India is a land of many contrasts – with the beautiful Himalayas at one end of the country, and the lush green ghats towards the South. When it comes to traveling, going for a day outing, or even adventure camping, people often only go with the ‘safer’ options, or the very tourist places in different parts of the country. However, it’s always a great idea to explore offbeat destinations, and sometimes offbeat places that will be a refreshing change from run-of-the-mill attractions and experiences.
Starting from the north and winding down all the way to the south, here are some of the places you will be amazed by in our very own country, India.
1. Magnetic Hill in Leh: Leh is a beautiful place in itself, but Magnetic Hill lets you experience a gravity-defying phenomenon – it is believed that it has a magnetic force strong enough to pull cars uphill, but in reality can be explained as an optical illusion. It is mainly visited by Indian tourists on day outings and weekend trips.
Image Source: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SOt8Y_1DQgs/Uo3JsH-ewKI/AAAAAAAABQs/HIfPGY6ElH8/s1600/DSC03188.JPG
2. Kuldhara, Rajasthan: If you’re fascinated by ghosts and the paranormal, and if you’re brave enough, try taking a day outing to Kuldhara, a small village about 15 kms from Jaisalmer. It is said in local legends that no one who stays overnight there, survives. Interestingly though, the recent Bollywood film, ‘Agent Vinod’, was shot here. The village is abandoned, and it can be interesting to see the eerie temple ruins, stepwells and streets.
Image Source: https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NeKCFyUmpXc/TX3plrgr9fI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/RLNRPE7iWLM/s1600/DSCN0632.JPG
3. Bullet Baba Temple: Take your passion for biking to a whole new level – yes; this is actually a temple that worships the might Royal Enfield Bullet. It is located near Chotila village on the road to Pali from Jodhpur and has a shrine dedicated to Om Banaji, the son of a village leader who had passed away. After some paranormal activities occurred after his death, the villagers built this mark of respect for him.
Image Source: http://images.mapsofindia.com/my-india/20140407_113623-e1397018433654-768×1024.jpg
4. Roopkund, Uttaranchal: At the bottom of a small valley in Uttaranchal lies a frozen lake where about 200 human skeletons were found. Scientists pondered over this mysterious presence of these skeletons for years before they finally concluded that a sudden hailstorm with huge hailstones had killed these people, who were probably travelers, through blows to the head.
Image Source: http://www.atoai.org/image-gallery/roopkund-trek-trekkers-at-roopkund.jpg
5. Karni Mata Mandir, Bikaner: For some this might be their worst nightmare come true, and for others it might be an adventure in itself. The Karni Mata temple in Bikaner, Rajasthan, is a temple dedicated to rats – you can find 20,000 of these critters frisking about and feasting on the food set out for them every day.
Image Source: http://amessagetoindia.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/inde-2011-ml-634-karni-mata-temple-deshnoke-21.jpg
6. The Floating Islands of Loktak, Manipur: Loktak Lake is breathtakingly lovely – located about 53 km from Imphal, Manipur, the lake has the world’s only Floating National Park. A natural phenomenon by which organic garbage and biomass integrated with soil particles to form a floating mass of vegetation exists here. People often build huts on these masses called phumdis. If all that exploring makes you hungry, try some delicious dried fish sold on the banks of the lake.
Image Source: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vM9pQhz1PkY/Uj8pLfcjAeI/AAAAAAAADXg/Oni2OOlLkrQ/s640/loktak+lake.jpg
7. The ‘Ram Setu’ floating stones: At the southernmost tip of India, near Rameswaram, you can visit the Ram Setu Bridge – believed to have been built by Lord Ram and his army of monkeys when crossing over to Lanka. A day outing from Rameswaram to this place would fascinate you with the floating stones here – heavy stones and rocks that miraculously stay afloat in the sea.
Image Source: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_aKT4s5asTCw/TH4m4dqLQ1I/AAAAAAAAANs/0RbrjdgXx1U/s1600/Ram_Sethu_in_GOA.JPG
These were some of the most offbeat places in India to visit. It’s definitely recommended that you keep these in mind on your next trip across the country.