Description:
At the top, a close up view of Naina Devi (7816m), which was, as the old brass plate here tells you, 'the highest mountain in the British empire'. Naina Devi was India's highest peak until Sikkim (and thus Kanchenjunga) was absorbed into the country. There's a small marble temple dedicated to Dev Mundi housing images of Durga, Shiva, Sita, Rama, Lakshmana and Hanuman. From Snow View you can walk west to another point and then continue on to the main road to Kilbury. From here you could continue up to China Peak or head down the road to Sukhatal, passing great views of the lake in route.
A walk up to Snow View can take in the tiny Gadhan Kunkyop Ling Gompa of the Gelukpa order (of which the Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader). Take the road uphill from the hotel city heart, from where a path branches off towards the gompa (the colorful prayers flags are visible from the road). The gompa serves Nainital's small (and mostly itinerant) Tibetan community. Most of the Tibetan families travel to Nainital in the summer season to sell sweaters and shawls, and in winter descends to the plains.
