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-   -   Sunday Offroad Excursion near Mumbai - 31st August 2014 (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-excursions/154949-sunday-offroad-excursion-near-mumbai-31st-august-2014-a.html)

With the monsoon coming towards the end of it's seasonal cycle in Mumbai, a few of decided to make the most of it.

Rain gods smiled upon this decision and it started raining heavily from saturday after a brief lull for a few days prior.

Plans were made over a whatsapp group and we meet up at the panvel McDonalds for the usual breakfast early in the morning. We then go on the Mumbai - Pune Expressway and line up after taking the first exit to meet up with the rest of the crew coming from Lonavla / Pune.

The line up:







From here we proceed to a friend's farmhouse where he has a huge property where could offroad.

We slowly proceed to the trail in an orderly convoy:







At a flat spot that many locals use as a picnic spot for the various waterfalls in the region, we stop to click some group snaps. The area has become dirty and littered.

We head out again and make frequent stops to click wonderful pics in that beautiful area:



As we go deeper, we are mesmerised by the natural beauty around us. We give a wide berth to the local livestock and are careful not to spook them.

















At a few places the road was washed away due to the rains forcing us to stop:





Instead of a regular 3 point u turn we are forced to make 18 point turns on the narrow trail to get to our location:

We open the GPS and figure out an alternative approach to the trail from the other side. It's a 15 km drive.

So we stop for a group snap:



Turn around and head out:





Being a foodie group as well, we stop at a local dhabba to have some food and tea:





Random pics along the way:

Finally we reach the other side and have a peak at the trail entrance. Would have nearly missed it:



Entry through a narrow track lined by vegetation:



And break through into open ground:



We again proceed in a convoy:

As we reach, a beautiful site greets us:










We quickly start lining up:



A few people pose with the cars:







Car group shot time:

We enjoy the awesome scenery and the brilliant weather and then start looking for obstacles to tackle. We play follow the leader:





We come down an incline that ends in a gully:

At the end is a deceptive gully. A correct line has to be taken or you will get stuck.

Here's my jeep getting through:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEEyx...ature=youtu.be

If you take the correct line, it's easy to go through but a wrong approach and poor articulation means you get stuck. Here's a gypsy attempting.

Stuck:




Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt_BS...ature=youtu.be

Tries with maxtrax without changing the angle:





But doesn't work:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sR0AR...ature=youtu.be

So what, the spirit of offroading is immortal! The happy poser! :)



He is then pulled out from behind.

Meanwhile try to make the obstacle a bit easy with some shovel work:



Finally taking the correct angle and positioning of maxtrax helps the gypsy out. The tyres on the gypsy were worn down ATs and thus contributed to the failure along with lack of articulation.

The group cheers the successful clearing of the hurdle:



The driver and shoveler clean themselves up in the water:

The first thar makes the correct approach and clears in the first attempt without any traction aid:



Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aS67Q...ature=youtu.be

The next black thar requires a couple of attempts and clears with the maxtrax placed strategically.

They were then left back for the others:




Some that's took a speedy approach to clear in one shot and landed up damaging the lugs on the maxtrax:




Another Thar clearing in multiple attempts:








The MM550 of gogi does it without any fuss:



Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qfHg...ature=youtu.be

Another gypsy tries and makes it in two attempts:




Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIrKV...ature=youtu.be

The hero and sidekick for the day, the maxtrax and shovel:




The crocs are not recommended OTR footwear. He was just demonstrating colour matching. Also people got a lot of grief for not wearing seat belts as noticed.

Once all vehicles are clear we move on:



We have looped around and are going to make a climb. So again we have to cross a gully, albeit easier than the previous one:





Here's a better pic of the shallow rut:



Making the climb:







The view from the top is amazing:





As people see the climb, some people get preferential maharaja treatment:

The gypsy attempts the climb next. But the tyres are just not helping in the slippery climb and she's eventually winched up:







Thar's that attempted in second low made it half way only and a third gear option was suggested to build up more speed and this resulted in them clearing:

Once all cars on top we move on to other obstacles:



We do a few more obstacles and some cars get stuck on the trail due to beaching, etc and we decide to head back.



We were drenched and tired and extremely hungry and many restaurants were shut by the time we reached Navi Mumbai around 5pm.

Someone spied an open pizza place and we decided to attack that place:



The thirst quenchers came first and Devansh became the butt of jokes because it looked as if he was slipping on coolant:



As soon as the food came, all talk died down and we attacked it with vigour:











A wonderful trip with wonderful friends at a wonderful location! Couldn't have asked for more.

Pic Courtesy: Everyone's mobile and still cameras.

Man, CAVITY looks absolutely menacing :thumbs up.

Nice lineup of rides overall (though surprised at the lack of any 340 chassis / SWB 4x4??). The videos greatly help in understanding the obstacle better.

Great report, thanks for sharing! Sure you guys had a blast. Having a farmhouse nearby helps when out for a dirty day.

This report will be going straight to our homepage!

Ah, back to the fun OTR after the grueling RFC. This is the kind of offroading I like to do, but won't mind the techniques and mods learned at RFC.:)

How can i get hold to this group, i do not have a hardcore 4x4 vehicle but have a vitara, and would love catch u guys in action.

Sanju

Dear Tejas & Company,

What the Hell you all have been upto ?
Well I am sure it would have been a hell of affair in the cavity out there. :D

Maharashtra is charming during Monsoon and it comes out well in the photologue.

Loved it all.

Thanks