[cjt2012]

Thanks Musaafir for the update, will use chorla ghat road again.

[Ertigiat]

Originally Posted by cjt2012

Thanks Musaafir for the update, will use chorla ghat road again.

If you are travelling from Mumbai and heading to South Goa then it has to be through Anmod. It is safest and shortest route to South Goa. Nothing against Chorla, but by the time you cross Belgaum you would have driven around 7 to 8 hours. Belgaum - Anmod - South Goa is far more relaxed drive than Belgaum - Chorla - South Goa.
You can definitely try Chorla while heading back to Mumbai.

[cjt2012]

Ertigat, thanks for the suggestion, I have never taken this route, do you have any recent updates on the road conditions for south Goa via anmod? NH's should be in decent condition, however it's the SH's and local roads that are worrisome.It does look like you will stay on NH longer on the anmod route rather than the chorla route which will be faster, would much appreciate if anyone has a recent update on the anmod road condition.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by cjt2012

..would much appreciate if anyone has a recent update on the anmod road condition.

I took the Anmod route while coming back from Goa on Feb 15, not because I was in South Goa, but just for the heck of it. Overall, the route is in quite good condition. However, instead of going till Ramnagar, I took the shortcut through the Bhimgad wildlife sanctuary, and that does have several potholed patches. You should be fine if you stick to the conventional Belgaum-Khanapur-Ramnagar-Anmod-South Goa route.

Cheers,
Vikram

[Ertigiat]

Originally Posted by cjt2012

Ertigat, thanks for the suggestion, I have never taken this route, do you have any recent updates on the road conditions for south Goa via anmod? NH's should be in decent condition, however it's the SH's and local roads that are worrisome.It does look like you will stay on NH longer on the anmod route rather than the chorla route which will be faster, would much appreciate if anyone has a recent update on the anmod road condition.

I did travel on Good Friday and absolutely nothing worrisome. NH is in pristine condition all the way from Belgaum till South Goa. After crossing Khanapur you can continue towards Ramnagar and then reach Anmod or take a right turn after Khanapur bridge which will take you through Bhimgad wildlife Sanctuary. This shortcut will save you some miles and time but as mentioned by Vikram in earlier post you will come across few potholes. Usually I prefer road through Bhimgad wildlife Sanctuary because of only one railway crossing (as compared to 2 on NH) and lesser traffic. If lucky enough then you can come across Bison, Jackals, Peacocks. Please mind, this road is open only from 6 AM to 6 PM. So in case you are at Khanapur after 5.30 PM head straight towards Ramnagar.

[Musaafir]

I used Anmod ghat route to South Goa in January. Went thru Belgaum, and then via Bhimgad Sanctuary. This jungle road has good tree shade, but its narrow for a SUV. Its bothersome when another vehicle approaches from other side and you have to slow down. Overtaking is hugely difficult. Road condition is bad too. It took me more time than Chorla route.

I used Chorla route on the way back and it was pretty easy and fast.

[cjt2012]

Thanks for all the inputs, comfortablynumb, Ertigiat and Musaafir , Guess I will stick to Anmod route and avoid the wildlife sanctuary, I will be using my 2008 Pajero SFX .
Have recently got it serviced and can't wait for another Long trip on it.Its very comfortable for Long drives and it just effortlessly munches on the miles. Will be on the road from 1st to 6th of May ,am also driving further south to Karwar for a day before returning back.

[KALINGA]

Today I have traveled from Pune to Goa. I took the Chorla Road for old Goa.
The road is in excellent condition, no worry at all.


Note from Support: Post edited for readability.

[Aditya]

Originally Posted by KALINGA

Today I have traveled from Pune to Goa. I took the Chorla Road for old Goa.
The road is in excellent condition, no worry at all.

Yes. My brother used this road a couple of weeks ago. He reported that felt freshly laid and was probably the most scenic option if one had to go to eastern or southern parts of Goa. He came back via Amboli. It's not bad, but nowhere close to the Chorla route.

[mwzd]

I did Mumbai - Goa via Belgaum - Chorla and the route was pretty good both coming and going, except for the Satara - Pune bit.

That is a pain to say the least with 11 diversions and massive traffic jams on weekends, avoid doing this bit on Saturday or Sunday evening unless absolutely necessary.

I stopped for lunch at Hotel Opal both times, the food is good.

Try and get petrol before you enter Karnataka, some of the pumps there provide all petrol with a 10% ethanol blend, which really messed up my car, repairs include a tune up and fuel pump cleaning.

Also, if you're using Google Maps to navigate, like I did, use your common sense at Belgavi and avoid smaller roads, the app will re-route automatically.

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by mwzd

Try and get petrol before you enter Karnataka, some of the pumps there provide all petrol with a 10% ethanol blend, which really messed up my car, repairs include a tune up and fuel pump cleaning.

Thanks for the warning, but isn't the car fuel system supposed to be tuned for the ethanol blend? Which car did you drive?

I had taken my Nano to Karnataka a few years ago. Refilled a couple of times, tankfuls, within KA. Never noticed a difference.

[Sawyer]

Adulterated petrol - with kerosene or worse - is the culprit.

[suzuki san]

Hi Guys,

Drove from Goa to Bombay yesterday via the Chorla Ghat and Belgaum. It took me 9 hrs and 30 minutes including a couple of stops.
1. The Chorla road is in very good condition. No issues at all except beware of the speeding vehicles coming in the opposite direction.
2. Several more speed breakers are in place at the approaches to Belgaum which are a real pain. On the other hand the "entrance" road to Belgaum has been widened considerably (almost 3 lanes each side) so driving through the city is now much easier.
3. On the highway near Satara it looks like one of the flyovers is almost ready for use. Good to see after nearly 5 years! All the other diversions are still in place with some minor traffic jams as usual. However the diversion "service" roads are in relatively good condition.
4. There are some sections where the 6 "laning" has finally been started and this is a real boon. Sad to see though that even with 3 lanes, overtaking slow moving trucks is still an issue and one has to zig zag your way through the gaps. This is probably due to the fact that the two wheelers have more or less taken over the outer left lane. In fact, it looks like the left lane has become the "overtaking" lane.
5. The toll for the expressway has been increased to Rs. 230.00 from the 1st. of April.

Regards,
SS

[Trojan]

Hello Guys,

Returned today morning from Goa - Pune via Chorla ghat, left at 330am, reached Pune 1030am.
Had the privilege of seeing a Jungle cat while on my way to Goa and today morning a huge wild boar!
Agree with suzuki_san, the Satara stretch has really improved tremendously and is a major factor in the reduced travel time.
Belgaum city has had a major overhaul with some beautiful street lights and extra wide roads. There was a major flaw of unmarked speed breakers which have been solved within the last 9 days.
There is also a very welcome move of increased policing in Goa at multiple points and all night, makes a big difference.

Cheers,

[streetfighter]

I did a Mumbai-South Goa run on 29th Apr and back on 2nd May. The onwards journey was via expressway and Chorla Ghat. It took me 12+ hours as I encountered extreme traffic jams near Mankhurd, Expressway and on Pune bypass. The traffic was dense beyond Pune as I guess most were out for the long weekend. Before Belgaum, I also got a heavy storm followed by flash rain. Few roads in Belagum were waterlogged too and the traffic movement was slow. Also some procession going on at Belgaum due to which the traffic police had closed the regular route and vehicles were asked to turn back. The road condition overall was nice, even in the chorla ghat as has been mentioned by the other members.
I did the return journey via Amboli, Nipani and took almost the same time with stops in between. There were a few bad patches in North Goa, and a horrible dug up 1km patch on the Amboli-Ajra road.