Kausani is perhaps on the best places to enjoy hikes that can last from an hour to a few hours, passing through quiet roads or mud paths that meander through pine forests and lead to the most magnificent views of the Himalayan Mountains.
A small backpack with a bottle of water and good walking shoes are all that is required to wander away in any direction and run into the roadside eateries run by locals or to a village shop selling woollen products or just sink in the clean mountain air.
We have know some people who just find a nicely lit nook and sit down with a long unfinished book, finally finding just the right place to give you the time to flip over the last page.
Post the monsoon season, that ends around the beginning of September, the chill of the mountain air with the warmth of the sun at the same time is just the right weather to enjoy the outdoors.
Kausani is perhaps one of the hill stations where the night pollution is low. So a short night walk would open up the skies and the twinkling of the brilliant stars would be immediately visible.
Walking by yourself may also lead you to some of the quaint villages around the hill station. Since being nestled between 3 green lush valleys each of which are individually beautiful, the villages around these valleys are mostly focussed on farming paddy, and a small amount of wheat, millet and mustard in the other seasons.
The traditional village houses are also very interesting to look for. While not many are left in their former glory, when you find one you will most definitely be awed at the larger simplicity over all but also be captivated by the lesser minute intricacies in the wooden carvings of the windows and doors.
Most traditional houses are two storied, with the lower floor usually for livestock and the upper floor for the family. In the winter the livestock contribute to the warmth of the house while the stone walls ensure that the warmth is kept in for a long time.
Another unique aspect of houses here are the stone slabs for their roofs.
You may also be, occasionally, invited for a cup of tea and conversation by some of the locals.
The Kumaon district of Uttarakhand is lucky to have many heritage spots, many of them that are or were functional places of worship and built in the early 7th to the 10th centuries. The temples display the influence of Katyuri, Chand, Nepali and Tibetan influence thus having a somewhat unique in itself architecture which is called the "Himadri" style.
Within easy vicinity are the Baijnath and Bageshwar temples which may even make for great hikes. In the slighly larger radius you would be impressed by the structures of Jageshwar, Dwarahat, Gangolihat and a lot more. Many of these temples have mention in ancient mythologies and stories and it is accepted that the current structures are built on top of even older already existing places of worship.
Additionally there are also cave temples in the area such a Rudhradhari (which is a quick hike) or Gannath in the Someshwar valley.
Also interesting are the traditional water harvesting methods and the local wells called as Naulas which served as sources of water till very recently.
Kausani is a very good spot for those interested in bird watching. Due to the pine and deodar forest cover, and the surrounding valleys with fields, birds have ample reasons to make the most of the apt conditions.
It is quite easy to catch glimpses of different varieties of flycatchers and warblers as also tits, sparrows and thrushes.
Also quite common are woodpeckers, magpies, jays, barbets, house martins and other birds common to the sub Himalayan areas.
Even large predatory raptors such as hawks, eagles and vultures are easily seen within the limits of a decent walk.
The area is known to have over 500 different species of birds and would definitely fall under a birdwatcher's paradise. For lovers of other types of fauna, there are also a huge variety of butterflies, moths and other insects/ bugs.
A good pair of binoculars or a camera with a telephoto lens would mean you are definitely going back with a good set of captured memories.
The Kumaoni food is a rich amalgamation of a few 100 years of different cultural assimilation such that it has become unique on its own.
Definite musts on your food experience are the local flat bread rotis made of madua (finger millet, also called ragi or nachni ) which is a high fiber super food and is high in several vitamins as well including protein. While it used to be most common once upon a time it has fallen out of favour except for certain occasions to the easily available wheat flour which us much less healthier.
While parathas, dal and other variety of common north Indian food items are available with slight change in their spice profiles, you must definitely insist and try bichhu ghaas saag (stinging nettle leaves), gahat ke dubke (horse gram kofta dal), sarson/ lai ka saag (mustard leaves) and bhatt ki dal (black gram) dishes.
For the meat lovers, the mutton curry is recommended.
Stay Inn Kausani offers much of these fare though some of them are seasonal and a few others can be made on request. .
