Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Travelogue Approved

You passed my home

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

very nice pics...post the rest soon..

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

My brother my man... that sounds/looks absolutely superlative. Cannot wait to hear tales of your overtures to begin with itself... especially Part 1 and Part 4. But then again, your experience is in 'winters' so heck... just the whole of it really... Bring it onnnn!!!

Way to go \m/

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Thanks Avinash
I passed Kanpur at around 8pm, the truckers near Kalpi were a headache.

Thanks !

Thanks man , the winter added a lot of fun and challenge to the ride.



The pre-ride drama !!

A little Flashback:

Date: 29th Sept 2012
On the way to Kemmanagundi, Chikmagalur saw a grassy steep trail, to check out the view climbed up. While returning slipped and fell. Had the cam in one hand and helmet in another, so directly fell on the bum.

Date: 16th August 2013
I was on a ride to Maharashtra to enjoy the monsoons, had a long ride through Kashedi, Mahabaleshwar, to Mumbai city. Was riding along with Surojit Sadhu to meet a few Naked Wolves Mumbai Members, felt little pain while sitting on the bike. A very sharp pointy pain. Adjusted on the seat a few times and ignored it. Rode to Igatpuri on 17th and back to Bangalore on 18th.
I did not feel any pain for these two days, maybe because of the excitement of the ride. A few days later suddenly the pain worsened. I was not even able to comfortably sit on my office chair. It was becoming unbearable.

Date: 26th August 2013
Visited the doctor, got the X-ray done. According to doc it was an old tail bone injury (I guess the Chikmagalur one) which is giving me the trouble, due to excessive riding, sitting for long hours. Some medicines to kill the pain and a strict advice to not ride anywhere far for at least 2 months or till the pain completely vanishes.

Me: I have to ride; will this injury have any long term impact?
Doc: Take the meds and don’t ride for 2-3 months, it will all be fine, no long term problem.

It was a mixed feeling, bad because could not ride for 2 months and good because no long term problems.

I was bored sitting at home watching my friends going out for rides then one fine day I started writing this:


I became a keyboard biker for those months, commenting on FB groups, etc etc.

I had not been home in 6 months and during Diwali holiday; project work did not allow me. I needed to desperately go on a ride as well; so thought of mixing up both. First it was just Bangalore – Lucknow - Bangalore, then google maps started to tempt me to add places, make it more interesting. But could not plan a ride for all 10-15 days; have to spend some quality time with the family as well.

A good news I got in November that the whole family is gathering in Haridwar for a Mundan function of the first kid of the next generation. That opened a lot of doors for me. Added Dehradoon, Mussoorie, Rishikesh, Nainital to my plan.

This all was just my plan, and then started convincing my parents for this. A big task, but with a cool dad and mom it took me 2-3 days to get all the permissions for doing this solo.

Next was the route planning and stops. For the road conditions and route detailing took the help of friends and also joined HVK forum. They are the HiVayKings. My route was all set and finalized in a matter of hours.

Will post the Day 1 and 2 logs soon.

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Superb, Serene and soothing pics there..Which camera and lens do you use? Congratulations for the successfull completion of this trip.

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

True true words...

My first question to my Orthopedic surgeon was also the same as "Will i be able to ride again"? The state of affairs right after a fracture causing crash is just amazingly scary for that very reason.

Cheers.

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Super stuff.. I'm hooked!!
Eagerly waiting for the complete log..

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !


Reached office early, went out in between to get some tools which were missing from my kit. I had to leave early from office, around 3pm so that I can get some sound sleep before starting my ride at around 1am.

I forgot about keeping an extra fuse with me, but did not have any time left to get one from the SVC. Called up Shreyansh, he assured me that he will get it for me, and meet me on the road after I start the ride from my place.

In a hurry burry after the lunch, I left the office without submitting my annual appraisal. Totally unaware of this came home and crashed on bed. Saw a random ping from a teammate on the office Whatsapp group and realized that I am missing something. Alas, it hit me, picked up the helmet, went to office, submitted the appraisal workflow and was back home in an hour. Slept peacefully from 5pm to 11pm.

Route Taken: Bangalore – Kurnool – Hyderabad – Adilabad – Hinganghat – Nagpur
*The detailed road conditions of this route at the end of Day1.



Jai Bajrang Bali !


It was 12:01am when I went down, looked at my bike parked and told her with a smile: we are going home
So, the day had finally come, all the things were set and planned. Now the most important aspect was execution part. I am a number freak, so I decided to start the ride at 12:21am as it was 21st Dec (21/12), also I had started my first long solo ride on Dec 21,2012 at 12:21pm.

First stop was to meet Shreyansh(@Shreyance) near KR Puram to get that extra fuse. Thanks to him I did not have to run from office for that. Next up was a meet with another solo tourer, Amaresh. He wished me luck, after a little chit chat I sat on the saddle, looked up for a moment and from there at around 1:30am it was just me and my bike for next three days.




Riding Gear :

A SOL SF1-Acme helmet,
Spartan Helios mesh jacket,
Spartan Odysseus pants(were very very useful in the cold up north)
DSG Primal ( not very useful in the cold up north)
Army boots(Rs 600/- for a pair, totally worth it)


Resting on the Claw


Luggage Details:

ViaTerra Claw: Kept 4 pairs of pant-shirt, 2 t shirts, towels, shoes , tripod, first aid kit, tool kit(with puncture kit), coolant bottle, 1l engine oil bottle, accelerator/clutch cables, chain cleaner + chain lube(400ml each), bike papers, packing tape, double sided tape, and 2 ,1 litre bottles for petrol were kept inside side pockets, and a tripod tied on top of Claw, which managed everything flawlessly for 5500+kms. Amazing product.

ViaTerra Fly: A canon EOS 1100D with 18-55 kit lens, a 55-250mm telephoto and a 50mm prime. Also some chargers, 1TB HDD, extra keys, face wipes, disc lock, 1 sweatshirt, hand towel, spare mobile, and snickers.

ViaTerra Marine: 2 litres of water to cater my hydration needs for the day.




Stuff to be loaded in Claw.



In the Fly.



Marine Hydration Pack



Everything Packed !


As I started the ride, I had some questions in my mind. Will I be able to do it? Will I successfully convince my parents for the second part ( Lucknow – Haridwar – Mussoorie – Nainital – Lucknow)? Will that tail bone injury haunt me again?

While I was busy answering all these questions I took a flight from a few speed breakers after the Airport toll gate. Shook my head in disappointment, and decided to concentrate on roads and enjoy the ride, rest all can be thought upon later.

Just as when I cleared up my mind from all these queries, I felt a sudden pain.

“OH I recognize this pain.”

“OH shit, the tail bone, but I want to ride now.”

“I don’t want to stop.”

“Would it be foolish to continue in this condition?”

The doubt was getting into me seriously, the decision making and rest in the next part of log.

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

awsome bro!! hooked.
Waiting for more.

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Thanks , Canon 1100D with 18-55kit lens, 55-250mm telephoto. Most of the pictures clicked using these two lenses.

Thanks pranav

Thanks !! Will try to be quick now with the complete Day 1.

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Wow, awesome ride there and pictures, waiting for the rest...

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Kaydee you playa... really love the way you're unfolding it... HOOKED... need more need more please... begging.

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

WOW! What an awesome ride and such an amazing route, not to forget your lovely clicks! Way to go!!

Cheers & Ride Safe

Re: Ride of my Dreams, Winter Ride to Uttarakhand !

Liked and subscribed too great presentation.