[DevOnWheels]

So, after having seeing through so many meet ups across various places, it’s time that we, the Assam guys from TeamBHP have a meet up of our own. And since it is the first time, we are having a 2 nights and 3 days meet up with ample highway driving across the two states(Assam & West Bengal) and through one of the most picturesque highways of India.

Date: 24th February- 26th February
Place: Ramsai Tea Resort, Dooars

Cost: ₹2750 per person on American Plan(includes fooding & lodging) per day.

Anyone wants to bring their family, they are more than welcome.

So let’s make the event a grand one. Rooms are limited and on first come first serve basis. Please enlist your names.

Sumptuous food, unlimited chats and some experiences besides Gorumara National Park with Safaris (planned) awaits..

Please call or message to confirm the participation to BHPian Yogi..Reeturaj (8134905555) and BHPian DevOnWheels (8011399103)


1. DevOnWheels from Kolkata

[ABHI_1512]

Adding to the list:
1. DevOnWheels
2. ABHI_1512 +1

[Sheel]

I would have loved to join, but few other things are planned for those dates, thanks to the weekend (a wedding and one anniversary of a close family friend), else would have driven down.

I hope there is another meet soon and I hope I can make it .

Please report the post once the meet is over, so it can make it to the homepage .

[Prakritij]

Adding myself to the list:
1. DevOnWheels
2. ABHI_1512 +1
3. Prakritij

[GTO]

Guys, request to please report (Report Posts : Contribute in Maintaining Team-BHP's post quality) once the meet pics are up, so we can add that post to our homepage hot threads. Thanks & have fun.

[Yogi..Reeturaj]

Adding to the list:

1. DevOnWheels
2. ABHI_1512 +1
3. Prakritij
4. Yogi..Reeturaj
5. LONG_TOURER
6. BhaskarG
7. ChiranjitP

[mygodbole]

May this tribe, and all other traveller tribes, prosper. Greetings and good wishes from Pune.

Enjoy, take only photos, leave only footprints. Cheers!

[LONG_TOURER]

Adding to the list:

1. DevOnWheels
2. ABHI_1512 +1
3. Prakritij
4. Yogi..Reeturaj
5. LONG_TOURER
6. BhaskarG
7. ChiranjitP

[BhaskarG]

Based on the confirmed participants till now, the cars anticipated for the meet:

1. Abhishek’s white Ecosport tdci from Kolkata

2. Rishi’s brand new white Octavia from Delhi

3. Reetu’s new white UC Hyryder AWD from Guwahati

4. To balance the all white line-up, a red Venue Turbo DCT or a blue Polo GT TDI might make a surprise cinematic entry. Let the suspense remain.

[Ibanez_70]

Adding to the list:

1. DevOnWheels
2. ABHI_1512 +1
3. Prakritij
4. Yogi..Reeturaj
5. LONG_TOURER
6. BhaskarG
7. ChiranjitP
8. Ibanez_70

[Sheel]

Hello lovely folks!

How is it going? Please share pictures as and when you guys can. Thanks.

[ABHI_1512]

So, the long wait for the first Team-BHP overnighter for the members from Assam was finally over. As per the original confirmations, it was finally eight members who finally ended up meeting at a common place- Ramsai Tea and Wildlife Resort, Gorumara. Although, the initial plan involved the families as well but due to some unavoidable circumstances, the better half’s had to give the meet up a miss ! In fact, BHPian Samit had to opt out at the last moment due to a family commitment.

So, let me first introduce the members who finally made it, in no particular order.

BHPian Ibanez_70


BHPian Prakritij


BHPian ChiranjitP


BHPian BhaskarG


BHPian DevOnWheels


BHPian Yogi..Reeturaj


BHPian LONG_TOURER


Introductions over, now comes the crazy part of it all.

[ABHI_1512]

So, the plan was simple. We all assemble at Ramsai Tea and Wildlife Resort and spend the weekend. Now, this assembling part was the most crazy part of it all. Usually, the forum members take their own cars for any meet and it has mostly been that way.

Now, Gorumara was selected as a venue because of being the location which is little nearer for few members including me and LONG_TOURER. For the Guwahati guys, Ramsai was a six-seven hours drive. At the outset, this must be told that this meet showed that if someone really wanted to attend a meet up, nothing really matters, not even the distance.

BHPian Prakritij stays at Dibrugarh and BHPian ChiranjitP is posted at Itanagar (Arunachal Pradesh). BHPian LONG_TOURER is posted at Jharsuguda (Odisha) and BHPian DevOnWheels is posted at Calcutta. Rest of the guys stay at Guwahati. So, few days before the meet, the travel plan was decided and most of the guys were to assemble at Guwahati and then proceed towards Gorumara. So Prakritij decided to board the Rajdhani Express from Dibrugarh and ChiranjitP decided to board the Donyi Polo Express from Naharlagun (Itanagar)- both for Guwahati. Both were to reach in the early morning and the rest of the guys were to pick them up from the Guwahati Railway station.

DevOnWheels decided to jump in with me since his vehicle is at his hometown. Everything was good until few days before the meet, DevOnWheels told me that he is going to Lucknow and that BHPian LONG_TOURER will be driving a new ŠKODA all the way from Solan and that he will be giving company to him till our meet up place- Gorumara.

Yes, BHPian LONG_TOURER went to Solan to buy a new ŠKODA Octavia just before the meet up and he took this wild idea of driving this new beauty directly to our meet up place. One of the craziest and daring drives one would attempt for sure, at least, I haven’t heard anyone driving a new ŠKODA for that long

So, I left for Gorumara from Calcutta in the evening and followed my usual route for Siliguri. Since, I was in no hurry, left Calcutta at around 9.30 and duly made it to Siliguri at around 8.30 next morning. In between, had a dinner break and some photos clicked at places I usually just brush past.

Dinner stop at Old Delhi Road


This chicken bharta had more fat than the chicken itself !!


Plassey War Memorial


Glimpse of the morning sunrise


The Malda mango orchards engulfed in the morning fog


Baahon just before the fog engulfed Dalkhola bypass


Breakfast stop- Ghar Dhaba, Dalkhola


And the super hot breakfast


Baahon in the fog again


Gorumara entry gate from Ramsai


Ramsai resort on the right


Poinsettia blooming inside the property


By the time I reached Siliguri, the Guwahati guys were on their way after picking Prakritij and ChiranjitP. Due to various reasons- some bonafide and some hush hush, only one vehicle started out from Guwahati. BHPian Ibanez_70 and his Red Ecosport was doing the duty for ferrying the members to Gorumara.

On the other end of the spectrum, LONG_TOURER had started from Solan with his new Octavia the previous day and had connected with DevOnWheels in the wee hours at Lucknow. Without even getting time to sleep, just changing of cloths may be and a quick freshening up, they both started early from Lucknow.

I was the first one to reach Ramsai after finishing some work in Siliguri. It was past noon already when I finally reached. The Guwahati guys reached at around 2 and it was great to finally meet some of them who I only knew from their handle names !!

[ABHI_1512]

Pleasantries over, we all were welcomed by a refreshingly cool drink. The cool blue drink though failed to satiate the hunger pangs. As it was already very late in the noon, we immediately asked for the lunch and it was an elaborate menu of typical Bengali style food.



Lunch was over in a jiffy and soon we were planning for our next course of action while waiting for the boys from Lucknow to land up. We were constantly monitoring their progress and someone or the other was checking the live location shared uniformly over WhatsApp. By the evening, they had almost reached Araria if I remember correctly.

Nevertheless, soon it was decided to go the small town of Malbazar which is around 60 kms from Ramsai. Now, why Malbazar ? It’s because of the presence of one petrol bunk named Roy and Cousins and which is a compulsory stop for many of us whenever we are nearby. Let the pictures clear the air here:















The petrol bunk also has a wonderful tea lounge beside alongside the timeless beauties and it serves delightful bakery and savoury items. We spent some real good time while keeping an eye on the Octavia boys. By the time we reached Ramsai, BHPian’s DevOnWheels and LONG_TOURER were about to reach nearby Siliguri and we expected them to reach the destination by around 10 or something.

We all decided to wait for them and take our dinner together. In the meanwhile, they somehow missed the navigation and were guided by Google through some interior roads. Of course, they also didn’t call before entering the less taken road towards Ramsai. Now, after sometime the live location thing got iffy and it set the cat along the pigeons !!

Everyone got little jittery since it was already late in the night. Meanwhile, the resort staff were kind enough to wait for us. And then suddenly BHPian BhaskarG saw on the map that they were very nearby to the Resort and yet they were not moving. The network was also playing hide and seek along with the occasional bump. Meanwhile, someone also saw a knock on the Resort Gate which was locked. The staff came running with a flash light and proudly declared that a Leopard was nearby. They even went looking for the Leopard with high beam flashlight but came back disappointed.

In the melee over Leopard, BHPian DevOnWheels called up and said they were nearby but couldn’t find the way through since the only road was blocked. Also, in their eagerness to reach Ramsai, they were perilously close to being short of fuel as well

We were gearing up to the possibility of towing the new Octavia amidst the tea gardens in the dead of night when suddenly the white beam from the car projected through the tea gardens. There was this collective relief that was so visible in everyone’s eyes at that point of time and it was past midnight. So finally they reached and it was a blitz that we will all remember.

Octavia joining the two Ecosport’s, finally.


The dinner was served hot and it was again an elaborate menu but consisted of a mix of Thai and Chinese. It was greatly appreciated that we were served hot dinner at midnight and which tasted so very good.

Chilly Chicken was just as it should be.


Glass Noodles or as someone said- Sewai Noodles


Vegetables in Thai green curry


Fried Rice tasted great too.


This was the whole group at the dinner table


Dinner over and everyone went to get some well earned shut eye. Craziness just reached its epitome that night, certainly a night to remember I say

[ABHI_1512]

Everyone was late in waking up the next morning, for obvious reasons. But despite the madness night before, we did wake up charged after a good night’s sleep. But then, someone was more energetic than other’s and it was none other than BHPian LONG_TOURER. Despite driving for two continuous days, he didn’t show any sign of lethargy and was a bundle of energy. Don’t believe me, have a look at this picture below-



He was cleaning his car’s interior after that continuous drive over two days and nights almost. And this after, everyone had their fill over the new Octavia. It was certainly a Herculean effort on BHPian LONG_TOURER’s part that he chose to buy a car from the only dealership that he got hold off where the car he wanted was on sale. Things people do for their love for cars



Breakfast after, everyone was geared up for a drive to some scenic location. Many options were discussed and it was decided to explore the Gorubathan-Lava route since it is amongst the most scenic routes one would come across. By the time we started from Ramsai, it was close to noon almost.

Anyways, so the route passes through Lataguri and Gorumara forest areas and the lush green forest on both the sides of the highway presents some wonderful views before touching NH 31 near Chalsa. This part of Bengal is enchanting and drive through many forests here is indeed blissful. So, two Ecosport’s were again munching the miles while the Octavia was left to catch some well deserved breath !!

































The dinner was deliberately told to be kept simple and the resort staff were equally upto the task. The dessert was the highlight and in a way that completely was symbolic that all good things comes to an end and that it should end in a sweet note.