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Delhi-NCR Jeep Compass group travel to Ranthambore

23rd February 2024, 17:00 by Brij Gawde

We had planned to drive through the newly built Delhi Mumbai expressway.

BHPian aayusht recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Delhi NCR Jeep group travel to Ranthambore

Overview

Over the long weekend of 26th January 2024, as part of the Delhi NCR jeep owners group, I organised a trip to Ranthambore. We had planned to drive through the newly built Delhi-Mumbai expressway. It was meant to be for two nights and we stayed at Ranthambore Heritage Haveli. I have written a brief review of the property on TripAdvisor as well. The trip was originally planned for 8-10 Jeep families, however, finally, 5 families were able to make it.

The group that finally made it.

Day 1

We started around 8:45 am from Gurgaon after everyone assembled and planned to stop only for bio breaks. We had all planned to carry some simple breakfast - things that can be consumed as finger foods - parathas/sandwiches. We made it a potluck. Since I had been on this expressway a few times over the past 6 months I was aware that there would be limited options for meals.

The estimated travel time was about 4 hours but in reality, it took us about 5.5 hours. The expressway had dense fog for the first 2-3 hours and when we stopped for a bio break we realised that the pit stop place did not have the bathrooms operational. We ended up then pulling into the next pit stop point only to realize that it was the one with McDonald’s and the crowd could only be described as one would see at a kumbh mela (for those who are unfamiliar with the reference here - the place was massively crowded). It took us all about 40 - 45 minutes to get through the long washroom queues. Lesson learned- on this expressway in the near future- be prepared for massive crowds, especially over long weekends, and if you haven’t planned your departure time smartly.

The drive in the morning - poor visibility

Our pit stop at McDonald's

After the bio breaks, we gathered around our jeeps to share our packed breakfasts and had ice-breaking conversations (quite apt for the cold weather that time).

When we hit the highway again, we were able to make up for the slow speeds in the fog. Note to other travelers on this expressway - be aware of the interceptor vans in addition to the speed cameras mounted on pillars.

Towards the last 7-10km towards the hotel, Google Maps took us through very narrow roads - some of our jeeps got scratched by tree branches and also bikers squeezing past in opposite directions. Later on, the hotel management team told us that we could have taken a slightly different route, had we spoken to the Hotel team and avoided the narrow passage.

Lesson learnt- don’t blindly follow Google Maps especially when going to new places.

We were lucky to get 6 cottages in one corner of the hotel, giving us our own private space. Kudos to the hotel owner - Mr Rajender for arranging everything.

Most of the remainder of the day was spent lazing around, sitting in the sun, and in the evening, having some snacks and drinks around a bonfire that the hotel had set up.

Around the bonfire

Day 2

Early in the morning some of us woke up to go for a wildlife Safari (at least those who could get the bookings done in time). We headed out at around 6:30 AM from the hotel.

Lesson learned- Such early morning Safaris are avoidable if you are unable to bear biting cold winds. I had 4 layers of warm clothes and still felt like I was in the Nights’ Watch (those not familiar - it’s a Game of Thrones reference).

I got some company.. this bird was perched on my head

Sadly most of us could not see any tigers in Zone 6. Later I learnt that a few other tourists were able to spot tigers in other zones. Tiger sightings are a matter of luck.

No tiger sighting, but...

Once we returned, we had breakfast, continued to laze around in the sun, and took some photos around the hotel.

Photos from the hotel

Most of us did not have a Safari booked in the second half of the day. One family did and soon after an early lunch at the hotel headed for the second Safari. Sadly they could not spot a tiger in their second attempt either.

Those of us who did not go for the second Safari ended up heading into town with the objective of visiting the Ranthambore fort but once we landed there we saw that the police were regulating the flow of the traffic. There were too many people that day visiting the fort. Just to enter the area going up to the fort there was a queue with a waiting time of over an hour. We all decided to skip the visit to the fort. Some of us went to a nice restaurant (Fateh’s cafe) while others went to visit the Chambal Valley River Safari to spot crocodiles. These friends still spotted the crocodiles unlike those who went to spot a tiger. At least some of us got to see wildlife as part of the trip.

In the evening that day - my wife, friends Anshul, Sohrabh, and I went to explore uncharted territory around the hotel. A few photographs below will provide an indication of what sort of places we were exploring.

Exploring unchartered territory

Anshul with his drone

Video

It was fun driving on unpaved roads where we ended up doing mild off-roading. This turned out to be the highlight of our trip. We enjoyed this so much that we got other jeep families to the same spot the following morning.

Just before dinner, we hired a local astronomer (Sunil Sharma) who carried a huge telescope and we spent over an hour doing star gazing. That one hour was really enjoyable - worth every penny spent. Sunil was so passionate about his work and astronomy that he seemed to enjoy answering our queries no matter how trivial and took time to make sure everyone in our group got a chance to see stars, and galaxies and know the historical significance.

We wrapped up the night with casual chit chats, and games of cards around the porch area of cottage rooms.

Day 3

After tea & a few snacks, we went to the spot near the hotel where we continued our mild off-roading adventures.

When we all tried to trail behind each other on roads that didn't exist

Video

Suhas who got his Trail Hawk also attempted to explore the Trail Hawks's capabilities.

Around 11 am after a very heavy breakfast, we all started back towards Delhi NCR.

Sadly Anshul’s car met with a small accident- while everyone inside the car was safe - the Jeep ended up in the service center for over a week. Lesson learned - with rash tempo drivers and wandering cows on highways- maintain sufficient distance (even when you are driving slow).

Anshul's car at the service centre