Tezpur lies on the north bank of the Brahmaputra in Assam, and it is where a ride to Tawang really starts. The town has about fifty-eight thousand people, a river that is wide enough to look like a sea, and a gentle, slightly sleepy air. Its name means city of blood in Sanskrit legend, from the story of a battle between Krishna and the demon king Banasura, who is said to have ruled here. The ruins of old temples sit at Da Parbatia, and the Agnigarh hill park looks over the river.
For the rider, Tezpur is the last real stop at lowland level. Fill the tank, check the bike, stock up on water and snacks, and sort out your permits before you go, because Arunachal Pradesh requires an Inner Line Permit for Indian visitors and a protected area permit for foreigners, and the checkpoints are serious. From here the road runs north across the plain through tea gardens and rice paddies toward Bhalukpong, where the border to Arunachal lies, and where the foothills of the Himalaya begin.
The heat and humidity here are heavy. Summers are hot, the monsoon is long and violent, and floods are a regular feature of Assam life. Roads are wet and landslides can cut off the mountains, so the best season for the ride is October to April, when the sky is clear and the snow peaks are visible in the north. Early starts help, because the road from Tezpur to the mountains is the easy part of a very long day.
Tezpur is also a good place to eat. Assamese food is gentle and sour: fish cooked in a thin tangy sauce, rice with pulses, greens and a little mustard oil. Tea, of course, is everywhere. The Brahmaputra at dusk is a sight in itself, broad and brown with fishing boats on it and the Himalaya just hinted at on the horizon. Sleep well, because tomorrow the road starts climbing, and it does not stop for a very long time.