Badrinath on Motorcycle (Uttarakhand)

It was 11th August 2008 and I was itching to go on a nice and long motorcycle tour. Initially the plan included Rohit (Awasthi - MDI Gurgaon) but somehow things couldn't work out and I decided to make this a solo ride. I knew it would be difficult, considering the 600 km distance (300 km mountain roads) and monsoon beaten BRO roads, but I decided to move on. I prepared my saddle bag and tank bag and stuffed sufficient warm clothes for the forthcoming cold. Also took along my sleeping bag for an (un!)expected happenstance of spending a night under the stars!

I attended the 1015 hours class at MDI and loaded my luggage on to my Avenger. It was about noon now and it was time for me to take leave. I reset my trip meter to ZERO and zipped out of the college gate .....

I tanked up with fuel at Ghaziabad and zipped off on the average to good grade NH 58 (Ghaziabad-Badrinath Road). Took my first break at the famous Jain Shikanji shop (recommended to fellow travellers) in Modinagar, savoured some hot mixed pakoras and a glass of spicy Shikanji. Moving on, it was a 4 lane double carriageway road till I branched off it at Meerut by-pass. It was now that the road began to lose it's tar and got lost into innumerable diversions and ugly potholes. It was a bumpy ride and my next stop was at the Reliance A1 Plaza (after Khatauli - Average grade restaurant attached to Reliance Petrol Pump) where I got myself a cup of tea. It was about 1630 hours by my watch and I decided to ride on the trot till Haridwar, arriving at Swami Sarvanand Ghat opposite Har-ki-pauri at dusk ........

Time Check at the Sarvanand Ghat, Haridwar

After gulping down a cup of real milky chai at a tea shop on the ghat, it was time to move on. It was dark already and I switched ON my headlights, moving steadily for the onward ride to Rishikesh. The road near Raiwala was terribly and I just could not move at speeds more than 20-25 kmph. I arrived at Rishikesh at about 1930 hours and crossed the Lakshman Jhula without stopping enroute. While one road (NH-94) branches off at Rishikesh to Gangotri, I took the other one (NH-58) which goes towards Badrinath and Mana. It was now that Hill Journey commenced! I kept riding steadily on the winding roads along the calm waters of the Ganges and stopped for dinner at around 2115 hours at a desolate dhaba by the roadside. Had a satiating dinner of urad dal and gobhi ki sabzi along with chapatis!

It were 9 hours that I had been riding my bike. Still fresh and raring to go, I cranked the engine and resumed my seemingly never ending journey to the Valley of Gods! I reached Devprayag at about 2200 hours and manoeuvred past the traffic barricades on to the other side of the river. It is at Devprayag that the Bhagirathi and the Alaknanada meet giving rise to the Ganga.

Note: Traffic is not allowed on NH-58 (as on most other mountain roads in Uttarakhand) after 2200 hours for safety reasons. However they do not stop bikewallahs as they normally constitute local traffic and are headed to the next village.

I kept on riding and saw packs of jackals sitting by the roadside on numerous occasions. Going past many such tarffic barricades at places like Srinagar and Rudraprayag, I kept on moving. It was about 0200 hours now and I was nearing Karnaprayag. The road was turning from bad to worse and the rain drenched mountain soil was resulting in numerous small to medium landslides. I had some difficulty in negotiating them at night but kept moving still. While I was crossing the bridge (0230 hours) on the Pindar river, a traffic cop pulled me up, "Kahaan ja rahe ho itni raat?" I told him I was headed to Nandprayag and he immediately went all crazy and told me to stop right there and not move ahead at that hour. "Jaan pyaari nahin hai kya jo is samay sadak par nikle ho ??" I asked him for the nearest hotel and he said its' about 50 meters further ahead. I started moving ahead on the pretext of stopping at the hotel and raced away in the dark while he kept shouting behind my back !!! However it was an extremely rough and 'dangerous' track further ahead and it did force me to finally take a break. I stopped by a 'Varsha Shalika', i.e. Rain shelter (a kind of a bus stop) on the road at about 0315 hours. Took out my sleeping bag and went down on the floor of the shed, fast asleep I was after about 15 hours of bike riding! Never did I worry about the threat of a wild animals, slept out in the open inside my cosy sleeping bag. Got up early at 0500 hours while it was still dark. Brushed my teeth, and rolled in my sleeping bag. It was a Tuesday and a day of fasting for me, I had to keep on riding on an empty stomach. It was drizzling in the morning and I started at about 0530 hours. It was on this stretch that I clicked a lot of photographs.

The rain washed road to Badrinath, the day after .......

A hands on view of the road to Badrinath ....

It was a bright and lovely morning and I was making steady progress. I reached Joshimath at around 0900 hours and topped up my fuel tank. Had to wait for 15-20 mins at the pump due to a power outage in the place! Thank God the wait didn't extend any further as the next petrol pump was way far ahead.

At the petrol pump in Joshimath ....

I resumed my journey towards Badrinath and moved on ahead without any problem. It was 520 kms on the trip meter and it had been 22 hours that I started from Gurgaon. I crossed Govindghat (starting point for the trek to Valley of Flower and Hemkund Sahib) at around 0930 hours and was stopped in my path by a massive landslide just after Govindghat. Boulders were still rolling down the slope of the mountain and into the thundering Alaknanda that was flowing alongside. Long queue of vehicles had resulted on both sides of the road even as the boulders kept rolling down the hill. After about 45 mins, now that the mountain-face looked stabilized, a bulldozer was brought over and it started clearing the road. Traffic movement commenced in one direction and we were made to wait for another 15 mins.

Waiting for the traffic jam to clear up ......

The roads continued to be bad as I crossed Pandukeshwar and neared Hanuman Chatti. They were altogether devoid of tar and didn't qualify to be called a pucca road at all. Here is a look at the condition of the roads:

Road to heaven looks like hell .....

However the opulent greenery of the mountains and the awe inspiring scenery was enough to charge me up as it welcomed thy soul to the Valley of Gods ....

I was very close to the holy shrine of Badrinath and it started getting cold as I ascended pretty steeply up the now well metalled road between Hanuman Chatti and Badrinath. The Alaknanda river had now started looking more playful and youthful as it bounced and frothed over the boulders.

The playful waters of the Alaknanda (top) and its' tributary (below) ........

Just 10 more kms to go for Badrinath, the milestone instilled a sense of achievment in me. The scene was captured in picture:

Hugging the milestone .....

And this was another board that compelled me to stop and take a pic ....

And as I moved into the holy town of Badrinath, all my tiredness of this real long journey over rickety roads gave way to excitement and an overwhelming religious sentient.

The official Badrinath - 0 km board ....

Posing infront of the imposing Sri Badrinath Temple .....

I stopped at the Badrinath temple for about an hour and half. I purchased prasad and tulsi ki mala as an offering to Lord Vishnu, the presiding deity. Fortunately for me, the temple was not crowded and I could get darshan without any trouble whatsoever. Maybe the Gods were kind to the soul within this battered body!

I started on my return journey at about 1400 hours, after having a tea outside the temple complex. It was a long journey back and I decided to take a different route home. I took a detour at Gopeshwar on the Kedarnath link road.

Jai Badri Vishal, Thanks, Visit Again ......

The path after Gopeshwar towards Chopta was exceptionally green and the surrounding fields created an awesome spectacle. I couldn't stop myself from clicking a few pictures .....

After about 45 mins of taking this picture (above) it was dusk and it soon became dark. I was amidst thick forest known for harbouring Himalayan Brown bear and Leopard. The patchy road didn't allow me to ride fast and I just couldn't find comfort in speed. I was really worried as the darkness and sounds of the forest were highly unnerving. There was no village or human being to be seen for the next 2 and half hours, later a forest guard asked me, "Kahaan ja rahe ho?" I said I'll be going to Chopta which was just about 10 km (25 mins) ahead. I reached Chopta at about 2100 hours. I requested a small shopkeeper there to arrange some hot milk and Parle-G biscuits (remember the fast!) as I was really hungry at the time. He also helped me find an accomodation for the night for a paltry sum of Rs 50. I soothed my listless bottom on the soft mattresses and covered myself in 2 thick rajais. I was tired and soon fell asleep.

The following morning was a new and a long one for me. I started from Chopta at aout 0615 hours and moved on towards Ookhimath on NH-109 (Rudraprayag-Kedarnath road). The scenery was again good and I clicked a few pics. This signboard on the road really enthused me:

I was back on the same road (NH-58) at Rudraprayag and subsequently moved on to Srinagar. I again took a detour here and came back via Pauri-Kotdwara-Bijnor-Meerut to reach MDI Gurgaon at about 2245 hours. Here is a photograph I took near Pauri/Lansdowne:

In cloud territory ....

Having reached MDI before hostel gates closed at 2300 hours, I thought I would rest in peace. But it was not to be, being my birthday the next day (14th August)! The customary Ass kicking ceremony ensured that the last ligament in my bottom was torn apart ...... :-)