Riding high to the Satpudas: Toranmal

Posted: by Pulsurge in Labels: , , ,
6

"We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open." -- Jawaharlal Nehru

After two years of all the day dreaming and plans of visiting Toranmal eventually transformed into reality. All thanks to Independence day and Raksha Bandhan preceding a Sunday giving a “dream-come-true” three day break to enjoy. Raigad was planned earlier, but certainly not for a three day venture. A break such as this requisites some more roll of the wheel to justify its importance- at least a 1000 kms, so there it was- heading nowhere but to the northern point where the three states chit chat in neighbouring proximity. Toh sochna kya bhaiyo…..Chalo Toranmal!

Raigad trekking plans go out of the window and before sketching a comprehensive roadmap for the trip- I disclose the prospective plan to a few people whom I know are ever-eager to get rolling if convenience aids their attendance. Was glad to see all of them reciprocate a positive response and my plan was up, but not before a bunch of confusion as regards selection of the route. After slogging out with MSN Local Live, Yahoo! Maps and MapMyIndia, concluded a proper route – thanks to Google Maps, but only till Shahada. It was expressly understood from references on the web about the only escape to Toranmal was from Shahada- hence didn’t bother my brains much on that.

With the dates nearing for the trip, the probable list of people for the ride emulated the current trend of the sensex and came crashing down to a list of 4 which at one point of time stood at 12. Amit, Alkesh, Vinod and me summed up to the final four and were all geared up for the ride awaiting the D-Day.

15.08.2008

Vinod and Alkesh both from Jogeshwari coordinated their leaving plans for the day and so did the Thaneites Amit and myself. Poor Abhijit! Woke him up at 4.00 in the morning for an alternative contact for Amit who wasn’t responding to my calls. Amit called back soon and I was at his place in no time and we both met up with Vinod and Alkesh at Ghodbunder. Sipped on tea to pass time and let daylight break out as it was too dark to ride with NH8 at its worst during monsoon. Few moments later a mild scatter of light readying us up for the long ride ahead. As usual Vinod leads - followed by Amit, Alkesh and me dragging. Not to mention the GPS was already ticking on NST (Nokia Sports Tracker).

Ride till Manor made us feel like Pathfinder on Mars- bumps and bumps and bumps. Wish we had the Rocker-Bogie suspension on our bikes too. Once past Manor despite the rains pouring, it was a rip-session till Charoti Toll Plaza which came up before we could realize. Even with my watermelon-sized AGV making all kind of noises, the sight of the rain drops on the visor being swept away by the wind drag was pure bliss. Caught sight of a decent restaurant and made one corner of it absolutely wet and dirty with our dripping raincoats and totally soaked up smelly socks and shoes. NST was ticking and very well hooked onto 6 satellites. Paused the ticker and went inside for a sumptuous treat of Udipi Menu. The stopover session carried on like there was no tomorrow. Seemed as we all three would end up narrating our autobiography sitting there. Good thing was my N95 was gaining extra charge while the discussions carried on. Well at last it folded up- everyone padded up ready for the roll ahead, except my phone. Bugger simply refusing to connect- wasted 15 minutes of time and patience of the other three trying to fix up the connectivity but in vain. That was the end of NST on the trip. We were off towards our next stop…Navsari.

“WELCOME TO STATE OF GUJARAT” says a signboard and we have a bunch of crazy riders around to welcome us too. More than half of the people were riding as if they were least bothered about their lives- 4 people on one bike, then another busy on the cell phone with control of his bike only by the accelerator, one fellow on a 100cc bike daydreaming of a Ducati 996 under his ass trying to imitate the chase sequence from Matrix Reloaded and his ridiculous sounding horn. Aaaaaah…..had enough of the rubbish. Took my mind off them before it could disturb my weak riding composure. Engines revving in their comfort zone cruising along around 90 kph and occasionally taking a 100+ dash once the roads used to open up and was turning out to be a “heat-and-cool” ride. At one moment the sun would beat down as if it was summer, the next moment rain came thrashing down wetting us all, later you have the sun hiding behind the clouds with absolute cool weather drying us up- but then again we’re all drenched completely. Enjoying the transitional games of weather, we reached Navsari.
Each one of us carries on with the tradition of making a mess of the restaurant. With all kind of dirt sucked up from the road, our wearables made even a more terrible sight before the restaurant owner poked in and asked us to keep all the drippy chaos outside. No glancing at menucards, everyone wants a common snack - so what do we have here? Hot stuffed parathas, fresh curd and pickles….yummieeee! The hunger hurricane rolls over and everything’s been literally wiped off leaving no trace behind. 

Was about time to bid good bye to the sweet-n-sour NH8 experience. The State highway connecting NH8 to NH6 was wonderful. A blend of something experienced while scampering through Dharampur towards Saputara and Jalna towards Lonar. Drenched and narrow but clean stretch void of any bumps under a cloudy atmosphere and later you are passing through this beautiful stretch with trees on both sides like a tunnel hugging and shielding you from eyes of the rain. A small patch of bad road in between cited realisations of the wonderful stretch of ride we had a few moments ago. Eventually from one NH to another... welcome to NH6.
I goof up on the directions even after guidance from Vinod that we need to take right towards Dhulia. Silly me, though Dhulia had to be completely avoided, it was NH6 that would take us towards Nandurbar. Owing to my stupidity we cross over and into the inner-skirts of Bardoli. Asking the locals doesn't always help when you're lost. Literally everyone including rickshaw drivers gave us different and confusing directions. In the end we relied on the direction signs and were back on the right stretch, not before wasting 30 minutes taking a detour- would have been a visual joke if NST was working.

Back on NH6... good stretch I should say, very similar to NH17 without curves- narrow though clean and easy enough for a constant cosy cruise. But these two rookies ahead of me were too quick for the taking- am sure they were 120+ and signs of having a comparatively lesser powered bike was showing up on my part. I was trailing really bad and thanks to the traffic I was able to hold back on their tail, but they disappeared again. The fun filled catch up game carried on till Nandurbar. Glance at the odo and realised that Mr. Vinod had pushed us for a non stop 175 kms and in approx 2 hours- woah that's pretty quick. Great job leading the pack plus the roads were so good, we just carried on and on before our empty stomachs forced a halt.
Found a good restaurant and it served equally good food. Look up and you discover an eternal smile on the waiters' faces :) Maybe our ride was something that amused them. Turned out to be a very lengthy halt- we were a bit stiff and our gear was still damp. More than an hour since we had checked in, the sky was already getting darker. The waiters and the restaurant bid us a very warm good bye. "Phir aate hai" I said- thinking it would be on our return too. Wrapped up again and closer to our target, we were extremely eager to land at Toranmal. 

Scenic village routes and occasional twisties gave exciting company till a crowded and completely chaotic town called Shahada. Felt as if everyone walked and crossed the roads using their sixth sense rather than their eyes and god the decibel levels....aaaaah! Thankfully I was wearing my helmet or else I would have pulled all my hair apart. Who would want to stop at such a place but unfortunately we had to.... for cross confirming directions and road conditions. Here comes an equally unfortunate answer... "Aage rasta bahut kharaab hai" and how right it was. Actually there was no road, just pieces of rocks layered with soil- good god didn't last long though. Villages disappear in our mirrors and for now ladies and gentlemen- the adventure begins. 

Except for our engines revving it was complete silence. The width of the roads shrunk but offered twisty ascends to compensate, blanketed by trees on both sides some slide-around patches to shake us up.
Up up up and down you go again. Here take this right hairpin.... now left... quick downroll on a gradient assisted by gravity then a steep right climb- go left, go right, go up, go down- similar was the state of the blood flow inside. Woohoo! Heavens am loving this, enjoying my own private roller coaster and controlling it too! The tree cover was over and now we're riding under an open twilighted sky. Too much concentration on the roads and we failed to realise that there was no boulders or barricades- an unlucky slip and you'll land at least three hairpins below if not kissing mean sea level- consequently wrists went easy on the throttle.
The twilight's gone with our headlights performing their real duty- they were anyway on for the whole day but for a different purpose then. A small straight stretch and phew... the Saat Paayri ghats are finally over- well that was just my thought, it hadn't even started yet. No sooner the formal announcement comes through a sign board, yo fellas.... some more adventure in store. Not exceeding second gear, we start our climb. How about some more thrills? here you go riders.... lights off! I mean the darkness here, but then one actually does…... Vinod's low beam is gone. Still not enough?........ How about valleys on both sides?...... Wait there's more, thrills done…… now some suspense to gauge how far and sideways can you see the road? The rain clouds arrive for company. Minute water droplets on the visor blurring the already poor vision- up they go. If not for the 220 headlights, I could hardly even see Vinod's tail light. Thrill's out, scare is in.... feet off the pegs and down on the road and we’re walking with our bikes.
Clouds getting thicker and sight getting worse, we were braking every now and then, grasping all that we could see ahead and move on. Switch to high beam, and you have your own light refracted back into your eyes. Toranmal is still 13 kms away, at this pace it will take us two hours. A puncture is enough to mess up the entire ride. You do get this feeling when the last puncture repair you saw was more 50 kms away. Am praying within "We'll handle this scare god, but please bless the tyres". The struggle carries on in similar manner. Distance indicators were appearing after ages showing what a crawl it was. I was screaming at Amit who was venturing too close the edge in an effort to provide escort lights to Vinod. I wish I could have clicked those scary and anxious moments, but then couldn't think other than getting lost off that place.

The cloud cover resides and for now in actual the serpentic ghats are over. Could feel the blood circulation and heart beat return to normalcy. Took us 2.5 hours to complete this 35 kms stretch- that’s done. Now where’s the bloody resort? Like Lonar, it took some time to hunt for the place. Might would have been that the bales of apprehensions that we were carrying on our heads had some more space. "Rooms are full" is the prompt reply. "Whaaaaat! We had already confirmed in advance from the Rajput brothers for a dormitory." me said. "Thats fine, but we wait only till 5 or 6 in the evening and loose on business due to no-show of guests. Hence its first come first serve basis in the evening" he said. Where do we go from here, we asked. He told us to get back to the village- we might find a place. Bad luck strikes at the PWD quarters too, the caretaker was ready to give us the room but we need to check out before 7 in the morning. Not done! We ride back to the village and good luck strikes, we find a place for the night. One storeyed house converted into a make-shift lodge. Who cares, we just needed a roof over us and this toh had proper equipped beds, a working fan, a few mosquitoes for company and a free coil to drive them away.
The owner's going to dig a hole in our pocket seeing our state of desperation. How much- we ask him. 30 bucks per person per might. Wow thats really cheap, but gulped down all the excitement. You never know- not many good things happening, this might take a tumble. The entire luggage is dumped in quick time. Had to inform back home about we reaching. No cell network and not a single PCO- boy this place is still stuck in the paleo-age. Good news, we come to know that far away from the village on a hillock we might catch up on BSNL frequency- now how funny is that. Thanks to Amit's thoughtfulness he carried a BSNL simcard. Now here's a bigger joke, you need to hold the phone high in the air to get a signal, pull it down and the network shows you a BIG THENGA! We plugged the sim into Alkesh's phone and passed on the intimations back home using the speaker phone. Funny sight that was- if not for the darkness it would have added a nice humour video to the memories collection.

In the meantime rats attack Vinod and Alkesh's stomachs. Finding an eatery at such a far flung place at late night was next to impossible, but still decided to hunt around and found one. Not a restaurant, similar to the lodge, it was a make shift structure. Check out these rates- one rice 25 bucks, another 25 for dal and another 25 for bhaaji. Great news- we're here to be looted eh! Vinod goes ahead with ordering one portion of this exquisite recipe. The order shrinks- not enough dal in store, khichdi milega……. Woh bhi chalega. Vinod sir suddenly in a mood to have omlette, another good news- those people didn't know how to make an omlette and Vinod had to make all by himself, and he gets through with it really quick giving big omlette making lectures- boy how difficult it is to make an omlette! The food arrives and these two chaps enjoy the feast with Amit and me staring at their faces- we weren't hungry anyways, I swear ;) We're back to our room and our sleep marks the end of an eventful day. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

16.08.2008

Vinod was up early but went back to sleep again. I'm up and through with all the morning rituals- pull out Amit's DSC-50 for an early morning photographic surveillance. Amit wakes up too and we head out towards Yeshwant lake.
A round photographic tour of the lake with Amit and all over again with Vinod striking poses at the lake.
A curious and meowing call leads us to a peacock perched high up a lamp post and no sooner flutter flutter down he comes. Personifying splendour and grace in every movement! But way too restless, took a few shots with great difficulty.
Vinod enjoys a few goti moments with the bachaa party and later we're back to our rooms to find the other two absconding.
Clicked a few pics of the local people. Fell in love with this chhoti- naughty innocence all over her face.
Keeping us worried for more than an hour, the two maharajas finally arrive after a satisfying breakfast from the resort. Site see time- we pick up two bikes to take a site see in faster time than on foot. Vinod and me relish over delicious portions of poha and refreshing tea for breakfast on the way.
Soul soothing moments at Khadki Point. And a few wonderful foggy snapshots to add to memories, then it was off roading from one point to another.
The sight of Sitakhai falls was exhilerating, streams reeling off the cliff and hammering down hard on the surface below. If the sound of the ocean waves is nature's poetry, this one was hard rock. The gushing sound was wild.
Lingered around for quite some time trying to visually fathom the steep drops. At the edge of a cliff leaning off the railings feeling how small and insignificant we were, in front of those huge mountains.
Toranmal is beautiful and thank god its not commercialized- hope it stays the way it is. Alkesh and me enjoy a few moments under a chilly waterfall on the way back.

Site seeing was done and Vinod decided to head back on the day to save on time and distance towards the return journey. Packing and loading took an extended duration, and we kiss good bye with a heavy heart to this lovely place. Unfortunately we missed the Machhindranath Caves.
Clicking pics all the way and inspecting the roads that scared us so much a day before. My bike was nervous and all over the place- thanks to valve leak in the rear tyre. Amit stayed back and gave me ride and photography company. We could see Vinod and Alkesh crawling their way down the Saat Paayri Ghats from far up.
Swinging every now and then, we're down to sea level passing through the muddy section concluded the descend. Honking through an army of cattle, a scenic lake view on the way stopped us for photography, and that was the end of the major photography sessions. The ride from thereon was to roll as max distance as we could.


Crossed over the Tapi River which we failed to take note while on our journey towards.
We reached Nandurbar and dropped back into the same restaurant, not to mention the waiters were smiling again. Very cozy atmosphere and good food - this time we took even longer time to move. It was already dark now- and started drizzling. I toh totally forgot the route- thankfully Mr. Mhetar was leading and he’s good at memorizing roads. We’re back on NH6 and the 4 bogied train starts running at full blast. We had already seen the road while coming- so we were least bothered about hitting potholes- only problem was the high beams from the opposite side. Though there was trucker traffic but overtaking was easy and we never broke formation.
Just carried on riding as long as we could under the full moon and took a short chai-stop at Songadh with lot of insects for company. 

Moving on we come across a railway crossing and had to wait pretty long for the train to pass which seemed as it if was on its last run. In between Vinodbhaiya got an alternative and shorter route from a car driver towards Mumbai from Vyara via Unai devi. “Rasta kaisa hai?” we asked. “Ekdum toap to bottam first class road chhe” he responds with an affirmation that accommodation will also be available aplenty on this stretch. Good enough we said and took left from Vyara. Aage kya bolu- we were absolutely shaken up completely from top to bottom, such horrible were the roads. We cursed that driver so much, am sure he would have banged his car somewhere.
The only pleasant feeling was the number of rivers we were passing over, every now and then you have one river- and the moonlight reflecting in the water made a beautiful sight. After some serious butt torture we manage to reach Unai past midnight. Not a soul around except for some stray dogs chasing each other. Fortunately caught hold of a tea-stall and asked him for stay arrangements. The Dharamshala and a lodge near the Unai Devi temple were the only means of accommodation- cursed that driver again. Vinod went inside the guest house for a check- and came out finding no one. The doors were open, everything so silent- and with those dogs howling in the background, it seemed like a haunted town- but the temple was a consoling and saving grace.
Vinod took to the Dharamshala to enquire, in the meantime Amit already went in and woke up the guest house’s owner- Amit’s fluent Gujarati speaking skills helped. Despite we spoiling the owner’s sleep, he was very polite in guiding us to the room, arranging drinking water, mosquito mats, extra pillows and mattresses. Memories of a few horror TV serials came to mind- we were the only four in the complete lodge and at that point of time at night the politeness showed by the owner was something very surprising. Vinod and Amit went to sleep, in the meantime Alkesh and I went up the terrace to shoot a few glimpses of the Lunar Eclipse. Got a lucky shot when the clouds cleared for a few seconds. Back on the bed and it’s the end of another day.

17.08.2008

The place that looked like a haunted place earlier night was a riot next morning with the lane bustling with people and shops overflowing with things you could ever imagine.
The hot springs were amazing- Vinod got a taste of the more mild tank- the one on the other side was closed and water was on boiling point.
We had dhokla and phaafda …though I hate eating fried stuff for breakfast and to add the cleanliness of the restaurant was least impressive.
Spent some time shopping around and back to our rooms for packup. Passing through narrow lanes, we hit the main road and took to NH8 at Valsad via Dharampur.
It was a continuous ripping session till Kaloo Punjabi-da-Dhaba at Charoti. Great lunch there and with lot of time remaining we lazed around a bit.
Back on the road and everything was ok till Manor- after that it was a punishment nearly neutralising all the fun that we had on the trip. Terrible traffic jam- very bad roads…..ok, but a few oversmart cookies had jumped onto the other side of the road- and what you get is a perennial jam for miles. Pathetic sight it was – just for weird time-saving ideas of a few idiots everyone had to suffer. It took more than an hour to come out this 5 kms stretch of hell.
Reached Ghodbunder completely exhausted than we had been on the entire ride. Sad ending for such a amazing ride- nevertheless it was amazing after all. We thanked each other for the wonderful company and split for our homes. As for recollecting the Toranmal experience, I wish it retains it present state and commercialization doesn’t burden this beautiful place with litter.
Though it lacks facilities even at basic levels- still its fun to mingle and experience a village life for a day or two, your cell-phone doesn’t irritate and no SPM dissolved air to breathe….but where you’re part of one mysterious and powerful force called nature. It gives you a feeling of accomplishment of having experienced it with a pure sense of freedom and serenity- and you’ll remember it for years to come.

So that was it guys- again a long one at that :)

Courtesy Vinod, here’s the distance log (he keeps a better track of distances):
Jogeshwari to Charoti = 104 Km
Charoti to Navsari = 148 Km
Navsari to Navapur = 100 Km (Via Bardoli – NH6 )
Navapur to Nandurbar = 75 Km 
Nandurbar to Shahada = 40 Km
Shahada to Toranmal = 54 Km
One way distance = 521 Kms

Toranmal to Home = 501Km 
(Via Shahada–Nandurbar-Navapur–Vyara– Unai–Dharpur– Valsad – Charoti-Ghodbundar road)

Both ways distance covered = 1022 Km

The COMPLETE SET OF PICS HERE.


Rainy Round Ride

Posted: by Pulsurge in Labels: , , ,
0

If you don't ride in the rain, you don't ride......Author Unknown 




Vinod and myself went for a ride yday...nothing a fixed destination as such- was a just circling ride back to Mumbai.

This was our route and the distance:
Thane-Panvel-Vadkhal-Poladpur-Kashedi Ghat-Khed-Chiplun-Kumbharli Ghat-Paatan-Umbraj bypassing Karad-Satara-Pune-Lonavla-Thane: 686 kms.

Here's the GPS TRACK

The distance says 629 kms- it did lose out on connectivity from Mangaon to Poladpur and on Kashedi Ghat- it simply calculated a straight road, I guess coz of heavy rains. Also I concluded the trip at Vashi to which a further 20 odd kms were not added.

The biggest disappointment of course was Kashedi which was totally splashed up.



Couldnt do more than 60 on the Ghats and whenever it rained, I felt like that I've totally forgot riding- was totally embarassed at my riding skills.



Parshuram Ghat was mindblowing- we rode like there was no tomorrow and we both did almost run off the curve at one point.



On wet roads I was finding it difficult to keep up with Vinod. Bike was just sliding and skidding around on curves- but then later found out the stupid thing on my part i.e. the tyre pressures. Front was 18 and rear 47 :(( Also due to over inflation the M45 was rubbing against the swingarm. Calibrated the pressure at an electronic pump at Satara and thereon it was a wonderful ride- it was rather a chase. We were covering around 75-80 kms an hour on average.



We passed through some amazing scenery- specially Kumbharli Ghat that connects Chiplun to Karad..felt like we were riding through a north-eastern state :)



Stopped over at a restaurant at Paatan.



Enjoyed a typical countryside spiced-up food. Vinod satisfied himself with Mutton Masala and me with Kaaju Masala. With rains and cold weather outside- having hot and spicy food under a shade is a different experience overall.



Never saw Vinod riding like this before- he was amazing fast around corners, and his riding skills on wet roads and in dark is something I would like to learn. Rode with him a lot in the past- and old memories were refreshed.



Had a great time.

HERE ARE A FEW PICS (didnt click much coz of rains)


A small mention

Posted: by Pulsurge in Labels:
0



Unfortunately couldn't make it to the Annual Yahoo! Moderators Union held at Hotel Sahara Star, Mumbai. But Yahoo! did come out with a press release (DNA dated 10.06.2008) and I was surprised to find quotes of mine about my riding group "The Saddle Tramps" despite being absent from a great event.

They've messed up with my surname though :D

Here's the online version too.

Ride to Karwar & Amboli

Posted: by Pulsurge in Labels: , , ,
3

“The use of traveling is to regulate imagination by reality, and instead of thinking how things may be, to see them as they are.” - Samuel Johnson



"Long time, no ride" that subjects as to how I started the plan of riding out. The last ride was somewhere two months back, now that's a punishment isn’t it? Add to it the previous planning of Amboli never got out of the bag. Surprisingly in the end, the plan turned out to be a solo ride- so as my mind usually thinks, the distance automatically gets pushed further and bringing out some vague riding thoughts of places which will be out of the time radar. The first place which came to my mind was Mangalore, didn’t know a bit about the places there barring a few forgotten monuments which Glen had briefed a year back. But it’s never the attraction of the place that fazes me, it’s rather an excuse for a point of U-turn. Thinking in practical terms I could see Karwar in a comfort zone for a turn-around point. Then the world's tallest idol of Lord Shiva comes to mind, for which I was so eager to see ever since I came across the magnificent structure on the web a year back. But anyway didn’t make it to Murudeshwar coz of personal reasons.

The last surprise package was still in wraps, my colleague Alkesh who recently bought a black P220 and somehow was bitten by the ride bug on our office picnic to Lonavla, where we ditched the bus ride and took the bike along. So since he bought the P220, was chasing me for a ride, and to really expedite things never knowing when I'll be heading out- he completed his running-in within surprisingly quick time for his given distance of commute. He stays at Jogeshwari and commutes to office at Andheri- hardly 10 kms of commute everyday to and fro. Every other Sunday he used to hit the Western Express Highway and roll a few 100 kms. Being aware of my ride plans- he asked me if he could join in and with great pride conveyed that he's clocked 2500 kms. Affirming to his request was a gamble. With practically no riding experience out of city under normal circumstances, I was apprehensive as to whether he will stand upto it. As my duty, I tried to acquaint or rather scare him with apprehensions involved on the ride. But he wasn't inching back a bit- he simply wanted to ride. I didn't have a heart to say NO to him. He was aware of the pre-requisite riding gear, he rushed off to Smart Designs and bought a pair of Cramster gloves- it was the only missing part of the set. Having serviced his 220 a couple of days before the ride, he was all set and eager to roll his wheels off on a first proper ride of his life. I got rid of the 60W candlelight bulb and fixed my 35W back again. The ride was already postponed a day ahead coz on leave issues and now we had Saturday night to roll and Monday to return.

Here comes Saturday, bags packed up- bikes washed, polished and ready to roll the long distance ahead. But then as usually happens on the riding day, time tends to move at a slower pace than normal. Its 6.30- through with the office hours and too restless to jump on our bikes. Time's up and now comes another delay...my phone- damn the battery's gone half and the charging never seemed it will stop. So mutually decided to let the phone energise and enjoy an interesting IPL match in progress on the big LCD screen. Match's over, charging is done- could feel the blood in the veins getting warmer and the muscles stretching out themselves anticipating the ride ahead. Loads of wishes from everybody for a safe journey- Alkesh gets the majority of them as it’s his first ride. Call up Sanket and I get my share of wishes- the usual one..... "God Speed" he says. And here comes Parimal's sms - as always his wishes are bundled up with the list of precautions I should be taking on the ride- a very good reminder that I keep my head steady and not scamper too fast on the roads owing to excitement. Vaibhav too joins the list of good wishes for the ride ahead. And the biggest bunch of wishes comes from my soulmate. As always she very well knows my ride plans- irrelevant whether its 4 in the evening or 4 in the morning, before I set my foot out, the phone has to beep for sure conveying her best wishes for the ride wrapped with concerns and worries for my well being, not to mention the unfulfilled wish to accompany me on the ride :)



So all is done - out of office and takes no time to bungee our bags onto the bikes. The N95 is ready with the Sports Tracker and hooked up to the satellite in pretty quick time. Crank up the bikes, thumbs up to each other - a press of the START TRIP button on the N95, slipped it into my jacket pocket and we're off.


I was never so nervous on any ride...well nothing much, but was just worried about Alkesh. Utter a small prayer to the almighty for our safety on the road- Alkesh was in my mirrors all the time and he was riding well which made me feel better. The crawl through traffic till Gandhinagar was too irritating and a patience test. Over we pass the Kanjur Railway bridge and its cruise control. The wind imparted a pleasant feeling and the engine humming its favourite song in its best tone at 80-90 kph. A small stopover at Revel's place in Vashi to collect the camera, refuel and purchase the required stuff like toothpaste, biscuits, chewing gum etc. A semi merry-go-round down to the Palm Beach Stretch gets Alkesh excited. He unleashes all the 19 odd horses in his P220 and starts to disappear by each passing second. I was surprised but at the same time was happy to see him confident doing three digit speeds. It’s a relaxed ride there from passing through the lovely JNPT route onto NH4 taking a halt again for pressure check on his rear tyre which was discomforting at higher speeds.



It’s a non-stop run till Neeta's Volvo stopover restaurant ahead of Lonavla where nothing much was available to eat and with half of the stalls closing down, we relished on a hot pizza and some juice to fuel our stomachs for the onward journey. The ride was getting more enjoyable with every kilometre on the odo- the throttle was held constant thanks to almost no traffic. Then comes the right diversion of NH4 towards Bangalore... wide open roads increases the twist of the wrist and we're happily cruising at 100+. Alkesh had perfected the rule of group riding- always in my mirrors and never went into the blind spot. Though we didn’t feel like stopping, but got off our bikes outside Katraj tunnel for a snap shot. The straight care-free stretch of road felt too much relaxed and somehow sleep started getting into our eyes. Tea seemed the best solution and we stopped over again for sips (gulps rather alongwith Kurkure packs for that tongue tingle) at a stall just before Khambatki Ghat.



Alkesh got too charged up with the tea and blasted away into the distance with me in amazement watching him take those curves on Khambatki like I never saw him do before. Khambatki offered a small dose of a much needed thrill on the mostly straightish roads. From that point onwards it was a rocket launch ride - was finding it extremely tough keeping up with Alkesh who at no point of time seemed interested to come down below the 100 kph mark. My bike yelling out its guts and redlining every now and then in 4th to be within shooting range of his scorching P220. Satara and Karad were gone even before we could realise.




We were constantly on the scamper for more than an hour now- and decided to give the engine a bit of cooling. The temperature had dropped and that fresh smell of soil concluded that it had rained- thankfully the roads were dry. Caught sight of a tea stall and realised that we had almost touched Kolhapur- off with the riding gear and it was complete bliss. The cool climate was a treat after the suffering we had to go through the Mumbai summer. Add to it the amazing "Gavti" tea we were served.... glass after glass, we kept them coming till we were completely satisfied- by then 8 full glasses had already gone down our throats alongwith 2 packets of Parle-G.



Bikes were pretty cooled by then and charged the phone as much as I could....was time again for another rocket riding session. Steady on the throttle and only realised after touching Sankeshwar Toll Plaza that we had crossed the State Border. The sun was creeping its way up behind the horizon and we stopped to click pics of it rising and the wonderful roads that continued into eternity.




With Belgaum approaching, I suddenly took a halt and asked Alkesh to swap bikes. You have the roads- lets see what guts can be stirred up in the P220's belly :) And boy ...doesn’t this bike touch 100 in a dash- but the wind disappointed me..too much drag and I couldn’t push further than 120 on the digital dash (no crouching though). Came across an RTR chap pushing his bike real hard - but then there's no replacement for displacement... and the result was obvious ;) The 118 kph you see on the GPS track might make you feel that it was my bike :P but it was the P220. 2 kph difference compared to almost 10 kph on my analog speedo- pretty good for accuracy! Reached Belgaum and waited for Alkesh to arrive.



All the fun apart, and our bikes taking the toll of our crazy riding- the fuel indicator was already leaning left. In fact I was already running in reserve for some time now and with the perpetual dividers not seeming to end and bunks all on the other side - I was worried if I would run out of fuel. But thankfully Alkesh wasn’t finding my bike comfortable and rode pretty relaxed. An IOC bunk stood right opposite to the halt and luckily we could cross over to the other side of the road. Refueled with Xtra Premium (only available) and being in Karnataka was priced higher than what we get here. Asked the attendant if I could charge my cell for some time- "YES SAAR" was a very polite reply. In the meantime got fresh with a washup and got relieved of the fluid bouncing in the bladder.




Asked a local for directions to Karwar and we were on our way with speeds drastically reduced owing to overnight rains and slippery roads. Had to pass through traffic and zigzagging some really narrow lanes to get onto the right track. Dry roads again and we push ourselves towards Karwar taking a stop again for breakfast which was left half eaten- couldn’t just take much of the taste on offer. Rolling the distance, the view started getting better and the roads started getting dry and the cruise was truly refreshing; more than the Gavti tea we had at Kolhapur.



No blind corners with trees ticking by in the corner of your eyes- with your mind almost keeping a track on the number of them whizzing past you. We already had an extended treat and it was time for some jerky experiences. Lost ourselves at Londha taking a horrible road which came to a dead end in some far flung village and then again a sign board totally misguiding us on the directions taking us towards Goa rather than Karwar. It was a waste of 30 kms merry-go-round-ing the same place. In the end got placed on the right track and again it transformed into a comfortable glide.




The earlier comparison of the experience to the refreshing wasn't wrong at all...am sure everyone would have faced this incident. It is like you enjoying a rejuvenating cup of tea and end up swallowing tea granules.....and you can only think of spitting it out as soon as you can. I agree this was a pathetic comparison, but then this was the worst part of the ride- the roads were bad..utter bad...ok wrong word..they were worse and even worse part- they were simply refusing to end. Try to avoid one bump and bang into another....Our backs, butts, even the bones had already taken some 20 kms of battering and it was still long to go. I carried on bumping and concentrated more on the road to avoid the craters. I glance in my rear view mirrors and find Alkesh missing- slow down keeping my eyes glued in the RVMs hoping to find him soon, but he isn’t to be seen. I come to a complete stop and just sway my head towards the right....baaaaaah....I get a scare- huge black faced monkeys around 15 of them all staring at me. Still a stupid thought of clicking them came to mind, but then I have some very old memories about their snatching habits. Wanted to simply rip off from the place, might be they would start chasing me- though I haven’t heard or seen instances of monkeys dodging human beings- still that fear was there in mind. Alkesh wasn’t to be seen yet- but I preferred waiting at a relatively safer place. Started my bike- irritated with the starter noise that the Pulsar makes, again fearing that might annoy them.



Got the wheels rolling slowly and gradually and finally into good speed before stopping again at a relatively safer and monkey-less place. A few minutes later Alkesh arrives and we both start rolling over those punishing roads again. We might have covered another 20 kms of a painful journey before we hit paradise, I mean good roads. With fresh laid tarmac and the gravel still sticking around- it was time for some crackling music....even my helmet got involved in the orchestra on more than one occasion- luckily my visor wasn’t hit. A bridge on the way over the Kali River was a soothing sight and somehow managed to get over the bone rattle. Through with the amazing scenery, carried our onward journey and rolling distances we finally...phew....we were in Karwar. Pulled out the phone to see if the GPS is still ticking...but damn, it’s off..the battery's drained completely. Stopped over at a restaurant-cum-ice cream parlour which looked posh from the outside, but equally horrible from the inside. Couldn’t stand the sight of people having food- seemed like they're fasting since birth. Fresh lime soda was a safer bet and got two for us. The climate was indeed hot and decided to relish a portion of ice-cream and ordered Gadbad Falooda. Stood true to its name- it was truly gadbad.. and the worst falooda I tasted till date. In the meantime plugged the cell-phone for a recharge and thankfully it was able to recover the GPS data with minimal loss of distance (cross checked the P220's tripmeter and it was only a loss of some 7-10 kms). Asked for directions towards the beach and off we are getting between two faces of a drilled rocky hill.



We touch the Sadashivgad bridge and wow...here we are!!! It’s blue and blue all around...the clear blue sky above and the equally blue water underneath. Coconut trees lining the shore in the distance on the left with house boats ferrying their way and a lonely white-sand shore on the right. Boy....Karwar is beautiful..absolutely beautiful!



Couldn't simply get enough of the beautiful sight and spend a long time staring into the horizon and the two small islands in the distance.



With satisfaction in mind, got over the bridge and touched the clean sands (no idea which beach it was). Clicked a few pics of the beach and INS Chapal now converted into a Marine Museum.



Temperature was on the higher side and we had reached our point of U-Turn. As planned earlier we had to reach as close to Amboli before dark and Sawantwadi was the place. On our bikes passing through the lovely beach scenery and again over Sadashivgad bridge bidding adieu to the beautiful place. Passing through Goa was a headache with traffic jams at places and with so many intersections and no proper directions we lost our way thrice. For some personal reason I don’t like Goa and had pledged that I would never visit this place in my life (no offence meant to Goa-lovers), now it was my majboori, I was suffocating and wanting to get out of this place as soon as I could. Was riding as fast as I could...annoyingly had to slow down again and again- this place certainly got a record number of speed-breakers. The temperature was melting us inside and we took a break some 34 kms before the Maharashtra border. Again a horrible restaurant- totally crowded and serving nothing but batata wada and pakoda. Managed with whatever was available and hurried off. NH17 started getting narrow and hell lot of time was wasted following a bus which was halting every now and then, couldn’t even overtake with the traffic rushing from the opposite side. Somehow managed to pull ahead and thankfully we roll into our state border- Goa's gone and I take a deep breath.



A few moments later we touch Sawantwadi and the only thing on our minds was a flat surface to rest our backs. The process of hotel hunting made me lose Alkesh again in the market area, but thankfully he didn’t move from the place and caught up with him. Found a cheap lodge in the market area at Rs. 350/-. Good ventilated room with a working TV though a common bathroom and toilet- it was maintained really well. Spent half an hour under a hot shower easing the stiff muscles (thankfully the tanks didn’t run out of water) before going into temporary comma for a few minutes. Got up feeling fresh and relaxed and now with rats running round in the stomach, was about time to find a good eatery. Didn’t take our bikes along and turned out to be a big mistake, the restaurants were some distance away from the lodge and every other person was showing us his own route to reach. Restaurants were completely occupied and had a bit of more running around to find some morsels of satisfaction. In the end we did bump into a good outlet and enjoyed our rightful portions of near-about home made food. Stomachs full and eyes getting heavier, we dash off to our lodge and snore away into the night.

The sun is up and so are we- through with all the morning rituals and all luggage packed up and we're eager to head out on a new day. Dosa for breakfast and a small shoppie around for the famous wooden toys concluded our stopover at Sawantwadi.



Getting directions to Amboli was easy and we were on our way passing through the winding roads and villages which ended after a certain distance and thereon the ride was absolute bliss. We had been through some great roads to ride till here, but this was the best we had on the entire journey. It felt like a one way route with whatever traffic all heading towards Amboli- don’t recollect any vehicle coming from the opposite side. Perfect blend for a enjoyable ride- great grippy twisty roads, cool climate, greenery all around, minimal traffic and with the rear Michelin digging itself into the tarmac- it was confidence all the way.



Stopped on the way to take a few shots of the valley below- it was truly beautiful barring one place where a truck had dived into the valley. I was clicking the misfortuned truck when two villagers came trotting on their bikes and stood next to me. "Don maansa meli ya gaadit". "Oh Shit" I uttered.... and guess what..the other replies back "OH F#$%"..I stare at his face (our country's truly progressing huh!) he gives me a witty grin.



Alkesh was a bit slow on the ghats and stopping for photography made sure that he catches up with me on the halt. Carrying on with our serpentine ride we reach "Amboli Gurusthan". Laze around the "Purvicha Vas" temple staring down the valley for a few moments. Time for a GPS check....oh yeah its ticking! 19 odd kms of pure joy.



So being through with Amboli- the objective now was to reach home as early as possible. chose the exit on NH4 towards Nipani, as the last time experience via Kolhapur was horrible and time consuming. With the exception of a few bad patches it was a comfortable ride till NH4- didn’t realise we were back into Karnataka again.



The site of the runway-type of road forced us to simply go flat out. Crossed Sankeshwar and we're back into Maharashtra and in no time we were at Kolhapur. Alkesh suggested that since we were here, we should visit the Goddess Mahalaxmi Temple. As mentioned earlier, I've had really bad experiences of riding through Kolhapur and wanted to simply avoid getting there. Asked a gentleman on the distance and 10 kms was his answer. Not very far- we decided to go. Stopped over again for distance and direction confirmation- 4 kms comes the second reply. 2 kms is the third and 8 kms is the fourth. Hell with the distance- we carry on asking only for directions. Round and round we finally reach the temple.



There was no facility at the shrine to dump our luggage- it wasn’t possible to carry our huge bags, jackets and helmets inside the temple. Thankfully one garland-stall offered us some space to squeeze in our stuff. That still got us worried, an unlocked compartment from where anyone could just pull out your things and walk away. We carried our helmets with us, with my earlier jacket already stolen I was worried about this one. Bought a garland thali and got into the long queue with some over-smart people pushing their kids in between and later squeezing themselves in. Some cheap habits and practices simply don’t tend to go.



The temple was a wonderful piece of architecture and the darshan of the Goddess was serene and soothing. We're out and by the grace of Goddess Mahalaxmi, all our stuff was totally intact :) It was already 5.30 p.m. and we had to head back. Hurried over with a light breakfast and shopping for some sweets. Everything's done- here we come Mumbai!

We reach the highway again after lot of confusion. Whack! on the throttle and in a few moments Alkesh has disappeared. Need to ride as fast and as long as possible, but to our bad luck we face horrible crosswinds which keep getting worse. Being a bit apprehensive, we decided to take a halt at Karad and shelter behind a few stalls.



Back onto our bikes with the same objective in mind- ride fast, ride long- and here comes another obstacle... touch Satara and it starts drizzling. We slow down yet don’t intend to stop- but then we finally have to. The rain gets mighty heavier and we rush for cover.




I witness some of the most amazing display of lightning I have ever seen in my life, unfortunately couldn’t capture them. It’s almost half an hour and its still raining- it takes another 20 mins until it’s manageable to ride. Hell lot of distance to cover and we're riding at what? 40kph! Stopover for a fill with the pump only vending premium fuel- damn. A wet and slow ride for another odd 20 minutes brings us to dry roads again. On the momentum and we carry on non-stop till ;Pune except for one stop after the Khambatki tunnel as had Alkesh dropped back. Have light snacks at a dhaba in Pune and later it’s a non-stop run till the Airoli flyover. Look at our watches and its 2.30 in the night- its the splitting point and though we're extremely desperate now to reach home, we conclude the entire journey with a cup of tea at a bicycle tea stall. We thank each other for the company and head in opposite directions- Alkesh towards Jogeshwari and me towards Thane. Reach home, dump all the luggage, wash up and on the bed in no time awaiting Alkesh's sms confirmation that he reached home. Half an hour later a loud beep on the phone- he's reached safe. Am dead....and I stay dead till 9 next morning.

All of the rides till date had something bad or the other, and this was no different. And similar to the earlier ones, I enjoyed this too. Got a new riding companion to tally on the list in Alkesh- am indeed lucky to have so many to ride with. I still remember those days when his comments denoted that riding was a waste of time, money and efforts. But now he's transformed- could never imagine he could ride this long without any issue. And it was the second time he proved me wrong- earlier being he buying a P220 when I had placed a bet that he never would. Of course I did lose the bet and had to distribute sweets in office on his behalf, but then I was feeling good too- as I was sure that a P220 in his hands wasn't for commuting. It had arrived to ride long...really long. And both of them did really well on their first attempt- didn’t they?

THE PICS HERE.

This was our route and the distance covered:

Mumbai-Pune-Satara-Karad-Kolhapur-Belgaum-Khanapur-Londha-Karwar-Margaon-Panaji-Sawantwadi-Amboli-Aajra-Nipani-Kolhapur-Satara-Pune-Mumbai: 1432 kms.

Some keedagiri on the Nokia Sports Tracker:

Mumbai to Karwar

Karwar to Sawantwadi
 
From Sawantwadi to Amboli







Short ride to Jawhar

Posted: by Pulsurge in Labels: , ,
0

As planned, Glen and me rode to Jawhar this Sunday.

We started at 6.15 in the morning from Thane and just 5 kms ahead, my speedo cable came off. Hot tea sipping at Ghodbunder before some high speed cruising till Charoti Naka. Got the cable fixed at a garage and carried on through the serpentine roads till Jawhar.



Took halt at the lake, clicked a few pics, took halt under a shade and muched some biscuits alongwith company of cattle- one of them getting too close for comfort and only left when all got over.



Paid a visit to the Jai Vilas Palace built by King Yeshwantrao Mukhane in 1940- unfortunately he died 4 years later.







We had to bribe the care-taker to enter and again to click pics inside which was strictly prohibited.





Was a treat going around it viewing the old furniture, paintings, the rooms trying to relive the moments the royal family would have lived in its times.



Purchased cashews on the way to Vikramgad, the place I assumed to be a fort which in the end was a small village :'( But enjoyed the roads of some 25 kms full of curves- dont remember if we got any straights to ride on and best part was no traffic.



Took exit to Manor on NH4 and halted for lunch at a small dhaba ahead and some cool water-melon at Thane.

Enjoyed the ride, though I wished having a few more riders for the trip.

The route:
Thane-Ghodbunder-Manor-Charoti-Talwada-Jawhar-Vikramgad-Manor-Ghodbunder-Thane.

Distance approx: 300+ kms.

A few memories of the ride HERE