Shikhar Fall, Dehradun: the short trail, how to reach it, and the risks

Most visitors know Shikhar Fall as a quick escape from the city: a drive up past Rajpur, a short walk on a path beside the stream, and a waterfall in the trees. The stream is the Rispana, which rises on the Mussoorie ridge and enters the Doon valley just below the fall, at Makreti village. That same water is piped down to Rajpur as drinking water, and that fact shapes how we’d ask you to behave there.

The route, from two trail guides

The road ends at Shahanshahi Ashram, above old Rajpur. This is also where the Kipling Trail to Mussoorie starts, so the first stretch is shared. Both Indiahikes and the Praveen Musafir trail blog describe the same landmarks: an old toll barrier, a few houses, then a small Kali Devi temple. Just past the temple the path forks. The left track climbs towards Jharipani and Mussoorie. The other track goes to Shikhar Fall.

The Travel in Devbhoomi blog, written in 2021, puts it as a cemented walk of about 700 metres to Makreti village, then about 500 metres on a mud path along the stream. It called the walk easy, 10 to 15 minutes for each part. Treat those numbers as the old route. After the flood, the Times of India found parts of the path washed away and only a narrow stretch left in places. Plan for a slower walk than the old timings suggest.

Indiahikes also mentions a direct city bus from Parade Ground, near the Clock Tower, to Shahanshahi Ashram. That page is not dated, so ask locally before you count on it.

Why we never get in the water here

Please don’t bathe at Shikhar Fall, or wade into the pools. There are two reasons. The first is your own safety: wet rock is slippery, and this is a hill stream that flooded badly in September 2025. The second is that this is somebody’s drinking water. In April 2026 the Times of India reported bathing, drinking alcohol and dumping rubbish at Doon’s waterfalls, including near Shikhar Fall. In July 2026 it reported that Rajpur residents had repeatedly raised concerns about contamination. People in Rajpur drink what flows past you.

Rubbish is a real problem here. A local volunteer group, Proud Pahadi Society, posted that it collected 80 kg of dry waste at Shikhar Fall on 13 September 2026.

• Look, take your photos, and sit on a dry rock well back from the water.
• Carry all your rubbish down with you, including tea cups and wrappers.
• No soap, no shampoo, no music. Sound carries in a narrow valley.
• Stay off the exposed water pipeline. TOI found parts of it hanging and leaking in July 2026.

Monsoon and after heavy rain

Shikhar Fall looks its fullest in the rains, and that is exactly when we’d stay away. In July 2026, residents told TOI that the slopes there were still prone to landslides and mudslides, and that no major slope-stabilisation work had been done since the flood.

As of 5 July 2026, the Times of India reported parts of the route washed away and the slopes unstabilised. Before you go, check IMD Dehradun’s forecasts and warnings and the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority, and read our page on checking roads and weather. If it has rained hard in the last day or two, pick another walk.

How we’d do it

Go early. A morning walk is the whole idea: cooler air, birds in the trees, and the path to yourself before the weekend crowd comes up. The 2021 blog called it popular with locals at weekends and on holidays. The 2021 trail blog reckoned on two to three hours from the city and back, which fits a morning with breakfast before and lunch after. On a winter morning the valley is cold until the sun gets over the ridge, so wear a light jacket. As we said on Instagram on 8 October 2026, “Bring light jackets and enjoy pre winters.”

• Shoes: closed shoes with grip. Not slippers, not new white trainers.
• Children: only children who walk steadily on rough ground. Hold hands on the narrow, broken stretches.
• Dogs: we couldn’t find a rule either way. Keep a dog on a lead and out of the stream, for the same water reasons.
• Carry: water, a snack, a small bag for rubbish, and some cash. Tea stalls were there before the flood; News18 reported some had been lost.
• Turn back if the path looks freshly slipped, if it starts raining, or if the stream turns muddy.

What to pair it with: old Rajpur is on the way down, and the start of the Kipling Trail is right there if you want a longer walk another day. What we’d skip: Shikhar Fall in the monsoon or after heavy rain, and weekend middays, when you’ll share a narrow path with everyone else.

After an early walk, come back to Fyonli Nest: a two-bedroom homestay with a courtyard that catches the morning sun and a full kitchen. If you’d like a Pahadi breakfast after the walk (mandua roti, aloo, seasonal fruit, ₹350 per guest), tell us the night before. We live ten minutes away, and “we help our guests to experience the best of local places”, so message us and we’ll help you plan the morning.

Sources: Times of India, 5 July 2026: Shikhar Falls pipeline still exposed; Times of India, 29 April 2026: tourist rush threatens drinking water; News18 Hindi, 31 December 2025: Shikhar Fall after the disaster; Indian Express, 16 September 2025: Dehradun cloudburst; Proud Pahadi Society on Instagram, 15 September 2026: Shikhar Fall clean-up; Travel in Devbhoomi, 13 June 2021: a short trek to Shikhar Falls; Indiahikes: Kipling Trail; Praveen Musafir: Kipling Trail; IMD Meteorological Centre Dehradun; USDMA. All checked 1 November 2026.