25.05.2016-- 1030/ (Silapathar)
I got down from the Guwahati-Murkoengselek intercity at 0600. Though the scheduled arrival is at 0640, the train arrived early.
A brief about the place :
Murkoengselek/ Jonai is the last railway station in this line. Though the eastern most railway station in India is LEDO, you can say this is the eastern most station on the northern bank of the Brahmaputra.
The place was quite good, with a nice village atmosphere. It was just 0600 in the morning, and I just walked through the streets of the Jonai village and reached the highway NH 52 by walk.
About One KM walk on the highway and I found myself at the border of Assam-Arunachal Pradesh.
As I was planning to take a ferry to cross the Brahmaputra, I just checked up the possibilities and one way was by going to Pasighat and take a ferry to Dibrugarh. That was when I just remembered that an Inner line permit is needed to enter Arunachal.
I verified with the local police check post and found that it would be given at 1000. The time was still 0700 , so I thought I would just roam around.
I visited a local shop to have some backup food and drinks , the shopkeeper was very kind. With the brief chat I had with that guy, I understood that I can go to Silapathar and get a ferry at the Bogibhil ghat. That was in fact an excellent idea as I don't need to take any inner line permit, since the entire area is located only in Assam. The shop keeper himself arranged for a battery auto to reach the bus stop where I took a winger to Silapathar.
The route from Jonai to Silapathar was a heaven in itself. It was NH 52, you will feel as if you're driving a vehicle in the middle of a large golf club- excellently maintained and with the perfect weather. Such a beautiful drive it was.
Once I got down at Silapathar, which is 30 KM far from the Dist. HQ Dhemaji, Sumos were available there to Dhemaji and the 'ferry ghat', as the locals popularly call it.
The guy waited until the vehicle got filled with passengers. The charge to the ghat was ₹60. The drive was good until we diverted from the highway. After that, there was basically no route at all. We were just driving in the woods. I was not really sure that we will reach the destination. Such a bad route it was. But that was very well compensated with the scenic beauty you find in the road.
After a drive of about 90 min, we reached the ghat , where ferry was available at ₹70 to Dibrugarh.
By then , I was totally exhausted and was thinking about the return to Guwahati. I had a confirmed ticket from Jonai to Guwahati, but I had no intentions of travelling back to Jonai after reaching Dibrugarh. Firstly, I was very tired and more importantly, the road was so bad that I was not sure of coming back on time. Luckily , I could find tickets in the Rajadhani for 25th night from Dibrugarh to Guwahati. So I booked it and cancelled the other one.
The ferry travel was a nice one with great views of the mighty Brahmaputra, and also you will find to see the incomplete, Bogbil bridge, which was under construction for decades. ! And might very well remain so for decades.
The ferry started at around 1230 and we were loaded inside it with along with a lot of Buffaloes.! Yes, you saw that right. Buffaloes.
It was almost a 2-3 hour ride to Dibrugarh, much more than expected. Finally, by around 1500, we reached Dibrugarh and I was very hungry. I just walked down around the city with my phone @2% charging not allowing me to use the maps. Luckily, I found a Dominos and checked in. Had a delicious pizza, got my phone and watch charged there and passed time here and there before catching the train at 2000. I got down at Guwahati the next morning @ 0600.
I got down from the Guwahati-Murkoengselek intercity at 0600. Though the scheduled arrival is at 0640, the train arrived early.
A brief about the place :
Murkoengselek/ Jonai is the last railway station in this line. Though the eastern most railway station in India is LEDO, you can say this is the eastern most station on the northern bank of the Brahmaputra.
The place was quite good, with a nice village atmosphere. It was just 0600 in the morning, and I just walked through the streets of the Jonai village and reached the highway NH 52 by walk.
About One KM walk on the highway and I found myself at the border of Assam-Arunachal Pradesh.
As I was planning to take a ferry to cross the Brahmaputra, I just checked up the possibilities and one way was by going to Pasighat and take a ferry to Dibrugarh. That was when I just remembered that an Inner line permit is needed to enter Arunachal.
I verified with the local police check post and found that it would be given at 1000. The time was still 0700 , so I thought I would just roam around.
I visited a local shop to have some backup food and drinks , the shopkeeper was very kind. With the brief chat I had with that guy, I understood that I can go to Silapathar and get a ferry at the Bogibhil ghat. That was in fact an excellent idea as I don't need to take any inner line permit, since the entire area is located only in Assam. The shop keeper himself arranged for a battery auto to reach the bus stop where I took a winger to Silapathar.
The route from Jonai to Silapathar was a heaven in itself. It was NH 52, you will feel as if you're driving a vehicle in the middle of a large golf club- excellently maintained and with the perfect weather. Such a beautiful drive it was.
Once I got down at Silapathar, which is 30 KM far from the Dist. HQ Dhemaji, Sumos were available there to Dhemaji and the 'ferry ghat', as the locals popularly call it.
The guy waited until the vehicle got filled with passengers. The charge to the ghat was ₹60. The drive was good until we diverted from the highway. After that, there was basically no route at all. We were just driving in the woods. I was not really sure that we will reach the destination. Such a bad route it was. But that was very well compensated with the scenic beauty you find in the road.
After a drive of about 90 min, we reached the ghat , where ferry was available at ₹70 to Dibrugarh.
By then , I was totally exhausted and was thinking about the return to Guwahati. I had a confirmed ticket from Jonai to Guwahati, but I had no intentions of travelling back to Jonai after reaching Dibrugarh. Firstly, I was very tired and more importantly, the road was so bad that I was not sure of coming back on time. Luckily , I could find tickets in the Rajadhani for 25th night from Dibrugarh to Guwahati. So I booked it and cancelled the other one.
The ferry travel was a nice one with great views of the mighty Brahmaputra, and also you will find to see the incomplete, Bogbil bridge, which was under construction for decades. ! And might very well remain so for decades.
The ferry started at around 1230 and we were loaded inside it with along with a lot of Buffaloes.! Yes, you saw that right. Buffaloes.
It was almost a 2-3 hour ride to Dibrugarh, much more than expected. Finally, by around 1500, we reached Dibrugarh and I was very hungry. I just walked down around the city with my phone @2% charging not allowing me to use the maps. Luckily, I found a Dominos and checked in. Had a delicious pizza, got my phone and watch charged there and passed time here and there before catching the train at 2000. I got down at Guwahati the next morning @ 0600.
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