Indian Excursionist: IncredibleIndia

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It is that time of the year when Udaipur, the City of Lakes, blossoms with her stunning scenery. With greenery all around, lakes extravasate waters of the newly born rain and travelers ready to enjoy them.

If extravagant palace, lavish resorts, historical museums, man-made lakes, or heritage city life allures you, then Udaipur is open for you anytime of the year. But if you like to explore the raw natural beauty of Udaipur and are a traveler who like offbeat destinations that are peaceful, beautiful and less explored, then you must plan to travel in the monsoon season.

Most of the rural areas worth visiting are within a range of 20-30 km from downtown Udaipur. If you love road trips, then you should jump on your bikes and have an amazing ride to enjoy the lush green hills and scenic beauty. We decided to take one such road trip to Alsigarh which is around 25 km from the city.

Alsigarh is located in the southern west part of Udaipur district. It is surrounded by mountains, natural lakes, dam and small green hills, enough to mesmerize you with its peaceful aura.

In my view, to know a destination from a perspective which no travel blogs or magazines provide, you should:

1) Take a road trip to nearby rural areas.

2) Travel with a mindset like that of a local.

3) Monsoon is the best season for most of the places.

The black clouds roaring and mild drizzling gives you a pleasant experience. We were lucky to experience such drizzling on our trip. As soon as we left the city, drizzling started and everything turned green. Not literally but the greenery from the flora blossomed and as if they were expressing happiness and paying their respect to the clouds.

The ride was not so smooth, as there are areas where you will find no roads. But then where is the fun in riding on smooth roads. After about an hour, we reached Alsigarh. We asked the locals and they said to travel further inside about 3-4 km. And this time we had to drag our bikes on the mountains. We rode the bike on the mountains, but to our disappointment, we landed at the wrong hill. Now we asked the locals and found out that the dam was accessible from another mountain which was about 2 km from there. So we again rode to the right mountain. But our disappointment had long gone, when we saw the stunning lake and the dam from up the hill. It was so peaceful, that if you kept complete silence, you could only hear the cool breeze blowing past you giving chills.

We trekked the mountain from top to bottom, to enjoy a bath in the lake which was created because of the over flow of the dam. We had already brought out snacks, so we had our breakfast at the lake. The trek down the mountain was not so difficult, but it was steep so a bit risky. We enjoyed a good swim in the lake for about 2 hours, then trekked back to our bikes, which were parked on the hill. The climb was tiresome, but the best feeling is when you relax after the climb and enjoy the scenic beauty.

After resting we rode back to city, had our lunch and that day we had the best afternoon nap.

Tips :

1) If you find the route confusing, don't hesitate to ask the locals. They are all happy to help.

2) Take your stock of snacks, drinking water, first aid as there are hardly any stores nearby.

3) If you don't know swimming, bath near the shore.

4) Always carry plastic bags with you during rains.

5) Have a cheerful mind when you travel anywhere, this doubles your happiness.

So, next time if you plan to explore something new nearby Udaipur. Just keep your options open for Alsigarh and keep this photograph in mind. Now I have shifted to Ahmedabad and working on my Digital Marketing Company based in Ahmedabad.

Heaven is not a place, but an experience of happiness, peace and joy. So is the hottest travel destination of India in the month of May-September , Ladakh. Although the term hottest travel destination sometimes for some people means amazing night life, pubs, bars, beaches etc. But for the one who wants to travel in the true sense, to attain peace and happiness from the day to day rough life, Road trip to Ladakh is the hottest Travel Experience.

With its serene natural virgin beauty, peaceful atmosphere, one can feel like they are in heaven. It is also a paradise to photographers because of its ultimate picturesque terrain in India and perhaps in the World. Highest motorable road in the world will surely give you an adrenaline rush.Sitting in the monastery, in the serenity of the monks will give you inner peace and a motivation to search for the true meaning of our life.

We decided to take a break from our hectic routine life and take a leap of faith, so we planned for Leh-Ladakh. We took the all time favorite route of Delhi- Chandigarh- Manali- Rohtang La - Jispa - Sarchu - Tanglang La - Upshi- Leh and after that visited Pangong Tso - Chang La and back via the same route to Delhi. I'm chronicling my road trip adventure for CEAT Tyres in association with BlogAdda.

Now everyone knows these routes and every village which comes in between due to so much publicity by travelers. This route is a test for the tyres with silky smooth road of Delhi- Chandigarh - Manali to almost no road of Rohtang La - Keylong - Jispa - Sarchu - Baralachala. Along with the Tyre it is also a test of one's grit and patience. With atmosphere varying to extremities and pressure going down with every next step taken towards the destination.

Tip: One must carry spare tyres,tubes and other motor bike accessory that will fail in such extreme conditions. CEAT Tyres are well suited for such terrains. Also carry spark plugs, clutch plate, clutch wires, bike oil etc. which may break down. In these wilderness it is hard to find the exact accessory and a mechanic to solve the issues. One must know troubleshooting tips of bike so that in case of a break down one can at least reach a populated area.

Delhi-Chandigarh-Manali

The road from Delhi to Chandigarh is a 6 lane highway which is a smooth ride. You can have a feel of Yash Chopra's movies with mustard (Sarso ke khet) farms, sugar-cane farms, road side lassi counters and especially the vaishnao dhabas which serve finger licking good punjabi food which is hard to find anywhere else. Keep yourself hydrated at all times during this route. This route can be covered in a day with no break down ideally.

Manali - Rohtang La - Baralachala - Sarchu

This route can be covered in a day but one must not try hard to complete in one day. During our first trip to Ladakh we tried to cover this in one day and we did reach Sarchu at night around 9 pm, which is worst time in these areas with no light source except the moon light and chilling below zero temperature, it is a risk which is not advisable.

Apart from that, this route is the main attraction for Leh -Ladakh road trip lovers. It will give you all sorts of fun, from handsome mountains to beautiful valleys and small rivers which are created due to melting of snow. This route has road from Manali to Rohtang after that from Rohtang to Keylong the ride is not so smooth. From Keylong to Jispa, you can again relax your clutch and brakes. But now the worst roads starts from Jispa to Sarchu. There is no road literally, moreover the melting of snow creates waterfalls which are hard to cross over. The temperature of these water can create frost bite if proper precaution is not taken. After these nalas you will enter the Baralachala zone where you will see nothing but white snow spread across the whole range. The road conditions are okay but the snow shredding can cause breathing problem. You can rest in the tents in Sarchu for the night in the lap of the highest mountain ranges. Sarchu is the border town of Himachal Pradesh - Jammu & kashmir

Sarchu - Naki La - Pang - Tanglang La - Karu - Leh

This route will reveal to you the naked beauty of mountains, The azure sky, brown mountains and the roads of More Plains (if there is any). This route is a paradise for photographers. There are sculptures made on the mountains by nature. The only sound you can hear is of the cold wind gushing by. This trip cannot be described in words. The pictures below will surely explain.

The journey ends here in Leh for now. The journey from Delhi-Leh completed safely without any major breakdown. In my next post I will reveal the journey back which has the real adventures, truck ride from Pangong to Leh and Sarchu to Manali. with the motor bike becoming an obstruction to the journey but in the end a memorable trip.