Outside, the hot rays of the sun have turned the stone courtyard hot as a girdle. Inside, the tall stone built main temple of Baijnath the air feels cool against the face. The fragrance of incense blends with the sweetness of fresh mogra flowers and half a dozen swallows with black tipped wings flutter to the skylight from where sunlight cuts into the dimness of the interiors and eerily lights up a large cobra sitting coiled up in the centre with the glint of gold, its hood raised loftily. The goose pimples subside when you realise it is made of copper and that is why the hood does not move despite the drops of water falling on it from a lota suspended little above.
The 18 stone temple cluster at Baijnath, a protected ASI site,  believed to be constructed by the Katyuri kings of Kumaon in the 9th and 10th centuries, takes the tourist back in time. Set on the banks of the quiet flowing Gomti teeming with giant Mahaseer that dart darkly with a flutter of fins and tail in its shallow waters, the temple complex does not get too many visitors thanks to its location in a remote corner of Kumaon. But that is to the travellers’ disadvantage completely. Visit it for the quiet elegance of the Parvati statue carved in stone, the thrill of tossing the fish chanas and mudi and watching their ugly mouth lift out of the water for the snack and the beautiful 16 km drive from Kausani as you wind your way down through pretty pine forests, a sprawling tea garden and tiny hillside villages with bright blue blooming jacarandas.
And most certainly for lovely Kausani, the hill station that even Mahatma Gandhi lost his heart too during a pre independence tour of the country and titled “Switzerland of India”. Anashakti Ashram, sitting almost at the top of Kausani, though now surrounded with hotels of various shapes and fares, has not lost its charm or its breathtaking view of the Himalayan ranges. Named after the book Anashakti Yog that was written at Kausani by the Mahatma, the Ashram is by far the best place to stay if the tourist can abstain from alcohol, nicotine and non veg food.
Besides long walks along curving mountain roads, populated by the intermittent cars of tourists (mostly Bengalis and Gujaratis); stopovers at roadside eating joints that serve everything – from alu paranthas to manduve ki roti to Maggi and night sky gazing from a telescope set in the marketplace, the main attraction of Kausani is the stunning sunrise.
On a clear day, the frozen mountain range spreads out like a painting by a gifted artist from one end of the spectrum to another. Before sunrise, usually around 5 am in the summers, the range looms dark and foreboding like an ominous shadow. As you watch one part will slowly acquire a delicate sheen of colour as if a sepia print is turning to colour.
A bright spark appears from the cleft between two peaks, in seconds it has swollen to become a dazzling orb of orange, so bright that the eyes shut to its brilliance. Slowly the sun comes up over the mountains that slowly change colour from the grim shadowy grey to a milky white – and there they are in all their magnificence standing so breathtakingly close yet so far away. The ranges stretch out from left to right with Nanda Ghunti at 6309 feet, the three peaks of Trishul between 6009 to 7120 feet, Mrigthuni ad Maiktoli nearing 6800 feet and finally the proud Nanda Devi at 7816 feet. Their beauty is so mesmerising that it can bring a tear to the eye and I firmly believe that if you listen carefully you feel them call, even in that silence. The invitation is there in their haughty elegance and their lofty stance. I heard that call and I know that I will have to go back, maybe closer this time. But that will make another story, another day.
FACT FILE
*How to get there
By Air: Closest airport is Delhi. Kausai is about 10 hours drive from there. By Train: Kathgodam is the closest rail head. Take a taxi from there to Kausani via Bhowali, Khairna, Almora, Kosi and Someshwar.
*For details contact: Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam, Kausani 05962-245006 or KMVN, New Delhi 011-23712296.
*Things to see:
-The memorial of noted Hindi litterateur Sumitra Nanda Pant and his ancestral home.
-Kausani tea gardens, where you must sample the exotic Girias tea.
-Anashakti Ashram.