[PapaBravo]

Well this was not a full blown travel trip but just a trip home which turned out to be a 4000 km road trip for us. We had planned to visit our home in Delhi for the Holi week. Once in Delhi, a trip to Amritsar was planned. So basically we ended up reaching the western border of the country from almost the eastern border of the country.

Day 1 : Kolkata to Delhi

As per discussions with fellow bhpians, the drive time of Kol-Delhi according to current road conditions hovered between 20 to 24 hrs depending on the traffic. We left Kolkata at 0230 hrs on 19th March 2016. I have updated the road conditions on this thread.

Soon after we left we encountered a jam just before Panagarh.



A trucker had fallen asleep and banged the median which had turned the truck turtle perpendicular to the road direction. We started moving 20 minutes later & continued our journey

Some pictures of break near Varanasi





We reached Kanpur by 1745 hrs. We were flagged down by UP Police on the Kanpur Byepass. It was a routine paper check. We obliged & told the cop to hurry up. He seemed amazed on knowing the fact that we were coming from Kolkata & going to Delhi in one go.

Kanpur to Etawah was comparatively less crowded as India Pakistan match was going on. We were at East end of Yamuna Expressway at 2130 hrs. We stopped at the first food joint & had some snack. Gave a call to SS-Traveller & he confirmed that we would be in Dhaulakuan by 0030 hrs. We indeed reached at 0030 hrs.

Day 2 : At Buddh International Circuit

Thanks to SS-Traveller, I visited BIC for the first time. He had arranged some grandstand passes for T1 Prima Truck Racing. Some pictures of the race day

The Cutout of Cummins I6 putting up 380 bhp:



Wabco truck



SS-traveller & yours truly



Pictures of the very long Cultural program breaks





Day 3 : Rest

contd....

[PapaBravo]

Day 4 : Delhi to Amritsar

We had estimated 8 hours to Amritsar from Delhi. The route till Ludhiana was great. After Ludhiana, the byepass for Ludhiana & Jalandhar are still under construction with diversions all the way.

Pictures of Stop near Ambala



With the better half



We reached Amritsar around 1500 hrs & had our lunch. We had planned to watch the Beating Retreat ceremony at Wagah Border.

As per the latest timetable, one has to reach Wagah by 1645 hrs in order to catch the full ceremony. The sun is usually very strong, so dont forget your caps/umbrellas. The ceremony ends by 1830 hrs.

Some photos of the ceremony

2 kms from the Border



1 km from the Border



Actual Border



Colorful Indian Side



A young lady managing the crowd



The parade





Standing Tall



The trade where you can spot some Pakistani Trucks.



Although we were quite tired after the whole day, we decided to visit Golden Temple the same night. I had been to Golden temple before but every time it was during the day. We traversed thru Amritsar traffic to finally reach Golden Temple. For anyone going there, parking is available near the temple in the Multilevel parking. It is quite convenient. The distance from Parking to Temple can be covered on foot or by Rickshaw if you have elderly people with you.

Golden Temple at night is Magical

The entrance



Reflection



Reflection from another angle



The customary picture



The pathway to the shrine



A beautiful Chandelier



Finally after dinner we returned to our guest house at 2345 hrs & retired for the day.

contd...

[PapaBravo]

Day 5 : Amritsar to Delhi

We started at 0600 hrs

Ready to go back



We made a customary stop at Haveli Jalandar for breakfast. We crossed Jalandar & Ludhiana before the rush started. This is the season for Kinnow so a stop for juice was unavoidable.

Freshly made Juice



While the whole family was having juice I tried some hands at car photography. Those who know me know that I have very poor photographic skills.

The Bug Eater HULK



Lot of miles to cover for HULK



Yours Truly - Clicked by wife



We reached Delhi by 1400 hrs. The next two days were spent relaxing in Delhi & accompanying the wife on the never ending shopping spree.

Day 8 : Delhi to Allahabad

While getting out of Delhi we took a wrong flank on the flyover & ended up heading Faridabad. Upon realizing the same we took a U turn towards Noida in order to catch YEW. The journey till Allahabad when without any issue. The roads were great & we reached Allahabad by Lunch time.

We had planned a visit to Sangam where three rivers meet. The visible Ganga & Yamuna and the invisible Saraswati. If you are not interested in taking a bath, the best time to visit Sangam is in the evening. The rush is in the morning for taking batch at the holy Sangam Point. We took a boat & went till the Sangam point.

Boat ride





Sunset at Yamuna



When alive, my maternal grandparents used to live in Allahabad. So I have spent many days in Allahabad & have childhood memories attached to it. That was infact the reason we made a stop over at Allahabad. We visited our old house met some old people & returned to our guest house by 2100 hrs.

Day 9 : Allahabad to Kolkata

We started early since we knew that this was the slower half of the Del-Kolkata run. The journey was uneventful & we reached Kolkata by 1800 hrs.

So here ends the short & diverse travelogue.

Hope you enjoyed reading it

Regards,

Pawan

[Aditya]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Travelogues Section. Thanks for sharing!

[mi2n]

Amazing trip Pawan! Nice crsip log too. Both the steed and the jockey are looking glamorous in the pictures. On a lighter note, we always find you all suited, booted and tagged in! How do you endure such long drives dressed up so well? You should see me doing less than half that distance! Barefooted, in bermudas with a shaggy t-shirt reluctantly put on.

Keep on munching miles.

[AJ-got-BHP]

That's one crisp, short and sweet travelogue PapaBravo !!

The Golden Temple @ Amritsar and The Wagah Border remains in my Bucket List for long now. Have missed it twice in the past by a whisker. Shall take pointers from you once we plan to explore that part of the country.

Good to see the Hulk enjoying the Highways Drives with you. The Front Matt Black Grill looks stunning indeed in those pictures.

[Samba]

Nice travelogue with some lovely pics. Visiting the Golden temple is in my bucket list for a long time but some how it didn't happen. But will definitely do it some day.

Now am waiting to see the travelogue from you & your Duster AWD conquering Ladakh!

[gearhead_mait]

Wonderful trip. Actually this has come at the right time for me. Very good updates regarding the current situation there. Thanks!

[sabret00the]

Nice travelogue Pawan. Very nice pics.

[gmhossain]

Originally Posted by PapaBravo

... this was not a full blown travel trip but just a trip home which turned out to be a 4000 km road trip

Congratulations Pawan on your "not so long" 4000 km road trip Your pictures of Golden Temple are indeed quite magical! Keep revving your Duster!

Cheers,

[PapaBravo]

Originally Posted by mi2n

Amazing trip Pawan! Nice crsip log too. Both the steed and the jockey are looking glamorous in the pictures. On a lighter note, we always find you all suited, booted and tagged in! How do you endure such long drives dressed up so well? You should see me doing less than half that distance! Barefooted, in bermudas with a shaggy t-shirt reluctantly put on.

Keep on munching miles.

Thanks a lot Mithun. That is some nice observation. For long routes I prefer bermudas & t-shirts as well. But for anything upto 500 kms I wear something a little more formal (Jeans/Tee/shoes). May be coming from an army background has something to do with it.

Originally Posted by AJ-got-BHP

That's one crisp, short and sweet travelogue PapaBravo !!

The Golden Temple @ Amritsar and The Wagah Border remains in my Bucket List for long now. Have missed it twice in the past by a whisker. Shall take pointers from you once we plan to explore that part of the country.

Good to see the Hulk enjoying the Highways Drives with you. The Front Matt Black Grill looks stunning indeed in those pictures.

Thanks AJ !! Hulk is enjoying the highway drives a lot but complaining of not taking it to Hills. That wish shall be granted soon. Do let me know when you plan to visit these places, shall definitely help you out. Regarding the grill, thank god the DIY turned out well. It's been holding well after months as well.

Originally Posted by Samba

Nice travelogue with some lovely pics. Visiting the Golden temple is in my bucket list for a long time but some how it didn't happen. But will definitely do it some day.

Now am waiting to see the travelogue from you & your Duster AWD conquering Ladakh!

Thank you Samba. Your travelogue & one on one conversations have been very helpful in planning Ladakh this year. Will be putting up a travelogue soon. But no one can beat the pictures clicked by you in Ladakh.

Originally Posted by gearhead_mait

Wonderful trip. Actually this has come at the right time for me. Very good updates regarding the current situation there. Thanks!

Thanks Buddy. Let me know about the updates you require on the route. Shall let you know.

Originally Posted by sabret00the

Nice travelogue Pawan. Very nice pics.

Thank you sir !!

Originally Posted by gmhossain

Congratulations Pawan on your "not so long" 4000 km road trip Your pictures of Golden Temple are indeed quite magical! Keep revving your Duster!

Cheers,

Thanks Hossain Sa'ab. Golden temple indeed is magical at night. They have maintained it very well. Will be traveling in your territory soon for the Sikkim Trip.

Regards,

Pawan

[Sheel]

It is TOO short for my liking. No road pics, no food pics...if you have more pictures, please do share.

[PapaBravo]

Originally Posted by Sheel

It is TOO short for my liking. No road pics, no food pics...if you have more pictures, please do share.

Thanks Sheel for the constructive criticism. I agree this one is quite short. But since this was not a road travel trip to a destination but just a visit home, there was not much to write. The only reason there is a travelogue is due to the Amritsar trip.

Now to satiate the desire for food & road here are few pics :

Tasty Paranthas at Murthal with dollops of Butter.





Lass after the Paranthas



Our stop while coming back from Amritsar - Jalandhar Haveli



Roads (Dashcam Grabs)

Diversions near Asansol



The beautiful Allahabad Byepass



NH24B (Lko-Alld), You catch this to enter Allahabad at Civil lines from Byepass



Then the Yamuna Crossing to Enter Allahabad.



Road to Wagah Border



Regards,

Pawan