#71 of 79 · mountain
Kathgodam to Nainital
Kathgodam, Uttarakhand → Nainital
35 km · Mar – Jun, Sep – Nov · Moderate
The Kumaon climb in a morning. Deodar, a lake that appears between the trees, and a ridge town that still feels like a hill station if you arrive before the jeeps.
Viewpoints
Bhowali
Fruit stalls, and the first real cold.
20 km
1,654 m
Naini lake
The town, and a slow lap if the mall road lets you.
35 km
1,938 m
- Road
- Narrow, well used, busy on weekends. Fog on the last climb in winter. Shared taxis take the corners they always have.
Tips
- 01
Leave Kathgodam at dawn
The road is a single file of return traffic by ten.
- 02
Walk the last bit
Mall Road is better on foot. The lake does not need a car.
From the road
1 notes
Field reports from people who have driven this route.
Driven this road? Join as a driver to leave a note from the road.
Neha B.
Oct 2025
Left Kathgodam at 5:10. The lake was still. Mall Road was not, by nine. The climb is the whole morning.
