Honda Drive To Discover 12: East By Northeast

As an automotive journalist, you never forget your first big drive event. In my case, it was back in 2017, for the 8th Edition of the Honda Drive to Discover. And as my luck would have it, I was to the ‘Land of Thunder Dragon’ – Bhutan. I still remember catching two flights to reach Bagdogra, a small town in the Darjeeling district of West Bengal, from where that journey started. Fast forward six years, and I was yet again standing outside Bagdogra airport, and this time too, it was for the Honda Drive to Discover.

Also Read: Honda Drive To Discover 8: Journey To The Land Of Thunder Dragon - Bhutan

I am back in Bagdogra after six years for the 12th Edition of the Honda Drive to Discover

So, here's the back story. The Drive to Discover has been a long-standing media drive event organised by Honda Cars India, designed to explore the different regions across India, in the company's latest line-up of cars. This year the carmaker organised the 12th edition of Honda Drive to Discover, and more than 30 journalists joined the drive from different parts of India. At our disposal were a fleet of existing Honda cars, including the City and City e:HEV, the Amaze, and the company’s newest offering, the Elevate compact SUV. And this time around, it was the Journey to the East!

Drive to Discover 12 is heading towards the East, and we covered parts of West Bengal and Sikkim 

Day 1 – Bagdogra - Gangtok

The five-day journey started from Bagdogra, and along the way, we were to cover Siliguri, Gangtok, Pelling, Darjeeling, and Kalimpong. Day 1 involved a 100+ kilometre drive from Siliguri to our hotel in Gangtok, Sikkim, and the car assigned to me for this leg of the journey was a Honda City Hybrid aka the City e:HEV. Of course, like all D2Ds I was to share the car with a couple of other journalists.

Day 1 involved a 100+ kilometre drive from Siliguri to our hotel in Gangtok, Sikkim in the Honda City e:HEV

Now, considering we were to deal with mostly tarmac roads in this leg of the trip, I felt the City Hybrid was a good option. In addition to its impressive driving dynamics, the car's hybrid powertrain would be perfect to deal with the afternoon traffic in Siliguri. However, while the car had enough space for all three of us, the boot wasn’t as gracious with our luggage. Courtesy of the battery pack, which takes up more than a third of the boot capacity, there wasn’t enough space for all our bags. The rest had to be adjusted in the back seat of the car.

The Honda City e:HEV is quite capable, however, the limited boot space is something you need to be mindful about

After battling the afternoon traffic of Siliguri for almost an hour, we finally hit National Highway 10, and the first pitstop for the day was the Oasis Café which was about 75 km from the start location. As expected, we only got good tarmac roads for most of this leg. What we were not prepared for was for the almost 2 hours of traffic due to landslides on the mountain twisties, just before the Sikkim border. Now while the City Hybrid was certainly a treat to drive, it did struggle to climb some of these steep mountain twisties. The day ended with a nice spread of dinner and some exciting conversations about the next day as we were going to drive to one of the highest motorable passes in India.

Also Read: Drive To Discover 10: Exploring The Southwestern Coast Of India

Day 2 – Gangtok – Nathu La - Gangtok

Day 2 involved going to Nathu La Pass, one of the highest motorable roads in India

The distance between our hotel in Gangtok and Nathu La Pass was just 68 km, however, the entire route was just narrow mountain roads and twisties. Luckily, on Day 2 we got the Elevate SUV in its manual guise. This meant we had enough space for all three of us and our luggage. You will need permits to visit Nathula, mainly for security reasons due to its proximity to the China border. And Honda has already done the paperwork for us.

On Day 2 we got the Elevate SUV in its manual guise

The initial leg of the drive was through parts of Gangtok city which was just steep inclines with houses and shops on either side. Now, the Elevate is powered by Honda’s tried and tested 1.5-litre iVTEC engine that makes about 119 bhp and 145 Nm torque. Yes, the figure might not seem very exciting on paper, but the engine builds up power in a gradual manner and can hold it nicely. And that’s what you need while driving in the mountains. However, I did wish the motor offered better low-end torque to climb the steep inclines Sikkim had to offer.

The adrenaline rush you get when driving in the mountains is something that cannot be described but only experienced

The Elevate’s 6-speed manual gearbox is well-calibrated and allowed me to have better control of the car. However, it also meant that one small mistake could lead to anything from a minor crash to a fatal incident in the mountains. So, concertation was key here. But the adrenaline rush you get when driving in the mountains is something that cannot be described but only experienced.

Also Read: Honda Drive To Discover 11: Exploring Coffee Country In Karnataka

The India and China border at Nathu La is simply a section of barbed wires dividing the two countries

Now the India and China border at Nathu La is simply a section of barbed wires dividing the two countries, with brave soldiers guarding our border. They also constantly battle the unforgiving weather of the Himalayas. In fact, the day we were at Nathu La, the mercury had dropped down to minus 8 degrees. 

The day we were at Nathu La, the mercury had dropped down to minus 8 degrees

There is something very surreal about standing at a distance of just one handshake from Chinese soldiers, surrounded by the mighty snow-clad mountain peaks. And that is what Nathu La has to offer. That, and some lip-smacking Jalebis and Samosas at the Army canteen. 

Nathula is also big on tourism and Yak rides is a big attraction 

Sadly, due to security reasons, we could not document any of these in photos. We ended the day back in Gangtok City where we visited a local pub to enjoy some live music and Sikkimese food.

Day 3 – Gangtok to Pelling

The drive from Gangtok to Pelling is about 117 km, with an estimated time of four hours

The drive from Gangtok to Pelling is about 117 km, however, drive time works differently in the mountains. The estimated time to reach our hotel in Pelling was about four hours, with a small pitstop on the way at Rothak, West Sikkim. Our companion for day 3 was a manual Honda City, and this time we had access to the full boot capacity of the compact sedan. Luckily for us, the route for Day 3 did offer some wide stretches of road in decent condition. That said our momentum was slowed down by the occasional road construction work being carried out on the way to Pelling. In fact, we also had to take a small detour due to road construction at one section.

Luckily for us, the route for Day 3 did offer some wide stretches of road in decent condition

Now, the City shares its engine and transmission with the Elevate, so yes the set-up was the same as the previous day. However, the driving experience was certainly different. For one thing, we had to be a bit more careful while going through rough patches due to the City's low ground clearance. That being said, every time I got a nice stretch of road, I did get to explore the City’s amazing ride and handling.

Pelling is known for having India’s first-ever glass-bottomed skywalk

Due to the delays caused by road construction, we reached our hotel a couple of hours late, which meant we couldn’t visit the Pelling Sky Walk, the day's main attraction. Since the Sky Walk visit was pushed to the next morning, we had enough time for some late lunch and much-needed rest. The night ended with everyone singing along to some Hindi songs around a beautiful bonfire.

Day 4 – Pelling to Kalimpong

India’s first-ever glass-bottomed skywalk is situated at a height of 7,200 feet (2,195 m) above sea level

The Pelling Skywalk is famous for two things. one is the skywalk itself, India’s first-ever glass-bottomed skywalk, situated at a height of 7,200 feet (2,195 m) above sea level. Additionally, the place also houses a 137-foot-tall statue of the bodhisattva Chenrezig, an important figure in Buddhism who is considered to be the embodiment of the combined compassion of all the Buddhas. The Chenrezig statue in Pelling, Sikkim, is the tallest one in the world. After spending some time here, we had to hit the road, but little did we know it was going to be the most challenging day of the Honda Drive to Discover 12.

The place also houses a 137-foot-tall statue of the bodhisattva Chenrezig, an important figure in Buddhism 

The distance from Pelling to Kalimpong is just about 91 km on the maps. However, the roads we got to experience here were possibly the most challenging ones I have ever experienced. And we thank our stars that we got the Elevate CVT automatic for this part of D2D 12. The lunch for the day was in Darjeeling, at a tea estate about 70 km from the start location. This meant we were taking a longer route to reach Kalimpong.

These roads are not meant for novice drivers, and you need to have some level of skill and knowledge to drive on these roads

The route mainly only has narrow, single-lane mountain roads that were broken at most sections. And in addition to the steep inclines we also had to deal with the oncoming traffic of pick-up trucks, lorries and other passenger cars. These roads are not meant for novice drivers, and you need to have some level of skill and knowledge to drive on these roads. Now I’ll have to say it, the Elevate is a bit unpowered and it becomes all the more apparent on such mountain roads, however, it did impress me with the way it handled the twisties and sharp hairpin bends. But, the last 5-6 km to reach our lunch location was pure off-road, and here I felt we had pushed the Elevate to its limits. Anything more and the car would have given up.

To my surprise, not just the Elevate, but even the Citys and Amazes managed to reach the location unscathed and that’s saying something

But to my surprise, not just the Elevate, even the Citys and Amazes managed to reach the location unscathed and that’s saying something. None of the Honda cars are meant to be driven on such challenging terrains, but they can do it and that was my biggest takeaway from Day 4 of Honda Drive to Discover 12.

The rest of the journey was all downhill but this also meant we had to drive the cars skilfully, and mostly be in the first gear. Because too much braking while driving downhill will burn the brakes, and that would have just made things worse. Luckily for us, the roads were in very nice condition, however, the bigger challenge was that I had to drive in the pitch dark.

None of the Honda cars were meant to be driven on such challenging terrains, but they can do it and that was my biggest takeaway

The last night of Honda Drive To Discover 12 was a celebratory moment, and everyone had some exciting stories to share around the bonfire.

Day 5 - The Journey Back Home

The drive back to Siliguri was a breeze compared to the rest of the routes we experienced in the last 4 days. Wide, well-paved roads almost throughout the entire route was the one thing I needed after driving for four days on some challenging terrains. I had the Amaze CVT for this leg of the journey and the compact size of the car allowed me to enjoy the twisties a lot more than I had expected.

I was going back with a great deal of trust in the capabilities of Honda cars

After a quick lunch in Siliguri, it was time to say our goodbyes and leave for our respective cities. All said and done the one thing about Honda Drive to Discover 12 is that it was possibly one of the most memorable trips for me, and I was going back with a great deal of trust in the capabilities of Honda cars.

Photos: Honda Cars India