I had never heard of this place until this trip. Patnitop is a popular hill station near Udhampur, in Jammu and Kashmir. The drive to Patnitop was to be the longest in our three-day trip to Leh. As usual, we didn't sleep well the previous night (this is turning out to be a regular thing with us), and we were very tired the next day. We woke up at 3:00 AM and were out of the house by 4:30. Looks like destiny, or rather the Arabs, had other plans for us. While Shibu was in India already, Shonan was to reach that morning. He did, but very late. So we extended our tea break at Chanda's parents place and finally left at 5:30 AM.
Sun rise in Delhi on NH24
We decided to meet Shonan and Shibu at Mukarba Chowk, an important point from where buses to Haryana and Punjab ply. We took the ring road and continued on to ITO and Raj Ghat and then to Mukarba Chowk. Today's journey would also take us on the historic Grand Trunk road and we were already on it.
Watching the world pass by at Mukarba Chowk
Crowded bus stop
So after a quick round of hugs and greetings, we set off on NH1 towards Patnitop. The drive would take us through Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir. We stopped for breakfast at Haveli, a swank restaurant with a dhabha-like ambiance, in Murthal. We feasted on aloo paranthas, aloo kachori, suji halwa and washed it all down with tea and lassi.
Kachoori aloo (Chanda's fav)
If you ever travel down this road, be sure to stop at one of the Havelis. The facilities are excellent (especially the loos) and the prices are very reasonable. A sumptuous breakfast for five cost us ~500 rupees.
Entrance to Haveli
Thomas and Shonan
Chanda
Shibu
Punjab is a rich and fertile state and the people here are beautiful. However, the climate here is quite extreme. Summers are very hot and winters are very cold. It was quite hot on the day we left and most of the towns wore a deserted look. The roads, however, were excellent and we maintained a good speed. There were a few diversions on the way as the highway was being expanded from 4 to 6 lanes.
Excellent roads
Deserted roads and colorful people
We made it to Khanna, Rajesh Khanna's hometown, by lunch time. So we stopped at a "vaishnoo dhabha" for lunch. Vaishnoo dhabhas serve pure vegetarian food. They cater to pilgrims going to Vaishnoo Devi and Amarnath. I had never heard of such places before. The food was very good.
Lunch place - "vaishnoo dabha"
We continued north on NH1 and crossed some India's most industrialized towns Ludhiana and Jalandhar. From Jalandhar, we switched to NH1A towards Pathankot and Patnitop. We didn't encounter many toll gates. While Shonan and I managed to catch some sleep, Shibu was going strong. We finally stopped at a dhabha in Dasuya (15-20kms before Pathankot) for tea.
Now, for all the tea aficionados reading this post, let me warn you that tea on the highways is the most abused beverage. Strong tea can be interpreted to mean anything ranging from a syrupy muddy concoction to flavored tea. Never the real robust red stuff. I had to suffer, albeit silently, throughout the journey. The tea at Dasuya was no different. The patti kum paani zyda doodh kum (extra leaves, more water, less milk) formula never worked!
Strong tea in Dasuya (l-r Matt, Chanda, Shonan, and Thomas)
From Dasuya, I moved into the Gypsy with Shibu and we had a long conversation on Jeeps and his restoration work. He has more than a dozen jeeps and has restored most of them. That conversation led me to decide to buy an MM540.
The evening wore on and we reached Pathankot at 6:00 PM. The town had changed very less in seven years. Chanda and I had been to Dalhouisie for our honeymoon. We had taken a train to Pathankot and then a cab to Dalhousie, a beautiful hill station 80 kilometers from Pathankot.
Pathankot Air Force Station
We reached Lakhanpur, a small town at Jammu and Kashmir border, around 7:00 PM. Before entering Jammu and Kashmir, we were stopped by at the Punjab checkpost, a filthy and dusty area, by the Punjab police who then noted down out vehicle details.
We were asked to produce the vehicles registration papers and licenses. As Shonan was driving, his license served the purpose. The police stopped me from taking photos of this place. The Jammu and Kashmir side was much better but was heavily fortified. I did not risk taking pictures.
Shonan, Chanda and Thomas wait at the dusty and filthy Pubjab police checkpost in Lakhanpur
Jammu and Kashmir toll gate in Lakhanpur
The route from Pathankot to the Jammu and Kashmir border was dusty and the road was 2-lane most of the way. It just got worse after we crossed the border. The highway was being repaired so there were several diversions. Truck traffic was heavy and we often had to share the lane with trucks from the opposite lane.
Sunset in Jammu and Kashmir
I took to the wheel and pulled Shibu in so he could sleep. Thomas and Shonan (Tom and Jerry) drove the Gypsy. It was getting dark and Patnitop was still far away. Chanda was having a tough time with the hotel folks who were rude and uncooperative. Our cell phone connections were weak and this was making it harder for us to get through to the hotel in Patnitop. This was tourist season and they didn't sound keen on holding the room for us.
Except Chanda's phone, nobody's phone connection was working. That was strange because all of us have Airtel connection. Shibu (the Arab) had his phone connection from Dubai with international roaming. His phone was showing Paktel connection (Pakistan's cellular company). It was very interesting for us because we were close to India-Pakistan border! After Paktel connection, his all SIM cards stopped working! I guess he had some 3-4 phone connections! These Arabs, I tell you! :P
Shibu's phone showing Paktel connection
Tom and Jerry in the Gypsy
Shalini has warned us against being rude to the policemen in Punjab. Point taken. Punjab police successfully eliminated terrorism from Punjab in the 80s and that seems to have scarred them for life. They are tough as nails and sport automatic weapons. I, unfortunately, extended this rule to the Jammu and Kashmir police. After all, they are fighting militants too.
So, when we were stopped at a police checkpost in Samba (a militant hot-spot), we courteously responded to the stern policeman. After what seemed an eternity, the SoB suddenly softened and asked for chai-paani (bribe.) I was shocked!! How could cops, in such sensitive areas, be like this? I changed my tone, handed him a hundred rupees, and drove away. I didn't want to sermonize on that mountain - it was desolate.
It was pitch dark now with not a soul in sight. We were supposed to bypass Jammu city and take a diversion towards Udhampur. After reaching Kishenpur, we almost lost our way due to confusing signboards. Both sides of the signboard indicated Patnitop! To make things worse, the directions and distances were different. We checked with the locals who pointed us in the right direction.
Confusing signboard - side 1
Confusing signboard - side 2
The climb was getting steeper and I was feeling sleepy. We crossed Udhampur at 10:00 PM and Patnitop was still quite far away. Chanda kept in regular touch with the hotel folks who by now had softened a bit.
They agreed to serve us dinner no matter how late we reached. I finally handed the Bolero over to Shonan and joined Thomas in the Gypsy. We reached Patnitop by 11:30 PM, but we spent another anxious 30 minutes finding the hotel, Green Top. We finally checked in at around 12:30 AM.
We were dead tired and it was very cold. When we left Delhi, we were dressed up for summer - shorts, tees and Capri! The moment we walked out of our jeeps, we were instantly frozen! It was extremely cold!
We guys got together for a round of Cognac that Shonan had brought with him. Chanda instantly went to sleep because she didn't sleep the night before! Dinner was excellent and drinks were relaxing! With these, our journey from Delhi to Patnitop ended. I liked Chanda's planning of covering the maximum distance on day one. From the next day, I knew we are going to do smaller distances and relaxed drive. :)
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Posted by CK on 7:42 AM with 1 comment
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That was a long day, surprised that you did not encounter much traffic on NH1 - it is usually congested and can take you long.
ReplyDeleteSurprised that you did not avoid Jammu by turning off NH1A at Dyala Dhak and going directly to Udhampur, you could have saved yourself at least 2 hours.
Punjab Police is bad, one of the worst in India, I always follow an aggressive strategy with them, soft talk does not help. On the other hand, J&K Police is equally corrupt, but they smile and take chai-paani from you. Every encounter I have had with J&K Police has always made me feel good how nice they were.....and poorer by at least 100 bucks!
BTW, Patnitop became well-known only after the Kashmir problems started, it was a poor surrogate for the Vale itself.
JKTDC has a nice place in Patnitop where we stayed last year.