I was working as a Business Analyst with Evalueserve, Gurgaon and had resigned . Got a gap of 15 days before the joining of next job – so had to do something special. Now the important question, what to do. A week before I had a trip to Shimla and so dint want to go to any hill stations anymore, although it was hot and humid April. (and a month prior to that I had went to Thailand, so was in mood to spend much !!)
A sudden thought flashed through my mind to plan a Bike trip from Gurgaon to my home town Aurangabad, Bihar (90 kms from Gaya) . Wooooh !! 1000 kms on Bike, are you kidding me ?? Yes, this was the reaction of most of my friends when I had put forward my farewell plan to them.
But I was determined, jumped to the internet to chalk down my plans for a memorable upcoming journey.This is when I came across Ghumakkar.com and read stories of people travelling through this part (Delhi-Patna/ Delhi-Gaya/ Delhi-Kolkata) and it was good to know that the roads as described from their experience were fairly good. And yes, all these stories had one thing in common, the traveling was made on four wheelers ; while I had to accomplish the same on my Bike – Pulsar 150 ,ahhh !!
There I go , a good servicing of bike, bags tied properly to the back seat filled with extra cushions to support my back, and I started my journey at 5:30 AM in the morning on Saturday morning
(19th Apr’14)
The route was – Gurgaon > Agra > Etawah > Kanpur > Allahabad > Varanasi > Aurangabad
The first step is always the hardest step. Thankfully one of my flatmate Vikas agreed to come with me (on his Avenger !! ) upto Agra to see the Taj and then he would return back to Gurgaon .
We didn’t pick the Yamuna expressway since if you are planning to go Agra from Gurgaon, taking AH1/NH2 through the Sohna Road is always a better option. It prevents you from passing through Delhi traffic, plus no tolls to pay like that on Yamuna Expressway ( and no more tyre bursts !!). The road is pretty good upto Palwal, 50km from Gurgaon, from there AH1 meets NH2 which directly takes you to Agra. Although it was mid April, somehow it started raining around 7 AM and weather became very pleasant, what else a rider could ask for !!
We stopped for chai sutta on two occasions and reached Agra by 10 AM. After entering the Agra city , it took us around 1.5 hrs to reach the Taj because of small roads and heavy traffic although it was only 13 kms from the highway. Anyways seeing the magnificent Taj and Agra fort was quite refreshing. Now my roomy Vikas had to go back to Gurgaon and I had to cover the rest part of my journey alone. I was up for it.
Stopping by the beautiful Taj
Started at 4 PM from Agra to Etawah, and reached Etawah by 6:30 PM, travelling 130 kms. Decided to spend the night at Etawah since Kanpur was 170 kms away and didn’t know any other major city between the two.
Sunset on the way
At Etawah, I stayed at Hotel Jai Palace near the Railway station. You can park your two wheelers at the Railway Parking close to it.The next day, started from Etawah at 8 in the morning, yes a bit late than planned, but I always find it hard to wake up early. Etawah to Kanpur was a six lane road, although with frequent diversions as it was still under construction. Nevertheless ,still good to drive. Reached Kanpur by 11 AM and had my Lunch there. Kanpur to Allahabad was a driving paradise, covered a distance of 200 kms in 3 hours, not bad for a Bike rider.
Kanpur Allahabd Expressway
You will get the Varanasi bypass 40 km before the Allahabad city and I decided to go all the way to Varanasi where I would spend my second night. Well if Kanpur – Allahabad NH2 road was a driving paradise, Allahabad – Varanasi Vishwa Sundari Bypass was way above that. Adding to the beautiful road, there was no traffic as most of them take NH2 route which passes through Allahabad.
Well I reached Varanasi by 8 PM and booked Hotel Sahu near the ghats. This hotel provides facility to park your vehicles also, plus proximity to the ghat and temple saves your time. Visited the Kashi Vishwanath temple next day early morning and reached Aurangabad following the NH2 which was 170 kms away.
Overall it was quite an awesome experience seeing the roadsides, beautiful terrains , visiting new places and meeting new peoples.
Some important tips for Bike riders willing to undertake this route :
1. Make sure you carry a bagpack tied well to your backseat, providing support to your back.
2. The roads are good throughout the journey, with appropriate signboards everywhere. Still go through the maps and jot down the name of small towns and cities that would come through your way.
3. Lastly enjoy your ride, there are many beautiful lakes, rivers (Ganga/Son) on the way , you are not there to race with your fellow commuters.
Travelling indeed breeds tolerance and Tolerance breeds peace!!
Very well said Rahul. Welcome aboard.
Short story but inspirational for anyone who is planning to drive since you have made it look simple and doable. I tremendously liked the idea of not rushing through, taking time out to see Taj and to not drive in the night. This patience/tolerance is going to make you shine. Wishes.
Thanks Nandan !!
Hi Rahul,
You did make is look simple…. 1000 km on bike is not easy and that to alone for most part of it! You really made your honeymoon period (read between jobs) count. Congratulations on this write up!
Its good to see that roads are getting better in UP after all….
Thanks Nitin ! Yes the roads surprisingly were pretty good :-)
A warm welcome Rahul! Great start and then a halt at Taj and deciding not to haste for Kanpur, unlike me, is commendable. I did this route many times from Delhi to Kolkata, Patna, Ranchi & Jamshedpur but in Car, on a bike is truly inspiring.
Prior to completion of the quadrilateral, super 4 lane Hwy, it was dreadful after Sasaram. Now it is as smooth as cream. The 200 km Kanpur-Allahabad includes the 65 km bye-pass on Allahabad, a boon now.
Planning a trip on bike soon on the East-West Hwy in Nepal upto Darjeeling one way and back via Siliguri- Darbhanga- Patna-Mohania-Allahabad-Delhi. Your current log will help me the way back.
Thanks for sharing, add few more pics in readers’ interest.
Keep travelling
Ajay
Thanks Ajay !! All the best for your trip.
Do write back your experiences ,I have to stay in Patna now for a while now. Eager to make plans following yours upcoming journey.
Welcome Rahul! Welcome to Ghumakkar.
You have nicely described your journey. The journey of yours was quite a challenging one and you really did it sensibly without compromising the comfort.
I will add one more safety tips in your list. Ride safely with your Helmet.
Keep travelling and keep sharing.
Thanks Anupam !! Point noted :-)
The more I travel, the better this world looks !!
Daring one but done smoothly without any hurry.monotony is one of the problematic aspects of being alone on such a long drive. sometimes microsleep takes one in its lap for a few seconds and the rest is better not narrated.very well written, short but powerful post.We too had a drive from Panipat to Gaya,Patna ,Mokama,Samastipur and back and that too twice ,but we were four and three of us were drivers.NH- 2 is really great for driving,only thing of worry is the truckers driving in wrong direction. we had a miraculous escape from some sleepy/ drunk truck driver driving in wrong direction. this is a real cause of concern and has a great potential of severe damage.
Yes completely agree. You need to drive with a cool head all the way. This was my first experience of traveling alone and I promise its not monotonous when you hit the roads which are new to you.
hey champu,
was really astonished after reading this horrifying post….champu is now a champ….hats off bro..
but the journey would have been more pleasant and tension free if u had been accompanied by another commuter.
am happy but would suggest u to be careful while u take each a big assignment….
Welcome Rahul
Nicely described your journey which hopefully inspired many road lovers to share their experience. Travel more and safely and keep writing.
Kailash Mehta
Hi Rahul,
Welcome Aboard!
Now that you have established your credentials as a ghumakkar by driving 1000 kms on a bike, we would like to read more stories. Maybe you can write about Bodh Gaya, a place I have not visited so far!
Hi Rahul,
I am also from Aurangabad, Bihar. You have nicely described your journey.
no details about bihar roads. eager to know, basically the safety issues of that place.
Hi Anup,the roads in Bihar falling on this route are equally good. It took me 5 hours approx to drive from Varanasi to Aurangabad.
Hi Rahul , I am a malaysian and plan to do the trip from delhi to patna in december ( by motorcycle). It will be my first trip and would be thankful if you could advice me on certain travelling issues , such as safety,etc. thank you.
Hi Jaswant, The roads from Delhi to Patna are well constructed 4 lane National Highway at par with the quality standards. Safety is not a concern since the route is quite busy although I preferred to end my day before 6. It would be better if you chalk out the plan ahead of your travel ,so that you know your destination for the day. I would suggest Delhi to Etawah Day 1, Etawah to Varanasi Day 2 and by end of Day 3 you should reach Patna. You can plan for stopovers at Agra,Allahabad which fall on way.
Rahul
thank you very much for the information.
Hi Rahul, It would be great trip and after reading your review i am also planning to go my Hometown by Bike (Delhi to Jamshedpur).
Sure go ahead, enjoy your drive.