When A Solo Rider meets A Solo Wanderer

When the destination is same, you tend to meet people on your journey! On my journey to Goa, A Solo Rider met A Solo Wanderer. Their destination was same, so as their passion. Hence, the ride was no more solo.

Our ride companions

When A Solo Rider met a Solo Wanderer, they planned for the trip and the plan was to go Goa, stay there for 3 days and 2 nights and then leave to Gokarna on the third night .

Friday, 25th of November 2016,  four of us started our journey with great enthusiasm. The highway (AH 47) was as smooth as butter. We could touch the maximum speed levels easily. It was late evening and the after crossing Karwar, the forest area started. No street lights, scary roads, no mobile network, no internet connectivity and no other cars/bikes in a 1 km radius. Fear was at the peak as the other rider was also far ahead from us. Jackets were no longer helping us as the temperature was going down. Finally after crossing few kms, we found our fellow riders waiting for us at a tea shop. As soon as we saw them, a kind of relief was felt not because they are safe, just that the roads won't scare us anymore.

After crossing Karnataka border, the first job we did was to fill our bikes with petrol. Petrol in Goa is Rs.11 cheaper than Karnataka. As we all know, or might have heard that Baga beach is the most happening place of Goa. And I forgot to mention that all four of us are marwaris and we believe in "Jugaad". At the petrol bunk, we wanted to check the distance to our hotel and we found that the hotel is 40kms away from Baga. This pissed us off because we had booked the same hotel for 2 days' stay. We called Goibibo customer care but we couldn't seek any help from there. Then the last option left was to negotiate with the hotel owner. We reached hotel and we were able to convince the hotel owner to refund us 50% of the booking amount. Goibibo provides discounts to its customers but pays the actual price to the hotels and as I said we believe in Jugaad, one of our friend (Ashish Mehta) is a King of Jugaad when it comes to hotel booking. We booked the hotel for Rs.1300 and Goibibo generated the bill of around Rs.3000. Thus we got a refund of Rs.1400 for the cancellation of 2nd day's booking.

Looks scary right ?

We had a great time here and the bed inside the tent was just awesome. The bed was so soft that we started playing on it. A video link has been shared below. Please have a look.

https://youtu.be/n2EI0RJdH0o

The next morning we left the hotel and dropped our luggage in another hotel which we had booked near Calanguete Beach. Calanguete beach is a place where you will find more of foreigners than Indians. Water sports like Parasailing, Banana ride, Jet Ski etc., happens there. 

The next day was our last day in Goa so we thought we'll book a single room in a lodge for around Rs.500 and dump in our luggage and roam Goa because we were about to leave for Gokarna that night. While searching for a room we found an old lady who agreed to keep our luggage in her house for Rs.200. We kept our luggage at her place but we weren't able to trust that lady. We enquired about the lady from the nearby locals and got a negative feedback. The next moment we went to her, gave an excuse and took back our luggage and also the advance which we had given to her and we ran from there because the old lady demanded for Rs.50 for keeping our luggage in her house for five minutes.

Then we found a lodge on Goibibo and we thought we'll directly go there and try negotiating with the lodge owner and then book. The lodge was owner by two Sardar ji's and the name of the lodge was "White Pearl", located near Anjuna Beach. We explained them that we are leaving to Gokarna that night and we want to keep our luggage. They agreed to it and did not demand any money. We then saw Chapora Fort, the fort shown in Dil Chahta hai. Our next spot was Fort Aguada. When we reached the fort, we saw a notice board where it was written that there is view point near the lighthouse. That was the best place of Goa according to me. The sunset view was just amazing.

Then we took our luggage and finally we went to Baga. Baga, as I said is the most happening place of Goa where we can find more of Indian crowd. The ambience over there was  just amazing.

We found one restaurant  playing English music and another playing Hindi. We found a place in between the two restaurants and were dancing and having fun.

Soon it was 12 and we decided to leave. The route from Goa to Gokarna also goes through the woods. Good roads but very scary at nights. Then at Goa border, we took rest at a petrol station for an hour and reached Gokarna by 6:30.

Gokarna is a very peaceful and religious place with a famous Shiv ji's temple. We were disappointed reaching Gokarna because we were very tired by riding the entire night and getting to see nothing happening. We found religious people near the beach, cows roaming all over and complete silence. We decided to book a room for 4 hours and all four of us slept in one bed. At 12:00 PM, we headed back towards Bangalore. The last 4 hours, the journey was no more fun. We were waiting for Bangalore to come as fast as possible. With this, the trip comes to an end. I hope this article will be helpful for you, the readers.

Advice to riders: 

1. Do not stop if anyone asks for a lift on a peaceful road.

2. Always prioritise Gokarna to be your first visit & then to Goa, to end the trip with excitement

3. Fix up your bikes to avoid accidents and break-downs.

4. Last but not the least, Happy Riding. 

A Solo Rider's first experience 

Hi folks !

In this article, I will be sharing the experiences I gained from my very first solo ride. 

The route goes like this Coimbatore > Ooty > Mudumalai > Bandipur > Mysore > Bangalore.

The journey started around 04:00 AM in the morning from R.S Puram (my residence) and I covered a distance of 40 kms and reached Mettupalayam within 45 minutes.

Taken in Mettupalayam

I was a bit scared when I started driving through the hills because there were no street lights and due to fog I could barely see the road. I still continued to ride with caution. The next stop was at Ooty where I had a cup of coffee and continued my journey towards Mudumalai. 

Driving through the hills is something I'll never refuse. As soon as we (me and my bike) started from the coffee shop, it started drizzling, since it was not a heavy rain, I did not halt. On the way to Mudumalai, I witnessed a beautiful lake. It was mandatory to take a break and I sat there for half an hour just admiring the nature's beauty. Towards the other side of the lake was a house and behind that was a horse which wasn't seen but I could hear it neigh (sound made by horses). As soon as I heard the first neigh, I was very much excited and searched for the horse. I decided to wait for the next few neigh's and then resume my journey.

The Lake 

The ride further continued and I reached a view point (I don't remember the name) which had an entry pass of Rs.5. I thought why not have a look. The guard did not allow my bike to enjoy the view of that particular place so unfortunately I had to go alone. As I was climbing towards the view point, I found few cars and tempo travellers parked there. I was like why wasn't I  allowed to take my bike in. I went back to confront the guard and to my surprise he said me some scene of  Maniratnam's movie is being shot here and so they have taken special permission. The next obvious question was "Who is the heroine?". Unfortunately he had no clue about the heroine. I climbed up and I was searching for a luxury car and found a Volvo and I was sure that either the director (Maniratnam) or the star cast will be seated in that car. I walked towards the car, and found Karthik (Kollywood actor) getting ready for his next shot, so I stayed there for a while and returned to my bike.

The view point where my bike wasn't allowed

Now the rain was at a moderate level but I did not care about it and enjoyed the ride. But then the climate challenged me as it started raining heavily and finally I lost the challenge. Therefore I had to wait at a tea stall, where I had some mouth watering bhajias. But the challenge which I had taken up during the ride made me suffer as my boots were completely wet. So, I had to tie them near the danger light and continue the ride bare foot. 

Photos capture memories and such memories are to be definitely captured because this makes us laugh when we have a look at them in future. While travelling through the woods, I encountered a magnificent view of the jungle which was a very peaceful spot.

When you are in a jungle, or you are travelling through a jungle, we normally expect to spot a tiger, leopard or at least an elephant on the go. The same were my expectations when I was travelling in the forest zone of Mudumalai and Bandipur. But what I could spot was a bison and this.

With some disappointment, the journey continued and soon I reached Mysore. At this point of time I was way too tired and the mood to ride was vanished due to the traffic in Mysore city. I had to continue the journey to reach Bangalore before sunset. Finally, I reached my destination after a long journey of 12 hours. This brings an end to my first solo ride.

For the readers of A Solo Rider's Blog

• Take prior rest before your solo ride
• Take as many selfies as possible
• Last but not the least, LOVE YOUR BIKES. (Like your blogger does)

Plus Point

The best part about this route is there are NO Toll Gates.

For more information on solo rides, keep supporting my blog.

#HappyRiding. 

Ease of "A Solo Rider"

Ease of "A Solo Rider"

Hey folks!

This article is all about the happiness earned by a solo rider through road trips.

This article will definitely change your mindset regarding solo rides, viz., they are dangerous, boring etc.,

We all have friends, colleagues with whom we study, work and socialise on a daily basis. But we need a break from them as well. The best way to understand yourself better, learn new things, get out of your comfort zones is to go on a solo ride.

Here are some of the key advantages of a Solo Ride

#1 Solo Rides are pocket friendly

Many times we end up spending more when we are in a group. e.g, you consuming a soft drink and your friends having whisky but the bill amount gets equally divided. If you are a solo rider, you can spend accordingly and it saves unwanted outflow of money.

#2 No more Dramas

A Solo Rider is on his/her own and the dramas of your friends, colleagues,etc, are no more to be taken. There are no arguments and fights related to the trip.

#3 Meet new people, Make new friends 
If we are travelling in a group, we tend to stick to our group wherever we go, whereas when you are on a solo ride, you chat with locals, meet other travellers, explore new places which were not in your list and make new friends on the go.

#4 What is Loneliness? 
There is a misconception is the minds of the public that "Only lonely people travel solo!". Well, It's a myth. Solo road trips enable riders to forget the meaning of loneliness. A solo rider gets a chance to meet new people, make new friends, extend their travel plans, create unexpected memories and much more.

The final advantage may definitely happen to a solo rider.

Yes! This can happen.

Wanna know how my first solo ride was? The next article will showcase that. Stay Tuned!

Why Ride Solo?

Why Ride Solo? 

"Hey Ashish, have you got your bike fixed?" I asked 

"No Rishabh, my dad is not allowing me for the trip. I won't be able to make it this time."

"What? We are planning for this trip from the past 2 months."

"Yeah! But  it's not in my hands now. We'll go some other time "

We had a planned a road trip to Gokarna from Bangalore in our bikes. It was supposed to be the last trip of college. And none of my classmates were in a mood to replace Ashish. If I had to travel, it would be on my own. I have faced similar situations in the past two years of my post graduation.
Everybody's dream is to go on a road trip but most of the them back-out when the date of departure comes closer. Finally the trip gets cancelled.

These situations thought me a lesson, "If you wait for others, You'll end up waiting." And the dream of travelling throughout the country will remain as a dream.

I want to explore India through road trips, make new friends on the go, and try varieties of food.

I further decided not to wait, rather live my dreams.

Initially I though riding solo might be dangerous and risky but risk is present everywhere and adventure is the spice of life.

So, if you are a travel freak and your plans are getting cancelled because nobody is willing to join you - Stop doing that and just go! Don't let others hinder your dreams. You might get a lot of friends on the go.

The benefits of Solo Riding will be highlighted in the upcoming article. Stay tuned!