Rann (away) Utsav

Enough people have told that the Rann Ustav is extremely overrated. So I did not book it. It’s extremely expensive too. 10k per night. To just see what it looks like, I visited the Rann Ustav as a day trip and did not stay there.

After seeing Kalo Dongar, I drove down to Rann Ustav. The route was mesmerising. There is one straight road as long as you can see and desert on both sides. After few minutes of riding (with almost no traffic) everything feels static. Nothing changed and you start thinking if you are really even moving. Yes, the wind blowing makes it feel like you are sitting in a chair and there is a fan in front of you.

I wanted to ride in the desert also as it felt nice to see. So I took off from the main road and went onto the desert. I drove inside and saw beautiful water channels bringing in fresh water from somewhere. Very pristine place untouched by public.

I reached the Rann Ustav at around 5pm. You need to get a pass from BSF to enter. Since I had a bike I just took it into the white desert. Other vehicles had parked on the parking lot and mine was roaming in the desert.

The terrain is a little moist and slippery more like a slightly dry marshland. There are all kinds of activities there. Riding an ATV (why would I do it when I have my bike), Paragliding with a jeep, hot baloon rides etc.

It’s all dried salt which is called as white desert. It looks good from far or an arial angle. Not from close. It’s like standing on a lot of salt.

I was in perfect time to witness the sunset. So I waited for the sunset to finish. The place is super commercialised. There is music, DJ, small shops, and activities.

I started my return to Bhuj after sunset. Little did I think that the temperature would drop so instantly. It was like ice sprayed all over my body. I had a jacket and gloves but it was not good enough. Even driving slow did not help. I put my backpack to the front to cover my chest. That gave it some protection. Over time my body got used to the cold but it was still painful.

I reached the homestay at 830pm and the owner was kind enough to setup a campfire for me. It was a so good to heat up and bring to life the frozen parts of the body.

Never mess with the desert. It will look like it’s hot but it will become instantly cold.