[rkmountain]

Plan :
Last year I wanted to do a Khaliya Top trek with youth hostel (Munsyari, Uttarakhand).
That plan did not go through. So as soon as I lost my job this year, I decided to jump on the opportunity . I found an old friend of mine who had just resigned from a job and decided to go to Munsyari.
As Everything was decided so quickly, we hardly got any time to do any trip planning.

Day 1 : Pune to Maheshwar (Madhya Pradesh)
Started at 7:30 am from Pune. Road from Nashik Phata to Chakan was crowded. In future will try to leave home early if this road has to be navigated.
Drove on Mumbai-Agra highway for the day and stopped for stay at Maheshwar.

Day 2 : Maheshwar (Narmada Ghat and Ahilya Fort), Jam gate
In the morning got up early and visited Ahilya Fort which has beautiful temples and a huge ghat on the banks of holy Narmada river. Water was so lclean and blue, decided to take a plunge. Seeing Local kids jumping from ghat corners, tried it a few times. Terrible attempts but will improve for sure in future
My Brezza was due for second free servicing (5K kms), found a service center in Maheshwar itself (Nimar motors) who helped us get on the roads quickly.


Visited Jam gate near Maheshwar. It is a gate on a mountain road. Has good views of the surrounding mountains.
Drove to Gwalior and checked into Hotel for the night.

Day 3 : Gwalior Fort, Tajmahal
In the morning visited Jain caves and Gwalior fort. Mansingh Tomar's palace has some great views. While we were going through the dark pathways inside the fort fellow visitors advised not to venture deep as they found some animal inside. We decided to turn back. While talking to the security guard it turned out that the animal was a cat who is a resident there and harmless
Tried to visit Gopachal jain caves but bare foot hike to the top was very difficult so had to return midways.
After the fort visit went to Agra and visited the Taj Mahal in the evening. I was stunned to see the majestic architecture. A sunset on the banks of Yamuna made it a great evening.

Day 4 : Red Fort, Itimad-ud-Daula - Tanakpur(Uttarakhand)
Visited Red Fort in the morning. Was disappointed to know that one is not allowed to go atop the imposing red walls of the fort. IMHO at least some section of Wall needs to be opened for the public.
Visited Itimad-ud-Daula which has delicate stone work.
Reached Tanakpur for a night hault.

Day 5 : Pithoragarh, Askote
Started the journey towards Munsyari via Pithoragarh, Askote. It was a beautiful journey through the mountains. Stopped at Mount Abbott, but could not get the glimpse of greater Himalayan peaks due to weather. As we had no plans at all enjoying the scenery enroute was the only goal for the day. Checked in a hotel at Askote. At dinner time The caretaker and his wife asked us our plan. It turned out that the lady was from Munsyari. She insisted upon visiting Darma Valley(Panchchuli) insted of Munsyari. We decided to skip Munsyari for Darma valley and went to bed.

Day 6 : Jauljibi bridge to Nepal, Nagling (Darma Valley)
Started towards Darma valley. Soon after Askote you travel along the banks of river Kali which is a dividing line between India and Nepal. At Jauljibi, there is a footbridge that connects India and Nepal. With ID card, you can visit Nepal from here. We enquired for the route ahead. The army person there told us that we need inner line permit for Gunji, Om Parvat, Adi Kailash etc.
We were not sure about whether Darma valley needed the permit. So we went to SDM office in Dharchula where we came to know that Darma valley does not need permit. Soon after we started our journey towards Panchchuli(Darma valley), it started raining. At a tea-shop, one of the visitors warned us of the road conditions ahead. But we shrugged off his advice and drove ahead in style.
Soon after, we got stuck in the loose soil. The front wheels of brezza were spinning crazy. With deep gorge on one side we had to get going before it is dark. A group came from other side in Innova. One of the man looked at the number plate and said, "Front wheel drive, Jay Maharashtra" . With that insult, I drove back a little and then cleared the patch in modest speed. Hurray! Jay Maharashtra. Felt the need of a proper 4*4. Would traction control off button in brezza have helped in this situation. Need advice.

Mountains started growing in height as we went deep inside the valley with amazing drops. We reached Nagling and called the day off at a homestay.

Day 7 : Panchachuli
In the morning it was raining a little so we skipped the short trek (Bugyal) we had planned around Nagling. We went to see the panchchuli peak. Due to clouds we could not get the whole view. But it was a pleasant day with great views. At Army checkpost ahead we turned back and returned to Jauljibi for night hault.

Day 8 : Jageshwar Dham
From Jauljibi we drove to Jageshwar. It is a majestic drive through pine forests. Though the forest was magical, I observed a strange thing. Pine is so dominant here that no other tree seems to grow. Is it a native tree of this part or an invasive species.
Jageshwar has two majestic temple complexes. Dandeshwar and Jageshwar. Both are nestled amidst the Sacred Groves of Devdar Trees.

Day 9 : Jageshwar to Sohna
Started our return journey from Jageshwar. Visited Shree Kalyanika Himalaya Devsathanam Ashram, Kanra. Ashram has a beuatiful setting amongst the forested hills. Hills gave us company all the way till Haldwani. From where we reached Sohna, Haryana for night hault.

Day 10, 11 : Sohna to Pune
Drove on Delhi Mumbai Expressway till Sawai Madhopur. Got off the eway and connected back on at someplace just after Kota till Ratlam. Made a stay in Ratlam. On Day 11 drove all the way till home with a short stop at Narmada for a nice swim.

Thanks for reading folks.

[rkmountain]

Here are pics of Darma Valley

[rkmountain]

Here are some pics of Ahilya Fort and Narmada Ghat at Maheshwar

[rkmountain]

Here are some pics of Jam Gate

[rkmountain]

Here are some pics of Gwalior Fort

[rkmountain]

Here are some pics of Red Fort at Agra and Itimad-ud-Daula

[rkmountain]

Here are some Misc pics from Kumaon

[rkmountain]

Here are some pics of Jageshwar Dham and Kalyanik Ashram

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[MBond007]

Nice travelogue. Is Darma valley worth visiting?

[rkmountain]

Originally Posted by MBond007

Nice travelogue. Is Darma valley worth visiting?

Darma valley is worth visiting. There are couple of treks
1. Bugyal at Nagling
2. Panchchuli Base

We could not do these treks due to weather.
But these treks will offer you great ciews of snow capped mountains especially the panchchuli base trek

Also the drive is amazing as it is mostly unpaved and not at all crowded

[sjain2054]

I loved going through your write up and pictures.

I have had Munsiyari on my list for last 6 months. However, off late, I get very annoyed by the idea of driving long distances. Its just a phase. I prefer flying to the destination and driving around there in a hired car. This way, I save two most important things in life - time & money. The benefit of getting there in utmost comfort is priceless. I also get the experience of driving different cars. Or, being driven around in different cars.

Therefore, the Munsiyari plan I made was as follows. Same can be made from any starting point in India.

1. Bhopal to Delhi by Air India flight from 8am to 9:35am @ 3500/- i.e. Rs 4.4 per km for 800kms.
Car journey, with toll, would be minimum Rs 6 per km and 15 hours. Plus the possibility of hotel stay cost too. Not even counting food cost and other misc expenses.

2. Delhi to Pant Nagar by Indigo 11:10am to 12:10am flight @ 6500/- i.e. Rs 25 per km for 265 kms. This is an expensive leg of the journey but the convenience and comfort is unparalleled.

This makes Bhopal to Pant Nagar 1065km journey @ Rs 9.5 per km and ~4.5 hours. Both, money and time saved.

3. Pant Nagar Airport to Haldwani's Gaulapar airport is a half hour drive.
Haldwani Gaulapar helipad to Munsiyari Helipad by Heritage air helicopter from 12:30pm to 1:15pm @ 4000/- @ Rs 11 per km for 367km journey
https://www.airheritage.in/

PS: The chopper waits if they have passengers from the incoming flight at Pantnagar. Just have to inform them well before hand. I found out through local friends in Nainital/Haldwani. Alternatively, one can leave Bhopal by 9pm Chennai Rajdhani to reach New Delhi station by 5am and take the 8:20am one hour Indigo flight to Pant Nagar to be well in time for the 12:30pm chopper.

So, Bhopal to Munsiyari ~1400km journey done in ~5hrs and Rs 14000 @ Rs 9.8 per km. I am not counting Uber taxi cost and time etc. Benefits I get on credit card points will be worth Rs 1000 or so easily. If I count that then Uber cost gets nullified.

Car journey will be wayy more expensive on per km cost (cost is not just fuel and toll but also food & hotel & car wear tear etc), time consuming and troubling/tiring.

Once I reach Munsiyari, I can hire a local taxi and explore the region within 100km radius. Thus helping the local economy too.

Way back -

1. Munsiyari Helipad to Haldwani Helipad by Heritage Air helicopter from 8:35am to 9:20am @ Rs 4000/- @ Rs 11 per km for 367km journey

2. Pant Nagar (Haldwani) to Delhi by Indigo 12:30pm to 13:30pm flight @ 6300/- i.e. Rs 25 per km for 265 kms. This is an expensive leg of the journey but the convenience and comfort is unparalleled.

3. Delhi to Bhopal by Indigo 15:05 to 16:30 flight @ 4500 i.e. Rs 5.5 per km.


This method of travel can be applied to any far off mountain destination like Tawang, Sikkim, East Arunachal, Kashmir, any place in Himachal etc.

Benefits -
1. Save time and/or money
2. Comfort level 9000. No twisty roads, no mountain traffic jams etc etc
3. Drive (or be driven in) different cars by hiring them at the destination to explore ~100km radius
4. Save your current car the wear and tear and use it longer for within 300-500km journeys
5. Can enable you to buy EVs with real world range of 500-800kms and within your city. Those are coming soon to our markets as battery prices fall, battery ranges improve and charging tech improves to give lower charging times. Even current EVs on sale can be used with one charging stop.

Many similar journey plans can be made with Train + flight + hired car combinations to make it more convenient, cheaper.

Of course, no doubting the fact that driving ones own car across our beautiful country has a different charm altogether. Its just that I am not in that phase at this juncture of my life and hence this long research and write up. I keep making such travel plans. Without actually executing them - haha.

Disclaimer -
This post is for entertainment/enjoyment/exploration purposes only. I understand that car cost per km per head will reduce with more than one person. Obviously!

[rkmountain]

Videos of Darma Valley could be found on my Youtube Channel

https://youtube.com/@rahulkhot3290?si=GoLfQnpfP6c94ULj

[rkmountain]

Videos of this trip can be found at my Instagram Profile

https://www.instagram.com/rksangli?i...&utm_source=qr

[alpha1]

Nice itinerary there and lovely pix.
I am curious to know what kind of post processing was done on photos ... or are they straight from the device? The photos are really realistic ;-) .