With summers peaking in NCR, Wifey and I decided to drive to Manali for an impromptu trip over the long weekend in April
BHPian saurabh89 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:
Started post midnight on Thursday night, took breaks at Murthal, then Haveli (before rupnagar) and reached Manali by 11:30 am. The traffic on Chd highway was annoying to say the least with continuous truck traffic through the night. Have been driving all these years on this highway and every time I am further disappointed with the increasing menace. Through the hills, 16/21 tunnels are now operational (if I recall correctly) and it’s a cakewalk until Pandoh.
We had lunch at one of our fav restaurants in Manali (Kyaroo House) and decided to crash for a few hours. Evening was lovely relishing trout delicacies at Johnsons!
I was particularly excited for Saturday morning with Atal Tunnel on the cards. I had to turn back 900 mts before Atal Tunnel few years ago due to a jam and this time the plan was start early (8 am) from Manali to beat the tourist traffic. We reached the south portal by 9:30 am, and after few mandatory clicks at the entrance we made way towards Sissu. The 12-15 mins drive through the 9.5 kms tunnel kept me wondering at the engineering marvel built by GOI / BRO.
Here’s the car with north portal in the background
On our way back we saw a jam of over 15 kms on the other side and thanked our decision to start early. Practically, the roads were chocked after Solang. Afternoon was a breeze enjoying majestic views of the meadows from The corner house restaurant at Mall Road and some fantastic coffee at the Fat Plate
Saw the newly launched Toyota Land Cruiser 300 GR-S with PB registration parked there and couldn’t take my eyes off the beauty!
The drive back on Sunday was eventless with sad traffic post Ambala until Delhi.
Overall, the odo now stands at 45k and I’m happy with the way the machine is performing.
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