[shomshree]

Please allow me to compliment on the beautiful travelogue that you have started. The introduction & initial day-wise summery are superb with awesome photographs. This t-log is as good as HVK Sir's .

There are so many t-logs now. So much more to experience and revel in. Indeed, your logs are like our virtual eyes. Some of us may not be so lucky as to experience what you have in person, and from the exciting position of a footloose driver. But through this logs we can experience ourselves as a traveler.

The photos themselves evoke more than a passing interest in photography. If possible pls give some details of camera & lenses used for this splendid photographs.

Originally Posted by fi.robin

@aviorp - Is it possible to share the map/directions of route you took to avoide the Jam near Bharuch? I too have lost hours there everytime.

At Ankleshwar leave the NH8 & go straight towards the city. Road is narrow with lots of autos & local traffic but traffic-jam free. You can cross the Narmada with one of the oldest bridge of India the Golden bridge (130yrs old). After crossing the bridge go straight towards GNFC through Bharuch city you will get the Highway direction.

Shome.

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by bharat4ever

I've been wanting to ask for a while now, what is that yellow strip on the headlamp cluster? I've seen that on a lot of Bangalore cars.

It is mandated by the Gujarat RTO that all vehicles must have a a yellow reflective strip on their right headlamp which is why vehicles traveling to/belonging to GJ sport that strip. Most people do not bother to remove it after coming back to B'lore.

[Farukh]

Originally Posted by n.devdath

It is mandated by the Gujarat RTO that all vehicles must have a a yellow reflective strip on their right headlamp which is why vehicles traveling to/belonging to GJ sport that strip. Most people do not bother to remove it after coming back to B'lore.

I've read in many TLs about this requirement but still do not get the purpose of it.

[(Alok)]

This is one more encouraging travelogue for the persons, who are planning to visit Leh/ laddakh.

Originally Posted by aviorp

Dont plan too much, just drive, your confidence will increase on its own.

This should be the motto for any road trip.

Beautiful rods can attract any driving enthusiast (The most liked photograph by me. thanks).

[aviorp]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

Senior, ever since you told me about this ladakh trip when we were speaking on phone 4 months back, I was waiting for this travelogue to be posted . I still remember checking the travelogues list frequently to check if you had started one.

What a superb start to the T-log, your narration is superb and the teaser pictures are exquisite, each and every one of them. Now I'm eagerly waiting to see how the rest of the travelogue unfolds. Go go go!

Thanks Karthik. I remember you sent an SMS about the meet, just a day before I left. Would love to catch up with you guys. Please do let me know, when there is a meet and yes, will increase my speed in the next 2 days.

Originally Posted by anujatwork

These were the funniest.

Man, oh man, I am sure you must be a decent driver (to have undertaken this trip) but a photographer - you have one helluva skill with the lens. The way pics are shot simply makes them supercalafragilisticexpiamidocious!

How did the terrain behave with the hottie? Keen to know whether low GC played spoilsport? Feel like undertaking this trip in my CityZX next year. Would she be able to handle it?

Regards,
Anuj

Thanks Anuj. Liked your adjective .

Dzire might have scrapped the belly on a few occassions but it all depends on the driver. All 3 of them drove exceptionally well. They drove slowly, stopped whenever they thought it might not make it, cleared the stones and drove cautiously.

Yes, low ground clearance is a problem. They could not do Zanskar. Will share those details with pics, when I get there.

Honestly, any car can do Ladakh.

Originally Posted by VINUMON

Great!! You could have stretched your journey till Kerala / Kanyakumari...

I wish man..

Originally Posted by lapsi

Loved the route from Day 5 to Day 8.

Pathankot - Khajjiar - Sach Pass - Gulabgarh - Kishtwar - Sinthan Top is an exceptionally amazing sector.

In fact, the road is not even visible on the map, between Sach Pass and Gulabgarh. Fantastic job in selecting this route.

Cheers!

Thanks lapsi. I'm sure you'll love it even more when I post the pics.

Originally Posted by fi.robin

@aviorp - Is it possible to share the map/directions of route you took to avoide the Jam near Bharuch? I too have lost hours there everytime.

At Ankleshwar leave the NH8 & go straight towards the city. Road is narrow with lots of autos & local traffic but traffic-jam free. You can cross the Narmada with one of the oldest bridge of India the Golden bridge (130yrs old). After crossing the bridge go straight towards GNFC through Bharuch city you will get the Highway direction.

Shome.

Thanks Shome. That's the route we took, fi.robin.

Originally Posted by MAS

Amazing thread...

Aviorp, i envy you and other guys who are doing this wonderful trip. I'm glued to this thread as i would take notes for my proposed trip to Leh (don't know when)

Please post as much details as possible..

Thanks MAS. I sure will share all the details.

Originally Posted by Farukh

I like your narration style, crisp and clear. You are letting photos do all the talking. Also the way you introduced participants is worth mentioning. Kinda gives a flavor to the TL. Keep 'em coming

Thanks a lot Farukh. Cheers.

Originally Posted by advaitlele

Awesome pic there for rain on the windshield -- was it on the move or while stationary?

That was taken by Badari. I guess it was on the move.

You've to speed up during weekend Avi. The photos and description makes us want for more.

Weekend starts now and you'll see a flood of pics.

Would be helpful if you can post summary of each leg / day after the post -- something like total KMs during the day / fuel consumed / toll / road condition for the day etc. if you have collected these details. OR if you want to put it at the end?

I do have the number of Km's but Fuel/Toll, I dint keep a track for day wise. Will share them too.

The Road condition, all the way from Bangalore to Amritsar is 'Awesome'. You'll soon see how the road was from there on.

Originally Posted by shomshree

Please allow me to compliment on the beautiful travelogue that you have started. The introduction & initial day-wise summery are superb with awesome photographs. This t-log is as good as HVK Sir's .

Thanks shomshree. I'm glad you guys are liking it. Stay tuned, lot more to come.

There are so many t-logs now. So much more to experience and revel in. Indeed, your logs are like our virtual eyes. Some of us may not be so lucky as to experience what you have in person, and from the exciting position of a footloose driver. But through this logs we can experience ourselves as a traveler

The photos themselves evoke more than a passing interest in photography. If possible pls give some details of camera & lenses used for this splendid photographs.

Thanks again and hope you experience this real soon.

Its a Nikon D5100, 18-55mm lens.

Originally Posted by Farukh

I've read in many TLs about this requirement but still do not get the purpose of it.

I guess you missed my earlier post. The purpose is to create a yellow reflection, when you switch on the headlights, while driving in heavy/thick fog, to assist the driver of the vehicle coming from the opposite direction, who hopefully, notices it and drives in his lane than scrapping the right side of your car. However, I doubt it would actually create that kind of reflection.

Originally Posted by (Alok)

This is one more encouraging travelogue for the persons, who are planning to visit Leh/ laddakh.



This should be the motto for any road trip.

Beautiful rods can attract any driving enthusiast (The most liked photograph by me. thanks).

Thank you Alok. A lot of stuff to come.

[aviorp]

Day 3 : Aug 20th

Route : Chittorgarh - Kishangarh - Rawatsar - Hanumangarh - Abohar - Fazilka - Ferozpur - Zira - Amritsar - Atari (Wagah) -> 960 Kms

The dhaba had a few beds (similar to Pic 9 in this post). So, after dinner, Satish, Badari and Pandu slept for a couple of hours. I tried getting some sleep in the car but just couldn't, as it was too sultry. So, I cleaned the interiors of the car and re-arranged the luggage. I was wondering where DJ was and to my amuse, he was working. I still couldn't believe what I was seeing and all of sudden the place just went dark, like some bhoot movie. Just when I was about pull my hair, all 3 of them woke up, due to the power cut. I was in a way happy as I was in the mood to drive. We had a cup of tea and we were off.

We reached Sujangarh around 8. The roads are chimply superb..



We found a place to do some offroading



Satish having some fun on the sand.. I'm sure he is wondering, if he can take the Dzire up there



The Couple!



Badari showing off some of his photography skills..





.. and Badari showing off his driving skill



After doing all the stunts, we were back on the road.

Following them closely..



This stetch has few dhabas but to our luck, we could not find one. Finally, when we did, the guy had nothing and said it will take some time to prepare. We had no choice than to wait..



Hot weather and hot parathas.. what a combination.



After almost an hour, we left with a heavy tummy.

Rajasthan - Hot, Hotter, Hottest.



That's one way to beat the heat..



Out of nowhere, this guy comes out





And this..





Then this,







Though its a two lane road, it is just fantastic. The only problem is the weather.



One way to kill boredom



There are about 4 or 5 railway crossings in this stretch and we got held up at 3 of them.



Badari is not happy and so was everyone else as we were losing crucial time



DJ in the mean time took his 70-300 to shoot this



The heat was unbearable. I'm sure it touched 40 in the afternoon



I thought we were not making it to Wagah by 4..



..but we decided to skip lunch and drove non-stop. By 1PM or so we were in Abohar



Again from Abohar to Amritsar we did a continuous drive. No stops for pics. Finally we reached Wagah around 5PM and I see this board..



1KM of walk made me feel like, I was sitting inside an oven. Then, we see this.. I almost fainted.

[Nitrous Power]

Great travelogue with superb pics.

Originally Posted by aviorp

They were ahead of me and had stopped to let me know, that we had take a left to enter Udaipur. I'm glad that they did as I was happily cruising and luckily saw them waiving at me.

Being regular user of NE -1, one thing I can not resist to mention here is, in future, Please DO NOT STOP on Express Way. It is very dangerous and not advisable at all. Rather then stopping there on E-way, they should have taken the exit and called you to inform about the exit.

Sorry for going OT here.

[arun_josie]

With the number of Leh TLs coming up, it looks like a Leh trip is rite of passage for a bhpian :-)

aviorp, wonderful start to this thread, excellent pics. I am sure it will get even better as you reach the top.

If possible, would like to see some words from Satish regarding his Dzire performance. Also, is it diesel or petrol? looks like a Z version. Being a Dzire owner, this thread has given me some confidence that even I can plan for a Leh trip.

Just came across the below thread as well where "dushmish" has taken his Dzire to the top,

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...p-world-4.html

[aviorp]

Originally Posted by Nitrous Power

Great travelogue with superb pics

Thank you.

Being regular user of NE -1, one thing I can not resist to mention here is, in future, Please DO NOT STOP on Express Way. It is very dangerous and not advisable at all. Rather then stopping there on E-way, they should have taken the exit and called you to inform about the exit.

Good to know someone is closely watching us. Well, since you bought this up, there is short story behind it. After lunch, my friend dozed off and if they did call, I'm sure, I would have not answered because I like driving with the windows rolled down and the music was playing loud.

So, both Sati & Badari are aware of my driving style and had the presence of mind to stop. More over, if you observe the pic closely, the car was parked on the left shoulder, where usually vehicles stop if they break down, with the hazard light on and that's the place where most vehicles slow down too.

On a lighter note, you failed to notice that, we have been driving for more than 50 hours, with about 3 hours of sleep. That's kind of dangerous too, aint it? and what about driving to Leh itself? So, I guess we kind of knew, what we were doing.

Dangerous? Well, by the end of this log, I guess you might be wondering, how I'm still alive. Cheers.

Originally Posted by arun_josie

With the number of Leh TLs coming up, it looks like a Leh trip is rite of passage for a bhpian :-)

aviorp, wonderful start to this thread, excellent pics. I am sure it will get even better as you reach the top

Thanks Arun.

If possible, would like to see some words from Satish regarding his Dzire performance. Also, is it diesel or petrol? looks like a Z version. Being a Dzire owner, this thread has given me some confidence that even I can plan for a Leh trip.

The Dzire belongs to Badari. Will surely request those guys to share some info about the car's performance. AFAIK, the car had no problems throughout the journey. The credit goes to Badari, for the way he maintains and drives it.

The only problem is crossing the water streams and keeping the same kind of pace as I did in stretches like Zanskar. Will share those details, when I get there and will also ask them to send the details. (I would rather ask them to join T-BHP). Its a Petrol, Zxi.

[aviorp]

Last few pics from Day 3, as I had exceeded the limit in my previous post.

This is the best we could see,



Our first group pic.



I was totally tired and stayed back in the room. The other 4 went to see this beauty.







That's the place we stayed for the night. Our first stay after 3 days and 2 nights drive. This place is about half a km from Golden Temple, next to the Bus station. Cost 1500/- for 5.






Day 4 : Aug 21st

Route : Amritsar - Pathankot - Chakki - Dhar - Dalhousie - Khajjiar -> 230 Kms

We had planned to leave by 6, mainly to avoid the traffic in Pathankot and also to reach Khajjiar early, so I can do Sach Pass the following day. However, after packing the bags, we realized the Dzire had a flat tyre. So, offloading the luggage and replacing the tyre took some time. Finally, we left around 8.



Stopped for breakfast, somewhere near Gurdaspur.



Cold and tasty water!



Time for another group pic.



The weather was misty and slightly drizzling. Something like this,



Wouldn't this be a perfect vehicle for driving in Bangalore?



Badari seems to be attracted to something,



Some reservoir. I guess this leads to the Ravi River?



Exemplary views!







First water fall.



My first attempt with a slow shutter speed. I realized this was a fluke a little later..



The roads are something like this,





I stopped to ask this Gentleman for directions and he just said head straight, hmm, was quite useful. Liked his mush though



Some dirty lake.



Dzire shying away from tasting its first blood.



This was just a warm up..



I told them not to stop frequently..



..but couldn't help after seeing this



Same shot taken in Sati's 10-22

[aviorp]

Beautiful flower,



What am I doing?



Clicking this,



And who clicked me?



Soon, we came across this. Failed attempt,



Slightly better,



One for my album,



Crazy bugger,



What is he clicking?



This,



Badari cleaned his car in his bare hands. He even cleaned the alloy. That's how much he loves his cherry



Horsie's day out!



Which way do we go? Simple, call HVK sir. Btw, that's Badari, reading HVK's log book



Himachal surely is a 'Devbhoomi'. Loved it



Badari found a way to kill time,



Some directions - I dint understand a word in that



Nope, no Dharmshala this time. Hopefully, next time.



Heading right,



Road and weather,







Another waterfall,



Another failed attempt,





After a short drive,



Another,



Just pass?

[aviorp]

This road was just filled with water falls and streams



Fresh landslide,



The weather wasn't cold, as it appears to be,



We still had a long way to go, but it was time to fill our tummies



No, we dint order that.



Satish expressing his joy after driving in this stretch



A message from the DPS school,



Sign board on the other side



Huge!



Nice texture!



Glue!



After the break, Badari hopped into my car, as he wanted to click some pics of his Dzire,



Naah, not to trying to kiss her



She dint like me coming behind her



What a Road!



Some pics of the Cherry, Weather and Road!

[aviorp]

Few more pics of the road, weather and the Dzire









Looks like a reflection, doesn't it?







Badari had enough of clicking the butt













We stopped to click this..



When she went past us, it looked like the **s was on fire (Sorry Badari, couldn't resist)





The mist seems to have dozed off the fire



Badari wanted a pic of his car on this stretch, so waited for the 'Burning Dzire' to go past us



But, can hardly make out where she is







We were hoping to reach before it gets dark



but, the thick fog was making matters worse,



And, this was not helping our confidence,



The fog was getting thicker and thicker,



The only treat to us on this stretch,

[aviorp]

It took us nearly 2 hours to reach Khajjiar from here,



We stopped near the Hilltop school for a short break,

Saw this near a tree,



This reminded me of our recent vist to Kodai,



Just white all over the place,



She found some shelter,









Finally reached my first dream destination. Tomorrow, I'll get to experience the beauty of this place.

[aviorp]

Day 5 : Aug 22nd

Mystic Beauty!

We were up and ready by 7. Out of excitement, we peeped out of our window and it was just fog all over the place. We waited nearly 2 hours and finally got a glimpse,



As the curtains rose,





The beauty was unleashed!



The horse just added more beauty to this place,



Mesmerizing,



Just splendid,



Even the stone looks beautiful,



Just loved these fellas,







Wallpaper stuff!



From a nearby tree,





The fog was back,



and it was gone pretty soon,





From another tree,



Couldn't have asked for more beauty,



Guess its Apricot