The rickshaw has been returned to the pound, the adventure is over:
Total Time Taken to Complete: 12 days 22.5 hours
Total Distance Covered: 3,421km
Thanks for reading everyone. Until the next adventure.......
Sunday, 15 June 2008
So Long And Thanks for All The....
Visits to mechanics: 3
Bumps and scrapes: 4-6 (Amelia: parked lorry, raiders of the last chapati, at least 2 lizards and a flying bird; Joe: parked car, moving motorcyclist)
Potholes: countless
Samosas for Breakfast: 14 each (in total, not everyday)
Litres of Petrol: 113
Litres of Fuel Oil: 3.5
Hours at the Handlebars: 113.5 hours
Amusing road signs: Many ("Check your brain and brake", "Safe driviving saves lives, safe sex stops AIDS")
State border crossings / toll booths jumped: c.10 (We may not have noticed some others)
Press interviews: 3
Published news stories with photo and everything that we've got to take home: 1 (result)
Sponsorship money donated to Frank Water Projects and Mercy Corps Int.: 1211 GBP (lines not yet closed: www.willwemakeit.com/paintitblack)
Bumps and scrapes: 4-6 (Amelia: parked lorry, raiders of the last chapati, at least 2 lizards and a flying bird; Joe: parked car, moving motorcyclist)
Potholes: countless
Samosas for Breakfast: 14 each (in total, not everyday)
Litres of Petrol: 113
Litres of Fuel Oil: 3.5
Hours at the Handlebars: 113.5 hours
Amusing road signs: Many ("Check your brain and brake", "Safe driviving saves lives, safe sex stops AIDS")
State border crossings / toll booths jumped: c.10 (We may not have noticed some others)
Press interviews: 3
Published news stories with photo and everything that we've got to take home: 1 (result)
Sponsorship money donated to Frank Water Projects and Mercy Corps Int.: 1211 GBP (lines not yet closed: www.willwemakeit.com/paintitblack)
Day 14: Mamallapuram to Pondicherry
Distance travelled today: 103km
Total distance travelled: 3,408km
Driving time: 3 hours
We thought we should skip writing about day 13 as it involved a lot of relaxing, eating, drinking and a trip to a crocodile sanctuary, but no rickshaw-related adventures (feeling slightly superstitious about driving on Friday 13th).
So, day 14 and we set off on the final leg of our journey along a stunning coast road that didn't appear on any of our maps. In one of the guidebooks it said that accurate maps of India didn't exist, partly because it was against the law to show a complete representation of roads within 80km of the coast for "security reasons".
15km outside Mamallapuram, our rickshaw lost power and we shuddered to a halt. There seemed to be smoke coming from the engine. In the unlikely event that we had run out of petrol, we refuelled and hoped the shaw would start again. It did - but 10km further on the same thing happened. Each time, the breakdown was preceded by a strong smell of barbecue sauce. This happened twice more and we decided to stick to 40kph for the rest of the journey.
However, we made it! We rolled into Pondicherry - went past the finishing line without spotting it and felt elated with ourselves for completing. We spotted lots of other gaudily painted rickshaws down various side streets and a number of other rickshaw runners walking around with similarly triumphant expressions. That evening, we caught up with lots of teams over drinks. We've heard of at least 8 teams who rolled their rickshaws, 4 who wrote theirs off and a number of people who gave up and flew home early. People have had all night driving and hundreds of breakdowns, nasty wounds and broken windshields. Just so you get an idea of the scale of people's experiences, our travelling companions The Raiders of the Last Chapati have become known as "the team that only had one flat tyre". One team managed to do 2,000km more than us by going to Agra, down the west side, down to the tip of India and back up to Pondicherry.
In the general relief of surviving and making it here, drinks flowed freely into the night and ended with a number of teams drag-racing down the promenade, past the police station, getting their vehicles impounded and themselves arrested. We haven't heard what's happened to them yet...
Total distance travelled: 3,408km
Driving time: 3 hours
We thought we should skip writing about day 13 as it involved a lot of relaxing, eating, drinking and a trip to a crocodile sanctuary, but no rickshaw-related adventures (feeling slightly superstitious about driving on Friday 13th).
So, day 14 and we set off on the final leg of our journey along a stunning coast road that didn't appear on any of our maps. In one of the guidebooks it said that accurate maps of India didn't exist, partly because it was against the law to show a complete representation of roads within 80km of the coast for "security reasons".
15km outside Mamallapuram, our rickshaw lost power and we shuddered to a halt. There seemed to be smoke coming from the engine. In the unlikely event that we had run out of petrol, we refuelled and hoped the shaw would start again. It did - but 10km further on the same thing happened. Each time, the breakdown was preceded by a strong smell of barbecue sauce. This happened twice more and we decided to stick to 40kph for the rest of the journey.
However, we made it! We rolled into Pondicherry - went past the finishing line without spotting it and felt elated with ourselves for completing. We spotted lots of other gaudily painted rickshaws down various side streets and a number of other rickshaw runners walking around with similarly triumphant expressions. That evening, we caught up with lots of teams over drinks. We've heard of at least 8 teams who rolled their rickshaws, 4 who wrote theirs off and a number of people who gave up and flew home early. People have had all night driving and hundreds of breakdowns, nasty wounds and broken windshields. Just so you get an idea of the scale of people's experiences, our travelling companions The Raiders of the Last Chapati have become known as "the team that only had one flat tyre". One team managed to do 2,000km more than us by going to Agra, down the west side, down to the tip of India and back up to Pondicherry.
In the general relief of surviving and making it here, drinks flowed freely into the night and ended with a number of teams drag-racing down the promenade, past the police station, getting their vehicles impounded and themselves arrested. We haven't heard what's happened to them yet...
Day 12: Tirupati to Mamallapuram (via Kanchipuram)
Distance Travelled: 190km
Total Distance Travelled: 3,305km
Driving Time: 6 hours
With the finish line in Pondicherry in sight we decided to ease off the pace a little and drop into a few sights along the way - although we decided that Mango World on the Tamil Nadu border was probably not high on the list. We drove along some beautiful roads to get to Kanchipuram where Amelia called us to a stop -- tempted by the guidebook's promise that "what Darjeeling is to tea and Cheddar is to cheese, Kanchipuram is to silk".
Heading off to wander around town we were plagued by Auto-Rickshaw drivers trying to offer us trips to the temples -- Joe took much enjoyment from their bemused faces as he showed them our keys and explained to them we were Auto drivers ourselves. We dropped into a couple of silk emporiums which had some beautifully coloured and patterned silk saris - which Amelia was particularly enamoured by. However, she resisted the temptation to add to her extensive collection of coloured fabrics from around the world.
Having almost reached temple saturation point we were enjoying just pacing the city's tranquil streets (making a rather pleasant change to the bumpy and noisy rickshaw journeys) and restricted ourselves to visit just one temple in the centre of town. There we were guided by a rather aggressive old man, who Amelia has down as a priest, who barged in front of worshippers at each shrine and ordered "picture - take one" before rushing us to the next. He did manage to cause much amusement after ordering Amelia to tie some wood to a tree - before telling her that it was a fertility tree and that it was now 100% sure she would have a baby in the next 12 months. Hummmm
Fleeing the heat of our stop in Kanchipuram we set off for the backpacker hot spot of Mamallapuram - a scenic beach resort with some shore-based temples and impressive stone works. With Pondicherry just100km away we were feeling confident of finishing and set down for a day of relaxation, some sea food and a well earned couple of drinks.
Total Distance Travelled: 3,305km
Driving Time: 6 hours
With the finish line in Pondicherry in sight we decided to ease off the pace a little and drop into a few sights along the way - although we decided that Mango World on the Tamil Nadu border was probably not high on the list. We drove along some beautiful roads to get to Kanchipuram where Amelia called us to a stop -- tempted by the guidebook's promise that "what Darjeeling is to tea and Cheddar is to cheese, Kanchipuram is to silk".
Heading off to wander around town we were plagued by Auto-Rickshaw drivers trying to offer us trips to the temples -- Joe took much enjoyment from their bemused faces as he showed them our keys and explained to them we were Auto drivers ourselves. We dropped into a couple of silk emporiums which had some beautifully coloured and patterned silk saris - which Amelia was particularly enamoured by. However, she resisted the temptation to add to her extensive collection of coloured fabrics from around the world.
Having almost reached temple saturation point we were enjoying just pacing the city's tranquil streets (making a rather pleasant change to the bumpy and noisy rickshaw journeys) and restricted ourselves to visit just one temple in the centre of town. There we were guided by a rather aggressive old man, who Amelia has down as a priest, who barged in front of worshippers at each shrine and ordered "picture - take one" before rushing us to the next. He did manage to cause much amusement after ordering Amelia to tie some wood to a tree - before telling her that it was a fertility tree and that it was now 100% sure she would have a baby in the next 12 months. Hummmm
Fleeing the heat of our stop in Kanchipuram we set off for the backpacker hot spot of Mamallapuram - a scenic beach resort with some shore-based temples and impressive stone works. With Pondicherry just100km away we were feeling confident of finishing and set down for a day of relaxation, some sea food and a well earned couple of drinks.
Day 11: Chirala to Tirupati
Distance travelled today: 341km
Total distance travelled: 3,115km
Driving time: 10 hours
We set off from Chirala down the coast road following the chapatis until we hit the main highway south. This was probably the most boring road we found in India: dual carriageway, no speedbumps, very few cows on the road, only one tractor coming the wrong way towards us, no exciting overtaking manoeuvres, sudden braking etc. The only highlight was when the road became two-way with no warning as oncoming traffic was diverted on to our fast lane for a short section. The chapatis noticed very late and almost had a head-on collision with a car, but apart from that the road was dull.
It was fast though and we made a lot of ground. We turned off towards Tirupati, which had the usual combination of offroad/no road stretches, bullock carts, tractors, oncoming buses that were wider than the road itself and fun was restored to the day. We also bumped into our third set of journalists so far on the trip who took our pictures and asked us what we were doing. So far we have yet to see ourselves in print.
Tirupati is the most visited Hindu temple in the world - receiving an average of 10,000 pilgrims a day, many of whom shave their heads and offer their hair as a sacrifice. So we saw lots of bald people and a temple.
Total distance travelled: 3,115km
Driving time: 10 hours
We set off from Chirala down the coast road following the chapatis until we hit the main highway south. This was probably the most boring road we found in India: dual carriageway, no speedbumps, very few cows on the road, only one tractor coming the wrong way towards us, no exciting overtaking manoeuvres, sudden braking etc. The only highlight was when the road became two-way with no warning as oncoming traffic was diverted on to our fast lane for a short section. The chapatis noticed very late and almost had a head-on collision with a car, but apart from that the road was dull.
It was fast though and we made a lot of ground. We turned off towards Tirupati, which had the usual combination of offroad/no road stretches, bullock carts, tractors, oncoming buses that were wider than the road itself and fun was restored to the day. We also bumped into our third set of journalists so far on the trip who took our pictures and asked us what we were doing. So far we have yet to see ourselves in print.
Tirupati is the most visited Hindu temple in the world - receiving an average of 10,000 pilgrims a day, many of whom shave their heads and offer their hair as a sacrifice. So we saw lots of bald people and a temple.
Tuesday, 10 June 2008
Day 10: Nagarjuna Sagar dam to Chirala
Distance travelled today: 225km
Total distance travelled: 2,769km
Total driving time: 7 hours
Repairing time: 1 hour
We set off this morning to find yet another rickshaw mechanic to make a more permanent repair to our clutch, arriving in the town of Macherla. Triumph at last when we spotted a rickshaw on a jack having some work done. The mechanic once again declared 'no problems', until we demonstrated the lack of first gear.
After half an hour of tinkering and a few test drives, we were invited in for a driving lesson with the mechanic who showed us how to change gears a little more gently. As we each took our turn to drive, he kept emphasising how slowly we needed to drive in towns, very very slowly.
He then took over the controls and hooned the wrong way down the street, heading straight for a large bus before hitting the brakes at the last possible moment and skidding into the only gap available to stop us being squashed. We then hurtled down some side streets - at this point we were beginning to think we had been shaw-jacked - careering around cattle, people and over bumps at breakneck pace. We were convinced we were going to hit something, fall out or have some other catastrophe. Anyhow, our over-excited mechanic pulled up outside a beautiful temple and urged us inside to have a look. He then drove us to a second temple (about 900 years old) for a bit more sight-seeing, before finally returning the rickshaw to our much more careful driving. Once again, the mechanic refused any sort of payment for his work, which (fingers crossed) seems to have fixed the problem.
Worried that we were approaching Pondicherry a little too quickly, we decided to shorten our drive today and head for the beach at Chirala. Arriving there, we found that the beach smelt strongly of rotting fish and lacked luxury resorts so we are back in town, having reconvened with Mark and Tom.
Two other teams have hit Pondicherry already - we plan to meander down a little more slowly.
Total distance travelled: 2,769km
Total driving time: 7 hours
Repairing time: 1 hour
We set off this morning to find yet another rickshaw mechanic to make a more permanent repair to our clutch, arriving in the town of Macherla. Triumph at last when we spotted a rickshaw on a jack having some work done. The mechanic once again declared 'no problems', until we demonstrated the lack of first gear.
After half an hour of tinkering and a few test drives, we were invited in for a driving lesson with the mechanic who showed us how to change gears a little more gently. As we each took our turn to drive, he kept emphasising how slowly we needed to drive in towns, very very slowly.
He then took over the controls and hooned the wrong way down the street, heading straight for a large bus before hitting the brakes at the last possible moment and skidding into the only gap available to stop us being squashed. We then hurtled down some side streets - at this point we were beginning to think we had been shaw-jacked - careering around cattle, people and over bumps at breakneck pace. We were convinced we were going to hit something, fall out or have some other catastrophe. Anyhow, our over-excited mechanic pulled up outside a beautiful temple and urged us inside to have a look. He then drove us to a second temple (about 900 years old) for a bit more sight-seeing, before finally returning the rickshaw to our much more careful driving. Once again, the mechanic refused any sort of payment for his work, which (fingers crossed) seems to have fixed the problem.
Worried that we were approaching Pondicherry a little too quickly, we decided to shorten our drive today and head for the beach at Chirala. Arriving there, we found that the beach smelt strongly of rotting fish and lacked luxury resorts so we are back in town, having reconvened with Mark and Tom.
Two other teams have hit Pondicherry already - we plan to meander down a little more slowly.
Day 9: Karimnagar to Nagarjuna Sagar Dam
Distance Travelled: 341km
Total Distance Travelled: 2,544km
Driving Time: 11 hours
Repairing Time: 1 hour
With our temporary fix still holding we headed from Karimnagar to Warangal in search of a bona fide rickshaw mechanic. We were bitterly disappointed, despite row-upon-row of motorcycle mechanics there was not a rickshaw mechanic to be found. Amelia worked her charms on a friendly petrol station owner who sent out some of his employees to find a mechanic. Once located the mechanic took the rickshawout for a spin and delared "No problems".
So off we set in pursuit of Mark and Tom in their rickshaw - never managing to meet them but criss-crossing routes and passing each other at petrol stations. As we neared our destination it appeared that few people had heard of the town we were asking for - so when one person on a taxi-rickshaw declared he was going there we nabbed him as our passenger. Amelia managed to hold conversation with our nervous passenger (who was clinging on to the sides with white knuckles) - a civil engineer working on the dam - whilst he pointed us in the right direction.
With Joe driving, we spotted a 5km to go sign on the road and were mentally preparing for a wash and nice meal when the engine began to sound particularly bad and the clutch gave way completely. We laboured on - avoiding changing gears in the hope that we would be able to make it to our destination - but eventually we ground to a halt.
We were barely stopped for a minute when we had drawn a crowd of 3 local rickshaw drivers who helped us out and got us going again trying to keep in 3rd gear and work our way to the local mechanic -- again guided by our passenger, who was turning out to be a real hero. The smiling mechanic managed to fix our clutch in 10 mins, refuse payment and then sent us on our way.
So 2 breakdowns in as many days but still on the road and still heading South.
Total Distance Travelled: 2,544km
Driving Time: 11 hours
Repairing Time: 1 hour
With our temporary fix still holding we headed from Karimnagar to Warangal in search of a bona fide rickshaw mechanic. We were bitterly disappointed, despite row-upon-row of motorcycle mechanics there was not a rickshaw mechanic to be found. Amelia worked her charms on a friendly petrol station owner who sent out some of his employees to find a mechanic. Once located the mechanic took the rickshawout for a spin and delared "No problems".
So off we set in pursuit of Mark and Tom in their rickshaw - never managing to meet them but criss-crossing routes and passing each other at petrol stations. As we neared our destination it appeared that few people had heard of the town we were asking for - so when one person on a taxi-rickshaw declared he was going there we nabbed him as our passenger. Amelia managed to hold conversation with our nervous passenger (who was clinging on to the sides with white knuckles) - a civil engineer working on the dam - whilst he pointed us in the right direction.
With Joe driving, we spotted a 5km to go sign on the road and were mentally preparing for a wash and nice meal when the engine began to sound particularly bad and the clutch gave way completely. We laboured on - avoiding changing gears in the hope that we would be able to make it to our destination - but eventually we ground to a halt.
We were barely stopped for a minute when we had drawn a crowd of 3 local rickshaw drivers who helped us out and got us going again trying to keep in 3rd gear and work our way to the local mechanic -- again guided by our passenger, who was turning out to be a real hero. The smiling mechanic managed to fix our clutch in 10 mins, refuse payment and then sent us on our way.
So 2 breakdowns in as many days but still on the road and still heading South.
Day 8: Chandrapur to Karimnagar
Distance travelled today: 289km
Total distance travelled: 2,203km
Driving time: 10 hours
Repairing time: 3 hours
We set off from Chandrapur using only a compass to navigate with and found a road heading south. Fairly quickly, this turned into a dirt track and we headed down to a river. The road criss-crossed over the river on a raised mound of mud and we could see an Indian rickshaw ahead of us get stuck and need a push. Driving around this was like rallying (with the added excitement of potentially falling into the river). There was a steep hill climb on the other side of the river which Joe tackled with gusto.
The "road" then crossed a ploughed field before eventually turning back into some semblance of paving. We were all very impressed with how the rickshaws were holding up under the conditions - amazing little vehicles.A car drove past us, turned round, drew up alongside the Chapati team and invited us all for tea in their village. So off we all went to sit in a house and answer questions about England. It was all very hospitable and they even gave us directions for the main road, which we duly found. Unfortunately we went 17km the wrong way down the road before realising and turning round. The whole area is mining country and very industrial - there are also not many women about so Amelia was particularly popular.
Finally on the right road and congratulating ourselves on how well we were doing when suddenly, our vehicle had a bit of a moment and refused to go into gear. Only the night before we had been reading messages from other rickshaw runners who had experienced all-night drives, crashes and multiple breakdowns and we thought how lucky and generally incident-free it had been for us. But not today.
Three blokes on a motorcycle stopped and offered advice about towing us before jump-starting the shaw. We made it another 7km to the village of Wankidi, where our vehicle finally gave up the ghost. At the village, a mechanic we found and he climbed almost completely into the engine to have a look. Meanwhile, the four of where attracting a huge crowd, which was entertaining but pretty suffocating. We have endured temperatures of around 45 degrees centigrade for the last week, made bearable by speedy driving in a doorless rickshaw. But really quite sweaty once we stop.
The mechanic dissected the engine four times over the next two and a half hours, trying to fix the problem and replacing various parts. Joe made friends with a guy with excellent English who helped us to communicate. We went for tea in his palatial house - our second bout of Indian hospitality in one morning.Mark and Tom decided to relocate 1km out of town and the crowds were getting to much. We sent a message via repair shop owner on his motorbike to tell them to press on as things were not improving with our gears.
Not long afterwards, a heavily fortified rickshaw with semi-automatic weapons poking out the side drew up. Two moustachioed henchman approached Joe and summoned him to their vehicle, where a smartly dressed man cradling a handgun wanted to question him. He looked like a mafia don but apparently they were all policeman. They came back a second time to check that we were ok but they didn't look all that friendly.
The mechanic was a hero and managed to get the shaw going after a lot of hot and dirty work but with the proviso that it was a temporary fix and we would need to find a mechanic with the right parts in a town 70km away. The whole repair job cost five pounds. Incredible. Everyone was so friendly and helpful but it was a relief to leave as our complete lack of Hindi made conversation pretty tiring (lots of waving of arms and mime actions).
70km on and all the repair shops were shut because it was a Sunday. All the men we passed appeared to be drunk as well - two tried to convince us that they were mechanics but actually they just wanted a photograph (of Amelia). So we decided to press on to Karimnagar, another 70km, and hope the clutch and gears would hold out. We drove at speed, navigating through the many herds of cattle being led home tobed. It threatened to rain on several occasions but we haven't hit the monsoon yet.
Saturday, 7 June 2008
Day 7: Pench National Park to Chandrapur
Distance Today: 362km
Today we decided to veer off the main road to avoid Nagpur city and to get in a bit more rural scenery. We were rewarded for our endeavour with some more stunning scenery and some great driving. First up was a fleeting visit to Ramtek and the impressive Rama Fort - although we both decided that the massive hill that it was perched on would be a little too much effort in this heat (and boy is it hot here).
Generally we've been pretty impressed with the roads in India, although they are a little bumpy in our low-suspension vehicle (which has led to Joe having a rather painful behind). However, rather too frequently they suddenly stop,to be replaced by little more than a dirt track only for the road to reappear a couple of kilometres further on. (See photo which we've been unable to rotate - try turning head 90 degrees)
Total Distance Travelled: 1,914km
Driving Time: 11 hours
Today we decided to veer off the main road to avoid Nagpur city and to get in a bit more rural scenery. We were rewarded for our endeavour with some more stunning scenery and some great driving. First up was a fleeting visit to Ramtek and the impressive Rama Fort - although we both decided that the massive hill that it was perched on would be a little too much effort in this heat (and boy is it hot here). Generally we've been pretty impressed with the roads in India, although they are a little bumpy in our low-suspension vehicle (which has led to Joe having a rather painful behind). However, rather too frequently they suddenly stop,to be replaced by little more than a dirt track only for the road to reappear a couple of kilometres further on. (See photo which we've been unable to rotate - try turning head 90 degrees)We meandered our way to Chandrapur, which isn't in any of the guidebooks. The locals have been very friendly - mobbing Amelia and the rickshaw as soon as we stopped - although the hotellier has warned us that "this isn't a town where you leave a lady on her own".
Day 6: Bheraghat to Pench National Park
Distance Travelled: 209km
Total Distance Travelled: 1,552km
Driving Time: 6.5 hours
We had a fairly leisurely day today - much shorter driving time and distance than we are now used to. We are still travelling with the Chapati duo, which has been great for taking photos and video of our own rickshaw from a moving vehicle. We left Bheragat in rain with our only line of defence against it a small windscreen wiper that covers half the windscreen, quite slowly. Luckily it wasn't raining too heavily. Soon afterwards, the winds picked up and our poor little shaw was buffeted from side to side along the roads.
Every time we stop, a crowd gathers around us to find out not what we are doing and where we are travelling to, but whether we have bought our own rickshaws and where we got them from. Some people pull alongside us as we speed along to have a chat and to admire the paintwork. It's like being a celebrity but without the drug habit.
After bumping into another team, we decided that their safari idea was a good one and we headed to Pench National Park, where we had an entire luxury resort to ourselves (complete with full staff). Just after we arrived, there was a heavy pre-monsoon shower/downpour. As we set off into the park in the open top vehicle, the shower turned into a torrent and we were completely drenched. Good practice for what's to come (our rickshaws aren't the least bit waterproof).
Still, spotting animals through a curtain of water, while sitting in a puddle, is surprisingly absorbing, if a little chilly. The tigers remained elusive but we have been assured that they exist.
Total Distance Travelled: 1,552km
Driving Time: 6.5 hours
We had a fairly leisurely day today - much shorter driving time and distance than we are now used to. We are still travelling with the Chapati duo, which has been great for taking photos and video of our own rickshaw from a moving vehicle. We left Bheragat in rain with our only line of defence against it a small windscreen wiper that covers half the windscreen, quite slowly. Luckily it wasn't raining too heavily. Soon afterwards, the winds picked up and our poor little shaw was buffeted from side to side along the roads.Every time we stop, a crowd gathers around us to find out not what we are doing and where we are travelling to, but whether we have bought our own rickshaws and where we got them from. Some people pull alongside us as we speed along to have a chat and to admire the paintwork. It's like being a celebrity but without the drug habit.After bumping into another team, we decided that their safari idea was a good one and we headed to Pench National Park, where we had an entire luxury resort to ourselves (complete with full staff). Just after we arrived, there was a heavy pre-monsoon shower/downpour. As we set off into the park in the open top vehicle, the shower turned into a torrent and we were completely drenched. Good practice for what's to come (our rickshaws aren't the least bit waterproof).
Still, spotting animals through a curtain of water, while sitting in a puddle, is surprisingly absorbing, if a little chilly. The tigers remained elusive but we have been assured that they exist.
Day 5: Khajuraho to Bheraghat
Distance Travelled: 332km
Total Distance Travelled: 1343km
Driving Time: 11 hours
We started the day off driving through the Panna Tiger reserve. Armed to the teeth with a petrol can, we eagerly anticipated the moment when we would face the King of the Jungle. Sadly, all we saw were some monkeys. Just as we were getting used to the desert landscape we turned onto the road to Amanganj and it changed dramatically once again - to a deep red soil with more lush vegetation.
The drive was stunning highlights including a completely dried-out waterfall which was obviously carved out by a huge river that perhaps only flows during the wet season. See photo of this and of another river which had literally stopped flowing and looked like a lake.
Although we got a little lost along the way (we had some difficulty reading the Hindi signposts) we eventually made it to the Marble Rocks at Bheraghat - a beautiful river valley with marble rising out on either side. Best viewed from the water, we took a boat along the river as the sun sank in the sky and enjoyed some peace after a dusty day on the road.
Total Distance Travelled: 1343km
Driving Time: 11 hours
We started the day off driving through the Panna Tiger reserve. Armed to the teeth with a petrol can, we eagerly anticipated the moment when we would face the King of the Jungle. Sadly, all we saw were some monkeys. Just as we were getting used to the desert landscape we turned onto the road to Amanganj and it changed dramatically once again - to a deep red soil with more lush vegetation.The drive was stunning highlights including a completely dried-out waterfall which was obviously carved out by a huge river that perhaps only flows during the wet season. See photo of this and of another river which had literally stopped flowing and looked like a lake.
Although we got a little lost along the way (we had some difficulty reading the Hindi signposts) we eventually made it to the Marble Rocks at Bheraghat - a beautiful river valley with marble rising out on either side. Best viewed from the water, we took a boat along the river as the sun sank in the sky and enjoyed some peace after a dusty day on the road.
Photo Update (Day 1)
Lined up for the start:
Leaving Kathmandu:
Seen on the hills about 20km into Journey:
The convoy in the Himalayas
Leaving Kathmandu:
Seen on the hills about 20km into Journey:
The convoy in the Himalayas
Day 4: Kanpur to Khajuraho
Distance Today: 261km
After catching up with Team Wrong Turn, who crashed into us on the first day, over dinner last night we headed off from Kanpur (in the opposite direction to them, thankfully) on National Highway 86 through an impressive almost-desert like landscape. Although a fairly uneventful trip (save having to pull off a side-of-the-road petrol refill after running the tank dry) the impressive views more than made for any missing danger. 
Total Distance Travelled: 1011km
Driving Time: 10 hours
After catching up with Team Wrong Turn, who crashed into us on the first day, over dinner last night we headed off from Kanpur (in the opposite direction to them, thankfully) on National Highway 86 through an impressive almost-desert like landscape. Although a fairly uneventful trip (save having to pull off a side-of-the-road petrol refill after running the tank dry) the impressive views more than made for any missing danger. After driving into India from Nepal we're no longer seen as driving a novelty vehicle but as a taxi. People keep flagging us down. The most unusual were two men and their six goats who wanted a lift. We declined.
Khajuraho is the first tourist town that we have been to and we were the only tourists there so people took quite an interest in us. After visiting the temples in the area, famous for their erotic sculptures, we were accosted by a guy calling himself Ricky Martin who then did a very good impression of a limpet for the next two hours. We treated ourselves to a swim in a 5 star hotel pool and Amelia managed to prang the Chapati team's rickshaw.
Tuesday, 3 June 2008
Day 3 - Ayodhya to Kanpur
Distance travelled: 244km
Total distance travelled: 750km
Time taken: 9 hours
After offroading the shaw for much of the day yesterday, we decided to stick to the motorways today. Joe did the lion's share of th driving yesterday, including all the scary dark bits so Amelia decided to tackle most of today's challenges. The motorway was only half built so it was a little challenging an had lots of very bumpy speed humps in it. At one stage, we were run off the road into a ditch by a lorry overtaking and heading straight for us.
Rickshaws are pretty common in India and used as taxis so we were constantly being flagged down by expectant passengers, despite our distinctive livery. Some looked on in wonder when they saw as go past, the rest looked merely disappointed that we hadn't picked them up. We did collect one guy though, a policeman who made sure we stayed on the right road before hopping off a short while later.
We spent a while looking for a ring road around Lucknow, which proved to be another figment of the Rough Guide's imagination. So we ended up going straight through the middle of one of India's many large cities in heavy traffic. It made Kathmandu seem like child's play. Rickshaws to the right of us, bicycles to the right of us, motorbikes weaving in front. Many drivers slowed to get a better look, smile, wave and honk. Chaos and we loved it. It is the most fun thing to drive and totally exhilerating.
Mark and Tom ran out of petrol in the middle of one of the busiest intersections and had to push their vehicle off the road while hundreds of people tooted and tried to run them over.
We are now in Kanpur having found luxury digs for the night. However the internet connection is too slow for our photos and videos (which include us negotiating Lucknow). Tomorrow we head south.
Total distance travelled: 750km
Time taken: 9 hours
After offroading the shaw for much of the day yesterday, we decided to stick to the motorways today. Joe did the lion's share of th driving yesterday, including all the scary dark bits so Amelia decided to tackle most of today's challenges. The motorway was only half built so it was a little challenging an had lots of very bumpy speed humps in it. At one stage, we were run off the road into a ditch by a lorry overtaking and heading straight for us.
Rickshaws are pretty common in India and used as taxis so we were constantly being flagged down by expectant passengers, despite our distinctive livery. Some looked on in wonder when they saw as go past, the rest looked merely disappointed that we hadn't picked them up. We did collect one guy though, a policeman who made sure we stayed on the right road before hopping off a short while later.
We spent a while looking for a ring road around Lucknow, which proved to be another figment of the Rough Guide's imagination. So we ended up going straight through the middle of one of India's many large cities in heavy traffic. It made Kathmandu seem like child's play. Rickshaws to the right of us, bicycles to the right of us, motorbikes weaving in front. Many drivers slowed to get a better look, smile, wave and honk. Chaos and we loved it. It is the most fun thing to drive and totally exhilerating.
Mark and Tom ran out of petrol in the middle of one of the busiest intersections and had to push their vehicle off the road while hundreds of people tooted and tried to run them over.
We are now in Kanpur having found luxury digs for the night. However the internet connection is too slow for our photos and videos (which include us negotiating Lucknow). Tomorrow we head south.
Day 2 - Narayaghat (Nepal) to Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh, India)
Distance Travelled Today: 350km
Total Distance Travelled: 506km
Drivng Time: 15 hours (including 2 hours in the dark)
A truly epic and completely exhausting day of rickshaw driving started in the foothills of the Himalayas with a 6am attempt to get more fuel - which was foiled by the line of 30 lorries, 30 cars and about 100 motorcycles which had already formed. Knowing that we had enough petrol to get to a border crossing we ploughed on in convoy with The Raiders of the Last Chapati (Mark and Tom) and in close proximity to a number of other teams. Joe started off the driving and given the gently sloping downhills he was keen to put our rickshaw through its paces and see what the top speed was. Things didn't get off to the best start as Joe attempted to overtake a local bus at the edge of town - only for the bus to engage us in a bit of a boy racer competition which Joe promptly lost, to the amusement of the bus passengers and Amelia.
Without fuel supplies (despite Joe's vain attempt to procure black market petrol from an 8-year old) we were forced to change our original plans of heading through Nepalganj and cross the border at Sonauli instead. Amelia took over the driving for the stretch to the border - and with newfound confidence weaved through the oncoming traffic and stationary trucks to get us to the immigration post (of the most open border we have ever seen). With all the paperwork done we leapt back into the rickshaw - which Amelia promptly wedged around a nearby truck - Our second incident of the trip and some damage to one of the canopy supports to add to yesterday's dented wheel arch.
Following the compass South we soon managed to miss the first of our unmarked and unsignposted turns for the day - continuing South when we had planned to move West. After receiving 5 sets of directions from locals, none of which matched exactly, we took the average of them and headed down an uncharted road on a bearing of 270 degrees. Pretty soon the reason for its absence from any of our maps became clear as it became litte more than a rubble and dust path with some broken bridges - but through some stunning scenry and with wildlife (monkeys everywhere of course).
Upon reaching a marked town on the map we felt ourselves fill with new confidence and estimated that the town where we planned to set up camp (Faizabad) was approx 80km away - just 3 hours driving on good roads. With the sun still high in the sky this appeared an easy task and we set off on our merry way to find the highway, just 10 miles way. This took us over 2 hours in itself, involved us getting hopelessly lost and then rescued by a local on his motorcycle who guided us down some real dirt tracks to the highway.
So 70km to cover and about 1.5 hours of sun left in the sky and we were starting to get worried. Not as worried as we were an hour later when we finally crusied through the first town on the route which we had guessed was about 10km away and was closer to 35km. Amelia jumped out to ask for the nearest lodgings- to which we were pointed onwards to Ayodhya - about 50km away. With the sun rapidly dropping we powered up the headlights and put the pedal to the floor. As the night got darker the horn got less noisy - running off our tiny battery that was barely able to keep the headlights on (which themselves almost went out under braking). Following the Raiders of the Last Chapati we tailgated a slow moving truck for protection and shook in fear as we braved the Indian roads - hectic by day and truly terrifying by night.
We made it to Ayodhya 2 hours after nigtfall - completely drained and ready to rest wherever we could find a bed, which proved pretty elusive. 3 guest houses, 2 local guides and 1 hour later we found a beautifully fan cooled hotel room and collapsed.
Total Distance Travelled: 506km
Drivng Time: 15 hours (including 2 hours in the dark)
A truly epic and completely exhausting day of rickshaw driving started in the foothills of the Himalayas with a 6am attempt to get more fuel - which was foiled by the line of 30 lorries, 30 cars and about 100 motorcycles which had already formed. Knowing that we had enough petrol to get to a border crossing we ploughed on in convoy with The Raiders of the Last Chapati (Mark and Tom) and in close proximity to a number of other teams. Joe started off the driving and given the gently sloping downhills he was keen to put our rickshaw through its paces and see what the top speed was. Things didn't get off to the best start as Joe attempted to overtake a local bus at the edge of town - only for the bus to engage us in a bit of a boy racer competition which Joe promptly lost, to the amusement of the bus passengers and Amelia.
Without fuel supplies (despite Joe's vain attempt to procure black market petrol from an 8-year old) we were forced to change our original plans of heading through Nepalganj and cross the border at Sonauli instead. Amelia took over the driving for the stretch to the border - and with newfound confidence weaved through the oncoming traffic and stationary trucks to get us to the immigration post (of the most open border we have ever seen). With all the paperwork done we leapt back into the rickshaw - which Amelia promptly wedged around a nearby truck - Our second incident of the trip and some damage to one of the canopy supports to add to yesterday's dented wheel arch.
Following the compass South we soon managed to miss the first of our unmarked and unsignposted turns for the day - continuing South when we had planned to move West. After receiving 5 sets of directions from locals, none of which matched exactly, we took the average of them and headed down an uncharted road on a bearing of 270 degrees. Pretty soon the reason for its absence from any of our maps became clear as it became litte more than a rubble and dust path with some broken bridges - but through some stunning scenry and with wildlife (monkeys everywhere of course).
Upon reaching a marked town on the map we felt ourselves fill with new confidence and estimated that the town where we planned to set up camp (Faizabad) was approx 80km away - just 3 hours driving on good roads. With the sun still high in the sky this appeared an easy task and we set off on our merry way to find the highway, just 10 miles way. This took us over 2 hours in itself, involved us getting hopelessly lost and then rescued by a local on his motorcycle who guided us down some real dirt tracks to the highway.
So 70km to cover and about 1.5 hours of sun left in the sky and we were starting to get worried. Not as worried as we were an hour later when we finally crusied through the first town on the route which we had guessed was about 10km away and was closer to 35km. Amelia jumped out to ask for the nearest lodgings- to which we were pointed onwards to Ayodhya - about 50km away. With the sun rapidly dropping we powered up the headlights and put the pedal to the floor. As the night got darker the horn got less noisy - running off our tiny battery that was barely able to keep the headlights on (which themselves almost went out under braking). Following the Raiders of the Last Chapati we tailgated a slow moving truck for protection and shook in fear as we braved the Indian roads - hectic by day and truly terrifying by night.
We made it to Ayodhya 2 hours after nigtfall - completely drained and ready to rest wherever we could find a bed, which proved pretty elusive. 3 guest houses, 2 local guides and 1 hour later we found a beautifully fan cooled hotel room and collapsed.
Launch Day - Durbar Square, Kathmandu to Narayanghat
Distance Travelled: 156km
Driving Time: 5.5 hours
From 10am, we rickshaw drivers gathered in Durbar Square in Kathmandu, surrounded by temples and large crowds of people. The Nepalese army turned up to give us 10 litres of petrol each as there is currently a severe shortage in Nepal. We also had a full tank so we had 18 litres in total - hopefully enough to get us to the border. Some of the other teams have fantastic names: She's a Goa, Pirates of the Currybean and our personal favourite, Raj Against the Machine.
We were due to set off at noon in a long convoy and escorted out of Kathmandu. Amelia decided to tackle the first roads and as launchtime approached, we were both feeling increasingly nervous. The rickshaws started, Amelia stalled (four times), panicked and Joe heroically stepped in to tak the helm/handlebars. The convoy was off. It completely disintegrated within 2 minutes as the rest of Kathmandu traffic cut everybody up and we lost sight of the rickshaws ahead of us. As Joe manfully wove his way around the bikes, motorcycles, cycle rickshaws, cars, trucks, cows and pedestrians, Amelia made liberal use of the backseat horn, purchased specially for nervous passengers, and gave out some serious scaldings to children who jumped on our rickshaw to hitch a lift. We eventually spotted a couple of other stray 'shaws and we joined up to find our way to the ring road using a compass and guesswork. I kid you not about the cows - traffic was flowing in 6 higgledy-piggledy lanes and there were cows lying in the middle, placidly chewing. One team, getting a bit carried away, decided to overtake us but the misjudged it slightly and we now have a dent in our wheelguard.
After about 20 mins, we somehow bumped into most of the rest of the convoy and found our way out on the road west - at which point, the fun began. We were on a winding mountain road with a sheer drop at the side and large trucks thundering in both directions. The Nepali system of overtaking is that, whatever the road, the faster vehicle ALWAYS overtakes with lots of cheerful honking to let the overtakee know that something is passing them. All very sensible although overtaking occurs regardless of oncoming traffic. We passed two overturned trucks and one full-on smash on this one stretch of road.
Auto rickshaws are outlawed in Nepal so we were something of a novelty for everyone we passed (or who passed us, at speed) and the vigorous waving from other vehicles almost caused a few accidents. The convoy of brightly painted rickshaws streaming around the mountain did look quite impressive though. Amelia eventually took over the driving and after some initial loud revving, finally made it into first gear and then almost got mown down by a lorry. Fairly early on, we decided to stick with another team - The Raiders of the Last Chapati (who conveniently have a map of India painted on their rickshaw), and we eventually ended up in a medium-sized town where we chose to stay the night. The moment we stopped the rickshaws, we were surrounded by curious people, all wanting to know what we were up to.
Anyhow, we survived the first day on the road and we were feeling extremely pleased about it.
Driving Time: 5.5 hours
From 10am, we rickshaw drivers gathered in Durbar Square in Kathmandu, surrounded by temples and large crowds of people. The Nepalese army turned up to give us 10 litres of petrol each as there is currently a severe shortage in Nepal. We also had a full tank so we had 18 litres in total - hopefully enough to get us to the border. Some of the other teams have fantastic names: She's a Goa, Pirates of the Currybean and our personal favourite, Raj Against the Machine.
We were due to set off at noon in a long convoy and escorted out of Kathmandu. Amelia decided to tackle the first roads and as launchtime approached, we were both feeling increasingly nervous. The rickshaws started, Amelia stalled (four times), panicked and Joe heroically stepped in to tak the helm/handlebars. The convoy was off. It completely disintegrated within 2 minutes as the rest of Kathmandu traffic cut everybody up and we lost sight of the rickshaws ahead of us. As Joe manfully wove his way around the bikes, motorcycles, cycle rickshaws, cars, trucks, cows and pedestrians, Amelia made liberal use of the backseat horn, purchased specially for nervous passengers, and gave out some serious scaldings to children who jumped on our rickshaw to hitch a lift. We eventually spotted a couple of other stray 'shaws and we joined up to find our way to the ring road using a compass and guesswork. I kid you not about the cows - traffic was flowing in 6 higgledy-piggledy lanes and there were cows lying in the middle, placidly chewing. One team, getting a bit carried away, decided to overtake us but the misjudged it slightly and we now have a dent in our wheelguard.
After about 20 mins, we somehow bumped into most of the rest of the convoy and found our way out on the road west - at which point, the fun began. We were on a winding mountain road with a sheer drop at the side and large trucks thundering in both directions. The Nepali system of overtaking is that, whatever the road, the faster vehicle ALWAYS overtakes with lots of cheerful honking to let the overtakee know that something is passing them. All very sensible although overtaking occurs regardless of oncoming traffic. We passed two overturned trucks and one full-on smash on this one stretch of road.
Auto rickshaws are outlawed in Nepal so we were something of a novelty for everyone we passed (or who passed us, at speed) and the vigorous waving from other vehicles almost caused a few accidents. The convoy of brightly painted rickshaws streaming around the mountain did look quite impressive though. Amelia eventually took over the driving and after some initial loud revving, finally made it into first gear and then almost got mown down by a lorry. Fairly early on, we decided to stick with another team - The Raiders of the Last Chapati (who conveniently have a map of India painted on their rickshaw), and we eventually ended up in a medium-sized town where we chose to stay the night. The moment we stopped the rickshaws, we were surrounded by curious people, all wanting to know what we were up to.
Anyhow, we survived the first day on the road and we were feeling extremely pleased about it.
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