I know I’m posting after what feels like ages; these are some life events I need to log on my blog.
15 June 2013, morning 5:30 — alone I started my journey towards Pune. An 800 km drive in one day was the objective, with no idea of the upcoming hurdles. I’d barely crossed Butibori Industrial Estate when heavy rain washed over me. Luckily I had packed my baggage nicely (usually I don’t). You can visualise what kind of heavy rain it was in Nagpur that day — that same evening the city’s prime areas were flooded. Video here.
Intentionally I decided to use state highways, as national highways have heavy traffic. The decision wasn’t wrong, but I underestimated the power of the wind, as the stretch from Dhamangaon to Malegaon is fully open agricultural land. I couldn’t drive my Pulsar 150 above 50 km/h.
Here’s the route I drove:
There are lots of places to enjoy along the journey.
- Kelzhar – Lord Ganesh Temple on the hill; the first stop you can make at about 40 km from Nagpur.
- Wardha Bypass Route – nice scenery at Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya (80 km from Nagpur).
- Pulgaon – nothing much except the ordnance factory & farms (a couple more 30–40 km from Wardha).
- Dhamangaon – This town is known for its railway station in the area. You can find nice chai & kachori here (20 km from Pulgaon).
- Karanja Lad – A religious old city, birthplace of Nrusiha Saraswati. Truly divine if you can catch up with the Maha Prasad at Guru Mandir. Unfortunately I reached Karanja at 10:30 AM, not a good time for lunch. (80 km from Dhamangaon). This town makes you feel you are back in the Maratha era.
- Malegaon – Mostly an industrial marketplace. Refuel your engines 😛 (60 km from Karanja Lad).
- Mehkar – A place with a famous Balaji Temple and a haunted palace — Kanachani cha Mahal (not sure, but locals keep saying to avoid that place). The town also has some British-era construction to view. (60 km from Malegaon).
- Sindhkhed Raja – Hometown of Jijau (Jijabai) — mother of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The forts and monuments in this city are truly amazing and very well maintained. (40 km from Mehkar).
- Jalna – The big city you reach after crossing around 400+ km of greenery from Nagpur.
The remaining 300 km route is all national highway, passing through Aurangabad, Devgad, Pravara Sangam, Ahmednagar, Shirur and Ranjangaon.
Overall it was a great experience riding 800+ km alone on a single rainy day. Food at dhabas & talks with chaiwalas refreshed me from my daily work schedule.