[gtonsing]

Very nice report and pictures @Vijayols. Appreciate you going with a small child in tow all the way there.

Being from the NE India and living working in Bangalore now (for more than 14 years) I see what I miss, the clean mountain air, the green cover, the smell of the trees, everything. Sadly, however beautiful and amazing, development is crushing many of the towns and villages. Many irreversible damage has been done to many of the places. Its commendable the work or WWF and other agencies in the region in trying to help conserve whatever is left of the precious flora and fauna.

Thank you for sharing your story!

[wanderernomad]

Great pictures and narrative Mate. Am glad that you enjoyed the trip, a pity we could not meet up despite being on the same road on that day. But there is always a next time. You have really captured the essence of NE in your tlog.

[Secretariat]

Lovely travelogue of a lovely part of India.

Was surprised to see the thin waters at Nohkalikai; until I realised that you had travelled in Feb. Right now the falls must be roaring.

You've done great by doing homestays as much as possible. People across all the North Eastern States, are wonderfully hospitable, with Arunachal being the absolute star.

And yes, Wanderernomad is the absolute dada of the North East, even though he's no longer based there. Tipping my proverbial hat to him.

[airbus]

Excellent travelogue vijayols
Could you please share the amount they charged for the self-driven car? I would like to hire during my next trip to home (Assam).

[vijayols]

Originally Posted by gtonsing

Very nice report and pictures @Vijayols. Appreciate you going with a small child in tow all the way there.

Being from the NE India and living working in Bangalore now (for more than 14 years) I see what I miss, the clean mountain air, the green cover, the smell of the trees, everything. Sadly, however beautiful and amazing, development is crushing many of the towns and villages. Many irreversible damage has been done to many of the places. Its commendable the work or WWF and other agencies in the region in trying to help conserve whatever is left of the precious flora and fauna.

Thank you for sharing your story!

Thanks Gtonsing for your kind words.

I am not sure how you can live in Blore after being in NE! Especially the last few years, Bangalore has become concrete jungle.

And what you said about "development" Yes., it is sad - we had very depressing moments seeing the mountains being ripped apart for mining But the vast expanse of the towering mountains kind of told us, 'it is not easy for you to destroy us!'
The lingering thought which travelled with us - Human greed...is there an end to it?!

Originally Posted by wanderernomad

Great pictures and narrative Mate. Am glad that you enjoyed the trip, a pity we could not meet up despite being on the same road on that day. But there is always a next time. You have really captured the essence of NE in your tlog.

The loss is ours wanderernomad to have missed the chance to meet up.But its a small world and hopefully we get to cross our paths.

The trailer is absolutely amazing and hats off to your enterprise and the family too to be a part of the experience.

Cannot thank you enough for helping in planning the route.

Cheers.

Originally Posted by Secretariat

Lovely travelogue of a lovely part of India.

Was surprised to see the thin waters at Nohkalikai; until I realised that you had travelled in Feb. Right now the falls must be roaring.

You've done great by doing homestays as much as possible. People across all the North Eastern States, are wonderfully hospitable, with Arunachal being the absolute star.

And yes, Wanderernomad is the absolute dada of the North East, even though he's no longer based there. Tipping my proverbial hat to him.

We went to see Nohkalikai without much of an expectation but boy did it manage to blow us up.We can only image its majestic beauty post the monsoons.Much as we have enjoyed another beauty in another part of the country the magnificent Chitrakoot falls and its unknown but breathtakingly beautiful sister tomar-ghomar falls albeit again just before the glory of the monsoons had set in.

Originally Posted by airbus

Excellent travelogue vijayols
Could you please share the amount they charged for the self-driven car? I would like to hire during my next trip to home (Assam).

Thank you for the kind words airbus.

Awe Rides who were very impressive charged us 2k per day excluding fuel.They have a range of cars and bikes for rent and also have camping equipment.

You could also check on Zoom who have opened operations in Guwahati.

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[roy_libran]

Originally Posted by vijayols

Awe Rides who were very impressive charged us 2k per day excluding fuel.

That's unfair Vijay!!!!

I paid 1400 bucks per day for the same car in October excluding fuel. I don't think GST would increase the rental by 600 bucks per day. You should take it up with Awe Rides.

[vijayols]

Originally Posted by roy_libran

That's unfair Vijay!!!!

I paid 1400 bucks per day for the same car in October excluding fuel. I don't think GST would increase the rental by 600 bucks per day. You should take it up with Awe Rides.

Oops Roy that is very unfair of them.Will communicate with them and post the response.

Did you bargain with them as they had posted the Figo @2500 per day with 10% discount if booked for more than a week.Post that negotiated with them @ 2000 per day.

[roy_libran]

Originally Posted by vijayols

Oops Roy that is very unfair of them.Will communicate with them and post the response.

Did you bargain with them as they had posted the Figo @2500 per day with 10% discount if booked for more than a week.Post that negotiated with them @ 2000 per day.

No bargain. My booking was for 6 days only, so less than a week.

It is good that you posted the cost here, and that brought up this discrepancy.
This will potentially help others make better car rental decisions at Guwahati.

IIRC, another gentleman from the forum - RKG (Ravi), also booked car from Awe Rides in October last year. It's also worth finding out how much he had paid.

[vijayols]

Originally Posted by roy_libran

No bargain. My booking was for 6 days only, so less than a week.

It is good that you posted the cost here, and that brought up this discrepancy.
This will potentially help others make better car rental decisions at Guwahati.

IIRC, another gentleman from the forum - RKG (Ravi), also booked car from Awe Rides in October last year. It's also worth finding out how much he had paid.

The rate now seems to be Rs 2000 for the Figo and Rs 2500 for the swift both of which were Rs 2500 during the period I had booked the car(Looks like was peak tourist season).

The Figo incidentally looked to be among their first cars as it had clocked 50k when we had used it.

[San Phrangmung]

The pictures surely will inspire many to come to North East.
Arunachal though has a lot to offer the roads needs to improve a lot. Atleast the Indian government should widen the roads to two lane, and if not for the locals or tourist but for troops to reach forward areas sooner.

[Madmax_SP]

Excellent TL. Shillong, and in fact the whole of North-East is an amazing & special experience altogether. The hospitality of the people is as wonderful as the terrain too. So many places to travel, and this surely is on my list again.
Thanks for all the informative details.

[vijayols]

Originally Posted by San Phrangmung

The pictures surely will inspire many to come to North East.
Arunachal though has a lot to offer the roads needs to improve a lot. Atleast the Indian government should widen the roads to two lane, and if not for the locals or tourist but for troops to reach forward areas sooner.

Thanks San.Good road connectivity in Arunachal Pradesh will go a long way in helping us explore this wonderful state which has so much to offer.The normal explored territory seems to be the Bhalukpong -Tawang circuit though we would love to visit again and explore Roing as well as central Arunachal.

That said the newly laid route through rupa which I have mentioned in the blog was simply amazing and condition was excellent.

Hope San that many more start exploring this wonderful state especially from down South.

Originally Posted by Madmax_SP

Excellent TL. Shillong, and in fact the whole of North-East is an amazing & special experience altogether. The hospitality of the people is as wonderful as the terrain too. So many places to travel, and this surely is on my list again.
Thanks for all the informative details.

Couldn't agree more with you about the hospitality and friendly nature of the people from North East and how amazingly clean they keep their state.

Shillong totally bowled us over and the Dylan Cafe was simply loved by my daughter.Traffic though was an issue.

You must plan to bag your bags at the earliest and head to the North East.Each of the state is so unique and an experience by itself.

Cheers.

Vijay

[dhanushmenon]

Wonderfully scripted travelogue vijayols.
Definitely brought back a lot of memories of my venture to North East. we visited in Dec 2016 and Dawki lake was crystal clear. So clear to see the pebbles on the riverbed. Tough luck for you I guess.

The temptation to visit North East again is very strong. Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura- the foyr sisters we missed out in two cherished drives to that place. Some day!

[Payaniga]

Originally Posted by vijayols

Day 11:

On that note, I am ending the long pending travelogue (got spread over months). Its been 4+ months, we talk about Tommy, Janaki and other folks we met, the unforgettable chilling drive we had and its magnificent imposing beauty of Arunachal. Of course the most of romantic and beautiful drive to Cherrapunjee.. Ever lasting memories. Again thanks to T-BHP for all the route information and guidance.

Excellent travelogue. Thanks for sharing the details.

I'm planning almost the same places in summer.

1. After reading your post, i'm thinking of skipping Dawki as the water will not be crystal clear.

2. I'll include Tawang as well.

3. Though I would love to drive, I'm planning to fly to Guwahati and then take a customized package tour wherein I get a driver and all the accommodations are booked by the operator. I did the same during my Sikkim trip. That helped me to enjoy the beauty of Sikkim instead of concentrating on the road. Do you know any tour operator who can take me to Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachala Pradesh?

[vijayols]

Hey am traveling so was unable to reply to your query.

Shnopdeng is close to dawki and suggest you do a google search to check whether it is worth going to.

Tawang was a place we missed and would be a great place to go to.We loved the Thenbung stay also.

Do go by the Rupa side to reach sela pass as the road was empty when we traveled and the drive through the fog part still gives us goose bumps.

To put my comments on the 3 states Meghalaya is a fun place for self drive with awesome roads, Assam is heaven for wildlife lovers and Arunachal is so so beautiful but roads are not great and perhaps you can check out the eagle nest sanctuary if doable.

Guaranteed that each state will make you wish to plan a separate drive in the future.

Regarding a known driver I do not have any idea.

Have a great trip: