Paonta Sahib to Rishikesh

We left Paonta Sahib to head to Rishikesh. After our detour yesterday that ended up landing us in Paonta Sahib we reckoned we only had about a 2 hour drive along the national highway. We knew that before long we would have to stop for petrol but we wanted to give the bike a good run first to let it warm up. It takes a fair amount of time to get the bike started in the morning, and Colin has groin strain with all the kick starting that he has to do, so the last thing that we wanted was to stop too early and then not get going again.

Well, I thought that was the last thing we wanted but worse can happen. We hadn't gone that far when the bike lost power and came to a halt. We had ran out of petrol. Luckily we carry a spare litre of fuel so we put it in the tank and set off again. About 1km down the road we lost power again. We were both stood at the roadside just looking at the bike with not a clue between us. An Indian guy came over to help. He wiggled a few things and the bike started again. When we asked him what he had done he said that he didn't know. So much for a tutorial.

Off we set just to lose power again 1km later. We were just outside a petrol garage and at least filled up with petrol - at least we know how to do that! We asked where the nearest mechanic shop was and Colin set off to find it. When he got to where he was told to go there was no mechanic shop and he was told to go somewhere else. When he got there, there was no mechanic shop. After a few similar episodes he gave up and came back to the bike. It miraculously started again only to lose power again, this time on a hairpin bend with vehicles all over the place. Once again we got it started and decided to keep going until we spotted a mechanics. Colin then realised that the choke was out and that the engine was constantly flooding. In future we won't forget to put the choke back in after we start the bike in the morning.

On route we passed through the city of Dehradun, the capitol city in the state of Uttarakhand. It has a population of about half a million and is the biggest city we have driven through so far. It was mental driving and the road bore no resemblance to what was on the map. The map showed one road that ran the length of the city but in actual fact there was major junction after major junction. We had to shout out to people at every junction to find our way, while still driving. Often we just rode up beside someone else on a bike and shouted over to them. We were very relieved and pleased to leave Dehradun behind and take the mountain road the last 14 miles to Rishikesh.

We hadn't gone far when we came across a road sign 'DANGER, BEWARE OF WILD DANGEROUS ELEPHANTS' and a picture showed a car being overturned in the road by a huge elephant. We thought it was quite funny until we kept seeing the same sign every couple of hundred metres. That was all we needed - death by elephant. Fortunately we didn't encounter one but the road was potentially lethal as there scores of monkeys all over the place - tiny little ones and rather large ones!

On route we also passed an Emu Farm and we never knew these existed in India. It ended up taking us 4 hours instead of 2 hours to reach Rishikesh. It only has an altitude of 372m and was really hot. We had shed a few layers of clothing. I had started off the journey with thermal top and long johns, a t-shirt, a lightweight fleece and a heavy weight fleece jacket, trousers and big woolly socks and gloves.

We found a really nice guest house in the Lakshman Jhula side of Rishikesh in Nigah Tourist home with a balcony overlooking the River Ganges.

Shimla to Paonta Sahib

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

Our overnight stay in Shimla

A View of Shimla as we were approaching it

Shimla is a hill station and is the capitol city of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Despite the altitude the sun was shining and it was gloriously warm. The approach road skirted around the bottom end of Shimla. From there it is a series of alleyways and very steep rickety stairways to get to the top of it and, apart from the road skirting it, it is traffic free. Lovely when you are walking around but a nightmare when you have a bike and want to find a guest-house. I left Colin with the bike and went off to try and find a place to stay. Most guest-houses are quite pricey so we knew it would be hard to find somewhere near our budget. The first place I went to was ridiculously over-priced but there was a coolie there (slang word used for men who carry luggage for a living) who said he knew where we could get a cheaper place. He wouldn't point it out to me but said he would take me there. Twenty minutes later and up several flights of stairs we arrived at Hotel Amir which was nearer our budget. I was gasping for breath trying to keep up with him. We got the last room available and then I had to go back to get Colin who didn't have a clue where I was. There was no parking at the hotel so we put the bike in a tourist car park for the night. We could have carried our bags by ourselves but, having been shown the hotel by the coolie and the fact that he was still at my side, it was only right to pay him to carry our bags. They carry 4-5 suitcases at a time on their back so when he picked up our bag he laughed at one of his friends and told him how light they were. He found it even funnier when he realised we understood what he had said - probably the easiest money he has ever earned.

Once you have bust a gut  climbing up never ending stairways, through bustling alleyways and local markets you reach the upper and lower Malls. In the 1860's, when India was under British rule, the British established Shimla as a summer retreat so that they could enjoy the fresh, cool air away from the oppressive heat of the Plains. The British influence is still very much in evidence in the Mall as you can see.

It had big wide walkways

Christ Church on the upper Mall is the second oldest church in Northern India.

The Gaiety theatre was built in 1888 to entertain the British elite who went to Shimla for their summer holidays. It was renovated in 2004 and seats just over 300 people. Many well known people have performed on this stage. Before we left Vashisht we watched a Michael Palin series on the Himalayas. In one of the episodes he was on this stage speaking to the audience. When we were looking around the theatre a very very enthusiastic theatre guide approached us and started telling us all about the theatre. He was an elderly very pleasant man so we didn't have the heart to tell him that we just wanted to have a look ourselves. We ended in there for ages because of him.

An Official in the Mall.

This Coffee House is an institution in Shimla. Uniformed waiters serve very good cheap food. Inside is pretty cool looking. Shops in the mall are a mixture of old traditional shops and new designer shops. You'll find Benetton, Tommy Hillfiger etc.

The Monkey God Hanuman has pride of place at Shimla's highest point.

Ladies sitting chatting. The lady in red is wearing a wedding sari.

Monkeys are a real pest in Shimla. They grab at whatever they can steal. They can give you a really nasty bite and, as well as being very painful, can put you at risk of catching rabies.

A sweet shop in the market selling freshly made sweets.

We really enjoyed our day and night in Shimla. Although Colin didn't think much of Shimla when he was there many years ago he really enjoyed it this time.

Bilaspur to Shimla

After a sleepless night for Colin and a good kip for me we set off for Shimla at 9am - we're definately not the get on the road for 6am type. It wasn't too far a distance so we hoped to get there in a few hours so that we could spend the day exploring it. Colin had been there many years ago in the middle of winter and hadn't been very impressed with it but I have never been and really wanted to see it.

We were only on the main highway for a few kms and then we turned onto a lesser road. It was initially really busy with loads of trucks and constant hairpin bends. Colin was constantly on the horn as is the norm here. Any time you approach a bend - which is constantly in the mountain roads - you are expected to beep your horn to let on-coming traffic know that you are approaching as they are usually coming round on your side of the road. This gives time for you, or them, to swerve to avoid collision. Also, if you are over-taking - which is often as the lorries are very slow to climb the hills - you beep to let the lorry know you want to overtake. The driver then beeps his horn to let you know it is safe to overtake as he can see the road in front and what's coming toward him and you can't.Your life in now his hands as you start to overtake. If a vehicle suddenly appears coming towards him he will stick his hand out of the window and tell you to slow down and get back, hopefully. If the coast is clear and you pass the lorry, you againbeep your horn to say thank you and when you're safely past he beeps his horn back to say OK. It is really unbelievable how many times you beep your horn in a journey doing that and that doesn't include beeping at people wandering on the road and any animal that wants to run out in front of you - dogs, pigs, monkeys, cows etc.

After a while the road became much quieter and the road surface smooth. The weather was glorious and Colin took it slow so he was able to enjoy the breath-taking scenery rather than having to have his eyes on stalks watching the road. We stopped for a bite of lunch and took this photo of the mountains down below us as we were heading to the higher mountains in front of us to reach Shimla at an altitude of 2400m.

A wee pit stop to try and un-numb the backsides. The bike was going well and we reached Shimla in 4 hours. 

Vashisht to Bilaspur

We had planned to leave Vashisht to start our bike ride to Agonda in Goa yesterday but due to unforeseen circumstances, e.g. the bike service not being finished yesterday morning as had been arranged with the mechanic, we set off on Saturday 20th. We have a rough outline of a plan of our route but nothing set in stone. The only goals must meet are firstly, reaching Nepal before 31st Oct and staying there for a minimum of 1 day to fulfil our visa requirements and secondly, reaching Agonda before 4rd of Dec as that day we have a flight booked to return to the UK for a 3 week holiday. There are places that we definately want to visit on route so we plan to just take our time and stop off in a place for a few days when we want. Our only concern is that this is the first time we have had a motorbike and we are riding it a long distance in India and Nepal and none of us has any mechanical knowledge, unless you call filling the bike with petrol, mechanical knowledge!

We bought saddle bags and a tank bag for the bike. Between them there isn't really that much space and by the time we had packed our computer, kindles, speakers chargers etc. and all the spare parts we had been advised to carry for the bike (even though we don't have a clue what to do with them) there wasn't much room for clothes. As we knew we would have very little space we had already posted a rucksack with clothes in it to our friend Raggu in Agonda. Hopefully it will arrive and not be lost in the Indian postal system.

So, bike loaded with bags we excitedly finally set off on our journey - at 11am rather than 9am as we had planned. Oh well, it's not always easy to stick to the plan. The first place we wanted to visit was Shimla. We wouldn't get there in 1 day so we planned to ride to a town called Bilaspur stay there for the night and ride on to Shimla the next day. Bilaspur is famous in Himachal because it has a large man-made lake.

The first 3 hours of the journey were bitterly cold but the weather improved as we dropped altitude - Vashisht is 2300m and Bilaspur is 670m. It's very difficult to categorise Indian roads in terms of motorways, A roads etc but there are national highways, which are the major roads and other lesser roads which vary greatly in condition. Riding a bike on these roads is very different from riding a bike in the UK. Due to the road conditions here there are days that you can ride for many hours and cover very little distance.

For the first few hours we drove on a lesser road. The road surface was great, not a lot of traffic road except in the villages and small towns we rode through and, despite the bitter cold we enjoyed the ride. Then we joined the national highway which was very busy at times. Poor Colin needed 3 sets of eyes to keep track of everything he had to dodge. My job as co-rider was monkey watch as, the more we dropped in altitude, the more monkeys there were playing about the roadside. In fact, when we stopped for lunch, a couple of monkeys went up to the bike very interested looking. If we hadn't shooed them off they would probably have opened the bag and ran off with the first thing they could grab!

After riding for 6 hours - with lots of wee breaks of course - we arrived at Bilaspur. It looked like a very busy town so, rather than head into the town and look for somewhere to stay and be able to park the bike, we skirted around it and drove a little bit further. As there were no other towns close by and it was 5pm, the time we had already decided that we would always try find accommodation by each day as it is dark here at 6pm, our only option was to book into a roadside hotel. 

The first place we looked as was really grotty and felt like walking into a scene from 'Psycho' but the second place we found, Tiger Hill Hotel, was very basic but clean. Although, if we had been looking forward to a lovely hot shower we would have been disappointed as the geiser didn't work so no hot water and, if we had been looking forward to relaxing in front of the TV in the room we would also have been disappointed as that didn't work either but, it had a restaurant which even had a menu so we had a good feed. Unfortunately we hadn't considered the fact that the hotel was on a bend and lorries would be screetching round it all night and also, we had a front facing room which meant that we could enjoy the acoustics all night. Fortunately I always carry ear plugs with me in India. Poor Colin never slept a wink. Oh well, every day is a learning curve!

Leaving Vashisht to start our bike ride to Agonda in Goa

When we arrived in Vashisht in the Spring the fields, plants and orchards were awakening. Then came summer with the apples and vegetable gardens producing their crop. Autumn meant everything being harvested - apples being sent throughout India and overseas and garden produce being sold in the markets or dried for eating in the winter. Now Winter is approaching and all the grass is being cut so that the animals can be fed in their barns in the Winter and final preparations being done to dry out food. When we arrived the weather was lovely, then came the monsoon rains followed by lovely weather again. Now it has turned very cold, even in daytime when the sky is clear blue. The snow is now visible on the mountain tops that we can see from our balcony - the one just in the middle of the pic.

The same pic using the zoom lens. When we see the snow getting this close we know it's time to go down to the plains to Goa and the lure of eating meat and having a G&T at sundown becomes quite strong. We are leaving tomorrow, Friday 19/10, and instead of taking our usual route down - 14 hour bus journey to Dheli, 26 hour train journey to Goa and then 1 hour taxi to Agonda - we are riding on the bike. It is 2500kms but we also have to drive over into Nepal for one day to fulfill nour visa requirements. We plan to take 3-4 weeks, stopping off at places for a few days that we find interesting. This is the plan so let's see. Hope to keep up the blog on the way as we need to have somewhere to record our potential disasters, especially when driving an 8 year old Royal Enfield  through India with no mechanical knowledge between us and trusting maps that conflict with each other!

Our last night has been really good. It's nice on our last night to take everyone down to Manali Town to a restaurant for dinner but at the moment Pritam is busy working in his high pastures and Champa is working for the village carrying and cutting large rocks to strengthen the river banks. So, Colin and I got a take-away of chicken and mutton and brought it back to the house. Oh and a wee bottle of whiskey. We had a wee house party and Champa loves a party. Champa made rice and chapattis so we had a good feed.

Chapattis on the tandoor. Asna cuddles Pritam.

Champa burning the fingers off herself getting the chapattis off the tandoor.

 

Asna and daddy, Mani. She's looking up at her mummy Laxmi. We had a great evening as always - much laughter and fun. Feels really sad knowing that we are leaving Vashisht and closing up the main kitchen for the night and exchanging our farewells was really sad.

A day trip to Naggar

Dave, Colin and myself set off to Naggar for the day on the bikes. It's about an hour downhill from Vashisht. We visited Naggar Castle. It was originally a royal residence before it was bought over from the British. It is now a museum and a lovely hotel run by Himachal tourism.

The stone and woodwork are really spectacular.

There are lots of little corridors leading to the guest bedrooms.

View from the castle.

View from the castle looking through one of the balcony arches.

The common areas still have very formal furniture.

The flowers in the garden are beautiful.

No day is complete without a stop at a local dhaba - choice of omelette or instant noodles with copious amounts of chai. Before we had stopped at this dhaba we had stopped at a cafe down the road. A young Indian guy gave us a very thick menu with Israeli food, Asian food, Italian food, Tibetan food as well as international cuisine.Colin ordered coke, Dave ordered limca and I ordered water. We were told there was no coke, no limca and no other soft drinks, only water. I thought that it was possibly a wise idea to ask what food on the menu was actually available as none of the drinks were. Unsurprisingly the answer was none. No wonder we love India.

At least at the dhaba we got a good scoff. Colin and Dave content with full bellies.