[Blooming Flower]

A Teaser Picture from The Trip



Prologue:

Of late, most of my road trips are completely unplanned and hatched out with a twist of a finger without much research on destinations and itinerary. 2016-17 has been a year of road-trips for me as well as my family (my parents). Very often, I found an entirely unplanned road trip is much more enjoyable, thrilling as well as they leave an indelible impact on the mind. They call for more responsibility, ad-hoc day-to-day basis planning, and execution. This year is also marked by prominent changes in my professional life including shifting to new institute in an older, familiar place from an older employer in a newer place. So, the basic two challenges for any of my road trips are the sanction of leaves from the workplace and current financial condition. So, most of the time, these two sole driving factors for touring remain in vague uncertainty and any pre-planning is destined to premature death! Despite this, this FY, we had innumerable long and short road-trips in different parts of India. So, the fun-factor was much more in all the trips. Spanning from Cape (Kanyakumari), Pondicherry, Mysore, Goa, Munnar, Wayanad, Aleppy, Ooty, Hampi-Badami in south belt down to a jinxed Leh-Ladakh, a diverted tour to Rajasthan (travelogue not yet written) to name a few.

Needless to say, Durga Puja is deemed as the biggest festival of Bengal. Naturally, Bengalees, who have to stay outside the state for their livelihood eagerly wait for a week holiday to spend gala-time with their clans in Bengal during this time. I was fortunate enough to get the scope of spending entire Durga Puja after a long time in Bengal as I deliberately switched my job here for personal need. But people with a heart for touring cannot tame their brain not to think of road-trip and instead enjoy festivities from home location. Even if my brain nodded with consent at some point of time, the more I listened to the planned road-trips of other fellow members during Puja vacation the more was the desire to hatch out one plan for me and my parents. Even a 2-day casual leave was playing the master-stroke of getting continuous 10 days leave as per holiday calendar of our office, a rarity, only a service-holder can comprehend! But sudden deterioration of my Dad's health dissuaded me from thinking any further. But he encouraged me and my Mom to go for a road-trip if we wish to do. After a lot of pros and cons calculation, I couldn't resist myself from taking another road-trip. The attraction for Himalaya was doomed when I finally came to Kolkata as infinite Gorkha Land strike was in full swing. But I was obstinate enough, if it is a road-trip it must be somewhere in the Himalayas, be it not to Darjeeling or Sikkim in those tumultuous days. 2 days extra leave was sanctioned by boss immediately and over telephone discussion with Mom zeroed down to Garhwal Himalaya, especially Kedar-Badri in Devbhoomi Uttarakhand which will serve as a good Himalayan road-trip for me with tints of spiritual quest for my mother! So, the selection of destination was locked then and there. And I had only 2-days to plan and arrange everything before we duo (me and my mom) embark on the trip.

Here goes the quickly chalked out original itinerary. It was edited by a small amount to accommodate the situation in the later stage.



The first thing to decide was which car to take. Presuming the condition of the terrain in landslide ridden Kedarnath and Badrinath route, I decided to take our long-trusted Alto 800 as it is a perfect hill-tourer for two people. I discarded Manza for its soft-suspension setting and low GC. Even taking this was not a requirement as Dad was not traveling with us this time. He is very much fond of the comfy back-seat of Manza. On 22nd September, I left from work as usual and drove to my hometown, Tamluk from Kolkata. I had words with the SM of Maruti Suzuki there to attend my car on an urgent basis in the first hour of Saturday. Alto was taken to SVC and some necessary checking and wheel rotation and balancing were done.




The common equipment for any long road trip is always ready in my inventory. I sorted out those to my need and Mom took care of packing. We were supposed to start at 12.00am on 24th September from home. But twist came in the plan in the evening of 23rd September, a few hours before the beginning of our journey. My Dad came back home earlier from his errand. While having supper, he asked ''Can I join you on this trip? Would you mind to take the Manza? Would you mind if I ask you to stop for a cigarette once in a while other than tea & p?" Mom and I both were awestruck by his sudden change in opinion. We readily complied although I was a bit apprehensive how Manza will perform at steep inclines as previously it refused to haul from stand-still at some places. But, I didn't express my thought at the table. So finally, my Dad was in and it was no different from other trips. We both were exceedingly happy because his presence adds to lot of relief for us. So, again extra packing and some necessary alteration took place instantly. The first thing I did just after the Kedar-Badri trip was finalized was to book two tickets for Pawan Hans helicopter service from Phata to Kedarnath. After my Dad was in, I quickly checked the same helicopter, same day, same time had only one seat left. Without any word, I booked it ASAP. Alto was out and Manza was in. Asked our family driver to garage the Alto and take out Manza so that we can start at night by loading the luggage into it. Manza was recently serviced after the Rajasthan trip in July. I just topped up the tyres to proper air pressure.


Day 1: Tamluk to Lucknow

So, we started exactly on 12.30am From Tamluk, West Bengal. Soon we hit NH6 (aka Bombay Road) and Crossed Dankuni on NH2 (NH19), passed by Shaktigarh, Burdwan. Truck traffic was heavy as Durga Puja was ensuing and all trucks will be blocked later on. At Dankuni and Palsit toll plaza, I had to squeeze through the unforeseen, long queue of trucks at midnight. When we were about to reach Asansol, the sky became reddish and soon we saw fresh daylight. It was longer than needed to reach Asansol this time. We had breakfast on the fly without stopping anywhere, except Tea, P and Dad's short cigi-break.




Up to Dobhi, the traffic was overkill to drive through. Two toll plazas before Dobhi were in mess as usual. No dedicated passenger car lane, no proper toll collection. Local JH, BR registered cars were offering mere ₹20-30 without taking the receipt. We were also asked whether we need a receipt or not. But I didn't buy into their idea and paid full ₹90 one-time toll with receipt. At each toll plaza, we lost at least 20 minutes.



We were already late. After Dobhi, I tried to maintain constant triple-digit speed through the concrete road. But one must be very careful with the undulations and treacherous culvert joints of NH2 in this stretch which are not easy to gauge at speed. 100km before Varanasi we are welcomed by umpteen numbers of diversions and hell lot of sharp speed breakers. Our Manza had a tough time to save its underbelly from few giants of them.




We decided to stop at BP, Chandauli dhaba to have lunch and refuel. We reached there at 2.10pm; all were hungry. But to our utter dismay, we found the AC was not at all working and even the only empty table had a non-functional ceiling fan. the outside temperature was hovering around 40°. My Mom was ready to sit there gauging the level of our hunger. But I quit. Decided to continue to Varanasi and stop at Palki restaurant.





We reached there around 3:00pm and had our branch within 45mins. Initially, my plan was to reach Kanpur which was 1100km from my hometown. But while having the food a quick check on the further route changed the plan a bit. I decided to head to Haridwar via Lucknow as I had to cover about 150km less distance. Moreover, Kanpur and Lucknow both were almost equally distant from Varanasi.

No sooner had I headed towards Lucknow than I was greeted with a 1hr traffic jam at Varanasi exit toll gate. Traffic was damn sloth-moving and the AC at full blower speed was almost giving up in the direct sun and 41° outside temperature. By the time when we left Varanasi we were running very, very late. Tried to maintain steady speed but the ruts created by heavily loaded trucks on the tarmac was detrimental at high speed. We reached Allahabad bypass around 9:00pm and took the detour from NH2 to Lucknow. Before entering Lucknow, we stopped at a nondescript roadside dhaba. It had non-veg options but provided only veg. menu as Navratri ensued.



While having dinner I booked a hotel online near Lucknow station road. The plan was not to enter the city as it would be difficult to get out of it in the morning rush. But that seemed to be the best affordable option with car parking at that moment. We reached the hotel at 11.10pm; being dog-tired we slept without any talk. Trip-meter clocked 1085km.





Day 2: Lucknow to Rishikesh

I got up a bit late and was ready after my parents. It was 8:30am when we checked out from the hotel. Decided to have breakfast from out stock dry foods while in the car. Lucknow to Haridwar, we had to cover less distance compared to the previous day. So, I was not that much worried to munch up miles hook and crook. As soon as I hit the road we were stuck in the deadly Lucknow city station road traffic. Moving 2km took 40mins. Soon we had exit from the city and entered the famous Lucknow-Agra Taj expressway. Cruising at 3-digit speed is a breezing experience here.



After 63km covering through Taj e-way we took detour to Bareli and Moradabad. Roads from here were- 4-laned smooth highway to very bad potholes and crater filled, traffic snarl at Moradabad and the worst before entering Haridwar for 150kms. In between, we stopped at Reliance fuel station for refilling and had lunch at Food Plaza.





Google maps could not show enough intelligence at on-construction Kotwali road blockage near Najibabad (in each trip Google map fails at least once to direct us in proper route). At 8:30pm we didn't even get much local help around. After wasting half-an-hour trying to figure out the exit route finally found a Haridwar bound bus and took the mud-road below the under-construction flyover followed by a sharp u-turn after a rail-crossing to get rid of the road puzzle.

As we were getting close to Haridwar a quick glimpse over the clock made me push further from Haridwar. We could make it to Rishikesh, another 30km. At 10.15pm we crossed the bridge beside Har-Ki-Pauri ghat and bid adieu to Haridwar. Mom just rolled down the windows and offered her customary Ganges-pronam and we proceeded to Rishikesh. We were hungry and stopped again at a non-descript roadside dhaba. We had Tandoor roti and Paneer Masala quickly and left for Rishikesh. Meanwhile, I booked a hotel online just for the night stay. we reached Rishikesh at 11.30pm and checked in the hotel. The AC was found to be an overkill as the outside temperature was around 24°that night. Getting fresh, we called it a day and slept.




Day-3: Rishikesh to Joshimath

As usual, my Mom woke up early in the morning and to our usual irritation, she woke us too! But as soon as I stepped into the balcony the morning greeted me with the first view of hills around us.





We got ready and before hopping into the car we decided to visit the Lachhman Jhola bridge. As all these places were visited earlier several times we deliberately skipped them completely to save time. The Lachhman Jhola bridge was at a stone-throw distance from our hotel.

We reached there through a stepped alley from Hanuman Temple opposite to our hotel. We saw the local stone sellers started their morning business of predicting futures, eventually playing the role of astrologer and people for pilgrimage purpose surrounded their shops with utter curiosity and enthusiasm. Freshly prepared tea and dosa was our breakfast in an eatery near Lachhman Jhola.

[Blooming Flower]

We soon came to our hotel parking place and started our journey straight to Joshimath. I knew more than 250kms in hill will take much time and it must be evening time by when we might reach Joshimath. I pre-booked a deluxe room at GMVN, Joshimath Main Bazar as GMVN tourist guest house is the best option in most of the Garhwal Himalaya destinations. Just after exiting from Rishikesh we refilled Manza's tank and we had our first stop at Devaprayag. We spent just 10mins there seeing the confluence of Alakananda and Bhagirathi and did not waste time as we had lot more miles to cover.









As we moved on through the serpentine hilly road the green, lush Himalaya started to spell its charm in the perfect sunny day. Like all other hill-roads, true enjoyment began while driving through the curvy roads with beautiful natural scenery with floating Alakananda side by guiding us to the destination. The usual pit-stops, enjoying the nature and photo-shoot are integral parts of any hill-drive and it was no exception. Soon we crossed busy Srinagar of Uttarakhand. Road condition was ranging from very good to very bad, especially at the landslide zones; although repairing works are going on at some places roads are in very bad shape. A little shower might worsen the situation at any time.

A short video from dashcam depicting road condition

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgoEc_l2_M0

One by one, we crossed Rudraprayag, Karnaprayag and Nandaprayag with a short stoppage at each of them. After Karnaprayag we stopped for brunch locating a couple of roadside dhabas. There we bought Lays, Frooti and chocolates and moved on. We reached Joshimath at 6:05pm but couldn't get direct access to the road to GMVN Main Bazar as the road was one way after 5:00pm. We went 5km downhill and rounded the entire Joshimath town and came from backside from the Petrol pump entry. But reaching the petrol pump we all were taken aback. We didn't refuel since we did last after exiting Rishikesh. This is the only 'Petrol' pump before Badrinath/Mana pass. Yes, you read it right; it is only a Petrol Pump; no diesel is available! However, we reached GMVN, Joshimath and got the room.



Deluxe rooms had TV, geyser. AC is not at all needed. Rooms were small but good. Cleanliness is at par. After ordering food for an early dinner my Dad and I got into a conversation with the person at reception. We met several others Bengalees speaking in Bengali and enquiring about the WB registered car at the parking. We had good chit-chatting with them regarding our and their tour experiences at the reception lounge.

Meanwhile, I was getting apprehensive about the fuel level in our Manza. Went back to the parking and found the MID displaying 166km range with the rest of the fuel. But while driving in hilly roads one cannot depend on and MID reading for the range of a car. Enquired about a diesel pump nearby to the GMVN employee. They said the last diesel pump by IOCL is 5km before Joshimath and it is closed by 8:00pm officially. But now-a-days after 7:00pm one cannot expect service. It was already 8:00pm by then. I have seen many rental cars stopping at that IOCL diesel pump in group and refueling. I didn't have proper information about Joshimath and refilling station. I cannot but regret my imprudent decision although my Mom momentarily asked me to refill there seeing other cars; but I passed by ignoring her words with the thought of getting it done in Joshimath itself. The very next morning we were supposed to go Badrinath. But further thinking regarding fuel could only aggravate the lamentation. So, with much mental distress, I had the dinner and went to bed. Before sleeping I roughly calculated the distance to cover (to & fro) for Badrinath up to the aforesaid diesel filling station. I assumed we must have at least 50km range left when would reach the diesel pump. With no further discussion with parents, I slept off silently.


Day-4: Joshimath-Badrinath-Joshimath-Rudraprayag

We all got up very early in the morning, got ready and started from Joshimath for Badrinath at 5:30am sharp. After a few kilometer, we crossed a bridge at Vishnuprayag and a huge, upright, steep mountain welcomed us with its gigantic presence. Throughout the first 20km, we felt it.







Before Govind Ghat, we had to cross some places with so narrow road that even a bigger SUV will find it difficult to accommodate. Some water crossings had loose gravels and the Manza had bad underbelly hit twice to keep sufficient momentum while crossing them. At one place, the road was full of slush and mud at a blind curve. I had to reverse almost 50m to give way to an oncoming minivan. Front wheels were almost spinning with minimum power input and my Dad had to step down from the car to do the job of spotter for me. The last 7km was mixed road condition with sharp uphill hairpins. The more we climbed up the snow-clad peak dazzled by sunlight enamoured us.






Finally, we reached Badrinath. We parked our car at the lot nearest to the temple which is located at a steep downhill location.



We went to the Badrinath temple, saw the hot spring and offered Puja and within 1hour we came back to the parking lot.









It was almost 8:00am when we came back to the parking place. It was a bright sunny day and the temperature was close to 3° C. We started from the parking lot and it was the turn for Manza to climb steep uphill. The road near the temple and parking lot had full of Prasad shops on two sides, was narrow enough and infested with roaming crowd. It was obvious that the car must be standstill at some moment while climbing. We just started climbing; the AC was also off. Just after few meters, some people were crossing the road in a group and I had to come to a halt. The Manza was not pulling in 1st gear even the RPM was more than 3k. It was obviously power loss. I had to reverse and return to the parking lot again. I saw the engine malfunction light is active on the dashboard. I quickly took to my toolkit and open the air filter chamber, cleaned it somehow, and put it back. It had accumulated a lot of dust. After the air filter cleaning, I started the car and the engine malfunction light went off. With a lot of premonition, I ventured to get out of the parking place. But surprisingly the Manza pulled flawlessly even I had to come to standstill position several times! I had the wish to drive up to Mana. But the low-fuel indicator deterred me to do so.

We started for Joshimath. At one point, we had to wait in the queue as the workers were cleaning the fresh landslide remnants. But within 40mins they were done. Rest of the way to Joshimath was not so eventful. When we reached GMVN Guest House from Badrinath, we had 57km range with the rest of the fuel as per my expectation.

[Blooming Flower]

We reached GMVN Joshimath at around 10.30am and had a quick bite of Aloo paratha. GMVN was offering 30% and 25% discount respectively for lodging and fooding that day to celebrate International Tourism Day.



We were supposed to get down to Rudraprayag by evening. Calculating the distance, we all agreed to visit Auli by cable car ride as we had sufficient time for descent to Rudraprayag. Auli was not initially included in the list.

We went down to the cable car ticket counter which is situated at a walking distance from GMVN Tourist lodge. The ticket was Rs.750 per head, for to and fro journey. One way ride takes approximately 22mins. Cable cars are bigger enough; each one can accommodate maximum 25 people. It has glass covering from all sides to enjoy the natural visual extravaganza. During the upward ride we, the more we went up the mother nature unfolded and bewitched us with her exquisite beauty. The entire journey was quite picturesque and even 22min standing on feet couldn't quench the thirst of enjoying the beauty for all of the passengers. We met some Bengalees based in Dehradoon and Kolkata and soon got into a conversation with them. We reached the top station and a flat base had an arrangement with tables and chairs. They give 1.5hrs time to spend there. One person who came to our batch on behalf of GMVN explained all the visible snow-clad peaks such as Nandadevi (7817m) 2nd highest peak of India, Trishul (7120m) and explained all the mountain ranges 360° around us. The weather was merciful and blessed us with a bright sunny day sans any cloud. We visualized the location for Mana, Badrinath, Ghangaria Valley of Flowers and Hemkund Sahib behind those peaks.































They also had a small pantry which provided cold drinks and hot aloo pakoda. We spotted the skiing site, the artificial pool and cottages below the 3rd pole of the ropeway and imagined how it will look in winter when entirely covered with snow. Someone from the latter batch from cable car ride explained his experience in winter and exclaimed people come to Joshimath in that time only to visit Auli valley and its skiing attraction.





After relishing the splendour of the valley sitting on the lap of nature for ample 1.5hrs we boarded the cable car at 1.15pm to return Joshimath. Without wasting time, we ordered a quick lunch for us at GMVN restaurant and started for Rudraprayag. When we were in Auli a family from our batch of cable car ride explained their itinerary. The next morning, they had also helicopter bookings for Kedarnath. But they suggested us a different route via Ukhimath-Buniyakund-Guptkashi which they were going. They were supposed to stay at Guptkashi. But I deliberately skipped the route when I was making the itinerary initially as it would not be worth unless visiting Tungnath going via that route. But we had time constraint. So, prioritized Kedarnath instead of Tungnath. They also suggested going through Chopta, the Switzerland of Uttarakhnad. Even I could not buy into that idea as our hotel was booked in Rudraprayag with non-refundable status at that moment and I wanted to reach hotel before it is dark. So, after the quick lunch, we started our descent to Rudraprayag.





We reached our pre-booked hotel Mandakini at 6:15pm. The rooms were pretty good and the food too. the restaurant has a nice ambiance and offers buffet also if ordered before. Next morning, we had helicopter booking for Kedarnath with same day return. So, we had early dinner and called it a day.






Day-5: Rudraprayag-Kedarnath-Rudraprayag

We had reporting time at Pawan Hans Phata office at 8:30am. From our hotel Mandakini to Phata was apprx. 60km. Assumed a fair 2hrs minimum time without considering any untoward issue to reach safely. We reserved excess time and started at 5:15am sharp. The sun was just about to rise. As we moved on, the snow-clad mountains manifested themselves in golden and the green, lush hills beneath them against the backdrop with the sound of floating Mandakini tempted us to pull over and enjoy the beauty. Dad grabbed the opportunity and quickly had a smoke.









Keeping the time in mind we moved on. The road condition is more or less same like Badrinath, with muddy, narrow, single car passing provision at some places where sign of past landslide is evident. But without much issues, we crossed Gupkashi and reached Phata. But unlike my assumption, I found each Helicopter company had their own helipad located at a distance. 8 to 9 companies provide chopper service from Phata to Kedarnath. It is noteworthy, that just one week before our journey all the chopper service got suspended due to a complaint by NGT for flying below 150m height through the valley and harming the wild-habitat there. They all were mandated to submit respective GPS log data and resumed the services accordingly after. Only Pawan Hans among them is govt. undertaking.

So, enquired about Pawan Hans helipad from the local people and soon we reached and reported to the office. But due to some maintenance work, our service got delayed by 1hr. We boarded the helicopter at 10:30am and it takes only 7min to reach Kedarnath. During last 2mins of flight, one can see the newly constructed trekking route from Gourikund after the 2013 disaster. Kedarnath has a common helipad and all the choppers stop there for a minimum possible time. The ground service very quickly helps us get down and board another batch and the choppers fly back.

A Short Video of Helicopter Landing & Takeoff @Kedarnath Helipad

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38d4CUtxrrc

[Blooming Flower]

From Kedar helipad, the temple is just 650 meters. Even for that, Doli service is available for disabled and elderly people. There is a chart for the service cost with weight vs rate.





Lots of tents, cottages, eateries and temporary toilets have been constructed recently. Even the final route to reach the temple is a new one as the older bridge got washed out in 2013 flash-flood. Weather was again very favourable to us. We got a bright sunny day with azure sky which accentuated the magnificence of entire landscape of the temple premises with snow-clad Kedarnath (22000ft), Khrachkund (21000ft) and Bharatkund (22700ft) peaks surrounding the temple from three sides with the ruling Mandakini floating side by. Actually, the entire area of Kedarnath is a part of Chorabari glacier. According to the legend, the area also has five rivers Mandakini, Madhuganga, Chhirganga, Saraswati and Swarndari but some of them are mythical. While Badrinath (one of the Sapta-Badri) is a temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu Narayana Kedarnath (one of the Pancha-Kedar) is ruling King in guise of Lord Shiva.









We got prasadam from a nearby shop and went into the temple. Offered puja to Lord Kedarnath and coming out from the shrine we went to the backside of the temple. Still fencing and construction work is running after the disaster to fortify the entire area.









We saw Bheemshila which actually rolled down and stopped just behind the temple and saved the structure by letting the debris flow from two sides of the temple. Local folks believe that Lord Shiva sent Bheema himself to protect his shrine.



























We came back to helipad after roaming around the temple premises and reported for our return journey in Pawan Hans tent. Our boarding passes were stamped and we waited at the waiting lounge at the helipad. Around 1:45pm we boarded the chopper for the return leg to Phata. We reached Phata within 2:00pm and was damn hungry. There was a small eatery adjacent to the helipad with bare minimum options. I relied solely on chips and chocolates while parents had a meal there. We started for Rudraprayag at 2:30pm.

Views from Helicopter







We reached our hotel around 4:30pm and went out for an evening walk around Rudraprayag market. At 7:45pm we came back to the hotel and ordered for an early and sumptuous dinner.

[Blooming Flower]

Day-6: Rudraprayag to Haridwar

As per our original itinerary this day we were supposed to drive to Karnaprayag-Ranikhet-Nainital and stay at Bhimtal, Hotel Lake Inn. But my mom was apprehensive about the time of reaching Bhimtal. Undeniably, it would be almost dark evening in Bhimtal even if we start early in the morning from Rudraprayag. Reaching those beautiful places in the dark and leaving very early in the next morning didn't make sense to me too. it was not that we didn't visit those places before, but still repeat visit doesn't make sense if one wants to spend only the night there in the hotel room. And no way, I could afford ourselves to spend one more day in Nainital/Bhimtal. So, I had to accede to her idea of going down via Haridwar with a relaxed mind. We just bypassed Haridwar while coming here and this time; she didn't want to miss the evening Aarti once more losing the opportunity. We had breakfast in the hotel and started lazily around 9:00am.

We stopped at Dhari Devi temple on Ganga before Srinagar and at Devaprayag.





















After Rishikesh, we had to face severe traffic jam and had to move at crawling speed. We reached Haridwar at 2:30pm. We didn't have any hotel booked. After seeing the Haridwar in-city traffic I was vehemently searching for a good hotel with parking place. Outside was also very hot and we were damn hungry. My Dad took it to his shoulder to find the good hotel while I sat inside the car pulling it to the farthest corner of the station road. Within 10mins he found a good deal and recently renovated hotel called Shivalik. Fortunately, it's current owner is a Bengalee (Mr. Soumen and his better half) and offered us a warm reception. We parked the car and he challenged us that he will provide us such a good Bengali lunch that we cannot compare him with any of the familiar or famous ones.





We got fresh quickly and came down to the attached restaurant. Indeed, the late vegetarian lunch was awesome and we accepted his quality in service. Room was also good with one side glass view wall. We slept till 4:30pm and got ready to visit Har-Ki-Pauri. It was Dussera time and the roads were full of crowd. We hired an e-rickshaw to reach there and it took us through a slum beside flowing Ganga.



Har-Ki-Pauri has changed a lot in last 2years. All the construction works including the dredging and new bridge are complete now. We saw evening Aarti in the crowd filled Har-Ki-Pauri ghat, took Gangajal in jerry can and last but not the least floated wax-lit lamp (Diya) on flowing Ganga as a regular cult.



























We walked down to the market and Mom did some shopping and finally reached the hotel by a rickshaw. We tasted hot Gulab Jamun from a nearby stall.







Reaching hotel, we sat for discussion for next day's plan. The hotel owner, Bengali couple got into a conversation with us. They explained their further business expansion plan to Dad and handpicked choicest of food items for our dinner. We planned to move through NH2 via Faridabad to attend the Grand Dussera dinner and meet all my Delhite friends in Bengali Society there, which I was an ex-member of. It was almost 200km extra to reach WB than the route via Lucknow.

After dinner, we came back to the room but soon the next day's plan got a twist. My Mom received a call from her cousin that her family along with his newly married son have reached Bodh Gaya by car on their maiden road-trip. As soon as I listened to it, I quickly swapped the route via Lucknow again instead of Faridabad and planned to reach Bodh Gaya by day after tomorrow, early morning, to catch them up. So, the final plan was, next day, we will start around 12:00 noon from Haridwar and non-stop drive to Bodh Gaya via Lucknow-Allahbad bypass.

[Blooming Flower]

Day-7 & 8: Haridwar-Bodh Gaya-Pawapuri

We all had a late rise this morning. Lazily got ready one by one.

We got the same road as we came to Rishikesh before and again lost in the Maze of road closure at Kotwali road at Najibabad. But this time I figured it out myself. The road up to Bareli was in horrible condition. Finally, after lot of detour, wrong way running, evading road blockage due to upside down truck, and Moradabad city traffic we finally reached Lucknow at 11pm. Stopped at Aryan restaurant and had dinner. And yes, a first-time superb non-vegetarian dinner during the entire trip. Yippee!

Spotted this open-roof modified Maruti 800 @ Moradabad, UP













Now started for Bodh Gaya straight. Soon we crossed Allahabad bypass, Varanasi. At midnight, no toll plaza had heavy traffic unlike onward journey.

100km to reach Varanasi



Finally, we took the detour from Dobhi to Bodh Gaya road. At 7:10am we reached the hotel of the relatives who came to Bodh-Gaya Rajgir trip.





I took a 2hours power nap while Mom along with others went to Mahabodhi temple. We got ready and had lunch by 1:00pm. Now the ball was in my court and I took control of the touring now onwards and the other two cars followed me.

According to my plan, it was to visit Rajgir first via my old, preferred scenic Gehlaur route with a touch of the Mountan Man, Dashrath Manjhi’s lifetime work. Then we would proceed to Nalanda for night stay for next day visit to Nalanda University Ruins, a world heritage site.

Last December, I went to Rajgir so tried to visit the places first, which were skipped last time. Previous travelogue link. Even the locals informed the ropeway service to Viswa Shanti Stupa was suspended for the day due to maintenance work. So, by the evening we covered Jarasndha's battle place, Gold Chamber hot spring and Lakshmi-Narayana temple.























Then we were on search for a good hotel around with parking for 4 nos. double bedroom. But except Nalanda Residency, none could provide rooms as per our requirement. Even there all 4 rooms were not of same quality. So, quickly browsed through my local contact list and got a good deal for 4 rooms at Hotel Abhilasha, Pawapuri. I readily accepted the offer as Pawapuri is just 20km from Rajgir and we can also visit the famous Jain Jalmandir (Water Temple) next morning along with Nalanda. We went there. the rooms were as per expectation. The hotel is a big 3-star property with ample parking place and a huge dining hall. Food was sumptuous also. We all had dinner as each one's heart content.

[Blooming Flower]

Day-9: Pawapuri-Nalanda-Kolkata

Next morning, we started around 10:00am from the hotel. Jal Mandir was just 2km away from it. We visited Jal Mandir and then went to the Nalanda University Ruins.









After getting the tickets to visit ASI protected area of Nalanda University, we got a govt. approved guide who is adept in Hindi and English and explained well all the details of the university ruins.





















Around 1:30pm we were done with Nalanda visit. But option for good lunch is very limited or rather say non-existent near the ruins except the exorbitantly priced cafeteria near the museum. But as the situation called for we ordered rice meal with omelettes. From here, we were to bid adieu to the rest of the team who will visit the museum and Black Buddha Statue and asked them to return Bodh Gaya.

My previous experience of Barhi road last year was terrible. So, it was a prudent decision given to them for coming back to Khragapur via Bodh Gaya itself.

But I myself wanted to explore the dreaded route once again to find whether any improvement happened there by now. But alas! It was worse than before. Even the trucks were coming to complete stop spotting the escape route from the giant-sized craters. At some places, the speed breakers are made of two electric pole combos. Any normal sedan with laden load must scrap its underbelly at zero speed. The road via Nawada-Rajauli-Koderma-Jhumri Telaiya before connecting to GT road is the worst of the entire trip.

Durga Puja idol immersion procession was in full swing in various places that day. We were stopped at Koderma by local police (for safety) for an 'awful' immersion festival. We lost almost 1 hour standing there. Even the connector to NH2 was blocked after. We had to take a detour towards Gaya from Barhi to get onto NH2.





After the arduous ordeal of saving the car from the grasp of dreadful road we were on NH2. Quickly called the other team to relay the info about road condition. Even they could not reach Bodh Gaya till then due to road blockage at Gaya-Bodh-Gaya road. Drove straight to Topchanchi without ant T/P break and stopped at Shaan-e-Punjab dhaba for dinner around 9:15pm. I drove non-stop to Kolkata and during this return leg the entire GT road after Asansol was free from truck traffic as entry was banned during Durga Puja. I maintained a steady speed up to Dankuni and didn't have to stand in any queue at any toll plaza. the only short-stop was at Shaktigarh, Langcha Bhavan to purchase some famous sweets for home.



We reached our home in Kolkata at 3:07am.

Day-10:

@Office. As usual with a gloom-cast mind.

Epilogue:

A journey is never finished till the end of the life, so is a road trip. It comes around and goes around and we eagerly wait for another; but some of them add a different dimension to life to cherish forever. This Kedar-Badri trip is one of the memorable ones. It was quick, swift, unplanned and well executed.

So, till the next road trip-- A patient mind longing for another in near future and thinking every day.

“because he had no place he could stay in without getting tired of it and because there was nowhere to go but everywhere, keep rolling under the stars...”
― Jack Kerouac, On the Road

Signing off
Debojyoti (Blooming Flower)

[aah78]

Note from Support: Thread moved to the Travelogues section. Thanks for sharing!

[behaln]

Nice travelogue buddy. Usually we travel to badrinath and kedarnath shrine in May. But September is al so cool. How was the general rush of the tourists? May June is jam-packed, being summer vacations in north India.

[smuniswami]

Dear Debo,
Very nice scenic locations, mesmerizing photographs (nicely composed) and in all a very good travelogue with a scope for reading repeatedly!
Thanks.

[C'estlavie]

Well done, a very nicely written and detailed travelogue. Made for great reading.

[Vipin Kumar]

Originally Posted by Blooming Flower

Before entering Lucknow, we stopped at a nondescript roadside dhaba. It had non-veg options but provided only veg. menu as Navratri ensued.

"Ghar Ki Rasoi" is a decent dhaba during the non Navratri times. It is just in the outside of Lucknow, a couple of kilometers from SGPGI, on the RaiBareilly Road. The photo shows this particular place, as the place is familiar to me.

Great pictures and a great trip! Congratulations on completing such an wonderful and enviable journey, driving on your own!

Vip.

[ARAY]

Wonderful Narration. Great effort there is post processing every single picture. Lots of details shared. You have done justice to Durga Pujo vacations.

[PapaBravo]

Great pictures & narration Debojyoti. Thanks for the informative travelogue.

The pictures post Badrinath are drool-worthy.

Keep travelling & Keep writing !!

Regards,

Pawam

[Samba]

Loved reading every bit of it. An unplanned trip is always more fun where the uncertainty factor plays the fun role. This is one of the primary reason i love road trips. Great to see you going for such long trips with your parents. Kudos to their energy and spirit.
Keep travelling and sharing such wonderful logs backed up by great pics.
Rated 5*.