https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Kipling_TrailKipling Trail - Revision history2026-07-30T14:09:50ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Kipling_Trail&diff=131099&oldid=prev2405:201:4006:C1C1:F936:D615:F87F:D068 at 07:18, 26 January 20212021-01-26T07:18:09Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Infobox hiking trail<br />
|name=Kipling Trail<br />
|photo=View from Dehradun mussoorie road.jpg<br />
|caption=View of the [[Doon Valley]] <br />
|location=[[Uttarakhand]]<br />
|designation=<br />
|length= {{convert|5.5|mi|km}}<br />
|trailheads=Shahanshahi Ashram, Rajpur, [[Dehradun]]<br />
|use=Hiking<br />
|elev_change=<br />
|highest_name=[[Mussoorie]]<br />
|highest_m=2,005<br />
|lowest=<br />
|difficulty=Moderate to Strenuous<br />
|season=All year<br />
|sights=[[Doon Valley]], diverse bird species, woodland flowers, [[Bougainvillea]], ''[[Quercus leucotrichophora]]'' oaks<br />
|hazards=Steep in places with forty-degree [[Grade (slope)|incline]]<br />
}}<br />
<br />
'''Kipling Trail''' (also known as '''Kipling Road''') is the old walking route that connects [[Dehradun]] with the [[hill station]] of [[Mussoorie]] in India. It was the only means of reaching Mussoorie before the cart roads, for [[tongas]], or roads for automobiles were constructed. It is named after the English novelist [[Rudyard Kipling]], who is believed to have walked the trail in the 1880s, though there is no definite evidence.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/kipling-road-to-mussoorie-nature-lovers-revive-trail-much-to-ruskin-bond-s-joy/story-sNV8hTGy43XNSp0A3RBnKM.html|title=Kipling Road to Mussoorie: Nature lovers revive trail, much to Ruskin Bond’s joy|date=August 12, 2017|website=Hindustan Times}}</ref> The trail fell out of use when cars or buses became the preferred mode of transport, but the route is being revived by nature, [[British Raj|colonial]] history and hiking enthusiasts.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/explore/story/43014/uttarakhand-walking-doon-valley|title=Uttarakhand: Walking the Doon Valley}}</ref><br />
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==History==<br />
[[File:Doon Valley, Dehradun, 1850s.jpg|thumb|left|View of the [[Doon Valley]] in the 1850s.]]<br />
In the 1880s, novelist [[Rudyard Kipling]] is believed to have trekked this trail and the walk described in his novel ''[[Kim (novel)|Kim]]'' is thought to have been through this route.<ref name="auto"/> With the construction of an [[asphalt]] road in the early 20th-century, going right up to [[Mussoorie]], the heritage walking route gradually fell out of favour. Today, the path is being revived as it is increasingly being used by hikers and nature or history enthusiasts, who prefer walking up to the [[hill station]] over driving.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/Hike-up-the-Kipling-trail-slow-food-demo-and-more-on-2nd-day-of-Rajpur-Nature-Festival/articleshow/55279057.cms|title=Hike up the Kipling trail, slow food demo and more on 2nd day of Rajpur Nature Festival &#124; Dehradun News - Times of India|website=The Times of India}}</ref> In his book ''The Kipling Road'', author [[Ruskin Bond]] explores the many stories of people who walked the old route from Rajpur to Mussoorie.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://rupapublications.co.in/books/the-kipling-road/|title=The Kipling Road &#124; Rupa Publications}}</ref><br />
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===Route===<br />
The 9&nbsp;km-trail takes between 2 and 3 hours to complete, and begins at Shahanshai Ashram in Rajpur village, Dehradun. It winds its way up through five steep inclines that are locally called ''paanch kainchi'', [[Hindi language|Hindi]] for "five scissors".<ref name="auto1"/> The halfway point is at Jharipani, which is surrounded by ''[[Quercus leucotrichophora]]'' or banjh oak forests.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailyo.in/arts/ruskin-bond-shimla-rudyard-kipling/story/1/22913.html|title=Ruskin Bond on retracing the footsteps of Rudyard Kipling in the hills of India|website=www.dailyo.in}}</ref> The path then leads to Barlowganj near [[St George's College, Mussoorie]], then goes past [[Wynberg Allen School]], finally reaching [[Mussoorie]] Library.<ref name="auto2"/> Along the route lies an old railway tunnel, remnant of a failed project, and British-era rest houses. In 2017, parts of the trail were cemented without providing necessary outlets for drainage, and it was reported that road construction was "ruining the path's beauty".<ref name="auto3">{{Cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/with-construction-and-road-repair-work-the-jharipani-trek-has-lost-its-charm/articleshow/62118756.cms|title=‘With construction and road repair work, the Jharipani trek has lost its charm’ &#124; Dehradun News - Times of India|website=The Times of India}}</ref> There were protests by the public, stating that vehicular traffic would harm the biodiversity along the route and change the nature of the heritage path.<ref name="auto3"/><br />
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==References==<br />
{{reflist}}<br />
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==External links==<br />
*[https://www.beentheredoonthat.org/kipling-trail Been There Doon That - Kipling Trail information]<br />
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{{Dehradun|state=collapsed}}<br />
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[[Category:Hiking trails in Uttarakhand]]<br />
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Dehradun]]<br />
[[Category:Dehradun]]<br />
[[Category:Mussoorie]]<br />
[[Category:Geography of Uttarakhand]]</div>2405:201:4006:C1C1:F936:D615:F87F:D068