It was long pending.. a long road trip with my own car, driving hundreds of kilometers!
A trip to Chilka (in Odisha) was thus formed and we all geared up for the same. New tires, thorough check-up of the car, change of oil filters etc were all done well ahead. And of course, a full tank of petrol.
The road till Kona Expway was smooth and very less traffic. After approx 125 KM we got the Kharagpur bypass going towards Balasore. There were two tolls in between - one for VidyaSagar bridge and one on the Kharagpur road (NH6)
The road condition was excellent, but there were many motorbikes/tempos coming in the wrong way, so one needs to be careful. Typically speed was around 90 to 110 kmph.
We took two small breaks in between - there were not so much of Dhaba - so relying on your own food was better.
We crossed the Jaleswar/ Bengal-Orissa border (with toll Rs. 50) around 10:15 am. We targeted to reach Cuttack for lunch. So, did not stop at Balasore. The NH bypasses all the towns, so it was easy to maintain a constant speed of 90+ kmph.
Cuttack came around 1:30 pm. A very good place for lunch is Bombay Hotel. This is a pure veg hotel with really good food. You can even take a bath here and I feel that's most important when you are driving for hours at a stretch!!
Cuttack to Bhubaneswar (BBSR) was busy due to traffic. The NH goes right through the middle of the BBSR city, so you get a glimpse of the city as well as get hit by the red-lights and traffic jams. But that was okay. We crossed BBSR by 3:00 pm.
A trip to Chilka (in Odisha) was thus formed and we all geared up for the same. New tires, thorough check-up of the car, change of oil filters etc were all done well ahead. And of course, a full tank of petrol.
24-Dec-2012 - 9:30 Pm
Everything is all set. Two bags with clothes, toiletries, etc are in the car boot already. We are three, so we need at least 5 ltrs of water for the next 10 hours of journey. Printouts of the route map have been taken. Packed food and mints/lozenges are there as well.Route plan:
Salt Lake to Vidyasagar Setu to Kolaghat to Kharagpur bypass- Dantan - Jaleswar - Balasore - Bhadrak - Cuttack - Bhubaneswar - Balugaon - Barkul OTDC Panthanivas.Total Km: 550 (estimated)Duration: 10 hrs with 2 snacs & 1 lunch break
25-Dec-2012 - 8:00 PM
We planned to start early on 25th so that we do not get traffic at least for the first 3 - 4 hours. We woke-up around 5:30 am in the morning and had a cup of tea with two slices of bread. Ultimately started around 6:45 am - just 15 minutes late per our plan.The road till Kona Expway was smooth and very less traffic. After approx 125 KM we got the Kharagpur bypass going towards Balasore. There were two tolls in between - one for VidyaSagar bridge and one on the Kharagpur road (NH6)
The road condition was excellent, but there were many motorbikes/tempos coming in the wrong way, so one needs to be careful. Typically speed was around 90 to 110 kmph.
We took two small breaks in between - there were not so much of Dhaba - so relying on your own food was better.
We crossed the Jaleswar/ Bengal-Orissa border (with toll Rs. 50) around 10:15 am. We targeted to reach Cuttack for lunch. So, did not stop at Balasore. The NH bypasses all the towns, so it was easy to maintain a constant speed of 90+ kmph.
Cuttack came around 1:30 pm. A very good place for lunch is Bombay Hotel. This is a pure veg hotel with really good food. You can even take a bath here and I feel that's most important when you are driving for hours at a stretch!!
Cuttack to Bhubaneswar (BBSR) was busy due to traffic. The NH goes right through the middle of the BBSR city, so you get a glimpse of the city as well as get hit by the red-lights and traffic jams. But that was okay. We crossed BBSR by 3:00 pm.
BBSR to Barkul (OTDC, Barkul, Odisha) is approx 100 KM which we covered in 1:30 mins and reached Barkul (on the banks of Chilka) by 4:30pm.
There were a total of six tolls totaling Rs 360. It seems there will be two more toll booths coming up shortly.
The Panthanivas was basic - was not maintained. We booked a non-ac room but heard that AC rooms were much better. But on the other hand, a room on the 1st floor gives you a good view of the Chilka lake right from your room balcony.
The restaurant is again basic (and to some extent horrible, may be due to the 25th rush) - you get kind of fixed menu written on the white board. Although it is not very costly, the food is so-so.
