JEEP WHITE SAND TRAILS - THE WHITE DESERT ADVENTURE

So we were here.. Concept Jeep, Ahmedabad. Me and my friend Kamlesh had driven 450 kms. the previous day to reach Ahmedabad from Nasik to participate in Jeep White Sand Trails. This was my first long drive with my Jeep Compass Limited Plus - 4X2 model.

That's me on the left and Kamlesh on the right

Jeep Trails are 2-3 days adventure drives arranged by Jeep India. We were participating in the Jeep trails drive to Rann of Kutch in Gujarat. The Rann of Kutch is a salt marshy land in the Thar Desert in the Kutch district of Gujarat and is famous for its white salty desert sand and is reputed to be the largest salt desert in the world.

ROK is located in North-West Gujarat, bordering Pakistan border

Our driving route from Nashik - ROK and back.. approx. 2000 kms. in total

The flag off for the Jeep White Sands Trails was from the showroom in Ahmedabad. Many  jeeps were already lined up at the showroom when we reached there at 07:00 am on a crisp Friday morning. After quick introductions and a cup of coffee, we were ready to leave. The excitement of the drive in a convoy was building. The large Wrangler parked at the entrance was the perfect lead car. 

After the customary group photo, we got into our jeeps and started our drive. Our convoy consisted of a lovely red colour Wrangler driven by a family from Bangalore and about 15 Compass. There were also a couple of Compass from the company along with 02 other Wranglers. Jeep India also provided technical support throughout the drive as 04 engineers from Concept Ahmedabad joined us in their Compass. Although we left as a convoy, soon we were on our own, thanks to the traffic and different driving styles. Our frequent stops for photographs didn't help with our speed either :)

Our first stop was at a highway restaurant 'Honest'. It's a large chain of highway restaurants in Gujarat. Breakfast consisted of poha, dhokla and fafada (always have local food.. that's the best way to understand the culture and taste of a place).

After a sumptuous breakfast, we started on the second leg of the journey. This time we were 4 cars together and we proceeded forward together. About 2 hours into the journey, we met the other cars, which had stopped at a scenic location for a group photo-op. 

We made good time as we proceeded ahead on silky smooth roads and soon we were close to Bhuj, the largest city near Rann of Kutch. We tanked up our Jeep as there are few petrol pumps in the Rann and those too are 25-30 kms. away from Tent City. 

Enroute, we stopped for lunch at a local restaurant 'Jalebi'. This place is just before entering Bhuj city. It was a traditional Gujarati thali restaurant and we feasted to our hearts content. The food was simple but satisfactory.

Then it was time for our final leg of the journey to Tent City in Rann of Kutch. It was about 70 kms. drive. The road is straight as an arrow and we had an amazing time driving over this stretch. 

We arrived at the tent city at 03:30 pm. Many of the other cars had driven directly to the tent city, without stopping for lunch. So we were amongst the last of the cars to arrive. Special thanks to the Jeep team, who were waiting for us at the entrance. We proceeded to the registration area. After some quick documentation and the all-important stamp on the Jeep passport, we went to our tent. 

The Jeep drove beautifully on this leg of the trip. The road noise is non-existent, the comfort was superb and I drove 450 kms. without any strain or tiredness, even with a manual transmission.

Jeep had booked our stay in the 'C' unit of the tent city. These are the best tents in the city and are also centrally located. They come with a/c, an attached washroom with shower, hot water and even a sitting area. These tents are as good as any hotel room.

The tent unit manager Ved Joshi was amazing. He were always only a call away and answered all questions, resolved any issues and him and his counterpart were present 24X7. Truly amazing service by the housekeeping team.

After some time to relax and unwind, we headed over for the event briefing. There are golf carts or cycles available free of charge, to move inside the tent city. Or else you can just walk.

The briefing was quick and we were updated with the schedule for the 02 days. We were amazed and excited to hear that the Jeep team had actually got permission for us to visit the Line of Control (LOC) at the India-Pakistan border. All other activities faded in comparison as this is something that civilians can never do.

The briefing by Mr. Nikhil Jaspal sir underway

The briefing was followed up with some free time to enjoy the tent city. We used it in exploring the city. It's amazing to know that this tent city, which can accommodate 4000 people at a time, is put up only for 4 months in a year, during the Rann Utsav from November to February. Then the entire city is taken down. It's a herculean task for sure.

Spectacular sunset

Soon, it was time for the evening festivities. There was a traditional musical evening planned along with a dancing camel. This was something that I had to see. We gathered together at the outdoor arena reserved only for us Jeep folks, but soon we realised that the festivities were taken over by the off-road track made at the back of the arena. We all lined up to have a go in the Wrangler and the Trailhawk.

Pic Credit- Jeep India

Pic Credit- Jeep India

The traditional musicians and the camel had to wait for their turn.. after all we are Jeepers at heart :)

But the long day, which started early morning in Ahmedabad was taking it's toll. We decided to finish dinner and hit the sack early.

The next day, we were all in our cars by 08:00 am, excited to head out for the adventure. This was the main day for which we had driven a long way. We started in convoy and headed towards India Bridge, which is the last bridge before the Pakistan border. The drive was beautiful. The sun was just rising, the weather was glorious  and the road was straight as an arrow.. definitely my best drive in the entire trip.

As beautiful as it gets

We reached India bridge in about 30 mins. Now.. India bridge and beyond is a military sensitive area. You have to get permission from the Collector's office in Bhuj to enter India bridge. Thanks to arrangements made by Jeep India, we were waived on by from the check-post before the bridge.  Once we crossed the bridge, we halted at the BSF (Border Security Force) check-post. We had to deposit all our mobiles, cameras, dash cams etc. No photography was allowed beyond this point. So no pics to post for this part of the trip. A short briefing followed, wherein we were told to be careful and not stop on our own. We were also informed that the India Bridge is made in a way that it can be blown up by explosives in a very short duration, in case it is required to stop the enemy during war.  

From here we headed to Bedia. There is a small temple of Lord Hanuman there. It was about 35-40 kms. drive. But there was no road. Only large defence and construction trucks use this path, so it was quite an arduous task to drive over it. But the Compass did very well and went over all types of terrains including potholes, humps, dirt and even the salt plains in some areas without breaking a sweat.

After about an hour of off-roading we reached Bedia. There is a helipad there, which doubled as a parking for our Jeeps. The BSF team was very warm and welcomed us with smiles. The Commander was also present to meet us and we had an engaging interaction with them. The BSF photographer took pictures for us, and luckily they agreed to share the non-sensitive pictures with us.

The Jeep team with the BSF officers

Bedia temple has an interesting story. In 1971, after the Indo-Pakistan war, a unit of the Indian army was returning back into India from Pakistan, where they had advanced during the war. It was late evening and the unit heard a call "Mujhe bhi le chalo" (Take me with you). They searched everywhere but didn't find any person. however, they did come across a broken Hanuman temple with a statue in it. So they brought the statue back with them. The unit took a break for the night about 2 kms. from the border. In the morning, no one was able to move the statue. The statue is still in the same place, 45 years later.

After the interaction with the BSF, we visited a couple of bunkers located close to Bedia. These are used only during war time and were empty. But standing inside the bare bones building, only with small windows and silence for company, you realise the tough job of an army officer.

We also got to walk onto the Rann of Kutch. This part of the ROK extends from India into Pakistan. It's pure white and we were probably the few, if not the first civilians to walk onto these.

Proud moment to stand with our National flag and it's guardians at the border

How could we leave without a picture with our Jeep :)

After this, it was time for the highlight of the event. Visit to the Line of Control (LOC). It was about 2 kms. away form the temple. But only 10 people in 02 cars could visit there, in order not to raise any alarm bells on the Pakistani side. While a group headed onto the LOC, we were treated to hot tea and pakodas, prepared by the BSF team especially for us. Their warmth and caring attitude is amazing to see.

Kamlesh and I were in the last group that visit the LOC. Due to odd number of people, we even got to take our Compass to the LOC. What a glorious moment!! Seeing the Jeep parked alongside the barbed wire fence dividing the two countries gave me chills. This was a once in a lifetime moment, which will be cherished by me forever.

We got to meet a BSF officer and we chatted with him for more than 30 minutes. He gave us many details about how the schedule works in the BSF and how they spend their days in guarding our borders. We learnt that the job of protecting the border is this part of India is with the BSF. The army is located about 6 hrs. away from the actual border. They advance to the border only in case of war, and the BSF moves back at such time.

He also told us that the border fence starts at a place called Sir Creek, which is around 100 kms. south of ROK. The fence extends non-stop from Sir Creek all the way to Kashmir. It's amazing to see how the fence has been made and how it is maintained.

Soon it was time to leave, as we were the last group. We drove back the same way and made our way to "War Memorial". This is a statue made to honour the martyrs of BSF.

After this we made our way back to India bridge and collected our cameras and phones. Then we drove back out over India Bridge.

Our lunch was planned in a resort on the way to Magnetic Hill. The owner of the resort is also a Jeeper and he was there to personally welcome us. Kudos to Jeep India to find likeminded Jeepers in every corner of the country :) After a good lunch, we all decided to head to the Rann for taking pictures, as the sun was setting and we would lose light soon.  

The Jeeps lining up to leave from the resort

After a drive of about 20 minutes, we reached a secluded part of the Rann on which we were able to drive our Jeeps. We got to get some good photographs with the sunset in the Rann. 

We also got to behave like kids and do donuts on the soft sand :)

It was long drive of about 30 kms. back to the tent city. It was pitch dark, lit up only by the 30 odd Jeeps driving along the straight and smooth road. I loved this drive too. Loud music, sunroof open & cool wind in our hair. What's not to love :)

After returning back to the tent city, we freshened up and made our way to the Gala dinner. Jeep India had again gone the extra mile and arranged for drinks and non-veg food for us. After a couple of days, these were much appreciated by all of us. There was a wonderful singer who entertained us with his beautiful melodies and many of our participants too lent their voice to make the evening complete.

Jeep India had announced awards categories for pictures taken during the drive. Wonder of wonders, I got the #MyJeep award for the pic with most number of likes on Instagram :)

Anand Iyer of Jeep India giving me the prize :)

YAY!!

After the lovely end to the day, we crashed into our beds with dreams filled with our experiences of the day.

The next day we met everyone at breakfast and departed immediately after, since we had a lot of distance to cover. We left with a sense of accomplishment, having experienced much more than we had expected. The Jeep Compass drove well over all terrains and there were no glitches, punctures or problems. In this trip, the Compass has proven itself to be a worthy and dependable companion on Indian roads.

I would like to thank Anand Iyer, Nikhil Jaspal sir and the entire team of Jeep India, Concept Ahmedabad and all the hardworking people in the background. They manicured an awesome event and delivered an immaculate and wonderful experience, far beyond what I had expected.

Finally, I am proud to have earned my first badge in my Jeep Passport, and I am sure that there will be many more stamps in the future, as I will explore more parts of our beautiful country in my Jeep along with Jeep India team.