[Artyom]

March 22nd is when I vividly remember we got an email that the SEZ will be closing down temporarily due to Covid-19 & until further notice all employees will be WFH.
That was a godsend email as I have always dreamt of working WFH for long.
As months passed I had settled into that mode and was liking it.
The caveat being stepping outside was a big No unless absolutely necessary.
Netflix and other OTT platforms were helpful in killing time initially but then that faded away sooner than expected.
I had graduated to a Masterchef and Mastercleaner and what not in no time. In fact "I want to be healthy" bug forced me to buy a bicycle to kill time and fat both.
To vent out occasionally we used to go on a drive with a flask full of coffee towards Hosur road to experience the world outside.
Routine activities such as getting up on time, having a bath, food etc. had gone for a toss and that was getting on my nerves day by day.
What seemed to be a dream come true was gradually growing into a nightmare.
In September during one of the calls with my parents, they expressed how it has been long since we visited them.
Being the only son I was compelled to think about that conversation despite the Covid outbreak.
After discussing with my better half we concluded travelling by air/train was a risky option.
The only option was travelling by road which was a challenge as I had never travelled such long distances in the past.
After a thorough discussion, we finalized the road trip.
We made this decision based upon the following factors:-

1.All the factors are in our control w.r.t safety and hygiene when travelling by road.
2.We both could drive so travelling long distances was not an issue.
3.If we could pack enough food and water with us we could completely avoid eating outside.
4.A major deciding factor was that my in-laws are in Bhopal which coincidently was halfway through the trip and meant we could section out our travel routine.
5.Travelling by road meant we are free to decide the arrival and departure throughout the trip
6.Although secondary but wanted to test how capable the vehicle is in terms of travelling long distances.I agree this was not the best time to test that but then I am sure if it would have been a regular affair I would have never thought about travelling by road. Desperate times require desperate measures.

Risks Considered
*****************
1.I was not sure about travelling such distance was safe or not especially during Covid Times. I did an extensive search on Tbhp about
various routes, road conditions, Halts to minimize any contact or any risk. Majority of the reviews suggested NH44 was the safest option to ply.
2.Being first time I was travelling such long distance I had to make sure that we take proper rest in between.Travelling 1300 Km in 1 stretch
was not a good idea especially for a first-timer.
3.Vehicle breakdown during covid times could mean getting stranded with just a hope that RSA will respond and assist us in a timely manner.
We left it to our luck as there was nothing much we could do about it.

Preprations
***********************************

Purchases(Courtesy Amazon)
---------------------------

1.Iftex Clean System G to keep the injectors clean(Recommended by Anurag)
2.AmazonBasics Jumper Cable
3.Windek Digital Tyre Inflator
4.amiciAuto Tubeless Tyre Puncture Repair Kit
5.Spartan T-12 T-Type Handle Socket Wrench Deep Reach Nut Driver
6.PROKLEAR Wash Additive Concentrate
7.Sensairy TPMS(Internal)
8.Healthgenie Pepper Spray
9.Inalsa Electric Kettle
10.2 x Cororid Hand based Sanitizer
11.2 x BodyGuard Multipurpose Alcohol Based Disinfectant Sanitizer Spray
12.PEESAFE Toilet Seat Sanitizer Spray
13.Pain killers and generic medicines.

Getting "Artyom" ready for the Trip
------------------------------------------------

1.The vehicle had gone through the 2nd service in July,20 with an odometer reading of 3838Km so nothing major was pending as such
2.Sensairy TPMS installation revealed a Tyre Bulge on the front left tyre just 2 days before from the travel and came as a shock as the vehicle had just run 4500 km. My friend had registered the Goodyears as a retail purchase which saved me from a major expenditure. I had to get the tyre replaced under warranty.
3.A visit to Hyundai ASS for a general checkup before leaving Bangalore & Bhopal was done just to ensure there are no surprises on the way.

Niggles/Issues During Trip
*******************
1.While returning from Jalandhar to Agra in the first hour of the trip encountered a Tyre Puncture and to my shock, the cut was just on the edge along the sidewall which to me looked non-repairable. Installed the spare tyre and immediately sent a picture to my friend who had got the tyres registered(Yes the same guy in the 1st fiasco)
He told me the tyre is gone and has to be replaced. Since his showroom was on the way to Agra he asked me to come there and he will get the tyre replaced.
I reached his centre and a brand new Tyre was waiting for me as a replacement under warranty. Got the tyre replaced and continued my journey. So by now, I had 2 Tyres gone kaput within a span of 3 months.
God forbid if they would not have been in warranty I had to shell roughly 12k for these tyres. Friends coming to rescue Eh.Twice.
2.One Puncture on the new tyre which I had got installed in Agra was repaired.
3.There was minor damage to the underbody cover during the trip.


Time & ODO reading
*******************
Reading when we started-4634
Reading at end of Trip-11838
Total Km Travelled->7204

-------Arrival-----------
1.Bangalore to Hyderabad(Sep27)-(6:11 am-1:46 Pm) /572 Km
2.Hyderabad to Bhopal(Sep 28)-(4:15 am-10:05 Pm)/842 Km We stayed there for a couple of days to avoid taking unnecessary leaves and left the following weekoff.-16 Hours/
3.Bhopal to Jalandhar(5th Oct)-(4:46 Am-11:55 Pm)1162 Km
------Departure-----------
1.Jalandhar to Agra(Dec 2)-(6:02 Am-5:31 Pm)/636 Km
2.Agra to Bhopal(Dec 3)-(8:52 Am-6:08 Pm)/571 Km
3.Bhopal to Hyderabad(Jan 17)-(7:09 Am-8:08 Pm)/839 Km
4.Hyderabad to Bangalore(Jan 18)-(8:40 Am-5 Pm)/575 Km

Routes Followed
**************
We stayed on NH44 through and through and blindly followed Google Maps.
Before every trip, I used to verify the route and any blockades.
Being the first time I didn't want to try anything adventurous at all.

Hotel Stays
***********
Hyderabad->Le Meridian
Agra->TajView
Hyderabad->Marriot


Fuel Consumption
*****************
1.Being a Petrol 1.6NA I was mentally prepared to see some huge bills.
2.For most of the journey/stay, I managed to refuel at Essar Fuel pumps and occasionally on Reliance, Indian Oil.
3.Every alternate top-up was accompanied by a dose of Iftek G.
4.Fuelio app was used to keep a track of the expenses and below are the numbers

Refills->14
Total fuel->524.11 Litres
Total Cost->45763.91 INR

Fast-Tag Expense
**************
Approximately 5900 INR for the Whole Trip(Please note that a lot of tolls in Punjab were vacated as a result of the farmers protest so those were not charged)
Roughly 1-1.5 Inr/Km is what you pay during these trips based on my calculation.

How did the Vehicle perform
***************************
1.Ever, since I bought the vehicle in 2019 the only trip I made was to Pondy and rest, was driven within Bangalore.
2.This trip was an opportunity to test vehicle performance w.r.t load capacity, throttle response, suspension behaviour, GC, stability at triple-digit speeds etc.
3.Being a sedate driver and especially coming from an Alto 800 being my previous vehicle I was pretty satisfied. The thing which blew me away was after travelling 16 hours Non-stop(Literally) we didn't feel any fatigue at all.No kidding.
4.Power-wise I never felt the vehicle underpowered during any overtaking manoeuvres.
5.Cruise control worked effortlessly and so did the AC.
6.Travelling from Bhopal to Punjab I had hit numerous potholes at high speeds and suspension & tyres absorbed it well.
7.On numerous occasions, I had to brake hard and the brakes did their job to my satisfaction which includes braking on gravel surface as well. On 3 Occasions I found that the brake pedal partially jammed up in the sense while pressing the pedal it was not going down smooth but with some resistance. It was scary for sure as this is the first time I faced this problem.
8.On uneven surfaces, while braking I could hear every spring clinking and doing its job. The vehicle slowed down enough for me to not panic.
9.Once you park the vehicle in open and every day you see bird poop all around the vehicle you realise the value of covered parking in true sense.
10.We visited one of my friend's farmhouse which was located on the outskirts and the path from the highway till the farmhouse was a rollercoaster ride with non-existent roads and throughout that interval
with full occupancy, the vehicle just scrapped once on a stone which to me was acceptable. Upon closer inspection, we found that the plastic undercover had a puncture however there was no damage to the engine.
Overall a "Paise Wasool" vehicle for me.


General Observations
******************************
1.Traffic sense is the worst I have seen, enough to make your blood boil.MP, UP in particular topped that list (No Offence to anyone).
One particular incident is this gentleman decided to park the vehicle in the middle of the lane opposite to a famous Sweet shop and wait. I had to honk but that didn't make any difference.
After 2-3 minutes, someone from the shop came in and delivered his order in the car and this guy took another minute to pay him. For that time span of 3-4 minutes, everyone in that lane honked at him but to no avail.
2.Cattle menace is a huge problem especially in MP which poses a grave risk to vehicles. This also leads to an underbelly fully covered in cow dung which is tough to remove.
3.Highways in the south are way better than the ones in North w.r.t maintenance.
4.Scenic beauty throughout the whole trip made me wonder why do we always crave for destination overseas when our own country is blessed with such flora and fauna.
5.I really missed the Dhaba experience throughout the trip.
6.Scratches cannot be avoided irrespective of how carefully you drive. That goes especially for people who are used to pampering their vehicle.
7.Fuel Prices in MP are even higher than in Bangalore which came as a surprise.
8.Car detailing services are way cheaper in the north than in Bangalore. For reference, I got the following services for INR 600(Foam Wash, Engine degreasing, cleaning, Alloy cleaning, Vaccum, Interior cleaning, Underbody wash) that to from Carzspa. The same would cost over 1k easily in Bangalore from a reputed brand.
9.Food for one is priced reasonably than Bangalore even when compared to Fine Dining. That could be because of Bhopal, Jalandhar being Tier 2 cities and Bangalore being a Metro.
10.Throughout the trip, Social distancing and wearing mask were not at all observed by the masses. Looks like corona is over.
11.Starting the trip early (4-4:30 am) made a day-night difference thereby minimizing the travel during the night.
12.FastTag adoption by masses is still a distant dream with an almost equal number of vehicles in the cash-only lane. On the contrary, Fastag was operational on all of the tolls throughout the trip.
13.Driving at high beam within the city seems to be a norm especially in Bhopal which came as a surprise.
14.Driving on the opposite side on NH44 was the biggest shock of all and surprisingly it included 2 and 4 wheelers.

Other Placed Visited during the Trip
************************************
Kasauli
Chandigarh
Amritsar
Ludhiana

Was the Trip Worth it
*********************
1.Absolutely Yes because it was my first time travelling a long distance and secondly we completed it safe and sound.
2.Travelling with your own offers you freedom which is unparallel to anything else.
3.You learn a lot of things which broadens your horizon and presents you with a different side of life. I mean it's difficult to explain the feeling in words and I suggest everyone do it once in their lifetime.
4.I am now eager for the next trip which hopefully we will plan soon.

How Much Moolah I end up spending
****************************
I don't want to spoil the vibe of this post by indulging into the monetary part but would be more than happy to respond to any personal messages regarding the same.

Route Followed-Bangalore-Bhopal-Jalandhar

Before Leaving Bangalore

Customary Click

1st Pic of the Trip

@Le Meridian-Hyderabad

Hot Coffee while leaving from Bhopal to Jalandhar

Kasauli Market







Golden Temple-Amritsar

Tyre Puncture while returning from Jalandhar to Agra

Luggage stuffed to the Brim



Tekri Point Bhopal

Cliff near my Friends Farmhouse

Lion King was shot here.





@Marriot-Hyderabad

Lovely Highways





Driving through the Mist

Cattle Menace on the Highway

Puncture in the Underbody

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[batladanny]

Nice, crisp travelogue.

Quite a few people — me included — have driven distances they usually would never have thought of during this pandemic. And personally, it has been a revelation. I find long-distance road trips are quite enjoyable and would certainly be doing them much more often now.

[Cooltronics]

Beautiful thread ! You did that what we guys ended up in planning stage only
Lovely experience I am sure it would have been and I am glad you reached safe. Infact lots of learnings for someone who would like to try pan India travel.

We happen to be in the same situation in September and the only reason we changed our plans to flying down at our destination was that we had 2 year old kid and we were not sure if she would be comfortable with the long journey - last thing we wanted was a cranky kid

[swarnava.ch]

Loved your journey and the travelogue. This is like living the dream all of us have in our hearts. (at some levels I am a bit jealous).

I am very interested in the total cost you incurred, suppose you stayed at your friends and family at a few places but for the hotels etc for long stays I am sure it will be costly. So some inputs there will be helpful for others as well.

Also quick questions during long journeys, did you eat food at Dhabas ? Did you use the washrooms there ? some more details around these challenges would be very useful, I have my wife and kid for whom I would be worried for such things.

[reignofchaos]

Nice travelogue. Love your username. Metro series fan?

[sanky]

It was the risk worth taking and well paid off. Nice travel diary. Keep Driving.

[vredesbyrd]

Great travelogue. 1300km is quite the trip. I wish I wasn't stuck at home. The Mist shot looks incredible.

Do you know what could have caused such a cut on the tyre?

P.S. I hope Artyom didn't run over mutants or dark ones (if you know what I mean )

[De-Veer]

Originally Posted by vredesbyrd

1300km is quite the trip.

It's 2600km one way!! Amazing!

I personally would have preferred a flight, given all the ppe equipment that is provided now + no hotel stays. But considering your luggage situation, it doesn't seem practical

I regularly do Delhi-Indore trips, about 950km, and yes cattle menace is a real problem! An even bigger one is surprise potholes in otherwise smooth highways. I have lost count of the times I barely missed a 1ft deep hole in the road!

And yeah, petrol prices are too high in MP, going through the Rajasthan border, all the pumps on RJ side have a MP se sasta petrol/diesel notice on them!

[sramanat]

Hats off to you as a son, that you were able to pull this off. One more for your wife for being game. I suppose the lighter traffic on account of COVID made the drive better.
The stuff you bought from Amazon belies your claim that this is the first such drive you undertook. :-). I am sensing a market out there to package this neatly and sell as a kit. Something like "highway kit", "offroader kit" etc.

[knrn]

This thread is more about the effort you took in preparation than driving. And preparation is half the battle. Congratulations on a wonderful trip. Next time you visit Jalandhar perhaps we could meet. I too stay there. Happy mile munching and wishing you many more happy trips.

[PGA]

A crisp travelogue of a crisp journey. Enjoyed reading it and brought some fond memories of a similar journey I did in 1998 from Ooty to Ludhiana in my M800.

Maybe next time you could plan B'lore - Pune-Nasik - Gujrat and Rajasthan - Punjab. I have always liked the roads of Gujrat and Rajasthan from the upkeep and traffic point of view.

Many miles of happy motoring.

[Artyom]

Originally Posted by Cooltronics

the only reason we changed our plans to flying down at our destination was that we had a 2-year-old kid
and we were not sure if she would be comfortable with the long journey - the last thing we wanted was a cranky kid

Even if the kids bear the travel the bigger challenge is the luggage especially for long-distance journeys.
My Heart sank down when the whole luggage was loaded into the vehicle and I could see the rear shockers lowering down.
I actually felt bad for Artyom but then I am glad that he rose up to the challenge and made me proud.
Heck, the luggage included 2 X 25Kg rice bags which were carrying for relatives.

Originally Posted by swarnava.ch

I am very interested in the total cost you incurred, suppose you stayed at your friends and family at a few places but for the hotels etc for long stays I am sure it will be costly.
So some inputs there will be helpful for others as well.
Also quick questions during long journeys,
Did you eat food at Dhabas ?
Did you use the washrooms there ?
some more details around these challenges would be very useful,
I have my wife and kid for whom I would be worried for such things.

Below is the Hotel Expense:-
Hyderabad Stay(While Going) at Le Meridian 3,359
Agra Stay(While Returning) at Taj View 2218
Hyderabad Stay(While Returning)at Marriot 4242
Total->9819(Due to Covid i had specifically selected hotels which had Individual Air conditioning as against Central Air conditioning.Due to Covid the prices
for premium hotels were also reasonable and well within budget. That might not be the case post-Covid.Additionally, due to their reputation, they had to take
necessary precautions which gave us a sense of security)
For Longer stays, I would suggest booking the hotels well in advance especially now when there are so many offers going with all the reputed chain of hotels.
Also nowadays most of the hotels are offering to book the hotel at no cost and free cancellation till 1 day before the stay which saves you spending money upfront.
I did the same thing and booked the rooms @0 INR and then regularly checked the prices fluctuate and the moment the prices went down i cancelled the previous booking and booked at the lower price.
I almost saved roughly 700 bucks by doing that.

We carried enough food with us to avoid eating outside. Plus there weren't many places open to eat on the way.
We did not stop at all on any of the public places firstly to avoid getting infected secondly we were about to meet our parents so they were at a bigger risk
had we not taken precautionary measures. So what we did was used both the passenger side doors to create a makeshift toilet. We opened both the doors and put sheets across both the doors to
make it like a tent and then eased ourselves. I'll share a picture tomorrow and that should give a better idea. Trust me it was effortless with full privacy.

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Nice travelogue. Love your username. Metro series fan?

Absolutely brother. Die Hard Fan.

Originally Posted by vredesbyrd

Do you know what could have caused such a cut on the tyre?

P.S. I hope Artyom didn't run over mutants or dark ones (if you know what I mean )

The puncture happened around 6 in the morning and it was dark. My guess is some metal plate probably with sharp edges must have slit
the tyre. If you see the cut it's clean as if a blade sliced it down.

Hahaha, Mutants and dark ones were taking precautionary measures against Covid and were maintaining one arm distance.

Originally Posted by De-Veer

It's 2600km one way!! Amazing!

An even bigger one is surprise potholes in otherwise smooth highways. I have lost count of the times I barely missed a 1ft deep hole in the road!

!

I encountered one and it was at a juncture where the flyover ends and i was lucky that I was not on triple-digit speed otherwise the result could have been
catastrophic. I actually stopped and clicked a photograph of the same.

Originally Posted by sramanat

Hats off to you as a son, that you were able to pull this off. One more for your wife for being game. I suppose the lighter traffic on account of COVID made the drive better.
The stuff you bought from Amazon belies your claim that this is the first such drive you undertook. :-). I am sensing a market out there to package this neatly and sell as a kit. Something like "highway kit", "offroader kit" etc.

Appreciate your kind words, sir. My wife was all game and that's the reason I could complete the trip effortlessly. I can't even dream of travelling alone such distances. I would go mad.
I forgot to mention that I did not inform my parents that we are visiting them. I did not want them to get worried so to ensure that I reach safe and sound I had to prepare hard and foresee any problems and have a solution at hand. The survival package kit would be mandatory especially in Indian conditions where the smallest of the problems could end up in catastrophes.

Originally Posted by knrn

This thread is more about the effort you took in preparation than driving. And preparation is half the battle. Congratulations on a wonderful trip. Next time you visit Jalandhar perhaps we could meet. I too stay there. Happy mile munching and wishing you many more happy trips.

I knew that once I leave Bangalore there is no going back till the time the trip is complete so preparations were the key and I am glad that it all worked out.
Sure bhaji will definitely meet up.

Originally Posted by PGA

A crisp travelogue of a crisp journey. Enjoyed reading it and brought some fond memories of a similar journey I did in 1998 from Ooty to Ludhiana in my M800.

Maybe next time you could plan B'lore - Pune-Nasik - Gujrat and Rajasthan - Punjab. I have always liked the roads of Gujrat and Rajasthan from the upkeep and traffic point of view.

Many miles of happy motoring.

My next trip is to Rajasthan and in fact, I have started doing some research on that.
So the route you mentioned is the one I would be taking.
Hopefully, it should be a success.

[parambyte]

Amazing. What’s always irked me is we have the heaven and hearth for fuel taxes, these exorbitant toll taxes too!
Since someone mentioned: The Bangalore - Pune - Gujarat - Jaipur - Chandigarh - Punjab route is great except :
- NH48 in Gujarat is very boring, full of industrial truck traffic and non-stop city and town traffic on either side. I have struggled to look for alternatives.
- NH48 in Rajasthan, at least till one year ago, was dug up and extremely annoying with super level construction everywhere. There is a better country route in Rajasthan, though single land, is more scenic with good roads.
- For Jaipur - Chandigarh, once again, avoid NH48. From Rewari, take a left. A beautiful new highway, worthy of an Aston Martin, connects to (I think, if I remember correctly), Karnal or so.

Enjoy your trips into Rajasthan! It’s beautiful!

[jaunthead]

Nicely done and I am sure you are really glad to have done the trip. My family and I did the route up to Noida in mid Aug. And our experience was the same with regards to the beautiful scenery along the route and the cattle menace in MP and UP. One cow nicked the left ORVM and dented the fender. But beautiful roads none the less.
We are still hanging in Noida and looking forward to our return trip in Feb(planning to take the Udaipur-Mum-Goa route).