Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Travelogue Approved

Great stuff. Waiting for more.

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Assam Bikers...

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Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Nice pics. It is very nice to see my fellow axomia riders with with a axomia flag.

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Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Thanks for the approval!
Next phase coming soon!

Although it was endorsed by the group, it wasn't any official ride. It was planned by me and the other guys and as we are members of the group, we carried the flag.

Thanks!

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Just saw the milestone I stopped Ah! Alipurduar (my home town) 48 KMs. Never get a chance to ride there How is NH -31 BTW ?

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Its better to take NH31C than NH31 as 31's condition is pretty bad than 31C. We had mistakenly took 31 while returning and that took us around an hour more than 31C.

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Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Day 1

After the initial route planning, filling up tanks, oil change etc the previous night, we had decided for a common meeting point at 4am. Thanks to the late sleep of only 2 hours, we all gathered at around 4:45am and started off at 5am.

The first hurdle:

I sat on the bike, ignition was already on, pushed the starter and all lights went off.
Horn was struggling to sound and starter was unresponsive. Battery terminals had developed a poor link. So the start of the ride was done by push start!

We took the route via Hajo, Nalbari to reach NH31 as most of the stretches of the highway is undergoing construction of 4 laning.





Well paved single lane kept us in good average speeds. It was decided that I would repair the battery issue at Tihu, hometown of Nilotpal. He called up the known mechanic, Manoj at 6:45am to open up his garage and fix up my bike. While fixing it up, the R15 had a blown fuse. Repaired it too and we started off by 7am to Kokrajhar for breakfast. The four laning of NH31 is underway till Barpeta and then its complete till Bongaigaon.




The lone accident:

It was somewhere after crossing Barpeta. Villagers reach up the highway thinking the traffic at 100+kmph would stop for their 10kmph cycles. I was leading and all the bikes were at a difference of 10-15m from each other. A cyclist villager came up on the highway and bang! As I maneuvered, he came and hit me on my left arm. Nothing happened to me, but he was lying on the road looking up at the sky! No stops as locals would would make a mayhem of the situation. We rode on.

By 10am we had reached Kolrajhar for breakfast. Another half an hour, we started off and the good road was gone. 4 laning all the way means speeds restricted to 2nd and 3rd gears only.



Soon we reach up the border- Srirampur where trucks were lined up everywhere. We literally squeezed in though between them and was out of Assam. A quick smoke & rehydration stop at the West Bengal side and we continued on the NH31C via Hashimara and Birpara and NH31A from Sevoke. Roads were pretty good and the twists and turns started showing up. Tea gardens surrounding us and the mild smell of tea leaves from the plantations that penetrated our helmets along with our soul was kind of revitalizing. Temperatures came down too and the first feel of hill station was in the air.









The Coronation bridge over the river Teesta joins the main road from Siliguri to Gangtok. The road is under construction for around 10kms from there. We stopped for late lunch few kilometers before reaching the Kalimpong diversion and resumed at around 5pm.
Roads were good again and we can maintain decent speeds. Traffic was really low and the curves could be enjoyed even it was dark.

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Day 2:

This was the day we all were waiting for.
Nathu-la it was.

Before I start this, I would like to mention the necessary formalities to be completed before visiting Nathu-la.

1> Get permits.
2> It takes 1 whole day to get the permits.
3> Permits are to be obtained via registered travel agent only.
4> These steps are the only necessity if you are travelling by cab/taxi
5> Nathu-la is closed for public on Mondays and Fridays.

Now, if you are biking all the way up, get some more points listed!

5> Get permits for the vehicle too!

Vehicle permits pass through 3 offices:
1> The Home ministry endorses the vehicle. Passes on the papers to Commissioner of Police and then to the Army for clearance.

Documents required:

>ID and Address proof: Driving licence is not valid. Passport/Voter ID/ Aadhar card accepted.
>Vehicle RC, Valid Insurance and PUC.
>Vehicle should be in the name of the person travelling.
>You can't take a vehicle of a person who's not travelling along.


Now the real part was obtaining the permits.

------ FLASHBACK -------
That was the most nail biting experience I had during the trip.
I had the responsibility of obtaining the permits and time was too short for arranging the permits the day after we reach Gangtok as sunday would be govt holiday, Nathu-la is closed on Mondays and I need to be back to Guwahati by Tuesday.

The search for contacts who could get me the permits beforehand was started around a week before we started. Numerous calls were made to various travel agents and everyone denied from arranging the vehicle permits.

Thanks to one of my colleague friend, she called up a Gangtok based cab owner/driver whom they had hired 2 years back!

After few minutes of talking and making him understand our will to take our bikes up there, he replied in some positive way and said he would contact the home ministry and inform about the papers required.
The call came the next day. It was already Wednesday and we were starting on Saturday of that week. Time was too short to courier him the documents. Instead, scanned all the documents he mentioned and mailed. He would take out the printouts and apply for permits the next day.

A call came on Thursday that he would need some more documents for proof of nationality. It was only the DL we had sent as ID, Address proof, which was not enough and the home ministry had rejected our applications. Scanned our passport/ Voter ID/ Aadhar whichever was available and he would proceed the next morning. Nathu-la is permitted for Indian Nationals only.

It was around 12 noon on Friday. He called back to inform that our applications had hit a hurdle again as vehicle PUC was not available! Now we don't have such or rather any enforcement to keep PUC. None of our bikes have it and to top it up, all 4 bikes were now spread over 200kms apart. He went in again to convince the authorities to issue the permits without the PUC and promised that we would have valid PUC done and bring along.

Agreed, sealed, signed!

In the meantime, two of us who were in Guwahati arranged to get our PUC and also got it done for the other 2 bikes!
I still wonder how the PUC center got the values without even touching the bike!


------ BACK TO DAY 2 -------

Just as I woke up, our man for the permits called up and asked us to collect the permits at 9am.

Now, with such lazy weather and cozy temperature, it was 9:40am that I reached the designated place and he handled over the permits. It was then that he informed that the checkpost allows entry till 10am only! I hurried back to hotel to collect luggage and stuffs and it was already 10:30am that we reached the checkpost, around 15kms outside Gangtok city.

Checks, verification, seal on the permits and we are done. The ascent was easy while we had to cover a height of approx 9000 feet in 50 kms! The roads were riskier than that of Tawang's but was easy. Mainly paved, good speeds can be maintained. By this time, most of the taxis had passed through and traffic was light. Soon, we were greeted by last night's heavy snowfall.



Soon, traffic started to build up and withing a few meters, we were navigating our bikes over the snow on sides of the main carriageway, slipping on either sides cause it was a massive traffic jam!



It was learnt that the taxis were not moving ahead of Changu Lake as snowfall had started and past few days, once it starts it gets heavy and people may need to camp in the army camps and roads are blocked.

We dodged past the traffic and as the tourist crowd kept looking with their mouth open to see 4 guys ride past in the now below zero degree temperature while they were searching every little space to tug in anything exposed!

Higher we crawl and the chilling temperature of minus 10 degrees froze my limbs. The water soaked 'water proof' boots had now developed ice with my toes cramped within. The touring gloves of cramster does not help at all in those temperature.











The frozen R15!





It was 1.5 kms remaining that the snowfall started down heavily and we were covered in snow within seconds. There were no one else around and was getting too cold.
Time was 2pm. We had decided to make a U turn and head back. We didn't regret getting the view of Chinese border post. We were able to ride this far while all other tourists in taxis could do till Changu lake only. Lucky the snowfall didn't start soon!

It was time when my limbs became numb. Left hand could not pull in clutch and left leg won't move while changing gears. Managing between 2nd and 3rd, I descended fast till Changu lake while it was full of tourists till now.

Mild snow had started here too and the drivers were starting up their engines to head back.

Hungry, wet, shaking, somehow managed to get the bike parked and rushed down to have something to warm myself up. Till then the other 3 guys hadn't arrive. Ate few noddles, tea but it won't have any effect. By the time the other guys reached, the snowfall became heavy again and soon we had to leave the place further down.

It was around 5pm that I had reached the checkpost. Some more minutes went by, no sign of other guys. After around half an hour, they reached with an info that the Hunk guy had a fall.

Riding in snow is something that needs precise control. Tap the brake a little bit more, you can't even figure in which direction will the bike skid! Twist the throttle a bit aggressively, same thing repeats!
Not much damage to his bike or his body, it was all well. Just a broken left indicator, a bent gear lever and some stretched muscles!

While we assembled back at the checkpost



It was done. Complete. After a good hour of discussing about it, we started back to Gangtok. It was past sunset that we reached our hotel.

A whole day with the backpack on shoulder, pain started creeping in. A bit of Gangtok special daaru and a delicious local cuisine, off to bed; with some painkillers and ointments; for the now terribly paining shoulder!

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Nice T-log. Riding at such heights and with so much snow is truly difficult and still you people have done it. Congrats.

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Riding at -10 degrees must've been one hell of an experience.
Nice trip. Except for the hit and run. Should've gone back to see if the cyclist was okay.

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Great stuff guys, relieved my moments at Nathula in 2011.
Other than the required permits we were told that personal vehicles are not allowed
Unless you have someone in army or you are accompanied by a army person.
A major at gangtok helped us in getting the bike permits then and we also managed to reach to top of nathula and pose with the chinese guards.
Pics on my blog in my signature. The road was very bad up ahead filled with slush and oxygen is very low too.

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Absolutely blissful experience in going through your travelogue - upload more pictures if you have.
Such beauty rides are extremely pleasing to the eyes.

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

You brought back memories brother, I had been there 6 years ago, but was not in a bike. Bangalore is far away from there, but someday I will definitely revisit Chungu, Yumthang, Katau and adjoining areas in my bike. SOMEDAY .. .

Re: To the 'Indian Only', Restricted area- Nathu-la, Sikkim

Climbing hills with 150cc machine...great

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