Meghalaya- The Roads Less Travelled

A bicycle, a camera and the adventure of a lifetime.

- Puneet K. Paliwal

A solo cycling trip in the Northeast—I’d always imagined myself doing something crazy like this. But as I didn’t have a bicycle, I never thought it would ever happen. Even when Trek asked me to test their Marlin 7 mountain bike.

I had no experience in long-distance cycling. So they offered me one-on-one training to understand the bicycle, and taught me how to fix it if it broke down in the middle of nowhere. Suddenly, it seemed the universe was conspiring to make my insane fantasy real. Now the only question that remained was: where was I going?

I booked a flight to Guwahati, still undecided on my exact route. I had three options from Assam: to Tawang (Arunachal Pradesh), to Bhutan, or to Meghalaya. I packed everything I needed: from a sleeping bag to a tent, laptop, camera, clothes and other essential stuff; I’d even spent days downloading music and creating playlists for the journey. And, of course, the bicycle.

The Marlin 7 is easy to dismantle. It comes with a quick-release mechanism that removes the wheels from the frames without needing any tools, while the handlebar is easily removed by loosening four screws. The super lightweight Alpha Silver aluminium frame, the wheels and handlebar fit snugly into a box—a total of 14 kilograms.

By the time I arrive in Guwahati, my heart is set on Meghalaya. After a brief stop, I put my bicycle together, rearrange all my stuff in panniers and a backpack, and set off on my great adventure.

TEETHING TROUBLES

The first leg of my tour takes me from Guwahati to Shillong. But it isn’t a good start. Trucks and cars whizz past at 90 to 120 kilometres per hour and giant factories belch smoke along the busy highway. For a moment, I regret not waiting another year and heading for the Himalaya. But, before I know it, I’ve done 40 kilometres and am riding along the Assam–Meghalaya border.