A desert drive past Jaisalmer

Growing up, deserts have caught my fancy quiet a number of times. From movies like ‘Omar Mukhtar – lion of the desert’ to the hindi classic ‘Lamhe’ and books and stories on deserts. I had no real experience of the desert uptill now. Although I did accumulate some bookish knowledge about deserts.

Going to Jaisalmer, the essence of deserts in india and the beginning of Thar, the desert where it has never ever rained in recorded human history, has been my fantacy for long but never really got a chance.

So, when I got a call from Ability foundation to go on an assignment to Jodhpur, I grabbed it. I could always go another 3-400km from there. Jaisalmer was 300 and the India Pakistan border another 140kms.

Evening 5pm at Gurgaon I came out of the house and found the air foggy. With a 600km overnight drive ahead, I felt a little discouraged. Would have loved an easier drive. A bath and shave had me all cheered up to take on the night. Being an experienced driver in fog (I think I have seen what best fog can offer on quiet a few occasions. All my years and kilometers behind the wheel have taught me one thing “if you wannna be safe, anticipate trouble all the time, every second”. Driving is zen for me, its philosophy, its religion(just like everything else).

We started at 11Pm on 13^th Dec. With 600kms ahead of me I couldn’t avoid the night in winters(or so I thought). Onto the expressway from Gurgaon, the fog greeted me soon enough but it was more of a poorly written complaint. Though sufficient to hinder visibility at enough times. I started driving with foggy care and grabbed onto every opportunity of tailing a vehichle which could do ‘the seeing Job’ for me. Jaipur came and went, onto kishangarh and ajmer. Early morning I was nearing Beawar from where I had to leave ‘my beloved’ Delhi Mumbai National Highway 8 (the only national highway in my knowledge where you could average over 80kmph for 24hrs) and turn right to get onto uncharted road going to Jodhpur. Reaching there in morning I turned right and stopped for 4-5 cups of hot tea. Still a long way off, I was anticipating being in Jodhpur by afternoon.

We started off and climbed over a few small hills and started driving in vast sandy and bushy plains. 10-15 min and I hadnot come below 120kmph. I and Khushi together said “wow!”. It continued. I had never driven this way before. We were in Jodhpur at 9.30am (ya, you got me right).

Am not exaggerating about the road. Have a look.

The road.

On 16^th afternoon I got free from my assignment in Jodhpur by 2 Pm. My bookish knowledge told me jaisalmer coud be 300km but a local person had told me 150-175km so I was a bit relaxed. But the moment I got onto jaisalmer highway, it said 279kms. Hmmm, that would mean reaching late night. Sigh, Ok!

Driving through the dunes and sandy terrain on both sides we reached Jaisalmer well before sunset on that winter day(I hope you know what travelling 279kms in 3 hrs with a proper food break would mean). And in fact we had gained so much momentum that by the time we stopped, we were in a desert dunes campsite called ‘Sam’ 40kms ahead of Jaisalmer. Reaching at sunset.

The desert terrain.

The speedometer says 135kmph. I didn’t have to work too hard to get this picture. Though I did touch 140 too at times, I preferred staying away from 140 as that speed was making the car a little unstable.

There we are! We stopped at the campsite at Sam (pronounced like the word ‘some’). Cold desert breeze.

Our tent at the campsite.

In the cold breeze biting at the ears, this campfire was heaven.

The dancing girls. The song, music and dance evening would have been a much more haunting experience but thanks to a group of ‘indian’ tourists who preferred listening to ‘kajra re’ and ‘choli ke peechhe’ from the folk artists. Sarcasm? You bet.

The end of Gobi Desert and the beginning of Thar desert – the place of minimum rainfall in the world. They say it has never ever rained in the Thar in recorded human history.

The untamed horse meets the ship of the desert.

With the wheels of my wheelchair stuck half in sand I wonder why accessibility never strikes my mind.

Khushi enjoying the feel of the dunes.

A dinner of Rajasthani food, a night spent in the tent and a camel safari in the morning with hot breakfast and it was time to move. I wanted to go ahead and savour the desert a little more. Tanoth, a border village and temple on indo-pak border was 120kms. Again we took off and drove through beautiful desert and absolutely deserted desert roads reaching ‘Tanoth’ by early afternoon.

A deserted looking village in the desert.

The temple was in front and a border checkpost/barricade on right saying Border Post BP609 15.5kms. I wondered if we could be allowed to drive right to the border with pak. Anyways, with all the time in our hands I decided to get down and pray at the temple. Story has it that in 1965 Indo-pak war the Pakistani forces well equipped with American Paton tanks and weapons had not been able to cross this temple. It was believed that the mother Godess stopped them.

Despite Khushi’s best efforts the goat did not find the camera more interesting than the food packet in her hand.

We came out of the temple and I shifted into the car. I started driving across the check point, the senty mumbled something and I nodded, he let us pass. I stopped by the roadside, adjusted my feet and ya, we were going to the border. We took off again and drove the deserted 15kms till we could see the border fencing with a permanently closed black iron gate. The last 50mtrs were too sandy and I doubted if the car would take it or if it would get stuck. I decided to give it a try as khushi decided to walk to the fence. The car got stuck, the left wheel badly. But I knew we could get it out.

The stuck car and the border fence in background.

Here we were stuck in sand 50mtrs from the hostile border with no possible help to come our way except a possible military rescue. No the accelleration didn’t get the car out, in fact it dug deeper so I immediately stopped. Neverthless, we posed for photographs with our accomplishment. Once Khushi and Mahesh my assistant had had a good look across the border from the fence we started working on the car. Agenda number one, collect and put bricks and stones under wheels. Done, didn’t work, gave me smoking tires. Agenda two, dig out the sand. Done, didn’t work either, left wheel was too deep in. Agenda three, get out the hydraulic jack (yes, I carry it)and lift the left side up and stuff stones under it. Done and the car was out. And we were on our way back.

The left wheel was throwing sand. In cars rear wheels are not driving wheels.

The gate to Pakistan. The sand looked pretty much the same on both sides of the fence.

Drive back from border.

Returning back. There was a little hungama at the checkpost as to how we could go to the border without permission. It seems even the proper army vehiles going there need to have permission and orders. Well, my defence was simple ‘you didn’t stop me’ and no sign says ‘no entry’ or something like that. It solved the issue. They completed the formalities for having given me the permission to visit the border after I had come back :-) . I wasn’t complaining.

We reached jaisalmer back before sunset and were actually able to see the jaisalmer fort also.

The small boy Laakhaa(I like the name) couldn’t give up his frown despite khushi’s intimacy.

A dancing Laakhaa

Seeing us get down from the car and we evidently appeared ‘indian’ tourists these kids doubtfully, hesistantly started singing ‘kajra re’. Khushi said ‘no, we don’t want ‘kajra re’ we want rajasthani song’. And before she had said the word ‘song’, the boys started off with a melodious, fast, rythmic rajsthani folk song. It was a treat for the ears.

(ever since I got back, whenever I close my eyes I see desert and dunes and flying sand. Finally, I know where to go if there is no space left in the cities.)