[simply_sunny001]

hi All

I along with some of my friends are planning for a 4 day trip to AULI next weekend.

Plan is to leave on friday afternoon or evening and return tuesday night/wed morning.

Please help regarding following things.

1. Best Route as i have heard i go via Rishikesh and via Nainital/Almora also.

2. Eating options/Staying options enroute and in AULI.

3. Activities we can do in AULI/enroute apart from skiing.

4. How steep is climb and Road conditions

5. Choice of car to use i.e. 1 santro and 1 zen or a 2WD Safari


All inputs are indeed much appreciated.

[pankaj_sachdeva]

I have travelled through Rishikesh route 2 yrs back & the roads were quite good at that time. From Rishikesh you will have to travel approx 240 kms to Joshimath. Because of mountainary & small road, it takes approx 8-9 hours. Auli is 16 km from Joshimath. It is best to start early from Rishikesh & then reach Joshimath by evening. It will be best to spent a night in Joshimath & then next morning, you can head to Auli, as Roads to Auli are closed in evening. You can also take Cable Car from Joshimath to Auli for some scenic views.

We took a gypsy at that time & there's wasn't need of 4X4, so i think 2WD Safari will more good as it will be more comfartable than Zen or Santro.

The scenic views enroute to Joshimath are fabulous. You will pass through diff. prayags (confluences).

You can get a decent accomodation in Joshimath. We got 2 Double bed rooms at 350 each IIRC. Though eating options are less for Non-Veg people in Joshimath. If you drink, then carry your booze from plains, as at that time Liquor was given to native residents only having a quata card 9similar to ration card ).

Climb is quite steep & roads are narrow at many places, but the overall condition of roads was quite good at that time.

if you want any more details , do let me know.

Phew!!! it made me quite nostalgic while replying to your post. Man , those were the days...

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by simply_sunny001

hi All

I along with some of my friends are planning for a 4 day trip to AULI next weekend.

Plan is to leave on friday afternoon or evening and return tuesday night/wed morning.

Please help regarding following things.

1. Best Route as i have heard i go via Rishikesh and via Nainital/Almora also.

2. Eating options/Staying options enroute and in AULI.

3. Activities we can do in AULI/enroute apart from skiing.

4. How steep is climb and Road conditions

5. Choice of car to use i.e. 1 santro and 1 zen or a 2WD Safari


All inputs are indeed much appreciated.

To add to what Pankaj said,

You must target a place beyond Rishikesh on Day 1, say either Srinagar or Deoprayag/Rudraprayag, all of which have good GMVN hotels.

An early start from Delhi will help you overcome the mad traffic conditions in Ghaziabad, Modinagar area.

Lots of eating places and petrol stations en route - this is a well-travelled driving circuit.

GMVN hotels are there almost one every 30-50 kms.

No where is the road very steep, but roads are narrow and traffic can be unruly, hence be careful.

Any car will do, nowhere will you encounter 4WD territory.

Expect land slides that may delay you by 30 minutes to 2/3 hours.

PM if you want any route details - can share my log books from my own drives.

The check post at Johimath may close by 430 pm, hence make sure you reach by then.

Kumar

[hondadude]

Also see the following two threads

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...-trip-dec.html
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...ur-safari.html

[Akshay1234]

go via the rishikesh route. Stay a night in rudra prayag at a place called monal resort. Then drive to joshimath and then on to auli. In auli the best place would be clifftop. It will be pricey but its the best there. Take the safari as it would be better than the other 2.

[setuniket]

Go via pauri and head to joshimath, avoid haridwar-rishikesh route. About 3 months back i drove till devprayag and the road conditions arent good and add up the time wasted to cross haridwar and rishikesh. The road via pauri is in excellent condition, as latest reports from my friends/relatives and tourer logs...

New Delhi-Ghaziabad(NH-58)-Meerut(dont take the bypass)-Bijnor-Najibabad-Kotdwara-Pauri(1st day stop)-Rudraprayag-karnprayag-joshimath-auli

The route is in excellent condition, the Meerut-Pauri detour is just 10 kms extra(info indiamike.com) but worth if rishikesh/haridwar is not in your plan.I would personally prefer safari out of the three.

Nainital/Almora route is longer but only worth if you plan to visit these places too, but keep it one way..

PS: - Refer to mapmyindia.com for maps.

[simply_sunny001]

Thats some wonderful information i needed.

Thanks a lot guys.

@HVKumar,please share the logbook,i'll be very much interested in that.

Thanks

[Tiger]

We did this route this Jan, I think better to take Pauri route to Auli.
Delhi - meerut - Najibabad-Pauri-Rudrapraya-Auli. Your avg speed will be around 15-20kms/hr(from Najibabad), so plan accordingly.
If you are leaving delhi by 8.0am then you will reach Pauri by night( we did otherway round, left Pauri by 7.30 & reached Faridabad by10.0PM, with couple of breaks for puncher & landslide). And again from Pauri to Joshimat it will be around 10-12hrs Journey. On 3rd day you can reach Auli by 10AM.
Or
Leave Delhi very early say by 2.0AM in the morning & try to reach Joshimat by 11PM & next day morning you can be at auli by 10AM.

I think better to take 2nd option as it will save 2 days to & fro.

Better to stay at KMVN guest house & it will cost you around 900/day for a log hut. If you are taking Cliff top they will charge you around 6000/day which is not worth.

So you can plan as below
1st day leave delhi by 2.0am & reach Joshimat by 11PM, Have food before 8.0Pm as most of the hotels will close after that. Book a good room at Joshimat in advance.
2nd day reach Auli by 10AM, check in , have lunch & go in chair lift by 12.30PM. By 4.0PM you need to be back as chair car will stop by 4.0PM.
3rd day - Just be there in that place & relax
4th day, Check out by 10PM, go to Joshimat, take cable car to Auli top, play with snow, do sking & come back by 4.0PM. Do not take sking equipments for rent for full day. it is waste of money as you will hardly use it for max30mins. You go to auli top & bargain there itself. Do not pay more than 100/head. You can come back & leave to delhi.
Pay some 20bugs to some workers at KMVN, Auli & get some extra firewood, it will help you to fire Bukhara during day also.
Take Safari, it is best suited for such terrain.

[simply_sunny001]

Originally Posted by Tiger

Your avg speed will be around 15-20kms/hr(from Najibabad), so plan accordingly.

why ?

Originally Posted by Tiger

Leave Delhi very early say by 2.0AM in the morning & try to reach Joshimat by 11PM & next day morning you can be at auli by 10AM.

so it will take 21 hrs to reach there or am i missing something.As i thought that i should be in Joshimath in 12 hrs .

Originally Posted by Tiger

Take Safari, it is best suited for such terrain.

ya will take safari,comfort is most needed thing on long drives.

thanks for your inputs

[vijit.gangwar]

Route map to Joshimath.

[Tiger]

Once you cross Najibabad ghat roads will start, So avg speed will reduce to a great extent.

It will take 12hrs from Pauri to Joshimat & not from Delhi. If you want to save time then you have to take Option 2 as in my earlier log.

[pankaj_sachdeva]

Originally Posted by simply_sunny001

why ?



so it will take 21 hrs to reach there or am i missing something.As i thought that i should be in Joshimath in 12 hrs .

Nah, my friend. it took us around 10 hours from Rishikesh to Joshimath. So you need to calculate the rest of the distance also. As i already mentioned Rishikesh - Joshimath is around 240 kms . Keeping in mind that you'll take around 6 hours to Rishikesh & then 10 hours to Joshimath, it is 16 hours, that too without break. Now with break, you increase your time by 3-4 hours. That makes it 20 hours.

P.S -- I have no idea of the Pauri route mentioned by other guys.

[tsk1979]

Isn't Delhi to Rishikesh close to 4 hours, then Joshimath should be 15 hours atmost?

[hvkumar]

When I did Delhi-Rishikesh-Joshimath in 2005, the time durations were as follows:

Delhi-Hardwar, 4 hours
Rishikesh-Joshimath, 9 hours, including a 1-hour halt at Deoprayag and a delay of 30 minutes for landslide clearance.

[Tiger]

Few important points for the Long trip,
1.If you are on a long journey with your family, make sure you pack required clothing, etc in a small bag which is sufficient for 2-3 days. So that you don’t have to take out your heavy luggage every day
2.Avoid eating oily food. Avoid unknown spicy food. Best is to have bread Jam/ omlet/boiled egg etc. Try to eat fruits
3.Make sure to keep universal plug.
4.If you are traveling to colder places, take a room heater. Hotels charge Rs100/day. You can buy the same for Rs300-400.
5.Chew mouth fresheners or chewing gums while traveling. It does keep you awake during long journeys
6.Keep wet tissues while traveling, It will help you to keep fresh
7.Use liquid soap instead of bar.
8.Never wear shoes during long travels.
9.Ware cotton trousers or 3/4th pants
10. Drive slowly thru villages & towns, a minor accident may ruin your complete trip.
11.Keep original documents of your car & original Driving licence with you.
12.Avoid keeping lot of cash with you, take note of ATMs on the way. Cash available with you should take care of some emergencies like tyre burst, emergency repair, minor accident compensation etc.
13.Avoid wearing expensive jewelries or even fake. It may attract thieves.
14.Keep spare spectacles
15.Keep small air pump, spare tube in your vehicle