Kutch Part 2

After an year of visiting kutch and returning without seeing the Rann, I decided to go again. So I booked my tickets on a weekend closest to a full moon day for me and a friend Prasad. We left Mumbai by friday night's Bhuj Express and reached Bhuj 3 hours ahead of scheduled time, at 4PM. We were clueless about how to reach Dhordo, the entrance to the Rann or about our accomodation there. We were all ready to try our luck.

So once we stepped out of the railway station, we enquired with autorickshaws and jeeps about how to reach Dhordo. They told us we could hire a car from the bus stop which was 3 kms away from the Railway station. But just as we were heading to catch an autorickshaw for the bus stop, we thought of trying our luck with a bus right outside the railway station. We asked the conductor if the bus goes to Dhordo. He in return asked us if we had a booking. When we said no, he asked us to stand at the turning ahead of us and to hop on to the bus from there.

So we both were on a bus that was actually part of a package tour. But instead of sitting with the passengers, we sat along with the driver and conductor. We would plan the rest of the trip en route Dhordo. The driver and conductor told us that all the tents in Dhordo had been booked. They were booked to an extent that tents meant for drivers and conductors were also full and that they had to sleep in the bus. We asked them if they could accomodate us too in the bus. They were more than happy. As the group from Mumbai, which we toured with, was already 3 hours late, we would be taken to the Rann straight away, after which everyone would be taken to their tents at Dhordo.

Being part of a government package,  the bus did not have to stop at the Bhendiari checkpost before turning to Dhordo. There where there was a long queue waiting for their pass to the Rann. As the area is sensitive, one is supposed to get a pass from the checkpost on showing identity proof and paying a nominal fee of Rs. 100 or so


The bus reached the white Rann at 630. We had half an hour to see the Rann before we left to Dhordo. As we drove into the open white space, we saw the sun set behind us. The sun was long gone when we entered the Rann but it was still bright. The play of colours that adorn the western side of the sky as the sun sets, was spread all the way to the east. The vast white expanse that lay before us was surreal. It was not plain white, it was a mix of white and brown. At most places, it was just a layer of salt on brown sand.











The vast expanse of nothingness was not completely flat. There were cracks, crevices and tiny shrubs intermittently on the ground. The only animals in the Kutch are Wild Asses and birds, but none were in sight. The white expanse resembled the surface of planets we see in pictures. It was like another planet. The sky appeared like a dome.

It was very windy. Me and Prasad had plans of staying back on the Rann at night. But we could not because the area is a sensitive area, it leads to the Indo-Pak border. Even though that is a good 170 kms away, there were Border Security Forces deployed there with security infra red cameras. Another factor that deterred us was the wind and cold.

We slowly saw it get dark and a couple of stars had come out. The moon we had been waiting for and planned the trip for, still did not show up. But nonetheless the white sands had a silver shine to it. It probably reflected lights from buses around, or any other light in the vicinity.

Our next stop was Dhordo, a village put up by Gujarat Tourism for tourism. Once we reached there, we saw the moon come out. Bad luck, but still no complaints. Our driver at Dhordo told us that the entire Rann festival was started by the tourism department of the state and suddenly saw an influx of tourists to the white deserts in the past 3 years. Earlier hardly anyone knew about the place. At Dhordo, an entire village resort had been spread out with an area for performing artists, special areas for indoor games, volleyball court, tribike tracks, stalls for shopping and tents for guests.

Once at Dhordo, we sat and ate food with the bus drivers and conductors. They were the jolliest bunch of people I have ever come across. I'm sure Prasad would agree. They might not have the best sense of humour, but they had an incredible attitude towards life. They were happy with whatever they had and it was all about sharing and being happy, for them. Once we were done with our dinner, they gave us their Rann Festival Staff Cards so we could go around the area.












We saw a couple of Kutchi song and dance performances and spent the rest of the time walking around the entire resort. The tents were very elegantly done and lit. The tents opened up to a vast empty space. Me and Prasad walked out and spent a good time in the cold desert sand talking, till the cold had the better of us. At night, we retired to the bus where everyone was watching Dabangg part 2. We reached there towards the last 10 minutes. And then everyone went to crash in their respective buses.

We were told the next day we would go to the Indo-Pak border as early as 730. And after that, we could head to Bhuj from where we would plan our way back, most probably via Ahmedabad. So we retired for the day as early as 1030. We stretched across the bus from one window to the other and slept a good sleep.  Only to wake up time and again to add another layer of clothing or bedsheet as it got colder with time.

We were up by 6. We walked around the Dhordo resort in anticipation, waiting for the rest to join us. But to no avail. They did not show up till 1030 or probably even after that. We spent the 4 hours whiling time around the resort, setting up a bonfire with the drivers and indulging in small talk with people everywhere. We were then seated in a bus till the Bhendiari checkpost from where we would catch a bus till Bhuj. We gave the driver and conductor who showed us around the Rann and who let us sleep in his bus a thousand rupees, which he reluctantly accepted. It seemed as if they would've been fine with it if we even did not pay them. But that was the least we could do for the priceless experience and amazing time they gave us.

We reached the railway station at 12:27 and were right on time for the 12:30 train via Ahmedabad. From there, Prasad headed back to Mumbai while I caught a bus to Diu.