A photo story of cycling solo from Goa to Kanpur via the Konkan Coast, Mumbai, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh just before the lockdown…
St. Thomas Church, Aldona. From where it all started. Not just this ride in 2020. But the real ride in the 1850s! To know more read the full blog, link at the bottom of this page…A salt pan in Maharashtra on the Konkan CoastParadise Beach in Maharashtra. Just a few kilometres north of the touristy Goan beaches. This place was relatively empty and pretty…Sitting on the beach contemplating life can fill you with nostalgia…Cycling along this coastal route. You will cross, what feels like a bazillion water bodies, on these bridges. The views are always magical…Another common feature on this route are these barren flat tabletops, preceded by a steep climb and followed by another steep descent…With Waman from Mhapan. We rode together from his home for a bit. This picture clicked in the golden grass on one of the many flat stretches which adorns this route…Sunsets along this route are always incredible. You just got to make sure that you are somewhere on the road when the sun is about to set…There’s something fishy about this photo. All the fishiness is in the boats!Life rarely gets better than this!Beaches with barely any commercial activity is how these Maharashtrian folks roll!When you’re too lazy to see the sunrise, it is important that you enjoy the sunsets to the MAX!This beach was a nesting ground for turtles, with a govt. run setup to protect the turtles…A typical fishing village along this routeA man goes fishing leaving his footprints in the sands of time…While this picture might not be special from an aesthetic point of view. It is special for a cyclists stomach! One of the many small vada pao shops along the way. Vada pao is made for cyclists. Bread and salty potato is just what the nutritionist ordered…Size does matter if you’re planning to go out to sea fishing. This person is going after small fry in the shallows…When you can’t see the sea, you are afforded such green views. Small villages nestled in a bowl of a thick forest. What you cannot see in these pictures, is the incredible humidity!As you can see, there is a lot of constant traffic on these roads! If you look closely on the left top of the horizon, you will notice the same road climbing up the adjoining hill. It is all up and down, undulating terrain.Catching the last ferry at 10 PM. Riding on these roads after dark is a different experience. You don’t see much. But you experience a lot…The Janjira Fort. A fort made in the middle of the sea. Must have been quite the laborious affair. Much worse than pedalling a bike!
Thanks to Mohit Gena for editing these pictures and making them look better than the photographer’s capabilities!
These photos are from Goa to Mumbai. Post Mumbai, I had to ride longer and faster everyday, because I was trying to get home before the expected lockdown. And was left with little time to click pictures…
Gee man wanted the whole story in one go, not in separate episodes or links