Here begins my "blogging" journey on many of my motorcycle expeditions. Many friends have asked me to create a blog on my motorcycle trips. Lets begin with the rod trip to rajasthan that i made by my Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500 in september 2015.
Day 1:
I was back from work at the wee hours in the morning, after a load of work and also having lost the data from my work laptop. Loads of tension started mounting on me just before i began the journey. My original plan was to leave by 4 in the morning and head to Goa and ride to mumbai from there, along the scenic coast.
Finally, after coming back home at 3 AM, i decided to take a small nap before starting my journey in the morning. Keeping the journey in mind, i had already kept the luggage ready (2 bags and a saddle bag). After a good few hours of sleep, i was getting ready to ride at 7:30 AM when friend Vidyasagar (long time associate) reminded me of a "house warming" ceremony of another friend (Sudhakar). I rode to the house warming function near Kanakapura Road, and finally began the journey at 9 AM, via NICE road to the NH4.
The day was pretty cloudy and with very little sunshine, making the day pleasant for a ride. Three hours into the journey and just after crossing Chitradurga, the back wheel started to wobble. Realising there was an issue, i asked a few locals and found a small mechanic who helped with the issue. The back wheel had completely broken. Luckily, the mechanic had the same model and bearing size and helped to replace it. During the time i was waiting to get it replaced, rain showered down for a while and just when the bike was "ready" to run again, the rain had stopped.
The next couple of hours went peacefully and I stopped near hubli for filling fuel. A couple of young lads approached me to ask about my "journey" and what i was going to do. One of them even took a ride on the motorcycle around the fuel station and asked to pose for a quick selfie on his camera. I simply obliged, because not everyone gets this kind of attention.
I continued the journey and reached Kolhapur. My "first" step into a state other than the 4 southern states. I was into Maharashtra. I had totally travelled 670 kms in a span of 11 hours. Time for some beer and food before getting to bed.
Day 2:
I had planned to ride off to Daman on Day 2. The day was a bit gray and I was in no mood to ride out early. I took a small walk upto the Kolhapur bus-stand and decided to get my "beard-moustache" designed before beginning my journey. I left the hotel at 9 AM and continued my journey across a "new" highway that i had never been to before. It was 1:30 PM when I was on the outskirts of Pune.
There was a little rain throughout the journey to Pune, until on the outskirts where it started getting heavy. I went riding through the city and stopped for fuel, when the rain was really harsh. The entire luggage and I were completely soaked. Braving the heavy downpour, i decided to continue to Daman via Mumbai.
As I exited Pune, about 30 kms outside the city there was a huge traffic jam on the Mumbai-Pune highway. Since two-wheelers are not allowed on the expressway, I had to take the NH4 old highway. A river (Indrayani was the name, not sure) was overflowing due to the heavy downpour and running across the highway. At the first junction, the water cleared in an hours time and some vehicles managed to get to the other side of the flooded junction and the journey continued. When crossing the road by wading through the water, the luggage opened up and my bags fell down. A few people helped to pick up the motorcycle, the bags and also helped to tie it up.
After getting to the other side of the junction, the journey continued, but for barely 5 kms and there was another "flood" across the highway. I spotted a small dhaba and parked my motorcycle in a shade parking. The rain continued to beat down and I did not have a choice but to wait for it to reduce. around the same time, traffic started piling up near the dhaba. When enquired, the locals mentioned about another "flood" across the highway. This time the traffic had piled up for almost 7 kms. there was no way i could reach Daman that day. I even tried to take a deviation towards Nashik and head to Daman, which i had to change later as the rain was pretty bad on that stretch and the distance was more. I would've reached past midnight if I had gone by that route.
At the same dhaba, until 7 PM, and having nothing to do, I simply had to wait for the water to clear off the highway. During this "waiting' period, I befriended one "Arun" who was working in Pune, but riding back to Mumbai to meet his family. A brief talk with him ensured that I wasn't alone or bored for those "dreadly" 4 hours. Once the road and traffic jam got cleared, we continued. The rain had gone down, but it was continuously drizzling and we reached Lonavala by 8 PM. Arun and I had Kachori and Samosa, before heading towards Mumbai.
We reached Panvel at around 9:30 PM and I was already tired. I desperately wanted to get to a hotel and settle down for the day. Arun helped me to find a hotel and settle down, at 10:15 PM, before heading home. I had travelled about 390 kms and about 13 hours overall, with 4 hours of "waiting" for the water to clear.
Day 3:
Day 2:
I had planned to ride off to Daman on Day 2. The day was a bit gray and I was in no mood to ride out early. I took a small walk upto the Kolhapur bus-stand and decided to get my "beard-moustache" designed before beginning my journey. I left the hotel at 9 AM and continued my journey across a "new" highway that i had never been to before. It was 1:30 PM when I was on the outskirts of Pune.
There was a little rain throughout the journey to Pune, until on the outskirts where it started getting heavy. I went riding through the city and stopped for fuel, when the rain was really harsh. The entire luggage and I were completely soaked. Braving the heavy downpour, i decided to continue to Daman via Mumbai.
As I exited Pune, about 30 kms outside the city there was a huge traffic jam on the Mumbai-Pune highway. Since two-wheelers are not allowed on the expressway, I had to take the NH4 old highway. A river (Indrayani was the name, not sure) was overflowing due to the heavy downpour and running across the highway. At the first junction, the water cleared in an hours time and some vehicles managed to get to the other side of the flooded junction and the journey continued. When crossing the road by wading through the water, the luggage opened up and my bags fell down. A few people helped to pick up the motorcycle, the bags and also helped to tie it up.
After getting to the other side of the junction, the journey continued, but for barely 5 kms and there was another "flood" across the highway. I spotted a small dhaba and parked my motorcycle in a shade parking. The rain continued to beat down and I did not have a choice but to wait for it to reduce. around the same time, traffic started piling up near the dhaba. When enquired, the locals mentioned about another "flood" across the highway. This time the traffic had piled up for almost 7 kms. there was no way i could reach Daman that day. I even tried to take a deviation towards Nashik and head to Daman, which i had to change later as the rain was pretty bad on that stretch and the distance was more. I would've reached past midnight if I had gone by that route.
At the same dhaba, until 7 PM, and having nothing to do, I simply had to wait for the water to clear off the highway. During this "waiting' period, I befriended one "Arun" who was working in Pune, but riding back to Mumbai to meet his family. A brief talk with him ensured that I wasn't alone or bored for those "dreadly" 4 hours. Once the road and traffic jam got cleared, we continued. The rain had gone down, but it was continuously drizzling and we reached Lonavala by 8 PM. Arun and I had Kachori and Samosa, before heading towards Mumbai.
We reached Panvel at around 9:30 PM and I was already tired. I desperately wanted to get to a hotel and settle down for the day. Arun helped me to find a hotel and settle down, at 10:15 PM, before heading home. I had travelled about 390 kms and about 13 hours overall, with 4 hours of "waiting" for the water to clear.
Day 3:
