[vrprabhu]

MX6, I am working on this - may the whole thing will get complete in one week (if permitted)

[vrprabhu]

If you are willing to embark on this journey, it will lead you here..


Shall we start a game here - identify this place, perhaps?

And can any one decipher this - a la Indian Jones, Mummy....?

[vrprabhu]

Don't get me wrong - I meant, artists who love painting landscapes...

Don't you feel the same, after seeing this?







How I wish I had a better camera; of course, I am thankful that I met people like Sukiwa, who made other trips very memorable and captured some beautiful scenes to be cherished forever....

[vrprabhu]

The heat is killing - so we gave up a repeat visit (despite promising ourselves over a dozen times - whenever we stopped the bikes - to come back in leisure)..

don't blame me if you end up like this...


and it isn't easy to do 400 kms in a day in the ghats,

with your head telling you that you are crazy and

your heart telling you stop, stop - you will not get a second chance

- so much to do, so little time....

now I understand fully well what these words mean!

[MX6]

Go ahead vrprabhu. I wanted to move ahead with the log this sunday. But last minute dash to the thane meet kept me away.
Permission granted with gusto!

[ASHISHPALLOD]

@vrprabhu,
nice pictures of nira devghar dam, varandha ghat and caves at mahad.

is it round trip like varandha-mahad-tamhini?

i see a fort in the pic. which fort? anyone?:

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by MX6

Go ahead vrprabhu.
Permission granted with gusto!

Thanks, BOSS!!

Originally Posted by ASHISHPALLOD

@vrprabhu,
nice pictures of varandha ghat and caves at mahad.

As usual, right!! But not 100%.

Try without any additional hints - the 400 kms was enough...

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by ASHISHPALLOD

is it round trip like varandha-mahad-tamhini?

i see a fort in the pic. which fort? anyone?:

Fort?? - I thought I was footloose, but am I turning out to be shortsighted one too.. are my contacts loosing their power??..

But as usual, Ashish saheb is 100% on the mark....

And, at the end of the trip it was a weary bunch of sore b-u-m-s who landed back in Pune..

[roamer]

Hehe! Thats a nice way to save the toll.

Originally Posted by vrprabhu

AFTER the toll plaza on NH4

I will be driving/riding from Mumbai. So Which is this toll Plaza? Is this near Talegaon?

[vrprabhu]

The second part of yearly audit tamasha has just started (those of you who read the earlier saga, will understand that everytime this happens, I start posting to avoid going bonkers) Things are no different - except for the fact that I have to do the cut, paste, format, align, print chore - about two dozen times a day - for about a week - continously from 10 AM to 10 PM. Wonder how many trees were chopped down because of us

Anyway, let me not keep the like minded t-bhpians waiting any longer -

This trip happened because one fine morning Times of India started handing out free marathi supplement of Maharastra Times. And one of the pages has a 'lets' go out'. Which lead to more surfing and data collection and a list of probable places to visit.

Now, remember what MX6 said elsewhere - for the best views visit early in the morning! He is 100% right. Our four-some became three-some - because one didn't or rather, couldn't, get up at 4 AM. Trip was done during the last week of Feb. 2010.






Unfortunately, being too eager to go ahead, did not stop at Katraj tunnel - it just looks awesome in the morning and feels great to drive through... I have other pictures of Katraj viaduct - may be at some other time (remind me later, guys!)

That was at about 6.30 AM and the road leads to ---- (geography test); and, boy oh boy, was it cold. The person who had forgotten his gloves had the worst time.....

[ASHISHPALLOD]

Originally Posted by vrprabhu

That was at about 6.30 AM and the road leads to ---- (geography test); and, boy oh boy, was it cold.

The road leads to Bhor.

had you stopped at bhatghar dam?

The varandha and tamhini ghats are best in monsoon.[ fortunately, thanks to three other rajababues, i had done varandha ghat on 15th august 2009, check my travelogue, monsoon masti: 15th august]

[MX6]

@vrprabhu. Put up a disclaimer banning Ashishpallod from answering your quiz questions. It is like asking what's 1+1 to Srinivasan Ramanujam.

[ASHISHPALLOD]

Originally Posted by MX6

@vrprabhu. Put up a disclaimer banning Ashishpallod from answering your quiz questions.

ok, i will answer in different way.

BTW, which is the fort?

hint: the fort is named after a bird[ named in marathi]. the bird is black in colour with one eye. the bird is supposed to be very clever. mothers often feed the child with the name of that bird with sparrow.

ok, too much hint.

[roamer]

Will that be Kavlya fort??

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by MX6

@vrprabhu. Put up a disclaimer banning Ashishpallod from answering your quiz questions. It is like asking what's 1+1 to Srinivasan Ramanujam.

+1 to that. Take a note Ashish Saheb!

Originally Posted by ASHISHPALLOD

BTW, which is the fort?
hint: the fort is named after a bird[ named in marathi]. the bird is black in colour with one eye. the bird is supposed to be very clever. mothers often feed the child with the name of that bird with sparrow.

My GK is zero. And geography is negative - because I am a science student; and, better give a chance to someone else to come up with the answer

Let us move ahead -

We took this route to Bhor (there is an earlier branch of NH towards Bhor which we did not take because it is too twisty and we wanted to go faster towards our destination - anybody wanting to go and visit the 'mandardevi' temple take this route - during rainy season it is wonderful, no traffic, nothing to disturb you at all)...





they say 'early bird catches the worm' - wonder how many worms ended up as breakfast that day?! Surprisingly, so many winged wonders but not many 'tweets'... hehehehe...







As I said earlier, the sun was just coming up - so you guys have to put up with the hazy pictures. May be I should buy a better camera?

Soon, we cross the river (next geography quiz) and reach to the first land-mark - which can be a nice picnic spot. Actually we saw quite a few bottles containing remains of the intoxicating stuff - don't know how people enjoy outdoors if all they want to do is get inebirated....