[sschivate]

Completed a routine Pune - Ratnagiri drive over the weekend. The Karad - Kokrud - Malkapur - Pali road is in very good condition. A few rough patches, but they are manageable at 40kmph. Amba ghat is recently resurfaced, and is a breeze to drive.

The only challenge was bypassing Kokrud town because of road works. The alternative routes suggested are very narrow and passing tractors and trolleys is scary.

[turbospooler]

Route update from my drive on 1st May to Ganpatipule from Pune.

We followed the route from Karad -> Malkapur -> Amba -> Devrukh -> Jakadevi -> Chafe -> Nevare (our place of stay was Mango Valley Resort).

The roads were phenomenal till Baw Nadi bridge. The Nivali Ghat had some rough patches and really broke off before the right hand turn to Jakadevi (near Hotel Gokul).
The roads were good after that.

Getting in and out of Karad was challenging as they are doing some work on the Pune-Bangalore highway (exact spots are before the Koyna bridge till Narayanwadi). Google shows a detour through the Market Yard, hence you need to get out early if you want to avoid the traffic. While returning from Ganpatipule, we took a bet and turned towards a village called Wing and found a very good road which cleared us of the traffic.

Bottom line: I was not expecting such good roads to Konkan but I am super happy with this development.

[dicor]

Narayanwadi > Malkapur > Ratnagiri

There are some rough patches on this road. However, with careful driving, they are manageable. It is still the fastest route to reach Konkan from Pune.



I took a different route this time, it was a long one, but the road conditions were fantastic.

336 KM 7.5 hours

Pune > Sarola > Bhor > Nira Deoghar Dam > Varandha Ghat > Mahad > Poladpur > Chiplun > Tavsal Ferry > Jaigad > Ganpati Pule > Aare Ware > Ratnagiri

It is also worth mentioning that Kashedi Ghat Tunnel is available for a pilot run. The 7 KM ghat road is now only 2 KM long, and Google Maps reduced my travel time by 40 minutes when the tunnel ended. This route is not shown on Google Maps but the volunteers are there to re-route small passenger vehicles. Heavy vehicles and buses are still taking usual ghat road.

[Aloneatma]

Hi,

Planning a trip to Malgund beach next week.
Have three options.
Tamhini ghat
Varandha ghat
Amba ghat

There are 4 of us in a Skoda Rapid 1.6l TDI.

Any recommendations on which route would be best?
We will leave from Pimpri around 6 am.

Thanks.

[varunswnt]

Originally Posted by Aloneatma

Hi,

Planning a trip to Malgund beach next week.
Have three options.
Tamhini ghat
Varandha ghat
Amba ghat

There are 4 of us in a Skoda Rapid 1.6l TDI.

Any recommendations on which route would be best?
We will leave from Pimpri around 6 am.

Thanks.

Just two weeks ago, I went family road-tripping to Diveagar.

Day 1 - Wakad > Hinjewadi > Paud > Tamhini Ghat > Nizampur > Mangaon > Mhasala > Diveagar > Harihareshwar > Diveagar
Day 2 - Diveagar > Mhasala > Goregaon > Lonere > Mahad > Varandha Ghat > Bhor > Sarola > Khed Shivapur Toll > Wakad

I can say that the route via Varandha ghat is good but tiring, as on the Kokan side, there are bad patches, and on the Pune side, there are narrow winding roads for a good ~60 kms with areas around Bhor being crowded.

Tamhini section has very good and fast roads. Lake view with lush greenery is a bonus. Take Tamhini in my opinion. You have better rest/break-out options as well, which are completely missing on Varandha section.

[Aloneatma]

Originally Posted by varunswnt

Just two weeks ago, I went family road-tripping to Diveagar.

Day 1 - Wakad > Hinjewadi > Paud > Tamhini Ghat > Nizampur > Mangaon > Mhasala > Diveagar > Harihareshwar > Diveagar
Day 2 - Diveagar > Mhasala > Goregaon > Lonere > Mahad > Varandha Ghat > Bhor > Sarola > Khed Shivapur Toll > Wakad

I can say that the route via Varandha ghat is good but tiring, as on the Kokan side, there are bad patches, and on the Pune side, there are narrow winding roads for a good ~60 kms with areas around Bhor being crowded.

Tamhini section has very good and fast roads. Lake view with lush greenery is a bonus. Take Tamhini in my opinion. You have better rest/break-out options as well, which are completely missing on Varandha section.

Ditto for me during our Dapoli trip in Jan 2023. Took the tamhini ghat while going and returned by varandha. Found the tamhini ghat simply awesome. Have visited tamhini half a dozen times since then.
But the mahad to Chiplun to sangameshwar road seems tricky hence the query.

[ghodlur]

Folks a query.

I am planning to drive from Pune to Ganpatipule in the last week of Dec after Christmas. I read the Turbospooler's post above and the route taken. Is it advisable to still take the same route? How's the road condition post monsoon? If anyone has used this route recently do share your experiences. It would also be helpful if any recommendations for eateries on the route are shared.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by ghodlur

I am planning to drive from Pune to Ganpatipule

Pune - Karad - Malkapur - Amba - Ganpatipule will work out WAY better. Not sure of the roads from Lanja - Ganpatipule but Pune - Lanja are top quality.

[sschivate]

Originally Posted by ghodlur

Folks a query.

I am planning to drive from Pune to Ganpatipule in the last week of Dec after Christmas. I read the Turbospooler's post above and the route taken. Is it advisable to still take the same route? How's the road condition post monsoon? If anyone has used this route recently do share your experiences. It would also be helpful if any recommendations for eateries on the route are shared.

Route update after a Pune-Ratnagiri-Pune run today.

Pune - Karad: Multiple diversions between Satara-Karad, but are fairly well-managed, expect a delay of max 15 min, in the morning.

Karad - Malkapur: Superb road conditions, can be covered in 60 min without stretching yourself.

Malkapur - Amba - Sakharpa: Good roads intermixed with very bad rough patches in-between. Expect avg speeds of 30kmph.

Sakharpa - Pali: 4-laning work in full swing, multiple diversions, but road condition is overall fair. Expect avg speeds of 40kmph.

For Ganapatipule, no need to go to Lanja, as mentioned in a previous post.

[sschivate]

Another route update:

If you are planning a road trip to Ganapatipule, sincere advice - drop it!! It is not worth taking Amba ghat to Ratnagiri right now, and there are no great alternate routes either.

Four-laning of Ratnagiri-Kolhapur is in full swing, and for some reason, the contractor has forgotten to keep two lanes of road in a reasonable condition for driving. You will encounter all sorts of unpaved, semi-paved and pothole-ridden roads between Pali and Malkapur. Even Hatkhamba - Ratnagiri road is dug up. Dabhole - Malkapur (36km) took me 1h20m, none of it due to traffic. As a matter of fact, the traffic has almost dried up, with no petroleum tankers sighted.

Pune - Karad is slower because of multiple diversions, but road conditions are good. Karad - Malkapur is the best part of the road.

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by sschivate

If you are planning a road trip to Ganapatipule, sincere advice - drop it!! It is not worth taking Amba ghat to Ratnagiri right now, and there are no great alternate routes either.

I do not think that is correct. I agree with you that Amba ghat roadwork is a bottleneck. But it not true that there are no alternative routes.

In fact, a beautiful alternative route exists from Malkapur to Ganpatipule, that is via Anuskura ghat. I took Malkapur-Anuskura-Oni-Ganpatipule road just 3 weeks ago and had a nice drive. Loved this route.

I have shared more details of this route here: https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route...ml#post5717859 (Mumbai - Pune - Kolhapur - Goa : Route Queries)

In summary, for anyone traveling from Pune to Ganpatipule, a good, fast, and scenic route exists and that is: Pune-Karada-Malkapur-Anuskura-Oni-Ganpatipule.

[sschivate]

Pune-Karada-Malkapur-Anuskura-Oni-Ganpatipule: Thisroute adds about 50km and 1hr to your travel, and so does the Kumbharli ghat route.

What I meant was, alternate routes are even worse in terms of travel time...