The drive from Gujarat into Rajasthan was one I was apprehensive of . The distance is not huge – some 500 km, but I have no experience of driving in a desert and would not know what to do in a sandstorm. I know that you have to take your vehicle off the road and hunker down until the sandstorm blows out, but I had no idea if my car would run after that - after all hatchbacks aren't build to run after getting sand all over their innards! Anyway I wasn’t going to chicken out.

National Highway 5 is a famous road in India. It runs all the way from Kandla in the South to Pathankot in the North. It runs parallel to India’s border with Pakistan and therefore has always been of strategic importance. For a long time it was the best road in India, until the Golden Quadrilateral came. These areas are under the preserve of the Border Roads Organisation and are impeccably maintained. The BRO does great job of building roads in absolutely impossible terrain – they run the Srinagar – Leh highway, and in a number of other equally horrendous places. We should start a petition to hand over all the roads in Bangalore to them !!!


The road was brilliant all the way and with spare traffic. Past the towns of Tharad on the Gujarat side of the border and Sanchore on the Rajasthan side. Up to Barmer , deep in Rajasthan , a sleepy town until Cairn discovered energy here. Onwards to Jaisalmer on the edge of the Thar desert.

In the end the sand was not the problem. Beautiful roads and sparse traffic makes for excellent driving. But the spoiler on this leg was goats ! All the goats of India seem to be on the roads of Rajasthan. Sheep even do a huddle, India cricket team style, in the middle of the road. Add to the equation the usual assortment of cows, and in this area, obviously camels.
Its quite an experience zipping along at three figure speeds, only to encounter a camel suddenly darting from the bushes and blissfully crossing the road. In the end this was one of the nicest roads to drive on, but also the one requiring the utmost caution.

As the sun was setting, I arrived in Jaisalmer and drove on further into the desert to stay in a desert camp. That’s tomorrow’s story.