A Road on Route
We when we were leaving Shimla we realised that our horn wasn't working - doesn't matter if your lights, break lights, indicators etc don't work as most people don't use these or pay any attention to anyone who does use them - but a horn is essential. We found a small garage and told the mechanic that we needed a new horn fitted. He took one look at it and just pressed the connection in properly. We looked like a pair of divvies who obviously knew nothing about bikes. Horn working and red faced we set off.
The next place we wanted to get to was Rishikesh but again it was going to take us 2 days to get there so we would need to stop and stay somewhere the first night. We decided to aim for a place called Renulka Lake that we had read about. It would mean taking a detour but we were cool with that as we still had plenty of time before we had to be in Nepal.
We rode on the national highway for a while and then took a lesser road. The road was about 70kms long and initially it was a great road to ride. The sun was out and and we were really enjoying it. We couldn't believe there was so little other traffic using the road. Soon bliss turned to bone-rattling and we realised why there were very few vehicles on that road. Very abruptly, after about 20kms, the black-top disappeared and was replaced by rubble and rocks. It was like quad biking without a quad bike. Colin used to do a lot of mountain biking and thought it was like mountain biking for lazy gits because we had an engine. Difference being was that Colin was trying to control 180kilos, plus our weight, over that terrain. It took us 3 hours to cover 50kms of that road surface and we were glad to get off it. The photo above is a wee pit stop that we made when we found 1km of the road where the surface of the road was in relatively excellent condition.
At the end of it our bones were rattling and time was getting on. We decided that we still had enough time to get to Renulka Lake before dark so off we headed. We drove through a small town and came to a junction which of course wasn't on the map, which seems to be the norm when you hit any cities or towns. I shouted out to 2 teenagers and asked the way to Renulka. They pointed left and off we went. I jokingly said to Colin that maybe they were taking the mick because they were laughing when I shouted out to them. Athough overall Indian people are very helpful and, in fact, if you stop at the roadside for a pit stop people will pull over in their cars and bikes to ask you if everything is OK or if you need some help, something didn't seem right because the 2 boys were laughing. At that point I should have trusted my instincts.
45 minutes later on the road, not having seen any houses or other vehicles and the road be coming bumpier and narrower Colin had said a few times that he thought maybe we weren't on the right road. Then finally we saw an Indian guy on a bike. We asked him how far it was to Renulka Lake as it was 5pm and we didn't want to be on the road much longer, but we had guessed the answer before he told us. He just looked at us and pointed back the way we had just come. When we asked where this road led to he said nowhere.
Words were uttered, which can't be repeated, as we had no choice but to head back. By the time we got to the national highway it was dark. Normally on the highways you find hotels along the way but not this one. We were cold and tired but had to keep driving - hoping to spot potholes and other potential disasters on time.
Finally a hotel appeared - Hotel Holiday Resorts - and we were really relieved. Considering, at the point, we would probably have paid anything to get a place to sleep I had the cheek to go in and and haggle over the price. It was the usual basic but clean hotel. It had a restaurant but no menu, despite offering conference and banqueting facilities! However the guy managed to russle us up some tastey food. Oh well, at least in the morning we would be nearer Rishikesh.
Some images of the lake that we may have seen if we had got there, instead of having to stay in a highway hotel 10kms from a place called Paonta Sahib RENULKA LAKE
Words were uttered, which can't be repeated, as we had no choice but to head back. By the time we got to the national highway it was dark. Normally on the highways you find hotels along the way but not this one. We were cold and tired but had to keep driving - hoping to spot potholes and other potential disasters on time.
Finally a hotel appeared - Hotel Holiday Resorts - and we were really relieved. Considering, at the point, we would probably have paid anything to get a place to sleep I had the cheek to go in and and haggle over the price. It was the usual basic but clean hotel. It had a restaurant but no menu, despite offering conference and banqueting facilities! However the guy managed to russle us up some tastey food. Oh well, at least in the morning we would be nearer Rishikesh.
Some images of the lake that we may have seen if we had got there, instead of having to stay in a highway hotel 10kms from a place called Paonta Sahib RENULKA LAKE
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