Off The Beaten Path Badi Lake in Udaipur India

Updated Jan, 2020

Badi Lake

With nothing but a Pinterest picture to go off of, we happened to stumble onto a jewel near Udaipur, India. We love cities and forts and all, but at heart we are wilderness explorers, and we were starting to hanker for something wild. Looking through Pinterest Katie found this picture and asked me to take her there.

Directions

Our first order of business was to get some wheels. We decided to hire a tuk tuk and driver for the day. I found the general location on the map and negotiated a good price with the driver.

It was about 30 minutes away to the northwest of Udaipur and the price was pretty cheap. To find it on your map zoom out of Udaipur so that you can see the two main lakes and then look over to the left for a thin fried egg shaped lake (screenshot included at bottom of post). The driver took us to the designated park. It was a paid location where you could see one of the dams that keeps the lake from washing down the valley. It was an interesting place but not quite what we were looking for.

To get to the actual viewpoint we wanted to see, we had to pay a little extra and drive about 5 minutes further up the road.

If you look at the picture of our map below you basically turn right after the official park, drive up the road a bit and turn left. Without going all the way down the road you’ll see an unmarked dirt track heading in the direction of the lake.

After the driver confirmed with a local we were at the right place he pointed to that little dirt trail. The day was hot, the path dusty, we weren’t 100% sure we were going the right way and we were excited. We walked for about 5 minutes and then there it was before us.

Update 2020: The place where the driver parks to wait has a small parking fee of 20 rupees. Some days you will also find a food cart near the top with some snacks as this is a location often frequented by locals. Thank you Elizabeth for your comment!

The View

The view was stunning! It really didn’t feel like we were in India at that moment. It felt more like land before time. Untouched and unspoiled, without the crowds and signs. We found the hidden gem.

After hiking to the top you can take in the beautiful sights. You can also walk down the path to get a better view and picture. From the top we also saw a hotel that the locals could stay at to enjoy the lake. There is a patch of land in the middle and it would amazing to rent a kayak or canoe and explore around the lake. This is something though that you would need to think of ahead of time.

If you’re in Udaipur and need a place to escape people and all the honking, go check out Badi Lake. You will love it!

Let us know if you have any questions or comments down below. We would love to hear your experience!

Go Explore,

Alex and Katie

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