The North-Eastern region of our country remains one of the few areas that are still unexploited. We take a short journey with Mahindra’s Adventure team to explore this unspoiled countryside.
One of the fundamental issues that the burgeoning population of our country brings to the forefront is overcrowding. Every sphere of life you look at in our country, we’re always struggling for space – on the road, in an airport, even inside a plane there’s always a struggle to claim your own personal space. Things get even worse when we look at what the population boom has done to the more popular tourist destinations in our country. What used to be serene, beautiful places where one could relax and unwind have now become concrete jungles – full of buildings and such vast throngs of people that relaxation is the last thing that comes to mind.
Naturally, for avid travelers, this has meant the quest to find the more offbeat destinations. Fortunately, the one region that hasn’t yet fallen down this slippery slope is the North-East. Naturally gorgeous, the region hasn’t yet been flooded with tourists due to a multitude of factors – mainly to do with logistics. And that means, for people who like to unwind in a peaceful setting, it remains one of the last bastions. So, it’s an area that I’ve been keen on exploring for some time now. Naturally, then, when the invitation from Mahindra Adventure came, I was more that willing to sign up for what promised to be a memorable trip.
The Adventure initiative in itself is a unique proposition. Offered to Mahindra customers and keen travelers, the trips are well planned and offer a relaxed pace of travelling to people looking to explore new destinations. All the participants have to do is pay upfront for the trip, and everything – from the vehicles, to the lodging, food, even paperwork – is taken care of by the team, all except for the fuel. So, it was on a nice, sunny day that I landed in Guwahati to begin my trip into the seven sister states. The first thing on our agenda was to get familiarized with the team and my fellow participants, along with getting a detailed brief about road safety, etiquette and the rules laid out by Raj Kapoor – a veteran of the automotive industry and a longtime traveler himself.
Early the next morning, we set off from Guwahati, towards Arunachal Pradesh, with the ultimate destination of the day being the valley of Dirang. A small town located on the banks of the river Kameng, Dirang is a small but charming place. As we set off, I was quite surprised at the road, which was a four-lane highway in great condition. This meant that the convoy could keep moving along at a rapid pace, and the first wonder for the trip came with the sighting of the Brahmaputra river – just outside Tezpur. The sheer vastness of the river is something that needs to be seen to be believed. However, the road conditions deteriorated considerably as we exited Assam and entered Arunachal Pradesh. Here, the wide four-lane highway transformed into a narrow two-lane path, the surface of which was mostly broken. In addition, we were now gaining altitude as we moved towards our destination. Nevertheless, we reached Dirang comfortably before nightfall.
The real challenge of our journey, however, was the second day where we would be driving from Dirang to Tawang – our main destination for the first part of the trip. Tawang lies at an altitude of 10,000 feet, and to reach there we had to cross the Sela Pass located at 13,700 feet. And this is where the journey became really arduous, as the tarmac roads gave way to gravel paths. Soon, progress was slow and the ride difficult. But, once we reached Sela, the effort was rewarded by a stunning view of the lake at the top of the pass – and beautiful blue skies, which are now impossible to see in our urban centers. After Sela, we stopped at the small town of Jung – where our lunch was served next to a beautiful waterfall, and this made for a truly memorable setting. The clean river, and the water rushing through the fall, made for a surreal setting. However, we had much distance to cover, and after a relaxed lunch we set off towards Tawang. Luckily, the roads from here on proved to be in fairly good nick and we reached Tawang by sunset.
The next morning, we visited the Tawang Monastery – the second largest Monastery in the world – and spent a day doing idyllic things like exploring the local markets and gorging on local cuisine. And with a small population of just about 50,000 people, we realized what a difference the peace and tranquility of a place not packed to the brim with people makes. The relaxation, being away from maddening crowds, is what is sorely needed for many of us to recharge our used up souls. And this short trip with Mahindra Adventure proved to be just the right thing for me after a tiring year. So, if you’re looking to explore some new vistas with a great crew and adventurous fellow travelers, look no further and sign up for a Mahindra Adventure…
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