Are you planning a trip to Kashmir? Or in love with the vale of Kashmir? Well sounds obvious – that’s why you have landed on this page. 

The preparation:

Krishna and I have been planning a trip to Kashmir for quite some time now, and this year we just wanted to tick that out from our bucket list. The next question that came to us was, how to do that? Should we take a train to Jammu and hire a cab or fly to Srinagar directly? But looks like millions like us were planning their trip to Kashmir, so that led to trains being overbooked and flights ticket at sky-high costs. So we thought of driving to Kashmir in our tiny car. We don’t have a 4X4 or any high-end SUVs but our very own Nissan Micra, with the lowest ground clearance of all cars (154mm).

The next thing that came to our mind was is it worth taking the risk with our car that may not be the right car for the route, and then we started to connect with known people who have done this route by driving. And to our fear, everyone said the roads between Udhampur and Banihal are terrible and taking a low GC car is not a good idea. We also ran through many whats-ifs, considering the place we were visiting was Kashmir and the history of emergencies. Then after a long session of thinking, rethinking, and overthinking, we decided to go by driving to Kashmir because now or later, the place will still be Kashmir, and chances of emergencies will remain the same, so why wait and regret? 

The next thing we did was check the weather because we have had a late and long monsoon this year, especially in the Himalayan regions. We knew what happened to mountain roads after rain, so we checked for a rain-free, clear week for this trip. Finally, after careful calculations, we started from Dehradun to Kashmir on the 31st Oct. 

Krishna and I have always practiced starting early and stopping right after sunset, and since we had time in hand, we decided to go slow to enjoy the views en-route. And when everybody said the road to Kashmir is in bad shape, there are more reasons to start early to cross this during the daylight. 

On the Go:

Coming to the journey- our first-night stay was in Chandigarh (which is 3 hrs from Dehradun, but we decided to get the car cleaned and checked.) before the final cruise, and we started the next day at 5 am to Jammu. 

During the journey, we changed the plan and decided to skip Jammu as we had 4 days in hand before it rains for almost a week again in the Kashmir valley. So we headed to Udhampur for the night halt. After the trip, we confidently say that we did the right thing by staying in Udhampur and not Jammu, which helped us cut down the long incoming traffic from Jammu to Udhampur. So by the time tourists were starting from Jammu and were adding to the traffic, we crossed the Chenab valley.

The route from Udhampur was pretty scenic, and driving through the longest tunnel of J&K, named after Dr. Shyama Prasad Mookherjee, was undoubtedly the best part of this route in the Chenab vale… This tunnel is approx. 9.2Km in length and connects Chenani with Nashri. After having traveled to so many states and UTs, we can say this is the best tunnel in India. The road between Ramban to Banihal is rough, but the best mantra for this is not to stop and not to rush. As you watch the road, keep an eye towards the mountain as well to check for any signs of rock shooting or landslide. There is a small area near Panthyal on the NH44, which is covered by a few temporary shades to divert any rock falling towards the road from the mountain. The roads are broken and dusty, but when you reach the Kashmir valley, everything seems worth it. Once the 40-45km stretch of bad roads are covered, the rest of the roads in Jhelum valley is a cakewalk. The presence of CRPF officials all along the route gives a sense of support and help if need be. Once you cross Banihal town and reach the 2nd longest tunnel of J&K- the Qazigund tunnel, you enter the massive, open, beautiful valley of the Jhelum river- the Kashmir vale. 

There is also a traffic control room (TCR) number (details below) which can help you with the road condition and the timing for small vehicles or big ones as the timings have been bifurcated for ease of traffic. We had called the TCR the previous night, and they suggested to cross Ramban between 9-11 am. Since we started early, we crossed Ramban an hour before schedule, and the drive took around 4 hours to cross the Qazigund tunnel, starting from Udhampur. The roads from Banihal to Srinagar are smooth like butter. 

While returning, we checked with the TCR number, and they gave us the scheduled time of 8-10 am to cross the Qazigund tunnel, and trust me, this was of so-much help to avoid getting stuck in traffic with thousands of trucks. 

Pre-requisites before you start your journey to Kashmir.

So I am just putting down the pre-requisites below (from our experience and learning):

• If possible, cover Jammu while returning from Kashmir. (of course, that might not be very pleasant to the eye after seeing the Kashmir vale, but every valley has its charm. And this suggestion is only for people who have limited time in hand and doing the trip by own car)
• Start early, reach early. (we know people who took 13 hours from Jammu to Srinagar due to traffic)
• Ditch Jammu, stay in Udhampur or even further ahead, close to Ramban and get the fuel check the previous night. 
• Avoid crossing the stretch of Ramban to Banihal after sunset. You don’t want to get caught in any kind of mountain hazard.
• Call the TCR numbers (01942450022) the previous night and check the route status/updates. 
• Carry enough water and food. (just in case you get stuck due to landslides or road clearing work. 
• There are neat and clean SBM toilets all along the route for the public, so ladies need not worry ☺.
• Do not stop for photography and block other vehicles. 
• You actually don’t need a big car for this trip, you just need to be patient and careful while driving, and overtaking and over-speeding is a big NO-NO.

I hope this blog has answered all your questions about reaching Kashmir by car. Stay tuned for our next blog to know more about how we spent 4 days in Srinagar (without visiting the tourist spots.)

---

---