Packing for a hot car
What actually belongs in the car for an August road trip in India, and what can stay home.
Destinations
Destinations, News
Fuel, FASTag and fog
The three unglamorous things that make or break a monsoon road trip in India.
Table of Content
Independence Day Road Trips: August 2025 Issue Index
Inside Issue 76 of Travel Viewpoint: the Independence Day road-trip issue, with routes, forts, highway towns and honest driving advice.
Guest Posts
A guest note from the passenger seat
A guest writer on the underrated job of the passenger on an Indian road trip.
Destinations, News
Permit and homestay notes
Trek bookings, closures and homestay checks: the paperwork side of a monsoon trip to the Ghats.
Destinations, Wildlife & Nature
A photograph from the veranda
One afternoon, one veranda, one long rain. A closing note for the Western Ghats issue.
Table of Content
The Western Ghats Come Alive: July 2025 Issue Index
Inside Issue 75 of Travel Viewpoint: the Western Ghats in full monsoon, walked, eaten and watched from a veranda.
Adventure, Destinations
Leeches, landslides and the honest packing list
The unglamorous kit and habits that keep a monsoon trip to the Ghats safe and dry-ish.
Destinations, Wildlife & Nature
Why July is a walking month, not a driving fantasy
The monsoon Ghats are not best seen through a windscreen. Here is the case for walking them, slowly and close to base.
Karnataka, Kerala, Wildlife & Nature
Waterfalls you can reach without a convoy
Some monsoon waterfalls need a jeep queue and a permit. These ones mostly need a raincoat and a little patience.
