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TRIP UPDATE - 8 (January 11-17, 2007)
Batala (near Amritsar) to Jammu, Katra and return to Delhi via Chandigarh
January 11 2007. Batala to Jammu
Shashank woke us up at about 6.30 am when he proceeded out for a morning jog. I had earlier thought I'd go with him but the freezing cold in the morning changed my mind and I just told him to go ahead and that I'd sleep. He smiled as if he knew it all along and went out. We finally got out of bed at about 8.00 am and got ready to move. Early morning sun rays were streaking through the fog and it seemed as if the day was just breaking. "I will take you to a typical Punjab village and get you a proper farmer's breakfast," said Shashank. We wondered what it would be and were both curious and hungry. Shashank rode my bike while I sat behind him and we moved out of Batala and I was shocked to see that a thick fog had risen leading to very very low visibility, perhaps less than 10 ft. "This is a very common scene during winter. Just make sure your friend is following us and tell me if you don't see him," said Shashank as he changed gears making the bike shoot ahead like an arrow. Finally after what seemed like an eternity of riding through the fog we reached a small village and turned into the compound of Sandeep Singh's house.
The entire family comprising our hosts two brothers, sister and parents came out into the cold and fog to welcome us inside. It was truly heartwarming to see that these people who had never seen us (only heard of us from Shashank) were showing so much affection to us. I feel that this kind of hospitality and warmth can be found only in an Indian home and particularly among Punjabis. Soon we were given a plate full of Phulka (bread/ roti), Saag (vegetable dish famous in Punjab), pickle and a bowl of thick curd. "Is this typical breakfast here?" I asked Shashank. "No, there is more Phulka's coming and there is also a sweet dish and a glass of milk at the end of this," said Shashank. This is heavier than our typical lunch in South India, no wonder the people of this agri-rich state are so hardworking, strong and enterprising. Their food is so rich that it makes their energy levels very high. After a heavy lunch-like breakfast and conversation we bid good bye to our hosts and proceeded towards the highway to move to Jammu via Pathankot.
The weather was still pretty chilly and our progress was not too fast. Moreover we also wanted to take in as many sights and views so we also rode slowly. We crossed the border of Punjab and entered Jammu and Kashmir state at Lakhanpur. As we proceeded towards Jammu, we crossed several really long bridges (above 1 km) built across really wide rivers but not a single one had any water in them. They were all bone dry and appeared very very barren. I had never seen such huge rivers completely dry. I feel that this is a serious warning we have to heed otherwise it may be too late to save fresh water sources available for us in this land of Himalayas. Since we had lots of time on hand we decided to stop at a Dhaba just after entering into Jammu and much on some biscuits and drink a cup of tea. At the dhaba we met a posse of policemen from Rajasthan and one of them looked at our bikes and remarked: "This is bike is good but it doesn't look macho enough. The tank design should be modified to make it look attractive. Since you know the company people tell them to change the design." We just nodded and thanked him for the feedback.
Kishore suddenly decided that he would eat a packet of Maggie noodles and asked the staff at the Dhaba if he could cook it himself, they agreed. The next 15 minutes Kishore performed various tricks at the stove and finally poured the contents of the frying pan into a plate and started eating. I took a bite and indeed it was tasty. Good for Rashmi (Kishore's wife), she can handover the kitchen to Kishore and relax after a hard day. Anyway after the meal of maggie we started the bikes and moved, I was riding ahead and after about 20 km not seeing Kishore behind me in the rear view mirror I stopped and waited for him. Jammu was a good 12 km from there and there were several road blocks due to the ongoing highway widening works.
We somehow missed each other and I ended up waiting for over 3 hours for Kishore beside the road at the entry point to Jammu city. He had somehow passed without seeing me and reached "Beer Bhavan" where our accommodation had been arranged. He called me from there and I heaved a sigh of relief and told him I will reach there. Kishore's mobile being pre-paid doesn't gets jammed/ de-activated in border areas of the country (J&K, North East states etc) and hence it was impossible for me to call him. Anyway we both met up at "Beer Bhavan" at about 7.30 pm and after freshening up we proceeded into the Raghunath Bazaar where the city's main landmark the Raghunath Mandir is located. But we decided to keep monument visit for the next day and just loitered around the market place watching people going about their businesses. After a simple dinner of Masala Dosa in a south Indian restaurant we returned to our rooms and hit the sack.
January 12, 2007. Jammu to Katra
Our day started pretty early 8.00 am we were out in the city experiencing the early morning sights and sounds. In winter due to extreme cold the market opens pretty late, not earlier than 10.30 am. We made a beeline to the sprawling Raghunath Mandir where there is ultra-tight security as it has been the target of militant attack on several occasions in the past. One is not allowed to carry any electronic gadget or leather item inside the premises. Cameras, mobile phones, comb, wallet, belts etc are all prohibited articles, one good thing however is the cloak room established by the security forces, which provides lockers to keep personal items and then retrieve them after coming out of the temp. The vast temple built by Raja Gulab Singh former ruler of Jammu and Kashmir has several sub shrines dedicated to Gods of the Hindu Pantheon including Hanuman, Shiva, Durga, Krishna, Jagannath etc. One has to guard against fleecing priests who beseech you to pay up in the name of god.
After this we proceeded by walk through the city to visit the Dogra Heritage Park built in memory of Dogra general Zorawar Singh and an ancient Shiva temple located opposite to the park. Security at every temple is ultra tight. Even a dilapidated Rama temple at Purana Mandi (Old market) also has two AK-47 toting para-military force personnel guarding. Photography is prohibited in all these temples.
We called it a day at about 1 pm and packed up our bikes to move to Katra, sited about 60 km at the base of Trikuta hills and the starting point of the 17 km trek to Vaishnodevi shrine. As we proceeded out of Jammu city, we also proceeded out of the plains into the mountains. We stopped for a glimpse of the Bagh-E-Bahu fort across the river. The roads were narrow and curvaceous and traffic a little less but very very fast moving. The entire stretch is flanked by lush green forests and there are very few human habitations in between. It was a joy to ride through the twisting roads and negotiating the deep hairpin bends along the way. Our bikes handled well and we loved the feel of bending the fully loaded bikes at deep curves. But our joy was short lived because after about 30 km the road quality started deteriorating. It was dug up for widening and all the way upto Katra town it was in pretty bad shape.
We reached Katra at about 5.30 pm and as we reached the outskirts of the town we saw an ISKCon temple to our left. We stopped to discuss our strategy for the day and like it had happened in seceral other locations we were accosted by a group of local citizens who wanted to know about our bags and tour. There were two ISKCon swamiji's also and when we mentioned that we were from Bangalore and that my brother was a life member of the organisation, they immediately invited us to stay with them or at least come for dinner. We politely declined the offer because our accommodation was already booked at Keshav Ashram, a sister concern of Seva Bharathi.
Later in the evening as we walked across the city we came across a colour procession of young girls and boys. The grand cultural procession organised for the 'Lori' festival which is celebrated a day before 'Sankranti' in south, also featured floats depicting various gods and goddesses of the Hindu pantheon, Indian traditions and heritage etc. It was indeed a pleasure to watch the colourful procession, as such events are rare in big bad cities like Bangalore and Delhi. After watching the procession we proceeded to the ISKCon temple where Swami Prabhu Das is doing wonderful work of spreading the message of Lord Krishna to the people. He invited us to partake in a simple vegetarian meal with him. After the meal we moved out and returned to our place to sleep, we had a long trek the next day.
January 13, 2007. Trek to Vaishnodevi and Bhairon Shrines in Trikuta hills
We started pretty early as we had a long (17 km) up hill trek waiting for us. We proceeded to the 'Yatra Parchi' counter located in the bus stand and after registering ourselves we moved ahead towards the Banganga check post, the first of a series of security points along the trek to the famed shrine. The 'Yatra Parchi' is given free and without a parchi one is not allowed to undertake the pilgrimage/ trek to the shrine. We started off up the cobbled path at about 8.00 am and Kishore was walking with long and frequent strides while my gait was much much slower to compared to him. I somehow managed to keep up with him upto AdhKuari shrine and then fell back and reached the top almost 45 minutes after him. Enroute we saw a polio afflicted young man from Uttaranchal. Though limping he was pretty determined to trudge up the path to the shrine. His resolute perseverance and devotion to the goddess are truly ememplary. As he walked along he was chanting 'Jai Mata Di' and was a source of inspiration to other pilgrims. Throughout the trek on can hear pilgrims chanting 'Jai Mata Di' in praise of the mother goddess and that is the standard greeting line in this region. Enroute to the top there are four important locations to see viz., Banaganga, Charan Paduka, Adhukuvari and the Himakoti view point.
This is the first time I had an afternoon darshan at the Vaishnodevi cave shrine aka Bhavan and the choti gupha or the original narrow cave passage through which a stream runs was open. I thanked my stars for the opportunity of walking through the original path to the sanctum and as we reached the sanctum felt ultimate joy for being there the second time in the same year (my last visit was in March 2006) and requested the goddess to give me an opportunity to visit her shrine at least once every year. As we exited from the temple we were given the customer 'prasad' of a small silver coin and some sugar. This is the only temple/ place of worship that I have visited where the devout are not asked for money, instead they are given something to take back.
Our next destination was the Bhairon shrine sited about 3 km away and accessible via a steep uphill foot path. Only 50 percent or less people who visit the Vaishnodevi shrine come here and as such the crowds are lesser. But here the monkey menace is very high, there are thousands of monkeys and they attack anybody who is carrying food. In his enthusiasm to get a good picture o a large monkey Kishore tangled with one of them and almost lost his camera. The primate gnashed its teeth and tried to make a grab at his camera but luckily he had already taken the snap and moved out of the way. The return of Katra was via the same route and was tougher than the ascent as our knees really took a beating. By the time we reached the Keshav Ashram we were tired and just lay down to rest.
For those who wish to visit the Vaishno Devi temple but can't walk, there are other options. Deccan Aviation runs a regular helicopter service from Katra to Sanjichat, about 3 km from the shrine (Rs.4000 per head return). The J&K tourism operates a electric three-wheeler from the half way point (Adh Kuvari) to the Bhavan (Rs.100 per person trip). Apart from these there are traditional means of transport the pony and the palki (seat carried by humans).
January 14, 2007 Katra to Ransoo via Dera Baba Banda, Baba Dhansar and Reasi
Today was perhaps one of the most exciting days of our journey so far. Our short 110 km was laced with so much discovery and adventure that we were exhilirated by the end of the day. Due to the cold we could start from Katra only at about 10 am and our first stop was at the Baba Jitto shrine on the main road itself. This is a beautiful picnic spot besides the river where a small temple dedicated to Lord Shiva has been recently constructed and a large cement sculpture of Jitto Baba, a legendary hero of the region who fought against the British occupation has been installed amidst a well maintained flower garden.
Our next stop was at the Baba Dhansar, a river side cave temple sited deep within the valley and amidst of thick forests about 1,000 ft below road level. One has to trek downhill through a rough footpath to reach the shrine. Once down in the valley it is like a heaven, ajdacent to the cave temple is a waterfall of crystal clear water which falls into a small pool (20 ft diameter) of shiny azure waters. The pool must be at least 10 ft deep but the base of the pool is clearly visible through the water, which further flows into the river further down in the valley. The entire setting is simply divine and ambiance heavenly. I could stay here for days and not feel bored. The attraction here is the nature and not the temple which is just a modern structure.
After seeing this place I am more than convinced why people head for Himalayas to find peace. Its places like Baba Dhansar where the search for peace, tranquility and quiet ends. One can't hear anything apart from the gurgling of streams, wind whistling through the leaves, birds chirping etc. As we sat down and soaked in the tranquility of the place, we enjoyed the soul-soothing music rendered by natur's orchestra group of birds, wind and water. As we walked towards the river I was dumbstruck by the stark beauty of the valley and towering mountains around.
We reluctantly retraced our steps to the main road and rode further and took a 10 km detour to visit Dera Baba Banda, a gurudwara built in his native village on the banks river Chenab in memory of Sikh Guru Banda Bahadur who fought against the Moghul invaders. The 10 km stretch from Katra-Ransoo (Shiv Khori) highway to Dera Baba Banda offers several panoramic vistas of tall wooded hills, snow capped mountains, vast flood plains, azure rivers, green fields and quaint villages. The gurudwara proper is a medium sized structure which features a colourful sanctum but the main attraction in my opinion is the river. The vast river which was flowing half full has clear swiftly flowing waters. We took a short hike on the river bed and picked up some attractively shaped pebbles and started our ride back towards the highway so as to proceed towards our destination.
Our next stop was at Reasi which hosts the rugged Bhimgarh fort built by General Zorawar Singh. As we climbed up the hill and walked through the vast fort gates and on the ramparts and bastians we could get a birds eye view of the city below and the tall snow capped mountains vyeing with each other for attention. The fort has several well preserved rooms, chambers and secret passages. Currently due to some dispute the fort is in the possession of the state police and visitors are not really welcome. A small Kali temple is also sited within the fort along with a deep well. But the best aspect of the fort is fantastic vistas of the mountains once can view from the top. It was a heavenly feeling just to stand there and watch the mountains all around. I wondered whether we should camp here or go ahead to Ransoo... but our time was running out so we decided to climb down and ride ahead.
We still had 35 km to go to reach Ransoo and the entire stretch was through narrow and steep mountainous roads through Pauni and Bharak towns. Our ride from Pauni was in the dark and we couldn't enjoy the scenery and had to be really careful so that we don't meet with any mishaps. After a non-stop ride of about 1hr 30 minutes we reached Ransoo and as we looked for a suitable accommodation we found that there were none available. We met up with one Sunil Singh a local tourist guide who invited us to stay in his house. We gratefully accepted his invitation and rested in his modest dwelling.
January 15, 2007 Ransoo to Jammu via Akhnoor
Our day started rather early and by 8.00 am we were already on the way to the Shiv Khori caves. One has to trek about 4 km through some beautiful mountainous terrains to reach the entrance of the 1.5 km deep cave. Shiv Khori cave was discovered by local shepherds way back in 1965, but the J&K government started taking interest in developing the cave shrine only recently in 1998. Still not as well developed (commercialised) as Vaishnodevi shrine, Shiv Khori is fast gaining popularity and according to statistics with the tourism department over 20,000 people visited the cave shrine last year (2006).
There are several beautiful streams gurgling which have been bridged along the way to the caves. According to our guide the main river into which all the streams empty is known as Dhoodh Ganga and on the day of Shiv Rathri festival the river waters turn milky white naturally and nobody thus far has been able to ascertain the reason for it and thousands of devout come to this location to view this miraculous phenomenon. The cave proper is a vast and deep natural formation sited on the face of a large rocky cliff. The reach the deepest part of the cave one has to walk, crawl, wriggle and squeeze through some passages of various sizes and at places evcen hang on to the chain for balance. The shrine is marked by a vast cave which has several stalactite and stalagmite formations. A large 4 ft tall stalagmite formation which looks exactly like a Shiva Linga is worshipped as the main deity here. Other stalactites have been marked out as different deities and worshipped.
Like most temples in India there is no recorded history for this shrine too. Legend is when the demon Bhasmasura was granted a boon by Lord Shiva that anyone whose head he (demon) touched would be immediately reduced to ashes started chasing Shiva to test his newly acquired powers, the latter hid himself in this cave even as Lord Vishnu vanquished the demon with his cunning and talents. The Linga signifies Lord shiva in hiding.
After exploring the caves we returned back to Ransoo town, packed up the bikes and proceeded towards Akhnoor and further to Jammu. The distance from Ransoo to Jammu is only about 130 km but takes about 4-5 hours because the road is almost entirely through mountains. As we proceeded towards Akhnoor the road was same upto Barak after which we took a detour to the right. For the next 20 km it was sheer riding pleasure, panoramic views, sparse traffic and wide smooth roads, what more could a biker ask for??? It was too good to be true I thought and soon received an answer when we hit a section of road which was under construction. There was no trace of any asphalt, it was totally muddy, dusty and rocky and several road blocks to mud dumping and other works going on in the vicinity. We reached Akhnoor at about 3.00 pm after negotiating through all kinds of roads.
At Akhnoor we decided to visit the town's two main attractions, the Pandava Gupha, where it is reported that the Pandavas hid during their exile and the Akhnoor fort which is in a state of ruin. Sited on the banks of river Chenab the fort and temples offer pleasant views of the river and mountains around. The temple is a modern structure built infront of a natural cave and due to civil disturbance doesn't attract too many visitors. The fort is in such a state of ruin that I don't think anybody visits it. Everywhere it is overgrown with thorny bushes and weeds.
A narrow hanging bridge connects Jammu to Akhnoor and being of vital importance this bridge is heavily guarded by the security forces. If this link is broken then Akhnoor would be cut off from Jammu and has been constantly targeted by Pakistan-based terrorist outfits. We crossed the bridge and moved on the more-or-less plain, straight road to Jammu town and reached there at about 5.00 pm.
January 16, 2007, Jammu to Chandigarh via Hoshiarpur
Started from Jammu at about 8.00 am and retraced our journey to Lakhanpur where we took a detour and hit the road to Hoshiarpur which would take us to Chandigarh. The ride out of Jammu was a painful jostle through thick traffic and frequent jams because the highway is being converted into a four-lane road, as a result several bridges and flyovers are being constructed causing obstruction to traffic temporarily. But once completely outside the town our progress was quite fast on the wide four-lane road upto Lakhanpur, where we took a detour to Hoshiarpur.
The new road was through a beautiful stretch of hills covered by forests and being an important link road, traffic was heavy on this road. As we climbed up the hill and reached the top we saw a funny sight. There is a large Shiva temple infront of which is installed a tall cement sculpture of the Lord in a standing position. But the funny part is that the statue is totally out of proportion, with ultra-long legs and short body and very slim profile with a smiling expression on the face. Even the Trishul weilded by the lord was bent in few places due to joints. Anyway we just stopped for photography and moved ahead and reached Chandigarh late in the evening at about 9.00 pm.
Luckily for us Dr.Dhirendra a friend of Sunil Mitter (Ludhiana) was waiting for us at the Sukhna Lake Club, Chandigarh for dinner. He treated us to a delicious dinner of Missi rotis and palak paneer. Over dinner we spoke about our tour and he was also interested in doing something similar. Dr.Dhirendra is a veterinarian by profession and a car rallyist by hobby. He has participated in the Raid de Himalaya several times and is getting his car ready for the next one. We promised to meet again and do an expedition together and moved to our accommodation at the Seva Bharathi hostel in down town Chandigarh.
January 17, 2007, Chandigarh to Delhi on GT Road
We had to reach Delhi by 2 pm so as to catch Ajit before he left for Bangalore. Keeping that in mind we left Chandigarh at 7.30 am, getting out of the town was pretty tough as traffic had already started and upto the highway we had to really keep a check around. Once on the highway it was like a race track with buses, cars and trucks whizzing past us at 120-140 km per hour while we stuck to a safe and steady speed of 70-80 km per hour. After stopping for brunch at Panipat we reached Delhi at about 3.30 pm and met up with Ajit and Poonam at the Intel office and explained that the UMPC was still not logging on to the internet and we were finding it difficult to update our website. Ajit advised us to meet Yudhistir Sharma the next day and try to get the UMPC fixed so that our work would not be hampered. Thanking him for the advise we moved to our guest house and rested for the day.
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