Rann Of Kutch

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Jaisalmer – Tanot

Jaisalmer

Jaisalemer Fort, more commonly known as the Golden Fort or the Sonar Killa…

Along with a glimpse of the local market…

Mehrangarh Fort – Jodhpur

Ahmedabad – Jodhpur

Day 2 : Ahmedabad – Jodhpur | 470km | 7hrs 

Road Condition : 4/5

Ahmedabad – Pindwara – 4 lane , Excellent Tarmac |  Traffic : No traffic at all after Palanpur. 

Pindwara – Pali – 2 Lane , Hopeless road, Lots of invisible speed breakers. 4 laning work going on… | Traffic : Moderate

Pali – Jodhpur – 2 lane, Excellent Tarmac | Traffic : Sparse 

Once you cross Mehsana, you start getting the feel of desert. Babool trees all around, dusty winds, sparse traffic, cattle roaming on road near water tanks or wells.

Thought to visit Mt.Abu, but thinking that I still had to cover a long distance ahead, refrained and went ahead to reach Jodhpur at around 6.30pm

Day – 3 

Jodhpur – Local Sight – seeing 

Umaid Bhavan Palace

The Rolce Royce in the Maharaja’s Garage 😉

Ride to Rajasthan

It was recently that I thought of Rajasthan, but I never thought to ride taking into consideration the condition of  my bike. It had the odometer at 93,000+ km,severely ignored since last few months . The main problem is a hairline crack in the oil tank which lets oil seep out. I had to do engine overhaul because of that a couple of months back. Taking a car down there was out of question considering the fuel cost.  Also, going by train was impossible as trains were running full because of Diwali. Risking the plan for a Tatkal reservation was never a good idea.

I had vacations at college from 10th Nov to 18th Nov. It was on 8th night that I made my mind that Lets do it! On 9th after finishing college, I headed straight to my mechanic, got basic things fixed along with a new chain sprocket. A 500ml oil can, And I was on the road next day…

Day 1 :

Mumbai – Ahmedabad | 530km | 11hrs

Road Condition : 3.5/5

Mumbai – Baroda 6 Lane | Traffic : Moderate

Baroda – Ahmedabad 2 lane | Traffic : Heavy

Baroda – Ahmedabad has a separate express way, where 2 wheelers are not allowed.

Started at 9am after having a heavy breakfast.  I was restricting speed upto 80km/hr, which otherwise is between 85-90km/hr. I was extremely concerned about the oil leakage and I could smell the vaporizing of oil due to overheating. I had almost made my mind that at some point of time, somewhere in Rajasthan, my bike would give up and I’ll have to sell it off there of load it back home.

Around Surat it was when a MH-12(Pune) Thunderbird passed me and the guy was in full gear and all. It is always easy to recognize a true rider by his bike, speed and appearance. We were kind of riding together after that. In between I saw his tyre burst at high speed, he managed to control and stopped. I was in a dilemma whether should I was offer any help or not. Fuck it, I said and turned back and went to him.  That turned to be a great decision for me. Why, will tell you ahead….So Luckily we found a puncturewala at just 200m. And luckily the thunderbird guy was carrying a spare tube and all tool kit. The puncturewala had neither of them. Damn… I had nothing more than a screw-driver with me!

I refueled at Baroda and this guy Anish was on a break waiting for me at Anand. Suddenly my bike started to sound like a racing bike… whroom whroom. I ignored it as I had to cover just a few kms to reach Anish. I put my bike on stand just to realize that there is oil all over my pants and bike, and the oil cap was missing. As I said, I was kind of prepared for something, didn’t bother me much. Actually after refuelng at Baroda, I had checked the oil level, and the cap went loose because of vibrations. Thanks to Anish who got a cap from a nearby Hero workshop and I saw a petrol pump in the neighborhood. Refilled the oil, in next one hour or so we were at Ahmedabad. Anish went to his friends from where he was gonna head to Kota the next day.  Later I found a decent dormitory near Ahmedabad (Kalupur) Railway Station for 200 bucks.   Dinner… Sleep…

PS – Sorry..No pics for the day!

Photopause : Long Exposure Photography