[Shutter_art]

The whole idea of tripping North east started with my friend announcing his marriage. When I enquired the location "Guwahati" wasn't what I expected but sure I was amazed with the thought of travelling to and exploring nearby places given the opportunity.

First and foremost, fate had it as it was a match between a Marathi & Assamese family. Always thankful for Neepun for his dedicated effort in this real 2-states.
Called up common friends to know their plans, coincidentally my best friend Shubham agreed to plan a trip.

Plan began taking its form with me searching on what are the best destinations nearby Guwahati that can be covered in a week.
Plan went as extreme to travelling to Bhutan as well as limited to sightseeing in Assam

Finally, we agreed on a road trip between Assam and Meghalaya as it could be done with ease, plus it was long on my bucket list. Travelling to Northeast was surely on the long list of trips I want to take, but with Ladakh & Kerela still unexplored, Meghalaya would have definitely come much later.

The travel destinations were finalised with Guwahati, Shillong & Cherrapunji among the top places to explore. The route loop was fixed, bags packed, the car booked and the journey began:-



Day 0 Guwahati
Travel day. We took the flight from Delhi to Guwahati, reached in the evening, had a good dinner and prepared for a beautiful odyssey.
Seldom we knew that this would be the only time at leisure on the adventure trip.

Day 1 Guwahati to Shillong ~100kms
We commenced our journey post breakfast with our planned lunch stoppage at Umiam Lake. Surrounded by the lush hills of the East Khasi range, Umiam Lake is a among to top go-to places in Meghalaya. The picturesque landscape was our first introduction to Khasi hills and it was a beauty to behold. With bluest of the skies, bright sunshine and lush greenery, the shimmering reflections of sunlight created a surreal landscape.








We enjoyed the warm sun, had a good relaxing time, taking multiple photographs as memories and we commenced our journey further to Shillong.
Reaching late in the evening we straightaway went to Shillong peak. With the sun setting down and temperature taking on the chilly side, we enjoyed some warm brews, explored the local markets, purchased some artifacts and resorted to our stay.



Day 2 Shillong to Cherrapunji ~55kms
We went to the Ward's lake enjoyed the Shillong morning vibes, with cherry trees blossoming across the garden, had nice morning sun soak.







Post some quality time we moved on our way forward. In the route we went to Laitlum Canyons. It has breathtaking panoramic view. Miles and miles of lush greenery were visible in the clear day. We also found Rhododendron in full blooms. Some of the captures are attached.











We reached Cherrapunji late afternoon and went straight to Arwah Caves. There's a small walk to the Caves, the landscape is amazing with full nature immersion. Flora and Fauna were in full vigour with large valleys visible through the trees. It is one ancient limestone cave with. There are multiple Crustacean shells and fish bones embedded in the walls. It also has stalagmites and stalactites formations and an underground stream. The cave is very accessible even for elderly.






It was already dark while we walked out, and we decided to retire to our stay. The night was made delightful by a sky full of stars. Living in Gurgaon this is one thing that captivates you of the celestial presence. We lit up a bonfire, had some good dinner and went to comfort of our beds late in the night.



Day 3 Cherrapunji
Day 3 was all about exploring Cherrapunji and around. Post our breakfast we directly went to Nohkalikai Waterfalls. The waterfall plunges from a height of about 340 meters (1,115 feet), making it the tallest plunge waterfall in India. The water mist created a mini rainbow in the frame. There is also a trekking route to the waterfall origin through the dense forest.



The next place on list was Dainthlen waterfall. The access road to the waterfall was absolute treacherous leaving us heavily tired in a mere 6-7km route. But once we reached there, the scene was entirely different, we anticipated to see another waterfall, a common visual from a distance. Yet here we were at the origin, at the top of the waterfall.
Seeing a waterfall from its origin is an entirely different experience, we hiked around through the riverbed to get different views of the waterfall. The images depict the beauty of the place.





It was about to sunset, and we rushed to Mawsmai caves. This cave was as outrageous to maneuver as remarkable to experience. The cave has multiple spaces and small corridors that link them, these interconnections are made of small holes and cracks, where you have to bend, lean, pass through narrow constricted spaces. Some are so tiny that one has to crawl in confined tunnel-like spaces to get in. This contributes to the thrill and adventure of exploring the cave.
Definitely not recommended for elderly or claustrophobic people. The caves i structured with one way entry and other way exit and it takes approx. an hour to explore.





The dinner was yet again, below the starts with some warm bonfire & chillness of night.



Day 4 - Cherrapunji to Mawlynnog to Shillong ~140kms
We embarked onto our journey further, taking Riwai village & Dawki as our next exploration. The road was good in parts, mostly decent, but the bad portions registered themselves well.
We reached Riwai village and took a short trek to the Meghalaya's most famous Living Root Bridge. The Riwai Living Root Bridge is believed to be over 300 years old. The Khasi people have woven the roots of the rubber tree across streams, creating a sturdy bridge that can withstand loads as well as weather.
The concept is a wonder and mesmerizing as how nature & human interactions can be harmonious.
Some of the images captured







We moved forward to Dawki taking us along the India-Bangladesh border along the sides of the road. We reached in late afternoon and immediately embarked on escapade to clear waters. We hired a boat; the trip duration was around 90 minutes. The crystal-clear waters, the sound of river flow matched to the time of sunset was as heavenly as it could be. It was one of the most surreal & peaceful experiences we've had. Nothing more can be written about it, one must experience it for themselves.






While we moved out it had already gotten dark. We reached our stay in Shillong. Though not allowed, we convinced the owner to let us light a bonfire in a quiet corner in the lawn, where we had some good conversations and background music and called it a night.

Day 5 - Shillong - Mawphanlur ~75kms

We had our breakfast and hopped onto one more destination "Mawphanlur". It is is known for its tranquil ambiance and picturesque landscapes. The village is surrounded by rolling hills, pristine lakes, and lush greenery, making it an ideal destination to relax and take a break in serenity.
We rented Kayaks and took multiple sporty strolls in the lake.
Do note there are no restaurants inside the village and the nearest one is far, so be sure to pack up something before you go.
We soaked up the sun smitten lake water, greatly questioning the hustling city lives. The peace of cattle grazing with you lying flat in a boat amidst stillness of the lake.





However, our bodies had other plans. We had to move out as hunger slowly took over us with the multiple rounds of intense kayak rowing.
Inside the village there is a kitchen of a local resort, though reserved only for their guests, they were kind enough to offer us some Maggi and water as we were pretty exhausted.
We moved out soon after and had a lavish lunch somewhere on the route. As planned, we returned to Shillong, took an evening stroll in the market, purchased few more items, had dinner at City Hut dhaba and returned to our resort.

[Shutter_art]

While we were having our dinner, random scrolls on Instagram let us know that Akon was coming to what was "The Shillong Cherry Blossom Festival". It didn't take much of a discussion for the tickets to get booked via Bookmyshow. The festival was set to witness performances by renowned artists like Jasleen Royal, Akon, and Boney M. at the RBDSA Sports Complex.

Having listened to AKON through the adolescence, seeing him up live had us excited all the way through.

Day 6 - Shillong - Guwahati via RBDSA Complex ~130 kms
The day of excitement was here, the event was set to start at 4pm. The RBDSA Complex is along a diversion, midway between Shillong & Guwahati. While we were waiting to reach the venue, we utilised some time to visit the Elephant Falls which is a stunning three-tiered waterfall nearby Shillong. It was decent if not that great, the third tier is what looked the most beautiful with some mallards adding to the aesthetics of nature.



We left post noon, had some lunch along the route and reached the venue around 5pm. The performances were captivating and were getting engaging as we went deep into the night. Performances from Jessie Lyngdoh, Queen Sensation and Rito Riba set the audience into ecstasy.

Then came the legend AKON, and it was breathtaking. Listening to his songs live, can't express the feeling. The greatest part was that we were in the first row of the fan pit. His performance was simply exhilarating.



We enjoyed every second of us being there. The event closed with mesmerizing voice of Jasleen Royal and some amazing fireworks.

It was 2:30am and we barely could fathom that it was this late with our plan to reach our Guwahati stay. It was the usual scene of traffic post the event, with our vehicle not moving even a centimetre in next 30 mins.
Everyone was so tired; we took naps while seated in the car between the traffic. Sometime around 4am the traffic eased, and we could finally engage-in the gears.

Guwahati was 2.5 still hours away. We drove and reached Guwahati around 6:30am amidst the morning stillness.



Day 7 - Guwahati
Day 7 had already begun while we were still immersed in Day 6. We took some rest; the morning and noon were leisure. But only if I enjoyed leisure. Nonchalantly, I steered up to visit the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary. Coming to Assam and not being able to see the Indian One Horned Rhino would definitely have been a miss.
The sanctuary is 1.5 hours away from Guwahati, we drove up, arranged for a Safari Jeep and there we were amidst the wilderness again. Pobitora is renowned for its impressive population density of the rhinos, earning it the nickname "Mini Kaziranga". The whole expedition was fruitful with us seeing many Rhinos in different places. Some of the snapshots are attached.







We returned back late afternoon.


I hope after all the travelogue, you all remember why we had come to Guwahati at the first place. Any guesses??

Yes, it was the Wedding Day of Neepun. I am glad if you still remembered, while actually we had lost track amidst all the adventure.

All dressed up, we attended the wedding, enjoyed the local delicacies. Learnt some Bihu moves, danced and partied in the union of two states "West to East"

Late that night we finally had time to catch some breath and reward ourselves with needed quality sleep.

Day 8- Guwahati
While most of the trip was over, one thing still remained. No journey to Guwahati is complete without the visit to Kamakhya Temple, it is one of the oldest Indian temples and a significant Shakti Peetha. We paid our prayers, spent some time praising the cultural richness of India and returned to the hotel.



The time to return back to our bunkers was there. We bid adieu to fantastic experience and took a flight back to our homes.

Thank you !

[KarthikK]

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

[AudiFan]

Hi Shutter_art, thanks for sharing the pics and a lovely write up too. reminded me of the trip I made recently with my wife, almost same places. Here are some pics of our Guwahati and Meghalaya trip.

[invidious]

Astounding. It’s such a catch-22. The most amazing and serene places in India are tough to get to. You want them to develop better infrastructure to get there and have more services which would make stay more fun. However, on the flip side, the commercialization leads to the place losing its soul and being swamped by tons of people.

[sunny_dogra]

Looks like almost all of the placed covered as efficiently as possible without any hiccups.
Can you share if this was a private tour operator/ cab/ or self drive rental, and what was the cost breakdown for the trip.

[Shutter_art]

Originally Posted by AudiFan

Hi Shutter_art, thanks for sharing the pics and a lovely write up too. reminded me of the trip I made recently with my wife, almost same places. Here are some pics of our Guwahati and Meghalaya trip.

Thank you AudiFan for adding your memories. It's one beautiful place one can recommend as well as travel again.

Originally Posted by invidious

Astounding. It’s such a catch-22. The most amazing and serene places in India are tough to get to. You want them to develop better infrastructure to get there and have more services which would make stay more fun. However, on the flip side, the commercialization leads to the place losing its soul and being swamped by tons of people.

Infrastructure is definitely a requirement, there were many a place so desolate we didn't have network, sometimes it feels entirely lost because you are so used to living in between the city honks.
The peace is as tranquil as it is unnerving. It's always better to be cautious because at certain places even Google Maps didn't work correct.
Considering the sun sets around 5pm, moving at times what we consider to be evening felt very vulnerable.
Plus the stays particularly in Cherrapunji weren't up to the mark.
The North East though has an entirely different vibe to it because of its rawness in its form. Not everyone might like it, but it has its experience.

Originally Posted by sunny_dogra

Looks like almost all of the placed covered as efficiently as possible without any hiccups.
Can you share if this was a private tour operator/ cab/ or self drive rental, and what was the cost breakdown for the trip.

I had the trip planned myself, totals went around 120k, we rented a self-drive Ertiga.

The Entire Trip breakdown
Flights- 30k
To & Fro- Delhi to Guwahati, 2 people

Ertiga-19K ( Got 2k discount for 7 day deal )
Fuel- 7.5k

Hotel Stay- 30k
1N Guwahati, 1N Shillong, 2N Cherrapunji, 2N Shillong, 2N Guwahati

Rest all is Food, Entry Tickets, Boats & Kayaks, Concert tickets, Shopping and miscellaneous which even includes woods we bought and carried with us for bonfire.

[AudiFan]

If I may take the liberty to respond to this post, well, traversing across Meghalaya is not difficult at all. In my opinion, Meghalaya has a decent tourism infra in place. This was our first time at North-East India and since was not a tourist season during end of September while the rains were on recede mode there was no crowd at any attractions and the water falls were in full glory. However the travelling generally consumes lot of time and traffic in Shillong is crazy.

[FAKER]

Nice use of tilt-shift. The images look beautiful.

[SJD@NewDelhi]

Wonderful pictures, amazing colors showcased! Captured the essence of Meghalaya in its entirety. I too covered Meghalaya (Shillong and Dawki) in 2021 with wife and it remains a special memory for us as it was our first long distance trip together after marriage. Some pics from memory lane:



At Umiam lake.



Getting clicked at Dawki after tasting the mouthwatering berry pickles sold near the lake by the boys from the other side.



The serene Dawki-Tamabil village.

Keep Travelling!