The ride started on 22 Sept, 2013 alongwith my friend Rohan Bapat on our Royal Enfield Thunderbird 350 Twin Spark. The destinations of the ride were Nagpur to Omkareshwar (MP), Ujjain (MP), Chittorgarh (Rajasthan), Udaipur (Rajasthan), Ranakpur (Rajasthan) and Mount Abu (Rajasthan).

Day 1: September 22, 2013

We started at 5AM from Nagpur to Omkareshwar. The weather was clear and pleasant. The moment we crossed Kondhali, heavy rains started. We took our rain coats and covered our luggage with plastic sheets. This was most irritating. However, we didn’t know the worst is yet to come.

We had our breakfast at Nandgaon Peth (140 Kms from Nagpur). Checked our luggage cover and moved ahead. After about 50 Kms we reached Paratwada. The rains had stopped. Rohan purchased plastic shoes worth Rs. 190 from here and got 2 cups of tea free from the shopkeeper. The leather shoes got fully drenched and were not suitable for the ride.

Next stop we reached at Semadoh, a small place in Melghat forest reserve. We reached here at 12 noon and had a good lunch. The dhabawala prepared fresh vegetables and chapatis. It was time consuming but worth it. This place doesn’t have mobile network except Tata Indicom (CDMA). We borrowed phone from the dhabawala and made a few phone calls.

At 1.30 PM we restarted our journey to Omkareshwar.The road had small pot holes but was beautiful on the hilly ride.

We crossed Dharni and touched Madhya Pradesh border. The welcome board of Madhya Pradesh was scary. The road had big ponds. We continued our journey in between scanty rains. The road was getting worse. After some time we found, there was no road at all. It had only loose boulders and mud. Riding on this road was getting impossible. Rain was making it more worse. You can imagine the condition of the roads by looking at the picture below.

It took us 3 hours to cross this patch of 60 Kms. Finally we reached Khandwa at 5.30PM but were fully exhausted. Omkareshwar was still 90 Kms to go. We had a small tea break and continued our journey. Further road was good. We reached Sanawad at 7PM but it had gone too dark. Omkareshwar was still 12 Kms inside. It had gone dark. There was no traffic as it was raining. Somehow we reached Narmada Resort of MP Tourism where we had our booking. The room was OK and clean.

First Day ride 500 Kms

Day 2: September 23, 2013

It was a pleasant morning with cloudy weather but no rains. After a sound sleep, we were fresh. We decided to take the darshan of Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga.

The temple is very near to the Hotel. After having darshan of holy river Narmada and God Shiva, we packed our bags and moved to Ujjain.

We reached Ujjain via Dewas. The national highway is just superb except some pathes in Indore. We had darshan of another Jyotirlinga of God Shiva at Mahakaleshwar temple.

By this time it was 4PM already and we decided to move ahead and halt at Mandsaur or Neemuch before the sunset. The rains had stopped but the weather was heavy.

We can see the impact of heavy downpour of the week. It was all flooded.

Just before about 55 Kms of Mandsaur, the tyre of my bike got flat. Rohan was kind enough to call a mechanic to change the tube of the tyre. It got late here and it was 6.30 PM already. The mechanic suggested to leave the place immediately as it was a notorious place and halt at Jaora which was about 10 Kms. We got a hotel Aditya for an Air Conditioned room of Rs. 1000. The hotel owner runned a dhaba just below this hotel. It was an okay kind of hotel.

Day 3: September 24, 2013

We got early and moved left for Chittorgarh (Rajasthan). The roads were good except for a bad patch of about 20 Kms at the MP – Rajasthan border. We reached Chittorgarh at about 12 Noon.

It was fun riding our bikes inside the fort. We got a local guide who was also having a bike. We felt like a King who just conquered the fort.

After visiting some of the important places of the fort, we moved ahead to Udaipur about 120 Kms. It was a 4 lane road and we covered it within 2 hours and reached Udaipur. Rohan and I had a fantastic smile on our faces of the achievement.

Finally we reached our destination Hotel Rampratap Palace in Udaipur which was a luxury hotel.

Day 4: September 25, 2013

We had a leisure day today for sightseeing. Rohan’s bike was having some issues hence we gave it to the Royal Enfield authorised service center at Voyage Motors. The owner Mr. Jasbir Singh was very delighted to see the riders from Nagpur. We left the vehicle with them and had a wonderful city tour. The service center lived up to their name and did a fantastic job.

Day 5: September 26, 2013

After having a leisure day yesterday, we had planned for Ranakpur and Mount Abu today. The rains started again.

Facing heavy rains, we reached Ranakpur Jain temples. The architecture of the temple is simply mesmerising.  Each and every inch of the marble stones have some or other carving. I simply could not believe such a beautiful temple can really be made.

We had lunch here which was of pure Jaini style, without onion and garlic. A simple food but was very tasty. After lunch we started to our next destination – Mount Abu about 170 Kms. Before 100 Kms a strong wind started. It was the effect of cyclonic storm in Gujarat. The visibility was almost nil. We were somehow riding at a speed of 10 KMPH.

We did a good hotel in Mount Abu and did a nice celebration of our achievement in adverse conditions.

Day 6: September 27, 2013

It was time for our returning to home. We did not want to take the Khandwa road as it was pathetic but Ahmedabad route was submerged in water and had a 20 Kms of traffic jam. The Gujarat route was suggested by our team member from Nagpur Mr. Yogesh Deshmukh but later he confirmed not to take the flooded route and suggested another route which was via Betul. After about 400 Kms of ride, we reached Mandsaur and found a decent hotel.

Mandsaur has a beautiful Pashupati Nath temple of Lord Shiva. We took the morning darshan and aarti.

Day 7: September 28, 2013

We checked out of the hotel at about 8AM and proceeded to our return journey. It was all 4 lane road and the ride was just superb. After having breakfast at a roadside dhaba, we continued our journey till Indore till we found the diversion for Betul.

This road was full of heavy trucks, big pot holes and was a single road. Every time a vehicle comes from the front, we had to slow down. We had a target of reaching Betul but looking at this road, it was looking difficult. We reached Harda at 5PM and we decided to find a decent hotel here for the night. Surprisingly we found a hotel Mourya Inn which was a beautiful property. It had split air conditioner, clean bathroom, pure white bed sheets. All we got for just Rs. 800. Damn cheap.

From the hotel I called our team member Mr. Jayesh Vora about the road conditions from Betul where he had travelled earlier. He gave me a green signal. Meanwhile I was in regular touch with Yogesh who was guiding me the roads and acted like a real control room. I am so grateful to have such a friend.

Day 8: September 29, 2013

This was our last day of the journey. Rohan and myself were in a hurry to reach home. We checked out of the hotel at 6AM and took the Betul road. The road condition was good only in patches, otherwise the road was bad. The best part was the rain had stopped and we were riding dry.

We reached Betul by 9.30 AM and had a heavy breakfast. We then started our last lap of the journey. Betul to Nagpur was 176 Kms. The 4 lane road construction is going on but overall the roads were good. We did not want to stop anywhere as we just wanted to reach home. The 350 Kms of road was covered within just 5 hours and we reached Nagpur safely.

During this journey we discovered Shiva in Omkareshwar, Ujjain, Chittorgarh, Mount Abu and Mandsaur. May God forgive me if I missed some of your places. With the blessings of God Shiva the journey was a memorable one. I also thank my team mates of Thumping Tigers who supported me during this ride.