Day 6: 6th November 2006
0800 hrs: This was really the best morning…I was just loving it…After a quick bath I was served with hot paranthas which were included in the camp package…Deepak, a caretaker there, wanted to have a test ride of the bike as he had rode every bike other than Karizma…So while I had my breakfast, Deepak got a chance to ride his “dream bike”…After the breakfast, I loaded the luggage and bade goodbye to the Thar Resort people…Now it was time to walk in the desert once again…I just wanted to have the rough n tough feeling of walking in a rain of dust with hot wind blowing…It was indeed very hot in the daytime…The Desert was so quite with only the sound of flowing wind…This mighty desert surely gives you all the thrills…
While struggling to walk on the sand dunes, I noticed some army men setting up a tent over a ‘teela’…I went there and came to know that they had some function there…They told me that I was just 20-25 km away from the Indo-Pak border and I should not go further…An officer warned me that since I was alone I would definitely be doubted and can land myself into trouble as it was a high security region…the LOC was only a few kilometers away!!…Wow! I had almost touched the Pak border!!…I went with his advise and turned back, though I seriously wanted to go further…As the officer said, if I was accompanied by some people I could have gone some 5 km more towards the border…But since I was alone, it was definitely not advisable…
1030 hrs: I took my way back to Jaisalmer city…While sitting at a very nice place on the way, a thought popped up in my mind…I just thought that a few people who inhabited the region would definitely know of a water source…So why not look out for one…When I saw a man at a distance, I just had to wave and he was eager enough to help me…He came running to me and told me that the people of that village went to a village 12 km away to bring water as there is a ‘talaab’ which is the only water source for a diameter of around 40-50 km…The talaab was not adjacent to the road, but some 4-5 km down the road on a rough track…I had no idea where it would be but after asking another man and a few wild guesses I found the rough track…After doing an off-road for sometime I finally reached the ‘talaab’ in the middle of a desert…!!
1230 hrs: Reached Jaisalmer and headed towards the fort…I kept riding the bike till I reached the highest point over a steep slope and had a ‘canon’ view of the city...In the fort, I met some Germans who were on an all India tour and also accompanied them to a nearby lassi shop…After chatting with them over a glass of damn good lassi, I moved on…
Trip Meter: 1921.3 km
I had heard of some old Havelis in Phalodi and Kheechan, on the way to Bikaner…I took the way to Kheechan which was a small village with a lot of abandoned Havelis…These Havelis were original masterpieces of the old architecture, made up of big stones and heavy iron…After a view of these havelis, I kept on riding in the outskirts of the village and finally reached a small lake where migratory birds were taking shelter…A bit of rest and it was time to move on…
Now I rode easy and totally enjoyed the desolate tract…On the way was the Bap region which was the most beautiful and isolated area on the way…I stopped at a few places in this region and it was here that I composed a song sitting at a very relaxing place and totally absorbed in myself…
1730 hrs: It had started getting dark and Bikaner was still very far…I had an idea that I would reach Bikaner at around 9 o’clock…But driving on this Highway at night was a bit tough…I was at a place where I could see the lights of a truck even 20 km away since it was barren all over…I could see the Highway moving and taking turns just by watching the queue of trucks’ lights…There was no vehicle on the Highway other than a few trucks…I finally took a halt at a dhaba and enquired about a place to stay as I was tired of the blinding lights of the trucks along with super-cold wind changing the motion of my bike…I came to know of a Dhaba where I could get a cot and a quilt on rent for the night…
2000 hrs: I quickly reached Amar Dhaba and after having some food, sat with local people and chatted for some time…Since I was very tired, I took my luggage off the bike and went to sleep…just on the brink of National Highway 15, in the middle of a desert!!
Final reading of the day: 2208.3 km
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