Day 1:
Destination: Chakrata <2275m>
Distance: 364kms!!
Riders:
Indigo – PT, Swetaab, Keshav and Jeetu
RE Std – RD and Chander
RE Electra – CB and AJ
Pulsar 180 - AB
The first day of the trip started with a pending sleep for everybody from the last night, all thanx to Fassi. The car was behind the schedule in reaching the meeting point so we decided to start with the bikes at around 7 a.m. With tanks full, we hit the road; destination Chakrata ( around 350 kms ). Skipping through the traffic jams at Mujafarnagar and Rorkee on our bulls, we knew it would be hard for the car to catch up; that too with our frequent breaks (sutta, water and stuff…).
We decided to have our breakfast at a Dhaba on the outskirt of Rorkee. Interesting fact: we got CB’s bike’s permanent number here in Rorkee. Okay… so… with our breakfast done, still the car couldn’t catch up so we decided to move on. But fate has some play left. The pulsar got punctured and we had to stop a little longer; long enough to meet our new friends: Swetaab and Keshav (who were in the car). We gathered again at Dehradun. Bike has its own limitations. It gets heated up pretty fast and that makes breaks a mandate. The Indigo gained easy on us from here couz we didn’t have traffic to our advantage. That was actually a good thing J. PT and others were waiting near a hairpin turn for us. When we arrived he told us that he couldn't see us coming but hear the thunder approaching!
Well that’s why we are Bulleteers… nai? Out of the 150 kms approx from Dehradun – Chakrata, only 48kms is hill riding. But the elevation and less traffic made up for it. We barely managed to reach Chakrata before dusk. Having eaten only one meal since morning, we were really hungry and Bun-Omlette did the trick for us. So much so that we did our breakfast the next day the same way! We couldn't find any accommodation there so we had to do a little more riding to YudhVeer’s. It was a Moonlight drive along the hill where one could see where he’ll end up if he goes off the road, all thanx to the No-Tree hills. Mithun Dada’s movie Roti ki Keemat kept us going through the rest of the night. Probably another post is required to explain that! That along with the l**** wildlife story.And L**** se yaad aya... Swetaab bhaiya kaise ho?? ;)
Day 2:
Destination: Rohru <1600m>
Distance: 80kms to Tuini, +45kms to Rohru
Riders: PT shifted to Bike while Chander went in Car
View from Chakrata Hotel in the morning.
This is what the view from our hotel in Chakrata looked like in the morning. One major concern was that there aren’t any Patrol pumps there and we were well… “out of gas”. Buying it from the locals cost us 50% extra but he had little option. The road to Rohru is a pretty decent one and we didn’t face much of a problem hereafter. Took our time doing pits shots here and there.
Goats are Real!
Who'd make a Hut there???
Finally, we made it to Rohru. Inquiring the locals there about Chansal’s approachability, we were a little disheartened. They told us that we are way over our heads and we won’t be able to make it to Chansal at this time of the year. Had lot of discussions over this and finally decided to GO FOR IT!!! Dinner time movie was one of Keshav's favourites.. .Laadla... Yes!!! thats the movie. He even recited Tilak Bhandari's (Shakti Kapoor) original "Tunna Tunna" for us. When we were about to shut the TV, he suggested we should wait as Sri Devi's gang rape attempt is about to be screened!!
Day 3:
Destination: Chansal Pass <4250m>
Distance: 40kms only…
We had our breakfast at Chirgaon, about 17kms from Rohru. When we entered the market there, every eye turned to us… or rather our Royal Rides to be fair. The Thunder was probably just irresistible for the crowd. This is when you could say “Feels like God!”… not some crappy 180cc effort at a geaser… a 350cc beast. We decided to replace our Indigo with a 4x4 couz of the terrain ahead. With our stomachs full, we decided to take a dip
just to cool off a bit.
The stretch along the river from Chrigoan was just amazing. However, the start of the rough trek was a bit scary. One would think if this is the beginning what was awaiting? There was steep inclination throughout and the pulsar could not bear 2 people. Even the locals at Chirgaon advised to leave the pulsar behind. Anyhow, way ahead of the car and not aware of the route, we just kept on riding. Then came the Super Bummer…
We had to cross thisriver to continue on the trek. CB went ahead first, and then came PT with the pulsar. While I was watching all this, I realized I’d better get my shoes off couz one wouldn’t want them wet. I asked Chander to kick the Bullet to life (I won't be reciting the "bike rakkhi hui thi wali" story here!) The dude, after doing that, decided to put the bike in gear and went ahead in the stream. The bike came to a halt in the middle and I had to run bare feet to push it. So eventually, everyone (except AJ) had to have their feet wet. You don’t want to know why Chander did this when I was trying to use my brains!!! :P On the TOP of all this, we were finally confirmed that we were on the WRONG TREK! :O And NO we didn’t cross the stream again. Instead we used the wooden bridge balanced on tree trunks across.
On the first signs of snow I started shouting. It had been a while actually since I have seen snow.
First signs of SNOW!!
And CB had to bear with me all the way! Well the time finally came when we could no longer take the bike through Mud and Ice layers.
We chained them up in the side and joined the 4x4 gang.
The ride was scarier than I expected. The car would just start slipping with low traction and a layer of mud on the wheel. Ice on the road added to the concern. Time finally came when we ditched the car as and took off on foot. We encountered a bunch of locals going across Chansal for a Cricket Tournament. Their driver just didn’t know when to give up!
Now I ain’t qualified enuf to do justice to Chansal’s Virgin beauty. I’ll let the pictures talk then. “Like the resplendent crown for a noble face, the snow clad Chanshal range rises above the Pabbar Valley” –Pabbarvalley.com
And return trip isn’t much worth my time and effort :P
But I'd refer to one of the wonderful one liners of Keshav bhaiya...
"Kutte to hum bhi hai... Magar Paaaltu zyada..."
And of course!
Royal Enfield: Made like a gun, runs like a bullet
