Saturday, December 27, 2014

Mission Kashmir 2014 - Day 08

Katra – Bhavan – Katra – Hoshiarpur – Ropar 

We had checked into Tridev when we found it to be a little better than Shradhha especially due to enclosed Parking. I had decided to take rest today and my brother had advised me to be ready by 11:30 AM – after all they had started the trek by 4PM. Today, finally, I was to be at the Wheel from Katra to Delhi. However; starting at 1PM from Katra; after the Lunch Halt at Coral River Resort on Punjab side of JK border, we decided to try the Hoshiarpur-Ropar route.

Stuck in a traffic jam in tight & narrow Hoshiarpur at 4:30 PM, we started to collectively realize we might not be able to make it to Delhi even by 2AM. By 6 PM, the fog had become so heavy on the Hoshiarpur-Ropar highway that we had decided to stay the night at Ambala.

The next 3 hours (6-9PM) proved to be a nightmare for us and the toughest driving experience for me so far in my life. The dark fog was so dense that the cars moved in queues of 6-8 with a supposedly confident driver leading the group at 20 kmh. Once in a while, a CH or a PB Car brazenly overtook the queue at a high speed. The leader surely took relief in this coup as the tedious responsibility of the new leader showed its evidence in the lost vigour in his speed. By 8:30 PM, I was so struck with horror that I declared that continuing post Ropar would be a suicide. We have to find a hotel. My brother quickly dialed an international number, followed by a national number, followed by a Ropar number and voila – our Guest House at IIT Ropar was done. My ordeal with the fog ended only when I parked inside the gate of the Guest House.

At 10PM, with the Guest House Kitchen and the Campus Cafeteria closed, all those items we had carried throughout our trip for emergency situations but never used came out of the bag. Electric Stove, Maggi packs, Cup Noodles gave us the fuel for night with the dry-fruits. Though my brother requested the Guest House Attendant to prepare paranthas for breakfast at 7AM, he also assured me that we’d move south if it was not ready.