The 1200+ Km Bike Trip

                                                                                                                               
The 1200+ Km Bike Trip

The 1200+ Km Bike Trip:

August 2019,

There are active and agile Engineers and then there are laid back, lazy Engineers. We are of the second kind. If you are becoming judgmental about Engineers like us then it's the right time to read no further. This travelogue is to share experience of us, two Engineers who embarked upon our Maiden 1200+ km Voyage on our bikes. Here I share my personal story of the challenges we faced and how we overcame them.

Opportunity: 

It was mid August 2019, two holidays in a week one floating and one National Holiday, what it meant was if one takes 3 days leave then clubbing with week-ends we have 9 Days of Leaves. This was the right time to fulfill our long cherished desire of a long trip on our Motor Bikes. 

Plan: 

If we could snuggle 3 days leave then we could go on a Bike Trip to "Valley of Flowers". This could be clubbed with visiting "Badrinath" and "Hemkund Sahib", as they are all the same route and in vicinity to each other.

Preparation: 

No prior preparation. Just browsing the internet it revealed that best time to visit "Valley of Flowers" is July-August. This was the motivation factor. But the internet also revealed that Mid August is the peak season and all the Hotels are booked. We were too late to book any accommodation over internet.

Back-up Plan: 

If we don't get our leaves approved  we will abort the trip. As no bookings are done hence no monetary loss. If we went ahead with the trip we would live and dine in the Gurudwaras on this route. As "Valley of Flower" and "Badrinath" are on the same route as the Sikh Religious Shrine "Hemkund Sahib" hence there are quite a few Gurudwaras on this route where one can stay and dine. 

Itinerary: 

Road Routes were jotted down and a tentative itinerary was planned, just in case we are able to get the leaves approved. 

Bikes: 

Two Motor Bikes ( Bajaj Avengers) had to be ridden for the trip. One of them was already in running condition, but the other was not started for an year. The bike not ridden for a year was started to reveal some engine knocking and noise on the chains. Anyways the bike was ridden for a day or two to bring it to a condition that it could be ridden for a long drive. Even after driving for sometime the chain slipping noise still persisted, we used to time and again tightened the chain during our journey until our return journey, when it was fixed by a mechanic at RudraPrayag. The front brake was merely working and did never worked during the trip it was the rear brake that was the savior for the trip.

Packing: 

Internet revealed that the weather would be rainy and the temperature might drop, hence we packed our bags with woolen clothes, rain/wind cheaters, some cotton T-Shirts, Track Suit Lowers, sandals etc. Picked up First Aid Kit ( having antiseptic liquid, band aids, bandages, crepe bandages, knee & ankle caps an ointment for curing burns, cuts and bruises), some medicines for head/body aches, fever, loose motions vomiting etc. Vaseline, muscle pain reliving ointments and some large polybags to cover and save our bags from getting wet in the rains were also included.

Verdict: 

Our Leaves were approved and we embarked upon our Maiden Voyage on Wheels.

Our Journey:

Day 1: Gurgaon to Shivpuri-Rishikesh (Stay at Shivpuri)

Day2: Rishikesh to Pakhi-Joshimath (Stay at Pakhi)

Day3: Pakhi to Badrinath/Govindghat (Stay at Govindghat)

Day 4: Govindghat to Ghangharia & Valley of Flowers (Stay at Ghangharia)

Day5: Rest at Ghangharia (Stay at Ghangharia)

Day6: Ghangharia to Hemkund Sahib (Stay at Govindghat)

Day7: Govindghat/Joshimath to Dev Prayag (Stay at Dev Prayag)

Day8: Dev Prayag to Gurgaon

Continue Reading...

The 1200+ Km Bike Trip --- Day1


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Ankur Tandon
Hello World!!! I am Ankur Tandon. I am a Software Engineer with a passion to travel and explore new places. Working with industry majors like Google, PwC, TCS etc has given me the opportunity to roam around the world. I have visited around 12 countries, numerous cities and places. Here I share with you my travel experiences, and information about various places.Hopefully it will help you better plan your next trip. “Sayonara” “ Astalavista” “AU Revoir”.