Of Bhutan and Dzhongs

taco2go

Explorer
Not my trip- I wish it was.
Omair kindly gave me his permission to post some pictures from his trip this month, to this once fiercely isolated buddhist kingdom, now opening it's doors to the world. A gem of an overlanding destination in S.E. Asia if there ever was one.

One of our own stalwarts, the Hackneys, checked it off their "been there" list in 2004 (On Royal Enfields no less, I think).

Omair is a former classmate of mine, now an accomplished writer living in New Delhi, who purloined his father's Mahindra and point and shoot camera, and set off on this jaunt - makes me wish I had the time and money to buy a plane ticket to Thimphu- it actually has an international airport now!

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Treacherous landslides, 23k plus-peaks, and remote monasteries and a culture that is cautiously revealing it's ancient heritage.
He wrote this after a particularly bad day on the road-
The rains have battered the mountains until they crumble and bleed in rockfall and landslides; nor will the fog, let things be, using the cover of the rain to paw across the hillside with a lecher's intent. Only madmen ply this road, their hands clutching steering wheels in ecstasy of cold and fear, and I think that if my death is written anywhere, it is here, it is here....

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1leglance

2007 Expedition Trophy Champion, Overland Certifie
Wow, just plain wow...
The pics are cool but I like his writting even more.
Thanks and pass on the thanks to him also.
 

haven

Expedition Leader
My understanding is that foreigners are prohibited to travel independently in Bhutan. Did Omair have a Bhutanese guide along for the ride? Or is it just westerners who have to be accompanied by a guide?

Chip Haven
 

taco2go

Explorer
As far as I know, residents in the Indian subcontinent after visa approval, are allowed semi-independant travel permits (read custom designed travel plan) - all westerners also require visas and a pre packaged travel itinerary as well- I believe there is some leeway on the formality of a guided tour. Everybody has to go through the BTCL (Bhutan Tourism Corporation Limited) 2-3 individuals better than single (not usually allowed- not sure what Omair did here) better than large group. They are making a concerted and cautious effort to promote responsible tourism.
More information at their official vistors website. http://www.kingdomofbhutan.com/visitor/visitor_.html
I'll try and get more specifics on vehicle dependant travel.
 

OmairAhmad

New member
Hello, hello

Hey Joash, long time... and very cool that you're on this portal. A kind of backgrounder on the pics. I've been working on a book on Bhutan for the last couple of years or so, tracing its emergence into the world from the 17th century (when it was founded), through the last forty years (during the rule of the fourth king), and the last three years or so as the country has gone from a monarchy to a democracy -- pushed through by the monarchy no less, largely against the wish of the populace.

It's a fascinating country, completely mountainous, only a few roads, a population of less than 700,000 (between India and China which have populations of more than a billion each), a history of war but also more than a century and a half of peace. It's the only Tibetan Buddhist kingdom still independent (Ladakh was swallowed up by Kashmiri rulers a century or so ago, China took over Tibet in 1959, and India gulped down Sikkim in 1975) and trying to somehow keep its traditions as well as develop openings to the outside world.

India is its closest political, trade and other stuff partner -- we built their roads and give them close to $2 bn in grants, loans and aid a year, much of this is investment in their huge thermoelectrical plants, they have a lot of rivers and India needs a lot of cheap electricity, which they sell to us. A spin off is that Indians are allowed to travel relatively freely (you still need permits for pretty much everything! A pain.) Non Indian tourists have to spend around $200 a day to be in the country (this includes hotel bills and all, and is largely a way to keep the small population being overwhelmed by hippies, as happened in Nepal next door) and have to have a guide along.

Hope that explains some of the stuff... but amazing ride, I just drove from the west to the east, and then north east, of the country, before exiting from its south east.

Recommended reading: "Geography of Bliss" by Eric Weiner. Only one chapter is dedicated to Bhutan, but the whole book is great.

cheers,
Omair
 

taco2go

Explorer
Hey Omair- thanks for taking the time to check in. Congratulations on on the Man shortlist! And thanks for letting me post your pictures- this forum is a neat little effort, with an amazing spectrum of members. The forum founders also birthed a fledgeling (but totally unique and awesome- running out of adjectives) publication called the Overland Journal that you can check out at:
http://www.overlandjournal.com/
Last issue had a photo journal of a couple's trip up to an ITBP post North of Uttrakhand.

So how did your vehicle hold up? As I understand, there is only one road entering Bhutan? Mahindra is getting some attention here in NA due to the possibility of the diesel pick up being sold here next year. Totally wierd. How did it fare along the notorious road to Bumthang- I'm assuming the landslide was in that area?-
Thanks again for sharing your pics-

- have you done any trips to the Kargil/leh Ladhakh region? Hear it has opened up quite a bit to overland travel as well, and is probably a more feasible goal for me.
 

OmairAhmad

New member
Sorry for taking so long to reply, been running around chasing my tail since I got back. The Mahindra held up all right, but Bhutan wasn't the issue. I drove from eastern UP (Gorakhpur), through Bihar, to West Bengal and entered from the border town Jaigaon / Phuntsholing. There are three overland entry points, the others being at Geylephug and Samdrup Jhonkar. Anyway the roads were good, ok, and bloody awful. The nuts on the spare tyre managed to unscrew themselves, that's how bad it was in parts.

Bhutan, landslides included, isn't too bad. They are very quick on clearing landslides, and although there are parts of the road permanently a bit run down (every time they repair it, there's a landslide soon after) it's fairly OK. Mind you there are few railings or safety barriers, people at times drive like maniacs, and there can be surprises, but largely good. The Mahindra threw up a lot of smoke, and I need to get both the fuel injection pump and the engine checked out, but it is a nine year old vehicle, with a Peugeot engine.

I did Delhi-Jammu-Sringar-Kargil-Leh-Manali-Delhi a few years ago, same Mahindra, good fun. Easy drive except for the road from Leh to Manali, which was pretty bad.

cheers,
Omair
 

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