Wander through India : THE SPITI EXPEDITION ( DAY XVII UDAIPUR TO MUMBAI )

DAY XVII – UDAIPUR TO MUMBAI ( 800 KM)

DESTINATION : MUMBAI, MAHARASTRA

1. So here we are, at the final penultimate day of my Expedition. In most of the travels the last day is normally a breeze and even I assumed that other than the long distance that I had to travel there should be nothing else to worry.

2. The previous day I had read about floods in Gujarat and I was a bit cautious as to what would happen as we too would in all probability be crossing the same regions but as the news reports were sketchy I could not figure it out much. The morning was cloudy as we started our trip and it was real pleasant. The roads were smooth and we made quite good progress but soon the day was turning out to be dusty.

3. Soon we reached the entry to NE1 which would take us to Baroda and the rains were welcoming us as we drove through pouring downpour. As we approached Barauch we were stuck in what could easily be described as the biggest traffic jam of my driving career. The Jan was easily about 10-15 kms long and three laned.I had no option other than to move on to the wrong side of the highway and with all lights switched on, a convoy of four light vehicles started moving ahead in the pouring downpour. I might have covered around close to 15 km in this manner as we approached the bridge on the river Narmada near Baurach where the road had been damaged in the monsoon and the road was being repaired.

4. The light vehicles were being sent across on an old bridge and we were directed on to it .The experience was taxing and at the same time it was the climax of my drive the past 17 days as even now I had to really put in all my efforts to move across and there was no thinking that the trip is completed.

5. The rains were with us the entire time till Mumbai and I concluded my trip at Marine Drive at one in the early morning with a cup of chai sitting and reflecting on what had transpired these last seventeen days.

6. Odometer of the day .Udaipur :58763 ; Mumbai:59584

FINAL ODOMETER OF THE TRIP: COLABA (09 SEP):54485 – COLABA (26 SEP):59584

TOTAL DISTANCE COVERED: 5099

All that remains now are the trip logs and the telephone numbers and details of places that we stayed which i shall be posting subsequently.