[traveloholic]

The much anticipated and long awaited weekend was fast approaching and we wanted to plan a weekend getaway to celebrate the DRY DAY (Oct 2nd) somewhere out of the city. The initial phase of planning was done and the whole idea chalked out.



We planned for a weekend going around the places around Hyderabad enroute Warangal. Planned for a weekened getaway at Ramappa Lake, Pakhal Lake and etc. The plans was finalized and everything was much in place, when information started trickling in. Ramappa Lake has off-late turned into a deserted tourist location without basic amenities. Same was said to the condition of Pakhal Lake, with no migratory birds and not much to do, the plan to visit Pakhal Lake would have been a waste-of-energy. The visit to Warangal and Pakhal Lake was totally ruled out thanks to my friends.

Were planning for other alternate travel plans, when GOA rang the bell. We were working out for Goa, the idea and the itinerary, when I came across Avi. Avi shared with me his route map, which was helpful. Anticipating a smooth journey we headed out for Goa on 1st. Was well aware of Avi's plan for Goa. He was leaving on 30th and I was scheduled to leave on 1st.



As per the plan, we wanted to start off by 4:00, in order to reach Sholapur for late dinner and then on the way to Kolhapur. As always, work took precedence and we started off at 7:00 instead of 4:00, which was very well 3 hours behind schedule. Anyways, better late than never, we were on the way. Stocked up fuel at Gachibowli and started off on the trip. It was all fun and frolic all the way.







As the roads were slowly widening up, so was out throttle. Were cruising at good speed till Hoogeli, before Zaheerabad. There was slight drizzle, which wasn't that bad. Heavy rains started lashing out a few KM's before the BP Factory Outlet, near Zaheerabad. Thought lady luck was on our side, when we saw BP Pump with Ghar Dhaba beside it. With visibility near 0, we thought it was worth while to have a small stop over at Ghar Dhaba for a couple of snacks as we all were hungry.

Then the cruise all the way till Sholapur was good without much issues. We never noticed when we reached Sholapur except for the hordes of pilgrims walking barefooted to some shrine. They all were jaywalking on the road and lest we weren't carefull we would have for sure rammed into a couple of them. They just were kind of wavering on the roads as if strolling in a Park.

We were about 20 KM's from Sholapur, when unexpected happened.

[vnabhi]

Gosh, this is the 3rd travelogue to Goa from Hyd during Dassera. Keep 'em coming, dude! We wanna know the unexpected.

We would have criss-crossed you near Lingampalli that day---we returned on Oct 1st from Bijapur via Bidar, and were at Lingampalli at 730 pm

[starter]

Dear Traveloholic,
I think you should edit the title of the thread as per the rules of this forum.
A good travelogue never the less. Keep it rolling.
Cheers,
Deepak

[PAVAN KADAM]

Originally Posted by starter

Dear Traveloholic,
I think you should edit the title of the thread as per the rules of this forum.
A good travelogue never the less. Keep it rolling.
Cheers,
Deepak

I was just about to type the same.

Buddy Traveloholic, do ask the Moderators to change the thread title, else dont worry, it'll be done automatically.

You can go ON with your travelogue, please do let us know about accomodation and charges.

[mobike008]

Nikhil, i thought you were going to post your details in my travelouge, this is not fair

On a serious note, that's a wonderful start and i can see that you already got the hang of things quite well. Look forward to your entire travel story with loads of pictures.

Keep 'em coming !!!

[traveloholic]

We were about 20 KM's from Sholapur, when the Rain Gods again got furious and started lashing out with the fullest force.

All of a sudden the speed dropped from 100ish to 20ish speeds. We were being extra careful as the visibility was near 0 with just a few meters visible and nothing more than that. The rain wasn't lashing us head-on but was mostly angled towards the left. So, we at least were on a better side here. All the cars started tailgating each other with all the hazards on. It was a moment to remember and a scene to capture. We were about 10-12 cars, which were trailing each other with all the hazards on.

This is when we felt that things getting better, we were feeling a bit safe. Then out of nowhere, a bunch of stupid guys whiz pass by at the higher speed, overtaking from the right and then we see them stranded on the middle of the road, with all their hazards on. Hope everything was fine with them.

Ok, so at a very slow pace, we reach Sholapur. Once we were near Sholapur, all the vehicles kind of vanished and we never realized where and when they took the turns and vanished and by mistake we entered Sholapur City. Thanks to the heavy rains, all the roads were over flooded and we were very skeptical if we would ever make out of the city at all. There were many WHAT If’s going on in our minds.

We missed out Avi's route somewhere in the trailing session, we were trying to search for the bus stand and the petrol bunks as put forth by Avi. Thanks to the rain, not a single MAANUS on the road. We were struck in the middle of nowhere with no idea where we were heading to.

This is when we see a totally jazzed up Scorpio coming our way; we stop him and ask him for directions to Mangalwedha or NH9. This is where, things again turned murky. None of us knew Marathi and he explained us the way out in chaste marathi. We understood only one signal, where in he said "STRAIGHT". We tried enquiring in hindi and he kind of explained in some form of Hindi, that we never heard in our whole life. However, following his directions, we reached one petrol bunk and asked for direction.

This is where we found a GUARDIAN ANGEL, an auto driver. He asked us to follow him and he will show us the way out of city. We were very happy as well as apprehensive. Again a series of WHAT IF's, what if he is taking us to some secluded location to rob us of our wealth or what if... these questions kept cropping up till we saw a board which said "MSH something", we understood this was Maharashtra State Highway and this was something like a Bypass to the National Highway.

Thanking our luck and thanking the BHALA MAANUS, we were on the way to Mangalweda. The Bypass was all beautiful with moon like craters strewn all over the road. With exception of a truck or two, we did not find much traffic plying on this road. The Toll Gate/Booth was worth the memory, we drove down till the toll booth and the guy comes totally covered in plastic sheets. We hand over 5 Rs and then he moves the drums from the middle of the road for us to pass by. Highly sophisticated technology was used there.

Swinging like a pendulum, my friend was trying his best to avoid the potholes in the drizzle. With a few jokes strewn here and there, it was a wonderful journey overall, when lady luck vanished from our side and we heard a sound "Thunk". We realized that we missed missing one of the potholes. Then we felt some metal jarring against something with a weird sound. We alight the car and look around expecting a flat tyre but none. It all seemed to be ok but the sound was still persistent. We slowly drove a few meters ahead and lo behold, we were a couple of meters away from the NH. We felt that if this would not have happened we would have been on the NH again.



This was when my friend kind of bent down to have a look at the problem and we see that the Alloy Wheels have given up and there was a huge dent in the alloy wheel due to the impact. We pull out the spare wheel and see that that too had a flat tyre. Even after we filled air in it before leaving. It was flat again and we notice that there were a couple of Construction nails lying in the area where we secure the spare wheel.

We removed the wheel and straighten it by using a hammer. We were careful not to hit it hard, lest it might break off leaving us stranded. It was back in shape and we started out journey towards Mangalweda. This is where we find a tyre shop, where we changed our tyre and the rim.







All the while it was drizzling and we were soaked in rain. We planned for a change of clothes and continue on the journey. Changed the clothes on the road and continued on the journey. Time was slowly ticking by and we notice that we have lost about 4 hours in this whole fiasco.

None the less, it was a great experience over all. There's nothing to crib, its just the way how you look at the whole thing. We overall enjoyed this whole fiasco as it was a good experience for us.

We were on the way to Kolhapur now, driving through Sangole, Miraj, Sangli and etc. Stopped over at Miraj for Breakfast as we did not have dinner the last night due to the rains at Sholapur. Had tasty Missal Pao and Poha at Miraj.

With jittery roads and all the scenic beauty around, we were slowly crusing at a very slow place.

[mobike008]

Fantastic outline, your a natural writer

I can see that you had tyre trouble both sides of the journey as you mentioned we crossed you at Basavakalyan while returning when you werer at a tyre puncture shop. Are they tubeless? Check them out thoroughly, such incidents take fun out of your trip.

Btw, my Michelins have done 11K kms since March'09 and touchwood, not a single puncture till date. Prior to that Bridgestone S322 did duty till 34K kms and only 1 puncture during that entire period. Am I lucky or what?

[traveloholic]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Fantastic outline, your a natural writer

Thanks

Originally Posted by mobike008

I can see that you had tyre trouble both sides of the journey as you mentioned we crossed you at Basavakalyan while returning when you werer at a tyre puncture shop. Are they tubeless?

Yes, I've got all tubeless tyres. Due to the dented Alloy Wheel, we had to replace the tubeless tyre with the normal tubed one. This was an issue. The Wheel kindda gave way after we put in the tube. Looks like the dent in the alloy wheel also ripped apart the tyre, which gave way on the way back.

Originally Posted by mobike008

Btw, my Michelins have done 11K kms since March'09 and touchwood, not a single puncture till date. Prior to that Bridgestone S322 did duty till 34K kms and only 1 puncture during that entire period. Am I lucky or what?

I've been using Bridgestone for a pretty long time and not an issue till date. This time, the road condition coupled with the dent added to the issue. You seem to be lucky and would love to shift over to Michelins the next time I think of a Tyre Change

[traveloholic]

The road sign read Kolhapur and that was a moment, I’ve been waiting for. Thought we would gorge on some great food at Kohlapur and then move ahead on our journey to Goa. Passing through the congested roads, we land up bang opposite to the Flyover as Avi mentioned in his Route Plan.

We could see our hunger go KAPUT!!! It was either food or onward journey for now and a census was 4:0 with everyone opting to carry on with the Onward Journey as we weren't that hungry for now as it was early afternoon. Thought we will stopover somewhere on the way and have food, when hungry. After escaping a few potholes and few water puddles, we were on NH4.

It was a sense of respite from the jittery roads, NH4 like heaven with tachometer reaching up to 120ish kinds again. It was a great road ahead. The Toll Tax paid was worth every penny charged. We were quickly cruising through NH4 towards Nipani and Tawandi Ghat.



The moment we stopped over at Kaveri Hotel, we felt that the road seems to have ended abruptly. Had a cuppa tea at Kaveri Hotel, which was bang opposite to Hotel Satyavati Palace. After spending a few minutes there, we were again back on the journey. We saw the road sign read "AJRA" and our happiness knew no bounds. We never knew that our happiness would again be short lived. The Road wasn't that bad as to crib, but it wasn't good either. The scenic beauty around was great to watch and the view mostly took my breath away.



Lying idle in the back seat, watching the scenery unfold, we were awestruck when the fog engulfed the ghats. It was a moment, where we all in unanimously said "WOW!!!" This was the magical word, which made us stop the car right on the spot, step out and enjoy the mystic beauty of nature. The headlights emerging from the fog gave out a beautiful effect and it was a moment we wanted to cherish.

[MX6]

Wow. You managed with lousy tyre incidents. Great going guys. I'm always averse to tubeless tyres for the simple reason that if the rim goes out of shape due to impact, then takes a big beating. But good you guys managed! Shows your spirit.

[traveloholic]

Being used to expecting the unexpected at the least expected moment, we slowly lugged ahead in the thick fog. Expecting the unexpected at the least expected moment has its own beauty and this was proved right, when we were driving around the ghat section.





The scenic beauty, the deep ravens and clouded hilltops took our breath away. Everytime we tried seeing around, there was a surprise in store for us. The amalgamation of Ghat Section and the Darkening Clouds were playing musical chairs with each other. Ghat overshadowing the clouds or vice-versa. This was the whole magical that was slowly getting weaved as we progressed in the ghats.





Driving ahead, notice a few shops cropping up with a whole market kindda scenario right in the middle of the ghats. This was a surprise and a few meters of driving ahead and we come across one of the most unexpected views "Water Falls".



The waterfall was magnificient and the water was flowing at a ghushing rate. We decided lets take a small halt here and enjoy this beauty. This time the consensus was 2:2 with 2 of us opting to get into the waters and 2 wanting to stay away from water. So, the excited lot rushed ahead to submerge into cold waters.



The whole experience was awesome, the pressure of water and the flow was mind blowing. It was fun climbing all the way up to the spot, where water was falling directly onto the body. The whole experience was out of the world and it did massage our backs a bit. The aching back was aching no more.





Then changed over from the drenched clothes into new ones and then back on the track for our journey to Goa. This was the second time we changed clothes in 24 hours.

[traveloholic]

Originally Posted by MX6

Wow. You managed with lousy tyre incidents. Great going guys. I'm always averse to tubeless tyres for the simple reason that if the rim goes out of shape due to impact, then takes a big beating. But good you guys managed! Shows your spirit.

The spirit was behind the inner urge to make sure that we enjoy the trip and do not allow these desolate moments to spoil our moods. It was worth the trip. Lovely memoirs to cherish

[traveloholic]

My heart bleeds and it hurts to write about these two aging beauties spotted rotting in Goa near Calangute. It wasn't that easy to take the picture of these two rotting mean machines. Hope these two have their glory restored ASAP.







This was pretty near to where we stayed.

We stayed put up at Anvin Guest House at Umta Vaddo, Calangute. The landlord was a sweet lady in her late 50's, who was very soft hearted.

Before we finalized of checking the hotels, we were sure that we did not need any hotel that had a swimming pool or stuff. This wasn't a neccessity, given the weather conditions. We checked out a couple of hotels around Calangute, who tried exhort money in the most cruelest manner.

Were checking out other places, when we came across Anvin Guest House. Had a healthy chat with the land lady and then checked out the rooms. First thing first, checked the Washrooms, which were pretty neat and clean. That was it, we made up our mind. These rooms were ok for us.

Owner quoted the price of 750/- per room & we wanted 2 rooms. We negotiated, re-negotiated and again re-negotiated to bring down the rates to 500/- per room per day.

Being a Hyderabadi, the skill of bargain never ceases and the deal was struck. The winning quotation from my side, which got us the deal was "I will pay the rent in advance"

These were magical words to her ears and the rooms were rented out to us.

Took the room for 2 days = 500/- * 2 Rooms * 2 Days = Rs. 2000/-

[pulsar56]

Nice travelogue and beautiful pictures.
I can imagine the potholes after seeing the damage on the alloys!

Waiting for the rest of the story.

[traveloholic]

Originally Posted by pulsar56

Nice travelogue and beautiful pictures.
I can imagine the potholes after seeing the damage on the alloys!

Waiting for the rest of the story.

If it wasn't for the alloys, it would have been even worse. The alloys have been on the brave front, taking all the beating without uttering a word till the last minute. Even at the last minutes, it did not lose hope and did not die down. It supported us as much as it could, so that we could reach the nearest tyre change shop