Round the Country in My Manza. 5000+ Kms in 7 Days, 9 States
- Thread Starter anisghos
- Start date
Thread Starter
#77
I can very well imagine that this sure would have been a helluva drive. I must congratulate for the courage and efforts. Your Manza also deserves a special mention for serving well throughout the trip, which I can see in a few videos. This travelogue should set as a good example of encouragement for those who wish to perform such trips in future. Just keep it flowing. ![[thumbsup]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Thumbs%20Up.png "Thumbs Up [thumbsup]")
Drive Safe,
350Z
Drive Safe,
350Z
Thread Starter
#79
Thread Starter
#80
Thread Starter
#82
Thread Starter
#83
We were driving through the Sambalpur link road and the scenic beauty was very good. The ring road passes by the Hirakud reservoir and at that point of time the sun was slowly moving towards the west. The road was narrow and not in excellent condition was very much drivable. I did not find any lorries, trucks in the ring road,it was pretty empty as i found that the lorries and trucks were plying through the main road within the city which was much wider.
Before that let tell you something about my GPS. So far my GPS had showed me the routes and directions exactly. I had the total route in my mind and in my logs and maps but i carried my GPS for realtime reference and it did its job very nicely. I was using Sygic Mobile Maps 10 , which uses mapmyindia for maps and it was excellent. I thought of checking its accuracy by going through very narrow lanes moving in zig zag directions around the ring road to check if it was showing me the exact routes/direction, and believe me or not it showed me the directions to the point. I loved it. So, from my end, go for Sygic. Yippeee !!![[clap]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Clap.gif "Clap [clap]")
After spending around 15 mins or so with the GPS, suddenly it came to my mind that i still had around 300 kms to cover by today and the roads ahead were not in its great condition and my eyes had already started drooping very badly. My partners also had started to feel the after effects of the great lunch we had. I was really going mad at myself for feasting on the biryani when i knew i had to drive. All because of of the great LUNCH we had, was what i was cursing. But to no avail, it was getting impossible to keep my eyes open at that point of time and i did not want to compromise on the timeline. After we woke up the day before its been almost 32 hours we had not slept till now as last day i woke up at 8 am , went to work, came back , got prepared and moved out with the drive. So no time to sleep and we wont be sleeping before Bhillai, come what may was what we decided. Had smoked 2-3 ciggs continuously, if that helped, but in vein..
Lets have some pictures of the Sambalpur ring road and the reservoir first after which i will continue with our sleep story..![[:D]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Big%20Smile.gif "Big Smile [:D]")
Pictures continued..
Before that let tell you something about my GPS. So far my GPS had showed me the routes and directions exactly. I had the total route in my mind and in my logs and maps but i carried my GPS for realtime reference and it did its job very nicely. I was using Sygic Mobile Maps 10 , which uses mapmyindia for maps and it was excellent. I thought of checking its accuracy by going through very narrow lanes moving in zig zag directions around the ring road to check if it was showing me the exact routes/direction, and believe me or not it showed me the directions to the point. I loved it. So, from my end, go for Sygic. Yippeee !!
After spending around 15 mins or so with the GPS, suddenly it came to my mind that i still had around 300 kms to cover by today and the roads ahead were not in its great condition and my eyes had already started drooping very badly. My partners also had started to feel the after effects of the great lunch we had. I was really going mad at myself for feasting on the biryani when i knew i had to drive. All because of of the great LUNCH we had, was what i was cursing. But to no avail, it was getting impossible to keep my eyes open at that point of time and i did not want to compromise on the timeline. After we woke up the day before its been almost 32 hours we had not slept till now as last day i woke up at 8 am , went to work, came back , got prepared and moved out with the drive. So no time to sleep and we wont be sleeping before Bhillai, come what may was what we decided. Had smoked 2-3 ciggs continuously, if that helped, but in vein..
Lets have some pictures of the Sambalpur ring road and the reservoir first after which i will continue with our sleep story..
Pictures continued..
Last edited:
Thread Starter
#84
Thread Starter
#85
After taking the left turn, there are 2 bridges to be crossed, one is the Mahanadi bridge and the second one being the PC bridge. These bridges were built long back it seemed and not wide. Roads were not in very good condition and were patchy. Each and every kilometer passed and it seemed as if we were driving for hours and only crossed one kilometer. The lorry traffic was also heavy. There were encroachments into the roads as well. After a certain stretch i saw that a moped overtook me and i was driving behind a truck in slow motion for a long time. Sleep was taking over me and it was not possible to restrict myself and the scenic beauty around was not exciting either which was aggravating the dullness within the box as well. Tried almost everything i could to shrug off my sleep but could not. Looked into my maps and the signboards and saw that Bargarh was approaching and we would reach there in sometime. We crossed the railway bridge and were into the Bargarh bypass. The bypass was crowded as well and i felt we have to do something to get this sleep of us..
Lets have some pictures till Bargarh and then see what happened next..
From the last picture, Bargarh was another 10 mins drive, the batteries of the camera dried up and suddenly stopped working. We had taken backup batteries but the camera refused to accept.
Lets have some pictures till Bargarh and then see what happened next..
From the last picture, Bargarh was another 10 mins drive, the batteries of the camera dried up and suddenly stopped working. We had taken backup batteries but the camera refused to accept.
Thread Starter
#86
Photography was not something which was going through my mind at that time. Took a short unplanned break in Bargarh as i was not driving in my full senses at that point of time which could have been disastrous.
I told my partners that this 10 mins is the last break before Bhillai and they are free to do anything to get back fresh. I parked my car in safe place, emptied a ltr bottle of water on my face, lit a smoke and went for a brisk walk (almost a jog) and finally it helped. In that time i came back after walking around 1.5-2 kms. I was sweating a bit but felt fresh. Saw my partners waiting for me. Couple of chit chats, each one of us trying to encourage others and we were moving again.
In such long drives if it is a solo drive one might get a bit bored sometimes or there are phases of dull moments and the monotony sometimes gets on to you, which might be for any reason. We can plan everything but sometimes things might go out of plan but here in this case managed somehow to keep us on track.
Bargarh to Sohela was slow paced, traffic was high and 4 laning was in progress in between and there were few diversions as well. We crossed Sohela around 6.30pm. Once we crossed Sohela, the truck traffic increased and we could not speed up. Such traffic continued till Orissa/ Chattisgarh border after Saraipalli. The OR/CH border was again in a mess. Huge lorry traffic on both sides and very little space to move. Got stuck in front of a truck which suddenly started reversing. He could have easily let me pass and then do what he wanted to do and alas all communication to them fell to deaf ears. Lost 15 mins there and when he let me pass by he was in same position where he began. Did not understand what he really tried to do.
After the OR/CH border truck traffic drastically reduced. But from thereon roads were very rough and patchy till Arang. Suddenly we entered a stretch of dense jungles and the roads curving along. With not much traffic in that stretch we had a eerie feeling and i remembered Kumar Sir's advice that do not stop in that region until and unless absolutely necessary. That border section had naxal as well as dacoity issues, and frankly speaking those roads were not that great that one would enjoy but driving through that road after dark is definitely a great experience. Couple of time, it happened like locals waving their torches asking us to stop and our heart suddenly beating faster thinking about all other possibilities,but while going past them understood that they were asking for a lift. I said sorry to myself but i could not take the risk of stopping there.
Sleep was something which we did not want to remember and we calculated small milestones at a time and that really helped; as in such roads one cannot do high speeds and if you are always thinking when we would reach our destination, again you would be demoralized keeping in mind the fact that we had been driving for so long with no sleep for almost around 36 hrs now and physically and mentally we had started to tire. But i feel everything is in one's mind. Toughness or weakness, everything is in your mind. There is nothing called impossible in my book. I knew if we could reach Mumbai in time our journey after that would be much easier. The challenge was till Mumbai and this is not a easy stretch.
We crossed Basna around 8. Facilities were bare minimum in these areas and in between towns. Basna to Pithora was again a dull period for us. Trucks, trucks and trucks and very rough roads and very few private cars plying. As kilometers passed we were slowly approaching Arang. We crossed Arang around 10 pm. We were very happy once we crossed the dysfunctional Arang toll as we were expecting 4 laned roads very soon. And to our joy few kilometers after the toll around Reewa we were zooming past the 4 laned roads. It was like we were in Paradise. Saw my partners somewhat dozing off, but i did not mind then, its been a long long day. We crossed by Raipur bypass and the Raipur Toll Plaza and were zooming towards Bhillai. Roads were empty and my Manza was gunning down his horsepowers and we were running 120 +. I was getting a bit impatient then. Made a short call to the hotel that we had crossed Raipur and ordered our dinner as their restaurant was about to close.
After very little searching and the hotel guy being with us on call we reached out hotel.
So we covered a distance of around 1028 kilometers from Kolkata to Bhillai in a days travel non stop. We were very happy.
Hotel details in Bhillai: Hotel Shakun, Contact person name is Surendra Kumar and contact number is 09229233945. Hotel good enough to spend a night. Food is also good and also accepts credit cards. Parking is in front of the hotel beside the owners car.![[;)]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Wink.gif "Wink [;)]")
After that i guess every one know what was going to happen. Checked in, made some mandatory calls back home to family, copied the photos to my laptop, put the batteries for charging, had dinner, put alarm in all our mobiles and at around 1.30 crashed for the day and in seconds, might be before that even we were in some other world.![[sleep]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Sleep.gif "Sleep [sleep]")
Plan for next day :
Wake up at 5 and leave by 5.30. Destination Mumbai. Around 1200 kms to travel in a single day and another tough challenge in our hand. Keep reading and stay tuned as the story unfolds..
I told my partners that this 10 mins is the last break before Bhillai and they are free to do anything to get back fresh. I parked my car in safe place, emptied a ltr bottle of water on my face, lit a smoke and went for a brisk walk (almost a jog) and finally it helped. In that time i came back after walking around 1.5-2 kms. I was sweating a bit but felt fresh. Saw my partners waiting for me. Couple of chit chats, each one of us trying to encourage others and we were moving again.
In such long drives if it is a solo drive one might get a bit bored sometimes or there are phases of dull moments and the monotony sometimes gets on to you, which might be for any reason. We can plan everything but sometimes things might go out of plan but here in this case managed somehow to keep us on track.
Bargarh to Sohela was slow paced, traffic was high and 4 laning was in progress in between and there were few diversions as well. We crossed Sohela around 6.30pm. Once we crossed Sohela, the truck traffic increased and we could not speed up. Such traffic continued till Orissa/ Chattisgarh border after Saraipalli. The OR/CH border was again in a mess. Huge lorry traffic on both sides and very little space to move. Got stuck in front of a truck which suddenly started reversing. He could have easily let me pass and then do what he wanted to do and alas all communication to them fell to deaf ears. Lost 15 mins there and when he let me pass by he was in same position where he began. Did not understand what he really tried to do.
After the OR/CH border truck traffic drastically reduced. But from thereon roads were very rough and patchy till Arang. Suddenly we entered a stretch of dense jungles and the roads curving along. With not much traffic in that stretch we had a eerie feeling and i remembered Kumar Sir's advice that do not stop in that region until and unless absolutely necessary. That border section had naxal as well as dacoity issues, and frankly speaking those roads were not that great that one would enjoy but driving through that road after dark is definitely a great experience. Couple of time, it happened like locals waving their torches asking us to stop and our heart suddenly beating faster thinking about all other possibilities,but while going past them understood that they were asking for a lift. I said sorry to myself but i could not take the risk of stopping there.
Sleep was something which we did not want to remember and we calculated small milestones at a time and that really helped; as in such roads one cannot do high speeds and if you are always thinking when we would reach our destination, again you would be demoralized keeping in mind the fact that we had been driving for so long with no sleep for almost around 36 hrs now and physically and mentally we had started to tire. But i feel everything is in one's mind. Toughness or weakness, everything is in your mind. There is nothing called impossible in my book. I knew if we could reach Mumbai in time our journey after that would be much easier. The challenge was till Mumbai and this is not a easy stretch.
We crossed Basna around 8. Facilities were bare minimum in these areas and in between towns. Basna to Pithora was again a dull period for us. Trucks, trucks and trucks and very rough roads and very few private cars plying. As kilometers passed we were slowly approaching Arang. We crossed Arang around 10 pm. We were very happy once we crossed the dysfunctional Arang toll as we were expecting 4 laned roads very soon. And to our joy few kilometers after the toll around Reewa we were zooming past the 4 laned roads. It was like we were in Paradise. Saw my partners somewhat dozing off, but i did not mind then, its been a long long day. We crossed by Raipur bypass and the Raipur Toll Plaza and were zooming towards Bhillai. Roads were empty and my Manza was gunning down his horsepowers and we were running 120 +. I was getting a bit impatient then. Made a short call to the hotel that we had crossed Raipur and ordered our dinner as their restaurant was about to close.
After very little searching and the hotel guy being with us on call we reached out hotel.
So we covered a distance of around 1028 kilometers from Kolkata to Bhillai in a days travel non stop. We were very happy.
Hotel details in Bhillai: Hotel Shakun, Contact person name is Surendra Kumar and contact number is 09229233945. Hotel good enough to spend a night. Food is also good and also accepts credit cards. Parking is in front of the hotel beside the owners car.
After that i guess every one know what was going to happen. Checked in, made some mandatory calls back home to family, copied the photos to my laptop, put the batteries for charging, had dinner, put alarm in all our mobiles and at around 1.30 crashed for the day and in seconds, might be before that even we were in some other world.
Plan for next day :
Wake up at 5 and leave by 5.30. Destination Mumbai. Around 1200 kms to travel in a single day and another tough challenge in our hand. Keep reading and stay tuned as the story unfolds..
Thread Starter
#88
Before i proceed further, let us now have a look on the essentials i carried with me..
Medicines:
The following are what i used, not necessary that one has to follow these. You can carry with you your favorite brands.
Volini Spay - for sprains
Sensur - headache
Calpol - paracetamol
Norflox TZ - loose motion/stomach infection
Ondem - Vomitting tendency
Gelusil - Antacid
Vitazyme - Digestive Enzyme
Metrogyl - Stomach issues
Cyclopam - Paracetamol stomach ache
Combiflam - Analgesic
Burnol/Betadine/SilverX - Burns and cuts
Dettol/Savlon - Antiseptic
Band Aid
Cotton Wool
Cotton crepe bandage
Rantac
Coffee - helps in loose motion
Continued..
Medicines:
The following are what i used, not necessary that one has to follow these. You can carry with you your favorite brands.
Volini Spay - for sprains
Sensur - headache
Calpol - paracetamol
Norflox TZ - loose motion/stomach infection
Ondem - Vomitting tendency
Gelusil - Antacid
Vitazyme - Digestive Enzyme
Metrogyl - Stomach issues
Cyclopam - Paracetamol stomach ache
Combiflam - Analgesic
Burnol/Betadine/SilverX - Burns and cuts
Dettol/Savlon - Antiseptic
Band Aid
Cotton Wool
Cotton crepe bandage
Rantac
Coffee - helps in loose motion
Continued..
Thread Starter
#89
Misc but important..
Matches/Lighter
Laptop with charger and accessories
Handycam with charger and accessories
Mobile charger, mobile usb
Camera charger, camera usb
External hard drive
Gems clips
Stepler
Swiss knife
Scissors
Pencil Batteries
Scribbing pad/pen
Deosprays(If you use![[:)]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Smile.gif "Smile [:)]")
)
Tissue papers/wet tissues/Hand freshners, hand sanitizer
Paper soaps/Liquid soaps
Good night liquid
Mosquito repellant coils
Electric flask/Thermos flask
Paper cups
Paper plates
Napthalene balls
Hit/Mortein spray
Umbrella
Old newspaper sheets
Car cloths
Shaving kit
Small bucket
Collins (very helpful for cleaning the screens)
Matches/Lighter
Laptop with charger and accessories
Handycam with charger and accessories
Mobile charger, mobile usb
Camera charger, camera usb
External hard drive
Gems clips
Stepler
Swiss knife
Scissors
Pencil Batteries
Scribbing pad/pen
Deosprays(If you use
)Tissue papers/wet tissues/Hand freshners, hand sanitizer
Paper soaps/Liquid soaps
Good night liquid
Mosquito repellant coils
Electric flask/Thermos flask
Paper cups
Paper plates
Napthalene balls
Hit/Mortein spray
Umbrella
Old newspaper sheets
Car cloths
Shaving kit
Small bucket
Collins (very helpful for cleaning the screens)
Continued..
Thread Starter
#90
Some Foodie items which can keep you engaged while driving and also keep away the elephants in your stomach..
I believe in carrying certain amount of items to eat with me so that you can have the liberty of choosing your place to have your meal rather than rush to any place you get just because one cannot get rid of the hunger pangs at that point of time. It also acts as a backup and also saves a lot of time as one does not need to stop multiples times while driving..Helped me immensely in my recent trip.
Apples
Oranges
Other fruits
Badams, nuts
Raisins
Buscuits(Diff types)
Cakes
Chips
Chocolates
Cheese slices/spread
Jam
Alpenliebe
Mint Fresh
Bhujia
Moong Dal
Glucon C/D
Chewing Gums/CenterFresh ( Thebest sleep killer).
Tea bag
Boiled eggs
Breads
Salt
Enough water from home. I carried 20 lts from home and filled up in night stays. Helps in saving some money and saves the environment of littered plastics.
Continued..
I believe in carrying certain amount of items to eat with me so that you can have the liberty of choosing your place to have your meal rather than rush to any place you get just because one cannot get rid of the hunger pangs at that point of time. It also acts as a backup and also saves a lot of time as one does not need to stop multiples times while driving..Helped me immensely in my recent trip.
Apples
Oranges
Other fruits
Badams, nuts
Raisins
Buscuits(Diff types)
Cakes
Chips
Chocolates
Cheese slices/spread
Jam
Alpenliebe
Mint Fresh
Bhujia
Moong Dal
Glucon C/D
Chewing Gums/CenterFresh ( Thebest sleep killer
). Tea bag
Boiled eggs
Breads
Salt
Enough water from home. I carried 20 lts from home and filled up in night stays. Helps in saving some money and saves the environment of littered plastics.
Continued..