Ages ago, a beautiful Kumaoni queen, Rani Padmini, fell so deeply in love with the green glades and meadows of a tiny hill paradise that her king, Raja Sukherdev, built her a grand palace there and named the place Ranikhet, or queen's meadow. So goes the legend... There is no trace of a palace to lend credence to this legend, but few who have visited Ranikhet have any doubts about its charms.
Part of the Ranikhet experience is in getting there. The road hugs the mountainside, so for three hours you are treated to vistas that made the hill stations of Uttaranchal justly famous thick, forested slopes of pine down which charge lively mountain streams and, far below, pristine valleys carpeted with flowers.
As you approach Ranikhet, keep a watch to the left for the best view of all. The ancient, snow-clad Himalayas abode of India's gods, invincible defenders of her plains come into view. No wonder unspoiled Ranikhet is the favoured ?destination of exhausted urbanites yearning to breathe in the fresh, invigorating mountain air.