Ashtavinayak Yatra 742 kms from Mumbai to Mumbai in a day by Amit Sawant

I (biker roadie Amit Sawant) did Ashtavinayak Yatra in one single day (instead of the normal 3 days) and that too on a bike. 

Trip - Dated 5th March 2016, a solo bike ride on my newly acquired Yamaha FZ FI Ver 2.0 starting from my home in Mumbai doing the complete Ashtavinayak Yatra returning home in a single day

Distance – as per my own calculations and adding up the distances between each and every destinations it was coming out to be a bone chilling 742 kms

Timelines – Based on my travel experience and totally unscientific guesstimates. I am not so good anyways with numbers and hence kept it very simple. Just break it up in individual rides from Point A to Point B and so on and so forth and speculate an approximate time basis the kilometers. When added the ride time totaled up to a jaw dropping 20 hours. It looked a bit dicey when I actually got down to the numbers. Add to that the breaks and the Ganesh Darshan time I very cautiously totaled it to 24 hours for the entire ride. That meant I was to psyche myself up for a ride which if I supposedly started at 0330 hours would end up exactly at 0330 hours 24 hours later.

Plan – I had prepared an excel sheet with a single table marking home as a start point and the next destinations adding up the kilometers and the guesstimate times and distance covering all 8 Ganesh Mandirs and eventually the return back home. I had 2 options;

Option 1:
Dahisar-Thane-Kalyan-Murbad-Malshej-Lenyadri-Ozar-Ranjangaon-Siddhatek-Morgaon-Theur-Pune-Khopoli-Pali-Mahad-Vashi-Dahisar or

Option 2:  

Dahisar-Vashi-Mahad-Pali-Khopoli-Pune-Theur-Morgaon-Siddhatek-Ranjangaon-Ozar-Lenyadri-Malshej-Murbad-Kalyan-Thane-Dahisar

Final decision on the route
After some deliberations I finally chose Option 1, not because it was more favorable but for exactly the opposite reason.. Following was some thought behind the final decision;

1. I know the Mumbai-Pune-Pali-Mahad-Khopoli routes like the back of my hand since the Pali and Mahad temples always fell enroute on my drives to Konkan and Pune I would visit them quite frequently. I also knew Mahad temple to be open till very late, at least till 2330 hours. Mahad was an ideal Mandir to end my journey as I could start for my last leg home even at midnight without any concerns. I always felt that the Old Mumbai Pune Highway is a far safer bet for night solo rides as there is persistent road traffic, quite a few petrol pumps and with enough settlements en route

2. Option 2 was exactly the opposite of Option 1. Other than Mahad and Pali the route to other temples was unknown. My last visit with my family to Ashtavinayak was I guess more than 10 years back by a Tours and Travels bus package. If I would have settled for Option 2, keeping Lenyadri as the last temple it would have been a tough task from all angles. Also there was a small matter of attempting the return journey from Lenyadri through the sparsely-traveled-in-the-night Malshej and the entire isolated forest stretch till Murbad and even thereafter till Kalyan. I felt it to be a less safe option.
I kept my ride date and details to myself and did not disclose it to anyone lest people try and discourage me. The night before I was to ride I just could not sleep. I knew I was taking a huge risk and was exposing myself to ridicule if something went wrong. I just kept tossing around and finally woke up around 3:20am, got ready and started my bike at 4:30am sharp.

1. Ride 1 – Home to Lenyadri

1st Ganesh Darshan – Girijatmaj Lenyadri

Route - Dahisar-Ghodbunder Road-Thane-Kalyan-Shahad-Murbad-Malshej-Ghatghar-Junnar-Lenyadri

Home Start Time - 0430; Lenyadri Arrival Time – 0800

Total travel time – 3 and a half hours

It had rained the day before and as a direct result it was pretty warm in Mumbai. I set the trip meter to Zero and started my ride. As anticipated I hit a throng of heavy vehicles right after Dahisar check Naka and especially up the Ghodbunder road, Truck, Trailers by dozens. Inhaled quite a lot of fumes with the trucks and trailers working overtime to lug their weight up the narrow Ghodbunder ghats with their hair pin bends. It is quite surprising that Mumbai today bustles night and day and even at that point of time I was contending with traffic all the way past Thane and all the way till the Kalyan exit on the Mumbai Nasik Highway. Surprisingly it became quite chilly as soon as I hit the Mumbai Nasik Highway and there were pockets where the cold became quite intense and I could feel my fingers numbing.  Kalyan and Shahad came and was left behind in a breeze. It is on this Kalyan Murbad road that I felt that it was about time I wore my jacket which fortunately I had carried with me in my back pack. Post Shahad the temperature dropped even further as compared to the suburbs of western Mumbai and it got foggy as well. Titwala exit came and went and the fog got quite intense. It was pitch dark ever since I had left Shahad behind and progress although in the good speed zone off 60-70 kmph was still a bit cautious and I had to drop speeds every time an oncoming vehicle crossed me with their powerful beams. But I guess the added risk made the ride even more awesome, the cold temperatures, the howling winds, the fog and my headlight beam piercing the dark of the night felt surreal and eerie at the same time. Malshej lingered tall and mighty in the foreground and I could see the emerging morning lights. I took a small break outside Malshej as I had to call back home just to ensure my little one was awake for school. Having a small chat with him I mounted my ride again with an awesome urge to tackle the mighty Malshej with gusto. I had timed it perfectly. It had dawned by now and the entire stretch post Murbad and approaching Malshej was tackled at fairly good speed. I knew that I had to overcome the urge to stop at the various scenic spots as I just could not afford to linger. But the awesome beauty of Malshej compelled me to stop and just take breathers. Shortly I started ascending the Malshej ghat and with very sparse traffic I was leaning the bike like a regular Rossi and climbing the ghat at very good speeds topping at 80kph. Corner carving was fun and I was just enjoying the ride of my life. The road till now was awesome with just a few undulations and thudding potholes but not so bad that you could not try and give them a miss. The cold for some time now was piercing and my fingers had numbed down completely and I was literally shivering, my joints screaming out of stiffness. I rode off the sleepy Ghatghar and took the road to Junnar. I kept climbing up and down another few hills, the roads got a bit bad and it slowed down my progress a bit. I reached Junnar and took the exit to Lenyadri. It was already 8am when I parked my bike at the footsteps to attack the 300 odd steps up to the ancient caves for the first darshan of Girijatmaj. I am most definitely not in the best of shapes and the climb was wreaking havoc on my body. With lungs bursting I still managed to rush up the steps up to the cave of the Good Lord Girijatmaj. The temple was empty save for a few worshippers and I took a leisurely darshan, waited for a few snaps and started my descent. I have always loved Lenyadri the most of all the Ashtavinayak temples for its uncontaminated feel. It feels the most natural and in sync with a world and time long past gone…
This was by far the longest single stretch ride of the entire ride. It was also somewhat most tedious due to the couple of hours ride in total darkness, single roads, ghat section, several small hills and jarring roads post Ghatghar. It was ironically also the most admirable ride, one without parallel in raw natural beauty. I could have covered this distance a lot faster had I not fallen repeatedly to temptations of stopping and admiring the beauty of the landscapes.
With 157kms to clock. 2 hours of riding in the dark. Malshej and its beautiful distractions. I had anticipated that it would take me 4 hours to reach. But I covered the distance even with so many stopovers a good half an hour early.

Total distance covered – 157km
Trip meter reading – 157kms; Distance as per Google map – 157kms

2. Ride 2 - Lenyadri to Ozar

2nd Ganesh Darshan – Vighneshwar Ozar

Route – Lenyadri-Junnar Otur Road-Kumshet-Ozar Road-Ozar
Lenyadri

Start Time - 0851; Ozar Arrival Time – 0920

Total travel time – 29 mins

I guess this was supposedly the easiest route and I actually did not even waste time to cross check the route. I just followed the sign posts and just a couple of times checked with the locals confirming I was on the right track. The roads were very narrow, no wider than the roads within my society complex, passing through villages and old settings. It is quite deceptive that the speed of 30-40kph can seem so fast on narrow roads, as just a little earlier when I was clocking 90kph on wide roads it felt slow. I reached Ozar and rode straight to the temple. Parked my bike at the entrance of the temple as it was still early hour and not many to object. I prayed to Lord Vighneshwar and spent a few minutes looking around. This temple is a good mix of old and new. It seems like just another temple and is not in the least bit as natural as Lenyadri. It was clean and on a crowded day it can be a bit hectic here. Post the darshan I moved to the restaurant just opposite the temple to devour a sumptuous Puneri Misal. Once done with a fast breakfast I enquired the road to Ranjangaon and moved out of Ozar bidding adieu to Lord Vighneshwar.
I could cover 15kms from Lenyadri to Ozar within half an hour and almost was spot on from the anticipated timelines
Total distance covered – 15kms
Trip meter reading – 172kms; Distance as per Google map – 172kms

3. Ride 3 - Ozar to Ranjangaon

3rd Ganesh Darshan – MahaGanapati Ranjangaon

Route taken: Ozar-Narayangaon-Anandwadi-Manjarwadi-Pargaon-Malthan-Ranjangaon

Ozar Start Time - 0944; Ranjangaon Arrival Time – 1124

Total travel time – 1 hour 40 mins

Exiting Ranjangaon I actually was totally blank. On my earlier drives to Shivneri I had a fair idea of the road from home through Malshej and Junnar. Ozar was just 15 kms from Lenyadri so that too was never any issue. But the road from Ozar onwards was a total mystery to me as I had never driven to any of the places hereon covering the upcoming Ganesh Mandirs. Neither was I carrying a map. Nor did I wish to keep checking my cell phone for Google map. I chose to travel the old way. Stop a minute and check with the locals, have faith in the directions charted out to you and attack the route without any second thoughts. At Ozar a good group of few elderly people told me the best route. Get to Narayangaon. Exit on to the highway and within a kilometer again exit the highway taking an internal road. Keep asking for a Bhimashankar Karkhana and keep riding straight past it to Ranjangaon. The ride from Ozar to Narayangaon was a breeze. I tried to cover up the lost time and tried to clock speeds of 60-80kph. I soon exited Narayangaon on to the Chakan highway and again exiting the highway shortly taking another narrow road which was actually very easy to miss. Luckily I did not miss it and after confirming from a couple of people that this narrow internal road indeed was to take me to Ranjangaon I plunged on this route head on. The road was uneven and hence the progress was slow. It was a typical internal road with a lots of twisties and with a lot of ups and downs. It was like a roller coaster ride and as much as you try to maintain high speeds the max you can dare is 50-60kph as you never know when you would hit a bad patch. By now it was also heating up and shortly the Bhimashankar Karkhana with its smoke bellowing and its eerie structure was left behind. I was just halfway through in to the journey and the not so good roads were indeed jarring as I had inflated the tyres a good couple of points harder. I did not take a single break on this route and finally reached Malthan and then Ranjangaon. It was quite weird as the entire ride was through the internal roads and when I exited I just hit a huge pocket of urban dwelling. Within a couple of kms I left behind the wide open countryside, the vast fields, big houses on to the cramped urban concrete jungles. From a dream thudding in to reality. The heat was frying me up and the hard ride over not so good roads with utmost focus and concentration had taken its toll on me. I definitely looked forward to the break. I parked the bike close to the temple and had a relaxed darshan of the Good Lord MahaGanapati. Of all the Ashtavinayak temples, Ranjangaon comes across as a more modern set up in the sense that it looks elaborate and beautiful. It definitely felt a bit more posh than the earlier two temples. I spent some time in the vast vicinity of the temple before regaining my resolve to push on. I got astride my bike and started for the onward journey. I was again a bit clueless as to the preferred route and again checked with some senior local guys for the best route to get to Siddhatek, my next destination.
Total distance covered – 70kms
Trip meter reading – 242kms; Distance as per Google map – 239kms

4. Ride 4 - Ranjangaon to Sidddhatek

4th Ganesh Darshan – Siddhivinayak Siddhatek

Route – Ranjangaon-Karewadi-Shirur-Belwandi-Shrigonda-Pedgaon-Siddhatek

Ranjangaon Start - Time 1154; Siddhatek Arrival Time – 1400

Total travel time – 1 hours 54 mins

The guidance from the wise locals for my ride to Siddhatek was a bit confusing as the best road according to them (cant recollect the exact names of the route) was supposedly under repairs and in all probability closed. I was advised to take the safer although a bit longer route. Quite coincidentally after returning home and rechecking the route I had taken turned out to be the more preferred and equidistant route to the supposedly shorter route. Also this road was in tip top condition till Shirur and although with traffic I made brisk progress to the junction which was the exit to Belwandi and Shrigonda. Again the internal route too was in real good condition and even though it was a single road it was quite wide, a grateful respite to the small barely bylanes kind of roads I had taken earlier. Wider roads allows you to overtake slow moving traffic which is essentially the case on internal roads. Anyways ever since I started from Mumbai I had not encountered any noteworthy cars going in my direction or coming from the opposite side. Very few if any. Anyways with my desire to cover the distance quick I was by far the fastest on the roads today. I maintained very good speed clocking close to 70-80kph over long straight roads. The conditions were hot and the engine felt stressed and raucous but I could not relax or let go of the intensity. It was already afternoon and I still had a good 5 temples to cover and therefore I pushed myself and the bike to the limit. The entire fast ride over wide roads can become quite monotonous, the only saving grace, sugarcane fields on both sides of the road and the green soothing to the eyes. I reached Pedgaon and further moved to Siddhatek. The road from Pedgaon became narrower and through dense fields. It was not in the best of shape slowing down my speed. In addition to the narrow roads bullock carts loaded with sugarcanes to be taken to the nearest factories also slowed down my brisk pace. At one stretch I parked my bike to admire the fields, sugarcane plantation on one side of the road and Banana on the other. It was quite amusing. I had undertaken the Ashtavinayak Yatra way back in the past as a school boy and one of the most unforgettable moments of my traveling life was the bus ride in twilight cutting across narrow roads at good speed. I remember quite clearly there were thorny thick and protruding bushes which scraped quite a few forearms and elbows resting on the window ledge and also remember loud proclamations to get our arms inside and keep a bit of a distance from the window. That entire ride felt eerie as I could only see some vague outlines of the bushes and it felt wild. I also remember getting off the bus only to be loaded on to a small dingy boat with a single man rowing with oars to take us quite a few people across the river to the Siddhatek temple. The boat had a simple lantern as a light source to navigate to the opposite banks and it was indeed one of the most surreal memory of my life carved on my psyche forever. Decades later while I was rushing through this same patch of road it all flooded back to me. I reached Siddhatek and parked my bike very near to the temple and walked up to offer my prayers to SiddhiVinayak. This temple still looks and feels a bit old times type and quite a contrast to the organized Ranjangaon. I prayed to the Good Lord and after admiring the surroundings of the temple retraced my steps back to the bike and braced myself for the onward journey. I checked with the locals yet again on the best route to get to Morgaon and after reconfirming the same with a couple of other travelers I started the bike for the next Mandir
Total distance covered – 93kms
Trip meter reading – 335kms; Distance as per Google map – 321kms

5. Ride 5 - Siddhatek to Morgaon

5th Ganesh Darshan – Mayureshwar Morgaon

Route taken – Siddhatek-Berdi-Devalgaon-Daund-Patas-Chaufula Chowk-Supa-Morgaon

Siddhatek Start Time – 1415; Morgaon Arrival Time – 1610

Total travel time – 1 hour 55 mins

The ride from Siddhatek till Patas junction was the same story of internal not so good roads where I bypassed quite a few villages. The ride was cautious and I could push only a few times to clock faster times. The traffic fortunately was quite minimal. Once I reached Patas and thereafter the exceptional Solapur-Pune Express Highway, was the time when I actually felt that I can move fast. All along this ride I had kept my food intake to a bare minimum, starting with tea and few biscuits around 4am before starting from home and the Misal Paav after Vighneshwar darshan at Ozar. I was only filling myself up water, one litre per temple so as to keep myself hydrated. It was time to have a little food and again opted for a Misal Pav as I wished to eat light and not pile up anything oily. After my lunch I took the highway and could clock fast speeds for a change reaching Chaufula
junction. Once there I took the exit to Supa and Morgaon which was a good 23 kms further away. The road was again in not so good condition but light traffic allowed me to still maintain good speed. I reached Morgaon and proceeded to park my bike very close to the temple. At around the same time a tour bus too had arrived at the temple and hence I rushed to avoid the crowd and offering my prayers to Lord Mayureshwar I exited the temple for my onward journey. But not before admiring the surroundings a bit. It is one of those temples where you can connect a bit. Calm and serene. As usual I again checked with the locals for the best route to Theur my next destination.
Total distance covered – 66kms
Trip meter reading – 401kms; Distance as per Google map – 387kms

6. Ride 6 – Morgaon to Theur

6th Ganesh Darshan – Chintamani Theur

Route taken – Morgaon-Supa-Chowfula Chowk-Solapur-Pune Highway-Theur

Morgaon Start Time – 1630; Theur Arrival Time – 1745

Total travel time – 1 hour 15 mins

I had 2 options to take as a route from Morgaon to Theur. One was through Jejuri and the other retracing my ride to Chowfula Chowk on the Solapur Pune highway. The Jejuri road was coming across as a shorter route but I was told that the road may be in bad shape. Without a second thought I felt that it was better to take the good road. By now I had started to feel the fatigue to a certain extent and did not wish to expose myself to a rattling hard ride. So without too much of a thought I took the Supa-Chowfula chowk and retraced my 23 odd kms to the Solapur Pune highway. Once I touched the highway I wrung the bike hard and clocked consistently speeds of 80kph. It was a straight road, a dream for riders and drivers alike. Roads like this have bestowed my faith in the Indian infrastructure engineers and it remains one of the best roads for traveling as of today. By now I was definitely nearing my saturation point and long straight roads although good for high speeds can also expedite your fatigue as you tend to go out of focus. After a good 30 odd kms of arrow straight high speed I took a small break at a Nira stall and gulped down 2 full glasses of the cold liquid. The stop was also to check my mobile as I was receiving a call. A 10 min break made me hop on to the bike and reach the exit point for Theur. From the highway the temple is some 5 odd kms and I made slow progress with the roads being not so good and with quite a few locals moving about the narrow roads. I parked my bike near the temple and moved to the temple to offer my prayers to the Good Lord Chintamani. This temple like all the others had maintained its old charm and after admiring the surroundings of the temple I was ready to restart my onward journey. Although by now my body had started protesting and my knees and joints were shouting with stiffness. My hands were the worst hit as continuous wringing of the throttle and hard holding to ensure grip over narrow interior roads was taking a toll on my hands and fingers. For a guy who is fairly big I have small hands and the blood was draining out quite a lot giving a tingling feeling, the type where you feel a jolt when touching an electric power point. But I had to move on and I again firmed up not to let my resolve drop.
Total distance covered – 62kms
Trip meter reading – 463kms; Distance as per Google map – 450kms

7. Ride 7 – Theur to Pali

7th Ganesh Darshan - Pali Ballaleshwar

Route Taken: Theur-Wagholi-Yerawada-Khadki-Old Mumbai Pune Highway-Lonavala-Khopoli-Pali

Theur Start Time – 1810; Pali Arrival Time – 2130

Total travel time – 3 hours 20 mins

My saturation point had set in by now and the sense of adventure although present still was edged with exhaustion. I exited the temple and rather than retracing my steps 5 odd kms back to the Solapur Pune Highway and thereafter to Hadapsar-Pune and the old Mumbai Pune highway I took the advice of a local auto wala who asked me to take the Wagholi-Yerawada-Khadki road instead. I did not challenge and took the bait. Looking back at it now after checking the road on google maps I am not sure if that was a right choice. Theur-Wagholi-Yerawada-Khadki route was besotted with heavy traffic and the progress was painfully slow. Cutting through bumper to bumper and fender to fender traffic took its toll on me and by the time I passed Yerawada it was twilight. By the time I exited Khadki it was totally dark. It was a pain navigating through Pune traffic and I could ensure good speeds only post Dehu Road on the old Mumbai Pune Highway. The road is awesome although a bit narrow for a national highway and without dividers for quite some part. Overtaking on this stretch was risky as there were no road lights. I opened the throttle only in the latter parts of the ride and crossed Karla and entered Lonavala. Lonavala was crowded but I could still enter and exit slowly but without actually getting stuck anywhere. By now my derriere was numb and my hands were buzzing excessively and my joints screaming with stiffness. I took a small break before I hit the Mumbai Pune Expressway. The Expressway was quite crowded but luckily I could whizz past the traffic keeping to the extreme left and took the exit to Khopoli. The descent down in to Khopoli was tackled fast and I immediately took the exit to Pali. By now I was truly at 50% of my capabilities and the daunting task loomed large. Not only did I have to cover 41 odd kms to Pali in the dark but also retrace my entire journey back to Khopoli. Now this road after Khopoli and Imagica takes you through some of the densest forested areas and the road had definitely seen some good days. It can be a daunting task to ride a bike in the dark of the night through a dense area and I was lucky to have a few vehicles which I briskly overtook in my quest to reaching Pali. The cars and heavy vehicles strong headlight beams were a boon as much as the oncoming vehicles headlights were blinding. I kept clocking the kms worried and scared that I would miss out on the darshan at Pali. Although I was sure that the temple was open till 10:30pm, the long ride had by now numbed my senses a bit to remember that. I did not wish to lose out on completing my trip with all the Ashtavinayak darshans achieved and with that fear in mind I kept pushing my bike hard. By the time I reached the outskirts of Pali I was totally exhausted and I crossed the sleepy village straight to the temple. It was totally empty and it is only when I completed my darshan of the Good Lord Ballaleshwar that I heaved a sigh of relief. It was like Catharsis. I could not express my joy as I knew Mahad was open till at least 11:30pm and I could make it there in time. I relaxed a bit. I have always had a soft corner for the Ballaleshwar temple for its natural setting and I always loved visiting Pali. I spent some time in the surroundings of the temple before mounting my bike yet again for the next destination.
Total distance covered – 142kms
Trip meter reading – 605kms; Distance as per Google map – 597kms

8. Ride 8 – Pali to Mahad

8th Ganesh Darshan – Ballaleshwar Pali

Route Taken – Pali-Khopoli-Mahad

Pali Start Time – 2142; Mahad Arrival Time – 2242

Total travel time – 1 hour

I exited Pali and retraced my ride back to Khopoli. However this time I was not pushing too hard and did not give two hoots for any company. There was a sense of accomplishment and assurance. If providence and the Good Lords blessing brought me this far and with my senses still sharp the last ditch effort to move to the next and the penultimate destination was a foregone conclusion. Although totally exhausted, my joints all so stiff and paining, my palms almost bereft of any sensation, my eyes totally stretched from constant focusing and my derriere numb I still had quite a lot of resolve to push on. The ride was relaxed and this time I was enjoying the ride. Enjoying the way my headlight beam pierced the dark of the night. I tackled the forested region with confidence and without any concerns and gradually emerged on to the same junction of Khopoli from where I had entered for the ride to Pali. Khopoli to Mahad is barely a few kms and I rode straight to the temples door and I could not be more overjoyed. I had done it!!! I went in to the temple prayed to the Good Lord VaradaVinayak and for the first time sat for a couple of minutes. Just to relax a bit. There was a sense of achievement definitely but I was so exhausted that all I wanted to do was to move on again. The journey by no means was complete. I called home and told my wife I had done it. She too must have felt relaxed. I told her I am coming home for food. I took a few snaps in front of the temple and mounted my bike for the long route home.
Total distance covered – 43kms
Trip meter reading – 648kms; Distance as per Google map – 642kms

9. Ride 9 - Final ride back home – Mahad to Home

Route taken – Mahad-Panvel-Vashi-Powai-Jogeshwari-Dahisar

Start Time – 2253; Home Arrival Time – 0044

Total travel time – 1 hours 37 mins

I exited the temple and started for the final leg of my ride. The old Mumbai Pune road is nothing but a blessing. No undulations except the stupid speed breakers which if you need to spot you need night vision goggles. Other than that the ride was uneventful. Just a wringed throttle and a steady progress. Yes some of the heavy vehicles do play truant and one needs to waive through the heavy vehicles but it was still a relaxed ride. By now my entire system was howling and screaming for mercy. In all probabilities the achievement had made me relax a little too much. I kept telling myself that this leg was the most crucial and I could not afford to let my guard down and get in to complacency. I could get in to trouble this way. I got in and out of the alert mode. I kept making fast progress and had shortly entered Panvel and exited it to join the Panvel Mumbai highway. I kept clocking good speeds and even at that late hour I encountered quite some traffic. Usually I prefer the Thane-Belapur-Ghodbunder road for traveling home from Panvel but I knew the road was undergoing some work and also wanted to avoid the heavy truck traffic and the countless speed breakers. I instead took the Vashi-Deonar-Ghatkopar-Powai road thinking that at this time of the night it would be empty. It was not. I encountered quite some traffic but handling cars was any time a lot better than the heavy vehicles I would have encountered on the Thane Belapur road. I rode hard and exited the Eastern Express Highway to Powai and thereafter from Powai to Jogeshwari. Again even with quite a lot of traffic I still managed to reach home clocking some good speeds. I reached home and killed the engine for the final rest and a well-deserved good nights sleep.
There was no overt gesture of exhilaration. No cinematic triumph or screams of pleasure. It was quite unceremonious infact as there was no one in that good locality who was even remotely aware what I had done. I preferred it that way. Just trudged my way back home. Spent quite some time in the bathroom nursing my aching body with almost boiling hot water. Had my dinner and went to sleep.
Total distance covered – 94kms
Trip meter reading – 742kms; Distance as per Google map – 742kms

The coincidence dawned up on me when I took the final reading of my Trip Meter and it was exactly 742kms, same as the guesstimate I had noted down on the piece of paper. Awesome coincidence. It was also quite awesome from the ride that there was not a single instance of anxiety or I never encountered a single instance where I felt I was in trouble. The entire ride was as per plan and incident less. It was also a divine coincidence that I never encountered any rush or crowd at any of the temples. All my darshans were swift and without any delay.

A ride of 742kms, all darshans done without any rush and with some worthwhile breaks, 2 food halts, a few nature call breaks and that’s it.
I had managed to cover an erstwhile anticipated itinerary of 24 hours plus within 20 hours. Thanks a lot Ganesha!!!

I am still not able to fathom the extent of this achievement. Maybe it will dawn on me as time goes by. In the meanwhile I still am looked at speechlessly by everyone who has realized what I did. And that probably will remain my legacy!!!.