We wake up to our first morning in Bhuj. A quick breakfast later we are ready to leave. Though the rented car arrives on time, we are a bit late. We start off by 9:45AM but ideally, should have started at least an hour earlier.
A quick backgrounder:
During breakfast it dawned upon me that I had rented the car from the hotel travel desk - something that I never do. I immediately logged in to JustDial and got the name of Devsach Car Rental in Bhuj and gave them a call. Upon inquiring, I come to know that the standard rate of a non AC Indica is around Rs.6 per km (minimum 300 kms per day). Our planned journey of the day doesn't really add up to 300 kms, but we'd be paying Rs.2650 - which is much above the going rate. Possibly the hotel commission is included in the lump sum rate.
I book next day's car with Devsach.
We quickly leave Bhuj behind and progress towards our destination to the north of the city. Roads in Kutch are long, straight, lonely and lovely. We cross the Railway Station, Airport, Rudramata reservoir and are in Bhirandiyara check post after a quick photo stop at the Tropic of Cancer board.
A bird we saw on the way to Bhirandiyara. Which one is this?
We get our permits for the visit to Dhordo/White Desert right away as there are no crowds at all.
Just for information, the cost of permit is-
Adult – 100
Kid (5-12 years) – 50
Two-wheeler – 25
Four wheeler – 50
It costs us 350/- including the driver and the car. We have brought the photocopies of the id proofs from Bangalore itself, so it is a breeze. The policemen are very polite and jovial.
Permit done, we speed towards India Bridge and reach there around 11:30AM. The sentry at the southern end of the bridge greets us.
26th Jan ki shubh kamnayen.
We reciprocate back.
He tells us that the bridge was built in 1965-66 and is the only route to the Pakistan border at Vigakot. There are no villages after this bridge till the border.
A permit is required from the Collectorate at Bhuj or the DIG, BSF, Bhuj to go to Vigakot. I feel that we really should have done this permit. I have never seen a Pakistan border till now and this might have been a good place to start.
We ask the sentry if we can walk to the other end of the bridge.
Desh aapka hain. Yeh bridge aapka hain. Hum to bus in sabke rakhwale hain. (The country is yours. This bridge is yours. We are just guards.)
Taking the sentry's permission, we walk along the bridge to the other end and are received by another sentry and a officer.
We are told that walking on the bridge is not permitted. Surprised, we tell them that we weren't told of the same by the sentry at the other end.
They call up the sentry and order him to send across our car to this end so that we can be picked up instead of having to walk across again.
We spend 5-10 mins at the officer's office, and chat with him.
Couple of school buses, filled with children, come across the bridge. We get to know that they are going to Vigakot for a picnic. We are told by the officer that a similar permit is easily available from Bhuj and we should have tried that.
Deepak, our driver, drives in the car and we board it and go back to the other end. We stop to bide farewell to the sentry and he gives us an earful about us walking across the bridge.
I try to reason that we have done the same after asking his permission. He tries clarifying that he meant we should just get on the bridge and come back. Strange ambiguity.
There are tons of flamingos on the water body underneath the bridge. But they are too far away. I try capturing them through my lens.
Flamingos at India Bridge.
We move on towards Kala Dungar and reach there in about 40 mins. We are in the temple of Lord Dattatreya when our driver barges in and tells us, "Jackal has come!!".
We rush back to the spot in excitement and I do see the jackal having come to devour the food. But when I try to get a photo, the jackal decides to go back. Hard luck!
We go down the stairs to the place where free lunch is served. I take lunch and give a donation of fifty rupees to the old man manning the donation counter.
From
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalo_Dungar -
Quote:
Kalo Dungar or Black Hill is the is the highest point in Kutch, at 462 m. It is located at 97 km from District headquarters of Bhuj and 25 km from nearest town Khavda.
...
The Kalo Dungar is also famous for a 400 year old Dattatreya temple. Legend says that when Dattatreya walked on the earth, he stopped at the Black Hills and found a band of starving jackals. Being a god, he offered them his body to eat and as they ate, his body continually regenerated itself. Because of this, for the last four centuries, the priest at the temple has prepared a batch of prasad, cooked rice, that is fed to the jackals after the evening aarti.
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At the Dattatreya Temple, Kala Dungar.
We proceed to the Kala Dungar top, said to be the highest point in Kutch, to view the Great Rann. It is an awesome view and very difficult to capture on camera given the enormity of the Rann.
About 20 mins later, we walk back to our car and drive off towards Dhordo.
The India Bridge from Kala Dungar. The Great Rann of Kutch from Kala Dungar. It's still covered with water and resembles a sea.
We reach Dhordo and are greeted by the empty tents and structures of the Rann Utsav that ended on January, 15th.
We show our permit to the BSF person manning the check post and drive into the White Desert.
What a sight it is to behold!!
Absolutely flat with no other physical forms in view, completely white with salt topping, and a sense of eternity to it – the Great White Rann of Kutch is amazing!
One gets a feeling of nothingness out here. We are but a speck of dust compared to the enormity of the Rann. There is nothing as far as the eye can see and beyond. One can only experience the Rann - it can't be comprehended in a few syllables.
I and Aradhya venture to an extent into the desert, but Sonali stays put at a safe distance. She is wearing slippers and earth is soft underneath the white crust. My shoes are clamped with the soft earth.
We spend about 30 mins on the Rann and take some photos.
This is a day to remember for all time to come.
The Great White Rann of Kutch. Up, close.
We stopped at this new resort at Dhordo. The bhungas are air-conditioned and should provide a comfortable stay. This would compete with the famous Shaam-e-Sarhad at Hodko.
Next, we visit the village of Hodko on the way back to Bhirandiyara, where we visit the homes of villagers engaged in local handicrafts. Sonali makes some purchases to keep herself happy. It doesn't make a huge dent on my wallet, which helps me feel happy.
The colors of Hodko.
We start for Bhuj and make a brief halt at Bhirandiyara, where I grab and pack some
mawa – a sweet delicacy this village is famous for.
Back at Bhuj, Deepak shows us the shops where we can get the famous
dabhelis of Kutch. I grab 4 of them at Rs.5 apiece from Mandvi Dabheli near the bus stand.
We say our goodbyes to Deepak and get into our hotel room and relish the
dabhelis.
At dinner, we try experimenting with the Chinese fare they serve at the restaurant. It turns out to be disastrous and is best avoided.
We hit the sack with fond memories of the day's experience.
Sunset on the way back to Bhuj.