Jakhoo Temple

It is genuinely steep. The path rises about 200 m over roughly two kilometres from the Ridge, largely paved with steps in places, and it takes most people thirty to forty-five minutes going up. At about 2,455 m the altitude makes the same gradient harder than it would be lower down, so take it slowly and carry water. The descent is quick but the paving is polished in places and slippery when wet, which in Shimla it frequently is.

Yes, two. A ropeway runs to the summit from near the Ridge and removes the climb entirely, which is the right answer for anyone who cannot manage a sustained steep gradient. A taxi can also go part-way up the hill road to an upper parking area, leaving a much shorter walk. Both operate seasonally and in weather, so neither is guaranteed on a bad day, but between them the summit is reachable by almost anyone.

Serious enough that it is the first thing to plan for rather than an amusing footnote. The rhesus macaques on Jakhoo are numerous, completely habituated and highly practised, and they take sunglasses, spectacles, phones, caps and bags — sunglasses most of all. Put glasses and phones away before you reach the summit. Sticks are handed out at the bottom of the path and carrying one works. If something is taken, let the temple staff deal with it rather than trying to retrieve it yourself.

A Hanuman figure of about thirty-three metres, erected in 2010, standing above the temple on the summit. It is taller than the deodar around it and is visible from most of Shimla and from a considerable distance beyond, which makes it the town’s most conspicuous landmark after Christ Church. The temple beneath it is ancient in tradition — Hanuman is said to have rested on this hill while searching for the sanjeevani herb — and modest in actual fabric.

Two hours for the round trip on foot including time at the top, or about an hour if you take the ropeway. Twenty minutes at the summit is enough for most people, and in practice the macaques discourage lingering. It is worth treating as a separate half-day rather than appending it to the end of another one, particularly if you are walking, because the climb takes more out of you than the distance suggests.

Early morning, and September to November. The view is the main reason to make the climb — Shimla strung along its ridge below, the Viceregal Lodge to the west and the snow ranges to the north — and haze builds through the day in every season, so the first hours are consistently the clearest. Autumn gives the best air of the year. Winter can put snow and ice on the path, which turns the walk into something requiring real care.