[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

Could you give the full description/ log of NH60, (the Bankura - Kharagpur part). As explained in
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post2751732
we dont use this road, and hence do not know of its recent condition. Your description would be part of our knowledge base!

Regards
Sutripta

Kharagpur to Panagarh mode via Bakura is approx. 80 km less than the route of Khardagpur-Kolkata by pass- Panagarh mode. But the route through Bakura was congested, had many potholes, traffic is dense, has many small towns in between through which one has to pass. The drive is cumbersome. Must be avoided.

Thanks

[COUGAR]

I am planning a bike trip to Central India later this month. After crossing Pachamarhi, i need to find an interesting routing to get to Siliguri/Darjeeling.

here is what google maps comes up with:

http://goo.gl/maps/yxpFp

I have 4/5 days at my disposal for this section. I will be leaving Pachamarhi on 1st and need to reach Siliguri by 5/6th evening. Return flight from Bagdogra to Bangalore is on 7th.

Would have loved to do Chattisgarh: never ridden through there. Possible? Wish to restrict riding to less than or 500 kms per day so as to maximise time for primary objective: photography.

Any suggestions on itenary?


PS: Any kind soul in Bagdogra/Siliguri/Darjeeling who can host my bike for 3 weeks?

[Harry1983]

Hi,

I am planning a trip from Hyderabad to Darjeeling and Gangtok from Oct 31st to Nov 12. I reviewed multiple threads and got good amount ofn information especially HVK Sir's route maps and directions. I have the following schedule and would like some suggestions on places to visit in Gangtok.


Any advices and recommendations are welcome.
BTW my ride is Tata Safari and Vizag is my home town so I am going to spend Diwali over there and head back on Nov 17th.

[Harry1983]

I forgot to mention that its only me and my wife on this trip and have some rules in place no overnight drives, should spend good amount of time eventhough its only few places we cover.

[amrisharm]

2nd Nov, Kol to Mirik, well from what I have heard about the roads in bengal right now the stretch between Kol to Siliguri is supposed to be in not the best of state. Depending on traffic, it could take in excess of 12 hrs just to reach siliguri for Kol. Then to attempt to go to mirik is not recommended. Mirik is only 75 kms from Siliguri but it will take a regular driver 1 hr 45 min to get there, much longer for a new driver. this too on twisty roads.

My recommendation is on 2nd nov just halt in siliguri then on 3rd, go to mirik early morning, do a bit of sight seeing there which can easily be done in a few hrs. Then head to darjeeling for a halt there on 3rd nov as per your original plan.

Also a word of caution on your return journey from Gangtok to chandipur on the 10th of Nov. The rains have been quite prolonged this year and the roads are in bad shape between Gangtok to Siliguri. Normally this 120kms take 3-3.5 hrs. But lately its been taking around 4 hours plus. So after taking 4 hrs to cover 130 kms you will have the remaining day to cover 800 kms to Chandipur. Even if you keep 14 hrs of driving in a day, that leaves 10 hrs to complete 800kms requiring an average speed of 80km/hr including stops for lunch, fuel toilet etc etc.

i am not too familiar with your driving stamina so cant say whether it can or cant be done. I am just providing my two cents on the route . Good luck with the trip

[Harry1983]

Thank you amrisharm. This is really helpful. I will make my stay in Siliguri as you mentioned. Also in return, may be I can come down to Siliguri on Nov 9 evening and then start from Siliguri to Chandipur on Nov 10.

Are you aware of the condition of fog? I am planning to upgrade my fog lamps from the stock set provided with Safari.

Thanks,
Harish

[Harry1983]

I am looking for any decent hotel information to stay in Kolkata enroute to Siliguri without having to go much into the city. Please advice

[ranjitp1]

Nice one and all the best for your drive.We planned out a similar one a few months back from HYD,but hasnt materialised yet.Kolkata-Siliguri is a long drive-dont go by the number of kilometers,should take around 14-15hours for any vehicle to complete this stretch(assuming no truck breakdowns,jams etc) and the sad part is there is no place apart from Malda to do a night stopover on this route and Malda is too early!

Similarly IMHO,Gangtok-Chandipur is going to be quite a stretch on bad roads.

[amrisharm]

Originally Posted by Harry1983

Thank you amrisharm. This is really helpful. I will make my stay in Siliguri as you mentioned. Also in return, may be I can come down to Siliguri on Nov 9 evening and then start from Siliguri to Chandipur on Nov 10.

Are you aware of the condition of fog? I am planning to upgrade my fog lamps from the stock set provided with Safari.

Thanks,
Harish

You are most welcome. The roads and the drive to mirik is one of my favorite in the darjeeling hills so by doing it fresh after resting up in Siliguri and in daytime I think you will enjoy it very much.

Regarding fog, well you have picked the best time to visit these parts, as during the 1st week of nov, you get clear blue skies. But having said that the weather can change unexpectedly. So hope for the best but plan for the worst. While travelling long distances fog or no fog extra lights are always highly recommended. For fog driving i would recommend those yellow coloured fog lamps. I dont know if its just me but i find that normal coloured head lamps and fog lamps tend to reflect back light to the drivers eye when used in dense fog, where as those yellow coloured ones tend to cut through the fog much better. Also yellow fog lights are easier for on coming drivers to see you as well.

Driving in the hills, do keep in mind uphill traffic always gets right of way. The stretch from darjeeling to Teesta Bridge on the way to Gangtok is very very steep (downhill ) so do make sure you use both engine braking as well as brakes. Do manage your brakes well as the steep sections are quite long and a big n heavy vehicle like the Safari could cause your brakes to overheat.

Below is a pic I took last week on the way to mirik. Just to give you an idea of what to expect

[sumannandy]

Bypass Kolkata by staying somewhere on NH6 (it would be Howrah). But stay options in Kolkata would be nicer. If you want to stay in Kolkata, try to stay near the airport, it would be easier to get back to highway. Kolkata Siliguri would easily take 14 hours or so. I would recommend taking NH2 till Panagarh and take right deviation, instead of regular NH34 via Krishnanagar.

If you are taking NH2, please try sweets near Shaktigarh. Also, it is better to have food before Panagarh, you would not find many decent places after till Berhampore. Berhampore is also a nice place and you could have food there.

Siliguri - Chandipur is long stretch, does not look like a possibility with your constraints.

Leaving Kolkata you get food near Kolaghat. There i no decent food place between Bhubaneswar and Kolaghat.

Wish you a great trip. The places are real nice. If you get time, please visit tea estates in Dooars. Also Hazarduari palace in Berhampore is nice, kind of on the way.

[Harry1983]

Hi Sumannandy,

Thank you very much for your pointers. I am planning to stay near Howrah. Siliguri to Chandipur is really long given the feedback I am getting that Siliguri to Kolkata will take 14 to 15hrs. So, I may skip Chandipur in return. Stay over in Howrah and head back ti Vizag as I have to be back to Vizag before Diwali. I will keep in mind the places you mentioned.

thanks,
Harish

Originally Posted by sumannandy

Bypass Kolkata by staying somewhere on NH6 (it would be Howrah). But stay options in Kolkata would be nicer. If you want to stay in Kolkata, try to stay near the airport, it would be easier to get back to highway. Kolkata Siliguri would easily take 14 hours or so. I would recommend taking NH2 till Panagarh and take right deviation, instead of regular NH34 via Krishnanagar.

If you are taking NH2, please try sweets near Shaktigarh. Also, it is better to have food before Panagarh, you would not find many decent places after till Berhampore. Berhampore is also a nice place and you could have food there.

Siliguri - Chandipur is long stretch, does not look like a possibility with your constraints.

Leaving Kolkata you get food near Kolaghat. There i no decent food place between Bhubaneswar and Kolaghat.

Wish you a great trip. The places are real nice. If you get time, please visit tea estates in Dooars. Also Hazarduari palace in Berhampore is nice, kind of on the way.

[Harry1983]

Thank you Ranjit. From the feedback I got I might do Siliguri to Howrah and skip Chandipur. I plan to start to Siliguri early morning and hope to reach by late evening.

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Nice one and all the best for your drive.We planned out a similar one a few months back from HYD,but hasnt materialised yet.Kolkata-Siliguri is a long drive-dont go by the number of kilometers,should take around 14-15hours for any vehicle to complete this stretch(assuming no truck breakdowns,jams etc) and the sad part is there is no place apart from Malda to do a night stopover on this route and Malda is too early!

Similarly IMHO,Gangtok-Chandipur is going to be quite a stretch on bad roads.

[Harry1983]

Thats a nice picture. I will make sure I follow the breaking tips. I did some multiple trips to Araku valley and one trip to Ooty but I guess this is much challenging. I have been to Darjeeling Dec 2007 alone and found it to be very good , everything was clearly visible. So, thought of going around the same time but this time with my family.

[Harry1983]

After some valuable feedback. My updated schedule looks like this



If I start early on Oct 30, then I will do chandipur. Not particular about it at the moment.

[rahul4640]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Kolkata-Siliguri is a long drive-dont go by the number of kilometers,should take around 14-15hours for any vehicle to complete this stretch(assuming no truck breakdowns,jams etc) and the sad part is there is no place apart from Malda to do a night stopover on this route and Malda is too early!

The hotel at Raiganj run by West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation, located very close to Kulik bird sanctuary may be an option for stopover at night. It is 425 KM from Calcutta, 72 KM after crossing Maldah, two or three KM after crossing Raiganj town and 181 KM from Siliguri. Although I have never stayed there, I have stopped there twice for food. It has both AC and non-AC rooms, a decent restaurant, fully secured car parking and is located right on NH-34. It was not expensive either, as I was quoted only Rs 800/- for an AC room in the month of May this year.

An advantage of staying here is that you may leave early in the morning to avoid the dreaded traffic jam at Dalkhola. And after that Silliguri is only a breeze.

But the problem is that the signboard of this hotel is clearly visible only while driving from Siliguri to Calcutta. While going toward Siliguri locating this hotel may be little difficult to locate, although assistance may be sought from the locals.