view through that doorway was a lovely reminder of the Himalayas, even if it could not quite match the grandeur of Kausani.

 Jageshwar Dham

Our visit to Jageshwar Dham was one of the outings we made while staying at Khali Estate. Jageshwar is a remarkable cluster of ancient Shiva temples, set amidst a forest of tall deodar trees in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand. The setting itself adds to the attraction of the place. The old stone temples, surrounded by the quiet of the forest, create an atmosphere quite different from that of a busy temple town.

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The temples stand close to one another, forming an impressive group of ancient architecture. Their stone structures, weathered by centuries, seem to belong naturally to the surrounding landscape. One can appreciate the place not only for its religious significance but also for its history and the beauty of its setting.

We had arranged for a man to accompany us and carry our lunch. That made the outing particularly comfortable, as we could take our time without worrying about food or rushing back. It was a relaxed excursion, allowing us to enjoy the place at our own pace.

The next day, we undertook a much longer outing to Kausani, travelling there from Khali Estate and returning the same day. Kausani had left a particularly strong impression on me because of its magnificent views of the Himalayan range. The two outings offered different pleasures: Jageshwar for its ancient temples and forest surroundings, and Kausani for the grandeur of the mountains.

Looking back, I remember these excursions as part of the leisurely experience of staying at Khali Estate, where we could explore the Kumaon hills one day at a time.