1st Stretch - Delhi to Uttarkashi - 15 Hrs
27the June, 2010
06:30 Hrs Starting from Delhi (The Nest) 0000 Kms
07:30 Hrs Ghaziabad 0030 Kms
08:30 Hrs Modinagar 0055 Kms
09:00 Hrs Meerut 0080 Kms
We stopped at Nathu's on the Meerut bypass road for breakfast. A few kms down the same road we saw a Bikanerwala too which on
hindsight might have been a better choice.
10:00 Hrs Khatauli 0110 Kms
10:30 Hrs Muzaffarnagar 0132 Kms
We try the famous Muzaffarnagar mangoes. Also get some ice to keep the mangoes chilled in our multi-purpose ice box. No fruit beats
the taste of a chilled mango. This then was a routine exercise through the trip. Langda and Dasheri being the flavor of the month.
12:30 Hrs Haridwar 0233 Kms
The first and last downpour of the trip. The first but not the last traffic jam of the trip ...
"Chal oye"
14:45 Hrs Rishikesh 0258 Kms
We purchase some bananas and beverages for a light lunch keeping in view the climb that starts right after Rishikesh.
We also have a few things to get on request from the Ashram out of which the only thing we managed to find is a football for Draavide,
a sweet 8 year old German kid at the ashram.
15:30 Hrs Narendra Nagar 0275 Kms
16:30 Hrs Chamba 0320 Kms
18:30 Hrs Kandisaur 0372 Kms
We were lucky to see a cheetah drinking water by the road side. Quite a sight.
A car coming from the opposite direction distracted the beast and it fled before we could click a snap.
Further up, a couple of boulders twice the size of a football had fallen right in the middle of the road minutes before we reached the
spot. We had to clear them before we could move on. A Pee-stop just before could have been the saving grace :)
20:00 Hrs Uttarkashi 0420 Kms
21:30 Hrs Maneri (Hotel Vasundhara) 0435 Kms
View from our hotel room ...
The hotel front ...
Quite a drive from Delhi to Uttarkashi in a day. Huh!
28th June, 2010
Maneri Dam flush ...
Hanging bridge on the Ganga ...
The majestic Ganga ...
Spot the car ...
29th June, 2010
Anup finds an alternative career ...
2nd Stretch - Uttarkashi to Haridwar - 8 Hrs
Only a day in the ashram and we are already radiating light ...
We bathe in the Ganga. Even in the month of June, the water was cold enough to make us uneasy but once we overcame the initial shock
it was all fun ...
13:45 Hrs Leaving Ashram, Maneri 0517 Kms
On our way back, the sights ...
17:34 Hrs Chamba 0642 Kms
Chamba is a beautiful and quite little hill-town where I had once previously halted for a break journey. Old memories flash by.
It was again in consideration as a potential stop for us this time if we had started late from Maneri.
19:30 Hrs Rishikesh 0702 Kms
21:30 Hrs Haridwar 0740 Kms
3rd Stretch - Haridwar to Varanasi - 20 Hrs(Overnight)
30th June, 2010
11:00 Hrs Going to Divya Prem Sewa Mission 0750 Kms
Divya Prem Sewa campus is located inside the Rajaji National Park ...
The Vande Mataram hostel inside Diya Prem Sewa Mission ...
14:30 Hrs Leaving Divya Prem, Haridwar 0763 Kms
Aye mere pyaare watan, tujh pe dil kurbaan ...
Chila canal road ...
15:30 Hrs Najibabad 0825 Kms
By 2050 India is set to overtake China. How much more can we accomodate ...
17:30 Hrs Moradabad 0930 Kms
Huge jam on the highway caused by a road accident where a truck has supposedly killed five. The public tries off-roading. We drive through
farm lands to get ahead of the accident site. Reach a dead end where a river flows. Trace back and continue driving through farms. For once the
car gets stuck on a farm divider. Gets pushed out of it and eventually we turn up ahead of the jam.
The whole thing was a hilarious off road rally. Laughed our heart out ...
21:30 Hrs Bareily 1025 Kms
Beer stop
23:00 Hrs Dinner at Dhaba 1060 Kms
We rest our backs for a while on open air charpai's laid outside the dhaba before moving on.
1st July, 2010
03:00 Hrs Lucknow 1270 Kms
It's around 4 in the morning and we decide to take a small nap after finding it very difficult to continue driving any further.
We stop our car by the road-side just in front of a truck to avoid getting hit by an errant driver on the narrow two lane undivided
highway we were on. After dozing off for a while we realize the truck behind us has disappeared so we relocate in front of another
truck and doze off till about 5 by when the daylight and lack of curtains on our car window prevents us from getting any more sleep.
Nevertheless sleeping in a car, though not the most comfortable, was a fun experience.
05:30 Hrs Pankaj enjoys relieving in a farm (A luxury no "American Standards" or Roca can beat)
09:30 Hrs Jaunpur 1535 Kms
11:00 Hrs Varanasi 1600 Kms
At the Dashashwamedh ghat ...
The famous Ganga aarti at the Dashashwamedh ghat, Varanasi ...
4th Stretch - Varanasi to Rajgir - 8 Hrs
2nd July, 2010 (Pankaj's Birthday)
13:00 Hrs Leaving Varanasi 1604 Kms
(A quick drive through Banaras Hindu University)
14:00 Hrs We land on NH-2 1620 Kms
NH-2, sights ...
14:45 Hrs Mohania 1670 Kms
16:15 Hrs Aurangabad 1780 Kms
17:15 Hrs Dobhi (NH-2 Ends) 1840 Kms
17:45 Hrs Bodh Gaya 1860 Kms
Wat Thai BuddhaGaya ...
The Great Buddha Statue ...
The Maha Bodhi ...
These enormous bells are a regular feature at Buddhist monasteries ...
Anup plays his double trick ...
19:00 Hrs Gaya 1870 Kms
We miss the Gaya bypass and get caught in the city market traffic. Keep looking for the elusive puliya (bridge) that will get us past
Gaya.
20:45 Hrs Rajgir 1935 Kms
Time to celebrate the occasion. Bacardi is the choice of the day.
3rd July, 2010
View from the hotel room in Rajgir ...
Hot water springs
Ropeway to Ratnagiri hills
Vishwa Shanti Stupa
Views from the top of Ratnagiri hills ...
Green Lake
Son Bhandar Caves
Anup gets smitten by a teetri, again ...
Nalanda University, the first great university in recorded history. A 1500 year old legacy ...
5th Stretch - Rajgir to Siliguri - 24 Hrs
04th July, 2010
06:00 Hrs Leaving Rajgir 2027 Kms
An Hour behind schedule. Sweet dreams and dry tap share the blame
The last sighting of the Ganga on route ...
09:15 Hrs Begusarai 2135 Kms
10:00 Hrs Khagaria/Rahimpur 2175 Kms
11:30 Hrs Naugachia 2250 Kms
14:30 Hrs Home Sweet Home 2480 Kms
