Tweet
One has to get rid of the monotonous up & downs...I chose to measure the time by the number of kilometres I have clocked on the roads.
The desire to explore the lands and the preparation for the same is never better, saddling up the motorcycle, choosing a direction and start riding for days and months maybe. Now, this would be an exaggerated dream. The line of business that I have been in would never allow me to do the same; rather all of the corporate folks who would have a Traveller within will have to wait until they have a weekend clubbed with another National Holiday to get on planning an expedition like this. A 3 day off which was like a dream come true and all that I had to do was picking up my helmet and the keys and leave.
After a long wait, 3 of us planned again. To welcome the monsoons on its way this time, Vadodara to Lonavala it was. The lush green lands across that belt of Western Ghats always had fascinated me during my childhood days. When all that I could capture was very few glimpses through the guard rails of the Sleeper Class compartment of Indian Railways; those beautiful and scenic fields and mountains which I had always wanted to explore.
July 4th, 4:00 AM. Approximately around 60 horses were all ready to gallop. Yamaha R15 and two Pulsar 200NS were fastened with the bags, Rakesh and Suhail, my partners at work and the small Motorcyle Road Trip stories of mine. Now these guys have been the participants in almost all the stuff that has been happening in the past 2-3 years. More than anything, we share the common Biker Brotherhood thing now. The Ride to Udaipur, then the Rann of Kutch, it never stopped getting crazier with each trip we had planned and executed.
It is inevitable that weather is a major concern before one can plan a road trip and so we had a concern with the rains. Not that we were looking for a clear sky to ride, but the exact opposite was true. We wanted some drizzle or at least the dark clouds where we can either chase the rains or let the clouds chase us. The monsoons this year were delayed and there were absolutely no rains till the June end. A few locals from Pune also advised to hold-up the trip until it rains to add some beauty to the place. We just could not wait any more. So after gearing up and the packing done, we started approximately at 0500 Hours from Vadodara, entered the NH8.
By the time we reached Valsad, which was hardly an hour away from Surat we started getting signs of fresh grass sprouted right after the rains and the Petrichor
We reached Panvel via Mumbra and there was a diversion to the Mumbai Pune Expressway which was to be avoided. We just did not want to end up in multilingual arguments with the Cops, giving them details about why the DL from the state one belongs differs to one issued by the another state and what exactly are you doing with your 2 wheelers on an expressway.
We were back on roads after the precautionary packing to climb the hill now. The hairpin bends and corners were just too amazing to climb but had to be extra cautious with the wet roads. The Express Way entrance up over there was not guarded at all so we did end up entering the Expressway. Fortunately the exit to Lonavala was only a Kilometre from the point we got in and local family in a car helped us to get to the exit.
The first day riding completes here and all you need is a bed, hence we started looking around for a Hotel. Checked in, a nice shower, dinner and off to bed. This sleep is also something I long for, sweetest of all.
Bingo...Day 2 is planned!!!
The text I received from another friend of mine who recently moved to Pune. Sanjeev, along with him we roamed around Lonavala. While trying to figure the way toward Mulshi Dam one of the routes we took was complete off road, a term used not to offend the Municipal Authorities ignoring the condition of the roads. We just wanted to avoid that patch; I had already done a lot of bumpy rides and was not in favour of any sort of off-roading for the rest part of the day.
So amidst the curvy snake turns we reached the outskirts of Pune where Sanjeev lived.
The cool breeze even when there was a Power cut was pleasant enough...next morning after breakfast as per the plan we headed to Vashi. Cruised in through the city and off to NH 8 again.
Comment