Posted by Prabal Agrawal
on 14th Dec,2020
Planning is a predominant & indispensable part in any trip, which if executed correctly, results in a hassle free & comfortable travel.
For us, it all started in July 2020 when during a conference call between myself (Prabal) & my friends Sharad, Shivam, & Vaibhav: Shivam suggested the idea of a road trip to Himachal /Uttarakhand.
At that point we had no concrete idea where all this was headed towards but the thought of a trip with friends to some exotic/scenic destination sounded so exciting & adventurous that we unanimously agreed.
Next came the daunting task of getting permission from our spouses. We knew that convincing them would be pretty difficult especially in the current Covid situation. Though our families agreed that we were all frustrated with being locked up inside our homes for more than five months yet they were equally worried for our safety. It took lots of convincing but Thanks to our understanding wives we finally got a go-ahead but now, the next hurdle was finalizing the destination & duration of the trip to make things sound more definite.
Basically we were stuck up with ‘How do we put all this together?’
There were tons of information available on net, through friends & travel guides so it was easy for us to get overwhelmed & totally confused, specially when one hasn’t done a road trip like this before. So we decided to divide our trip into stages & checklists to make things workable.
Phase 1: (Destination)
Shivam, our main planner, created a WhatsApp group “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara“.
We brainstormed on various locales & destinations.
-> One option was Spiti valley (not Leh due to winters) via Manali & Atal Tunnel and return via Shimla
-> Another was Dalhousie/Dharmshala and nearby areas |
-> The third option was Kinnaur District till Nako/Tabo along with Chitkul (last village of India)
After going back & forth for a couple of weeks & lots of consideration we locked down on Kinnaur District as our destination, since Spiti was closed due to Covid. Also, it was somewhere in our minds that whenever we will go till Spiti, we will travel further till Leh, which was not possible during this season.
Although we had chalked out everything, we purposely decided not to book any accommodation in advance & make it a trial by fire scene where we would stop & book an impromptu hotel or guesthouse wherever we intended to stopover. We knew this would be doable as we were traveling in an off-season & moreover Covid scare would keep most tourists at bay. Though this is not advisable if you are planning a trip at other times. We also decided on staying away from crowded/popular locations in Himachal & discover the lesser-known areas.
Phase 2: (Duration)
Next we needed to decide the length of the trip. When Shivam suggested a 9 days long trip there was total silence from all of us. We shouted out ’tum to divorce hi karwa doge’. But once we checked on travel hours we agreed that given the weather & driving conditions, this was not a lot.
It was during this discussion, one of our friend Vaibhav aka master said “No” to the trip because of some home emergency, which was genuine.
So now, we were left with three: Prabal, Sharad and Shivam
Phase 3: (Trip related decisions)
This included everything from cost to planning activities, assigning different responsibilities to everyone etc.
Phase 4: (Essential items to carry/Packing)
We circulated a list of essential items needed in the cold winter/snow season like Rucksack Bag, Waterproof Shoes, Sleeping Bags, Quick-dry Trousers, Heavy woolen Jackets, Caps, Socks, Sunglasses, sunscreen/moisturizing lotion etc.
Not only this, we also shopped online for instant food items and snacks which remain handy on a trip like Cookies, Maggie, Poha, Pasta, Soup, Namkeen, Candies, Chips, Juices, Instant Tea/Coffee etc.
We then ordered a small camping stove and 6 cans of Butane gas which will be handy for cooking if need be. We took Barbeque and coal and planned to use it somewhere during the trip. Lastly, medicines & first aid kit was kept for any emergency.
Shivam was getting extra adventurous and purchased a 3-people Tent to spent a night in it at some suitable place.
A few extras we packed were our Covid essential stuff like masks, sanitizer sprays etc.
Travel dates were locked a week after Diwali-2020. Our bags were packed, checklists were in place, our excitement level was at an all-time high, totally prepared we were all set to go.
A few more friends wanted to join us when they heard of our plan but as we were going on a trip after a long gap of six years, we thought of keeping it a small & close-knit college buddies group.
Phase 5: (Mode of Travel)
Last but not the least, we needed to decide the vehicle for our trip. It had to be a powerful, smooth & sturdy car, considering the fact: Kinnaur has some of the India’s most dangerous roads. There were couple of good options, either we rent an XUV500 or take Tata Nexon which we had.
Both cars have good powerful engines and ground clearance needed for tough mountain terrains. We chose Nexon as our travel buddy and got it serviced a few days prior to setting off for our trip.
We were all Set now…
Trip Mode was Finally On…..
6 Comments
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Priyanka · December 26, 2020 at 11:29 am
Hey Prabal, wonderful write up, I think you have beautifully conveyed your 9 day planning experience keeping the current pandemic in mind! Planning is essential especially considering the current situation, and hats off to all the wives who have agreed to it .. now it’s the turn of the wives to plan a beautiful trip 😉 All the best to Trip Vaani and do post more pictures !
Prabal · December 29, 2020 at 12:37 am
Thank you
Sharad · December 16, 2020 at 9:43 am
The most exciting phase is planning. Wonderfully conveyed the feelings we felt during planning phase
Divya · December 20, 2020 at 11:03 am
True that! Planning is important for a successful trip
Prabal Agrawal · December 26, 2020 at 1:19 pm
Thank you !!