Happy new year 2015 to you! Hope you spend hours and days on roads without traffic in the coming years. I had a dream new year eve - on the road, going home. After numerous previous road travels on this route (read here and here), this time I decided to travel by my Royal Enfield Std 350.
I was short on any sort of planning time, so decided to use my experience and just take the route taken before.
Google maps says it should take about 14 hours to do this journey. However, we took a night halt at Raichur and including the halt, completed the journey in 29 hours.
I was short on any sort of planning time, so decided to use my experience and just take the route taken before.
Google maps says it should take about 14 hours to do this journey. However, we took a night halt at Raichur and including the halt, completed the journey in 29 hours.
Our itinerary, roughly, was:
30.12.2014, 16:00 - Depart from Lingampally, Hyderabad
30.12.2014, 21:15 - Reach Raichur, Karnataka
Night Halt at Hotel Kubera Palace @ INR1400 per night including complimentary breakfast
Better option is Hoten Kritunga which we took last time
31.12.2014, 08:30 - Depart from Raichur, Karnataka
31.12.2014, 09:30 - Puncture in rear tyre about 40 Kms from Raichur
31.12.2014, 11:45 - Resume after fixing the tyre
31.12.2014, 15:00 - Reach Bagalkote. Karnataka [brief halt for snacks]
31.12.2014, 18:30 - Reach Belgaum, Karnataka [city traffic and halt for snacks]
31.12.2014, 19:30 - Depart Belgaum city limits
31.12.2014, 21:30 - Reach Ponda, Goa
All in all, we spent about 18 hours on the road and the rest in halts.
The bullet behaved extremely well. I was riding with a pillion rider and consumed approximately 25 liters of fuel. Maximum speed was 80 Kms per hour.
Road condition:
This route takes the super smooth Hyderabad - Bangalore road till Jadcherla and then takes the SH20 all the way till Belgaum. The SH has a good tarmac quality but is single lane without dividers. Also, be watchful of work in progress, especially at night. These are small patches but extremely dangerous and fatal if you are not paying attention. And since this is a state highway, there are speed breakers near village crossings all along.
Happy touring!
P.S.: Detailed travelogue and some motorcycle touring advice probably later.
