Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Gangotri ride Approved!

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Nice...bring it on

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Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

You know how the daily schedule and the monotonus acts eat you up all day long bit by bit. Well it does to a lot of us. So me being so i decided to take a break for it and set myself free to a nice 3-4 days mountain excursion.

To heck with the offive routines and related daily stuff i decided to search for places nearby. Doodling around on Googlemap i found lots of places bit it had to be cool and in mountains. The summers have'nt been tolerating and the craving for the mountains and fresh air was inevitable. I made up my mind for Gangotri and Harsil. Although im not a religious man but the place being deep into high cliffs and cold and less visited these days by people and piligrims thus was my final decision.

My Vehicle :
I own a Hero Impulse. Bought it two months ago. Now with 1500Kms on the ODO and good in condition she was ready to hit the terrains.

Spares I Carried :
Toolkit included all necessary pliers, spanners and wrenches for the tyre puncture repairment. Spark plug spanner and few other tools too.
Also carried a spare rear tube too. Just in case if the puncture was big and wasnt mendable at a nomans land, i'd swap the tube as aa whole.
And a jerkin full of 8litres of petrol.

Clothes:
Im a dirty man and i admit it. I took a blue denim jeans as a spare other than a cargo what i wore riding. Two round necked tshirts. Thermals for the torso and the lower limbs. And a warm Shirt. Riding jacket helped keeping the cold away too.
(PS: I wore that tshirt and cargo the all four days.)

Route:

Dehradun ---Mussorie---Suwakholi---Dharasu---Chinyalisaur---Uttarkashi---Bhatwari---Gangnani---Harsil---Bhaironghati---Gangotri.


Day 1 :
(Wednesday 11th June 2014)

So..I prepared my bike overnight with all the luggage intact and all tied up. 7:30 morning i bid goodbye to mom and sis and went off.

Riding from Dehradun to Mussorie is a weekend detour I do a lot with fellow riders so i rode quick through it and out. Temperature was hovering around 40degrees since a couple of weeks in Dehradun. Early morning was the best time and thus i entered into high mountains by 10am. and wether was good there and thus the riding was pleasant.
By 12noon I reached Uttarkashi. 170Kms in total for Day 1 from Dehradun to Uttarkashi.


Moraina Top : Very windy place. With lots of chir-pines around.




And quick breakfast around 9:30 was Maggi.


The plan was to do the whole trio very calmly because the whole route from Dehradun to Gangotri is very doable in one day. But i decided to go easy and calm and get to know about all the local traditional stuff etc etc.
So post reaching Uttarkashi i stayed at my friend's room. Hotels here are cheap. For a day you may easily get a good room at 400-500rs max. Due to the Himalayan Tsunami the previous year that costed thousands of lives and mass destruction, people were afraid to go there. The tourism was down and hotels were empty. This time one might get a room at 200-250rs for a night.

So, reaching Uttarakashi I relaxed a little and then by 3pm i set off to see the local Uttarkashi and peoole qnd market around. In the course of roaming around I also saw the damage done to the place by the natural disaster that had occured an year ago. Houses washed, roads were swept away the earth movers were busy breaking rocks and constructing the place back in its usual shape. The locals pointed me out the water level tha rose that day and the highways that were swallowed by the tsunami that day and its degree was huge.

At the banks of Bhagirathi in Uttarkashi.
This is the route of market that locals take everyday every hour. Its a busy route mind you...it was hard taking synchronising the shot with the traffic so no vehicle shows up in the pic.


I visited the all famous Nehru Institute of Mountaineering at Uttarkashi too. Night was cool and weather was pleasant and that was all for the day.

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Thats a masterstroke! Mindblowing pictures and great narration!

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

I am totally in love with this route. Have done it more than 5- 6 times in past few years.

It is just a coincidence that all my new vehicles get taken to Gangotri for one reason or other.
In 07 i bought pulsar200, went to gangotri with friends the very next day i took delivery ( not recommended).

In 2009 went there in Getz.
In 2013 went on a Harley.
We usually start early and stay at harsil.

I did not stay in hotels in that region although there are some really cheap guest houses, but then there is a very large cave just before Harsil , slightly off road, used by sadhus in summers.
What can beat experience of a dark cave with cooking food yourself with friends?

We found it empty twice and spent night with stolen fire wood and ghost stories.
Once we took our tents and camping gear , stayed for 2 days on a lonely hill top .

Lovely place this!
God ! Its already calling me again.

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Aah. Im in love with the route too. And surely will hit this route again and again...probably around september or so...by the time mountains have fresh new grass and flowers blossom up. This time of year around June is fine...not that good.
And ill check out the caves too this time. Thanks for the info.

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Day 2: (Thursday / 12th June 2014)

Route : Uttarkashi---Bhatwari---Gangnani---Sukhi Top---Harsil---Bhaironghati.

Day two started will a nice pleasant morning...not too cold but good. At the room i stayed in was a detached bathroom and latrines. Funny part was that it didnt had locks on the door. That was pretty frightening...either hold it hard while sitting inside or be a singer. I chose the former. Latter isnt my field of expertise.
Henceforth...completing the task difficult as it was...i was all ready to go.

So I started from Uttarkashi morning 7:30.



Sukhi Top




Lots of those around.


Narrow roads.




Sukhi Top


Near Gangnani






Harsil


Bhaironghati Bridge. Asia's highest bridge built over the river Jad Ganga.



Road from Uttarkashi is beaten at several places. Washed away roads by the disaster a year ago caused a lot. One can see a rolled over truck or a van down in the gorge. The route is bad and pretty scary at places. Constant alert-ness is always the key there. Gliding on the Impulse and superb suspensions were a treat for me. On the pegs standing and it was a cake walk.

In the way came Gangnani famous for its hot water springs. Took a nice hot bath there.

I reached Bhaironghati by 2:00pm. Plan was to hit Dayara Bugyal on the way. But asking the locals I got to know that the grass wouldnt be that green(the green vast grasslands being the beauty of it hence called Bugyals in Hindi). The best time is around september when the new grass is up and the same month an annual event called Butter Festival (Makkhan Ki Holi) is organised up there. Just in case someone plans to hit the place this would be the best time.

Uttarkashi to Bhaironghati isnt too far. Its easy 3-4hour trip on a steady pace on bike. I roamed a lot and stayed at Harsil for an hour too. Finally reaching Bhaironghati i saw the famous bridge aka the Asia's highest...and yah as they say it was 'BIG'. Locals say the bridge is the only thing that connects Uttarakhand to that region (Gangotri). They say If that bridge collapses China would very easily capture the Gangotri reigon...may the sensitivity around that reigon was the reason that pics werent allowed to click but what the heck... I managed a few

Stayed at Bhaironghati for a couple of hours rested there met a fellow friend after years. Then went back to Harsil 11kms for the evening. Saw the local people. Army is situated mainly at Harsil. Then went to the main deep Harsil where Tibetians lived in colonies in hamlets. Talked with few and got to spend few hours with them. Very calm people living their own secluded lives. Old people are good to talk to...full of experiences and much to tell.
They gave me the local food.
I had this thing they called Chilgum and Chang.

Chilgum : It was lamb's meat mashed up aas keema and rolled up in intestines. They fried it up and served me.


Chang: It was the local alcohol made out of rice. I didnt had that.



All in all it was fun. I was full. It was 7 already...i bid them goodbye and it was getting dark so i rode back to Bhaironghati.

Bhaironghati is a cool place at summers too. Even in mid June it was cool surrounded by Chirpines and Deodars. There lived a friend of mine. He runs a dhabha. Hence he gave me food and shelter for the night all free...thats how the people from there are. I realised this overnight talking him and meeting several others around. He arranged a room at a local dharamshala which costs 50rs for the night (not for me though). Very helpful.in nature I tell ya, a bus came by and stopped at his dabha. All he knew was the bus and the people was frlm his village. He opened out his dabha and is stocks for the people 'all for free'. I was standing there looking. He didnt fudged. People were though grabbing all they could take for free...satisfying their gluttony, he didnt paid a damn. All were served tea biscuits beverages and food. On me asking he didnt gave a damn and treated ne the same. Served me well...didnt took a penny even after insisting a lot.
He has been this way always i guessed. He arranged a nice room for me with blankets and all. We made Egg-Curry at his dabha at night and ate it together and I went to sleep then.

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Ill let the pics finish the travlogue.

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Nice ride [MENTION=54301]Ankitvile[/MENTION] and the pics are good. Riding solo to these parts would have been a calming experience.
*thumbs up*

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Its been a while i went to Badrinath, ride is planned around 20-25 july with 6-7 friends , just getting my bike ready for the trip, it needs a new tyre and both brake pads replacement.
Badrinath , mana and Tungnath is planned

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Wow! Nice trip there.

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Wonderful ride. The place looks stunning. I guess a better camera would have brought out sharper pics.
Thanks for sharing

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Thanks pal. Yaah very calming indeed. Although its mere 280kms from Dehradun, very doable in two days but did the whole trip in four days. Enjoying thus calmness was the top priority. Got to know the locals, sat and talked with the buddhists at harsil. Very beautiful.experience.

Best of luck for the trip pal. And Mana is beautiful this time of year. FYI the very famous ''LAST TEA SHOP OF INDIA" is now closed. Its been a milestone for us riders to go and have a sip of tea there but not now.
Anyways all the very best for the trip pal. Enjoy!!

Yepp pal. My samsung galaxy 2MP wasnt enough. But you know how hard its planning a trip out of a very low salary and budget. Afterall biking isnt everyone's trait. U need money to be travelling and enjoying the very thing called biking. Annyways im putting up money for a DSLR lets see when ill get it. And i appreciate the concern bro.!!

Re: Solo Ride To Gangotri (Uttarakhand)

Nice pictures and writeup mate.keep it up