[Ashwin Morey]

Thanks Bro.
North East it vastly unexplored, this is my second trip exploring the terrain. Its going to take some more.
This is the Sikkim Trip last year, I assume this could also be of some help : http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...uster-awd.html

Great! Many thanks for the blog on Sikkim, that's going to be very helpful.

[sandx]

One hell of a trip this is. Heartfelt congratulations on completing this milestone of a road trip. The pictures are amazing and aptly describes the environs from that part of our country. Your travelogue will help me in planning my own travels which I intend to do this year. If you would please oblige me on my query that I have, it will be very helpful. Now I intend to send over my Alto to my hometown in Assam and instead of sending it over through some packers and movers, I would like to drive down the whole stretch. I am confident about my car tackling the long highways and the curves but the Kolkata to Siliguri route seems to be tricky. How difficult would it be for a small hatchback to complete that section? Please enlighten me through your opinion. Also if you could mention the start and end timings of the days journey it would be good for reference. Driving almost 25 hours non stop is a feat in itself and I am curious to know your timelines.

[ARAY]

Originally Posted by sandx

One hell of a trip this is. Heartfelt congratulations on completing this milestone of a road trip. The pictures are amazing and aptly describes the environs from that part of our country. Your travelogue will help me in planning my own travels which I intend to do this year. If you would please oblige me on my query that I have, it will be very helpful. Now I intend to send over my Alto to my hometown in Assam and instead of sending it over through some packers and movers, I would like to drive down the whole stretch. I am confident about my car tackling the long highways and the curves but the Kolkata to Siliguri route seems to be tricky. How difficult would it be for a small hatchback to complete that section? Please enlighten me through your opinion. Also if you could mention the start and end timings of the days journey it would be good for reference. Driving almost 25 hours non stop is a feat in itself and I am curious to know your timelines.

Thanks for the appreciation.
I would like to drive down the whole stretch. - perfect idea

I am confident about my car tackling the long highways and the curves but the Kolkata to Siliguri route seems to be tricky. - that stretch is a hatchbacks paradise .

How difficult would it be for a small hatchback to complete that section? - Let's just say it will be fun track with a peppy petrol engine like that of an Alto.

Also if you could mention the start and end timings of the days journey it would be good for reference. - Follow google map and stick to NH16 , most boring part will be Farakka.
Drive as long as you like take rest when needed. Please don't follow anyones timeline.

Last but not the least, please don't underestimate Alto, it's one hell of a ride MS had pulled off.

[sandx]

Also if you could mention the start and end timings of the days journey it would be good for reference. - Follow google map and stick to NH16 , most boring part will be Farakka.
Drive as long as you like take rest when needed. Please don't follow anyones timeline.

Last but not the least, please don't underestimate Alto, it's one hell of a ride MS had pulled off.

Your points duly noted.

Thanks a ton.

[soumobakshi]

Originally Posted by ARAY

Day 11 (Continued Kaziranga - Guwahati)


I know its a pretty long blog but thanks a lot for going through and I hope it helps fellow travellers.

Awesome Writing and Pics

Of-course your travelogue is long, but then the distance is also not less that you have covered with your family. The details with key notes and the GPX data is going to urge many from TBHP to hit the road and venture into the wilderness.

A Trip well Done

[ARAY]

Originally Posted by soumobakshi

Awesome Writing and Pics

Of-course your travelogue is long, but then the distance is also not less that you have covered with your family. The details with key notes and the GPX data is going to urge many from TBHP to hit the road and venture into the wilderness.

A Trip well Done

Thanks a lot Soumoda , waiting for the west - east blog and I am sure its going to be a blockbuster.

[divyankar]

once again an awesome Travelogue and some amazing pictures Aray.
You have captured each and every detail perfectly.
Keep up the good work, happy traveling

Divyankar

[gajadonga]

Nice travelogue.
Enjoyed the pictures also.

It would have been good if you could have included what time u started in the morning
and reaching the destination back.

I also had traveled till Gangtok in 2008 from Hyderabad.

On the way back from Asansol you took the Bankura - Bishnupur - Medinipur route.
How the road conditions.

I had taken the route from Durgapur -Bankura .
The roads from Bankura to Bishnupur was almost non existent.
Post Bishnupur lots of railway crossings till Medinipur .

Nostalgic moments reading your travelougue.

In fact I had also had driven from Gangtok to Konark temple in Odisa almost nonstop with some power naps in between.
Started from Gangtok around 4.30pm with dinner at Siliguri.
Kharagpur by 11.30am and Konark temple by evening 4pm.

[ARAY]

Originally Posted by divyankar

once again an awesome Travelogue and some amazing pictures Aray.
You have captured each and every detail perfectly.
Keep up the good work, happy traveling

Divyankar

Appreciate the kind words coming from a fellow traveller who owns a Duster

Originally Posted by gajadonga

Nice travelogue.
Enjoyed the pictures also.

It would have been good if you could have included what time u started in the morning
and reaching the destination back.

I also had traveled till Gangtok in 2008 from Hyderabad.

On the way back from Asansol you took the Bankura - Bishnupur - Medinipur route.
How the road conditions.

I had taken the route from Durgapur -Bankura .
The roads from Bankura to Bishnupur was almost non existent.
Post Bishnupur lots of railway crossings till Medinipur .

Nostalgic moments reading your travelougue.

In fact I had also had driven from Gangtok to Konark temple in Odisa almost nonstop with some power naps in between.
Started from Gangtok around 4.30pm with dinner at Siliguri.
Kharagpur by 11.30am and Konark temple by evening 4pm.

How the road conditions - excellent if you cross when everyone is sleeping. Not so good at other times.

Gangtok - Konark in one shot - That speaks volume Sir.

Nostalgic moments reading your travelougue - This is exactly the feeling I get reading others blog about places we have been .

Anything and everything that crosses Farakka gets auto cleansed with a virtue called paitence.

Thanks for going through the blog and glad I was able to bring back some of your fond memories.

[Payaniga]

Thanks for the wonderful travelogue. This one gets into my to-do list. A few questions.

Is Kolkata to Siliguri route safe in night? As it is a long stretch, even if I start from Kolkata at 6AM, it might take 10PM to reach Siliguri, so is it safe after sunset?

Can this entire route be done on 2WD as well? (I have Duster 2WD).

The moon shot is very beautiful. What was the magnification used?

Is vegetarian food available in all the places?

[ARAY]

Originally Posted by Payaniga

Thanks for the wonderful travelogue. This one gets into my to-do list. A few questions.

Is Kolkata to Siliguri route safe in night? As it is a long stretch, even if I start from Kolkata at 6AM, it might take 10PM to reach Siliguri, so is it safe after sunset?

Can this entire route be done on 2WD as well? (I have Duster 2WD).

The moon shot is very beautiful. What was the magnification used?

Is vegetarian food available in all the places?

The answer to that is both yes and no. Last year we did Hyderabad Sikkim during the Durga pujas last day and while returning we were warned of riot near the Bangladesh border area so we halted before Malda . This year just to avoid the entire possibility we did the trip in December end. However I did Kolkata -Siliguri at night this time.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...uster-awd.html


Can this entire route be done on 2WD as well? (I have Duster 2WD)
Yes , 2wd can do till Tawang, Bumla pass can also be done but few places are critical and having an awd will give you the peace of mind.

The moon shot is very beautiful. What was the magnification used?
Thank you , sigma 150-600mm

Veg food - ofcourse

Glad you liked the blog, with a great handler like Duster you will surely enjoy the drive.

[SohamBiswas]

In a word the blog and travel tale here is BEAUTIFUL. Since, I have travelled in some of these routes lately, it's really cherishing to see the sheer beauty of Himalayas and feel the thrill of driving in its terrain through your lens and words. Thanks for the blog