[richie4u]

So I am leaving tonight at 4am for Pune. WHich place is a good hygenic place on the Belgaum-Pune route for breakfast. I will be crossing Belgaum by 6 so Belgaum is not an option, only places left would be Nipani,Kolhapur or somewhere in between. So please suggest guys.

P.S. A Mc'donalds burger at 8-9 in the morning is my last option.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by richie4u

P.S. A Mc'donalds burger at 8-9 in the morning is my last option.

Beyond Kolhapur, (About 30km) there is a Hotel Sai on your right. If you dont want to wait till then, there is a Kamat just before Sankeshwar (on your left).
Then there are some at the start and end of Tavandi ghats (before Nippani)

[Figopian]

Originally Posted by richie4u

So I am leaving tonight at 4am for Pune. WHich place is a good hygenic place on the Belgaum-Pune route for breakfast. I will be crossing Belgaum by 6 so Belgaum is not an option, only places left would be Nipani,Kolhapur or somewhere in between. So please suggest guys.

P.S. A Mc'donalds burger at 8-9 in the morning is my last option.

You could as well go all the way to karad and you have many hotels in Karad like Warna, Sangam. There are others as well in Karad where you get good food, I can't recall the names though. All these hotels are on the right side of the road, so you need to take a u-turn under the Karad fly over.
As ampere suggested, Sai is a good place as well.

[suzuki san]

Hi Guys,

As promised, below are the driving directions to access the Chorla Ghat via Belgaum.

I have chosen to start at the Tawande Ghat (Nipani turn off) as most people know that spot and stop there for snacks or lunch.

Zero your trip meter at "Goa Ways" Restaurant on the top of Tawande Ghat.
There is also a "Kaveri Restaurant there and, I think a "Saraswati" Hotel on your left.

1. Keep straight on NH4. You will reach a toll booth called Hittargi. Pay Rs. 15.00 toll and keep straight on.
2. When your trip meter shows 55 Kms, slow down and look for a turn off on the left which should appear at 56.3Kms approx. There is no signpost at all. There is some construction work going on there right now. If in doubt, ask the locals.
3. Slide off the highway here and down the sloping road past the construction work. The road is potholed.
4. At the bottom of the slope you will find the signboard but it has sort of fallen over or been hit by a truck or something. Anyway, turn right at this board and go under the highway and take the first exit left immediately after the overbridge.

RESET YOUR TRIPMETER TO ZERO AT THIS POINT.

Total distance through Belgaum is about 13 Kms.

5. This road runs parallel to the highway and takes you directly into Belgaum.
6. 1st. traffic signal (junction) - continue straight on.
7. 2nd. traffic signal (junction) - continue straight on.
8. You will pass BIMS (Belgaum Medical College) on your right.
9. You will now pass the District Hospital on your right. Continue straight on.
10. 3rd. traffic signal (major junction) (There is, I think, a horse statue here) - turn right and then take the first left immediately after.
(Be careful here. If you miss the first left turn and take the second, you will end up on the road going via Amboli and Sawantwadi and you don't want that).
11. You will pass Rex Stores (prominent) on your right. Continue straight on.
12. You will pass "Adarsh Hotel" on your left. We stopped here for lunch. Veg food on ground floor. Non Veg on fourth floor. Pretty good food and fairly fast service. Safe, off road parking in front of the hotel with watchman.
13. 4th. traffic signal - continue straight on.
14. 5th. traffic signal - turn right (gentle turn)
15. 6th. traffic signal - bear right and go over railway bridge. Keep straight on. I guess Belgaum railway station is now somewhere below you.
16. Major junction. "LIC" building in front as you approach. Can't miss it. Go right around the circle.
17. 7th. traffic signal - continue straight on. You will now pass "Big Bazaar" on your right.
18. You will now be approaching a railway crossing. Straight on past the crossing. If you are unlucky you might have to wait about 20 minutes for a train to pass.
19. You will now pass "Balaji Marbles" on your right and also a "Mangesh Honda" showroom.
20. Continue straight on till you come to a fork in the road with a big sign saying KLS Public School or something like that. There is also a sign for "Wildernest" (which is on the Chorla Ghat) but it is partially hidden behind the school board. YOUR TRIPMETER SHOULD BE READING 12.5 - 13 KMS AT THIS POINT.
21. You need to be careful here as this is where you need to cross the traffic flow and turn right. You are now on the Chorla ghat road. If you miss this turning you will continue on to Khanapur so, if not sure, stop and ask.
22. Reset your trip meter to zero at this point. You now have 63 Kms to go to the Goa border and 97Kms to go to Mapuca.
23. Bad sections of road as per my previous post are at Km 30 (small section), Km 47 (small section) and from Km 50 till Km 63 (badly potholed and rutted road till the Goa border).

So, to summarise :
1. "Goa Ways" Restaurant to Belgaum Turn Off : 57 Kms
2. Belgaum Approach and Transit : 13 Kms
3. Belgaum Exit to Goa Border : 63 Kms
4. Goa Border to Mapuca : 34 Kms
Total distance : 160 Kms

If I leave Goa at 05:00, I am at "Goa Ways" restaurant at 08:00 as not much traffic through Belgaum. Then pass Poona (Hinjewadi junction) by 12:00 and home (Andheri) by 15:00 hrs.
However, when south bound, you will be approaching Belgaum in the middle of the day and there will be a lot of traffic so this will delay you by about 30 to 45 minutes.

Hope the above comes in handy and if there any minor mistakes, I do apologise.

Regards,

SS

[richie4u]

I am just back from my trip, left Goa at 4.30am (delay courtesy the snooze button on the alarm clock) but even then reached main Pune city at 11.15am including a half an hour break and toll booths and all. Used the same route as suggested by all,no traffic early in the morning so I could maintain triple digits upto Satara. The return journey took longer though cause of the traffic and also rains which lowered my average speed.

[swarnava.m]

Originally Posted by richie4u

I am just back from my trip, left Goa at 4.30am (delay courtesy the snooze button on the alarm clock) but even then reached main Pune city at 11.15am including a half an hour break and toll booths and all. Used the same route as suggested by all,no traffic early in the morning so I could maintain triple digits upto Satara. The return journey took longer though cause of the traffic and also rains which lowered my average speed.

Good work bro. I am doing this trip on Monday. Expect a PM soon. Meanwhile, do post the experience, exact route followed and current road conditions.

[selfdrive]

I originally planned to leave Goa for my return leg on 19th. I have been told that routes could be clogged due to the visarjan on that day.
Would it be clogged enough to warrant extending my trip by another day. Not that I need the excuse, but
appreciate your advice!

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by selfdrive

I originally planned to leave Goa for my return leg on 19th. I have been told that routes could be clogged due to the visarjan on that day.
Would it be clogged enough to warrant extending my trip by another day. Not that I need the excuse, but
appreciate your advice!

Getting into Pune could take you eternity,especially if you are reaching the city late afternoon/early evening.

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Getting into Pune could take you eternity,especially if you are reaching the city late afternoon/early evening.

I could stop overnight at Satara, make a dash to Kaas and then reach Pune on 20th.
But now the question is if I will be able to reach from Goa to Satara via Amboli without any major delays.

If not, it would mean an extra day in Goa

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by selfdrive

I originally planned to leave Goa for my return leg on 19th. I have been told that routes could be clogged due to the visarjan on that day. Would it be clogged enough to warrant extending my trip by another day. Not that I need the excuse, but appreciate your advice!

I don't think there would be much of a problem. If you are starting on the 19th, at least the immersions/processions in the towns/villages that you would pass on the Goa-Pune route would have finished, as Anant Chaturdashi is on 18th. Also, on 19th, the processions coming from Varje side would have finished by the time you reach Pune.

No extra vacation for you [Soup Nazi style]!!

Cheers,
Vikram

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

I don't think there would be much of a problem. If you are starting on the 19th, at least the immersions/processions in the towns/villages that you would pass on the Goa-Pune route would have finished, as Anant Chaturdashi is on 18th.

Interesting. Everyone and their goon (including the voices in my head) is telling me that immersion day is on 19th.
In any case, I would not leave Goa before 11am on 19th so that should not be an issue regardless of who is doing the cha cha on Warje road

[sanchit223]

I am going to goa from 28th sept to 3rd october. The plan is leave for ganpatipule on 28th afternoon 4 pm, stay there at night and leave for goa on 29 th afterrnoon. Wondering about the road condition and time required from navi mumbai. For the return journey also I would like to stop on the way, should I take nh4 for the return journey or retrace nh17?

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by sanchit223

I am going to goa from 28th sept to 3rd october. The plan is leave for ganpatipule on 28th afternoon 4 pm, stay there at night and leave for goa on 29 th afterrnoon. Wondering about the road condition and time required from navi mumbai. For the return journey also I would like to stop on the way, should I take nh4 for the return journey or retrace nh17?

Considering the miserable evening traffic on NH17 especially till Managaon, it is going to be impossible to reach Ganapatipule before midnight.

I would return via NH4. But if it is a weekend, then expect heavu traffic congestion at toll gates on NH4 from Kolhapur and on Pune-Bombay expressway

[sanchit223]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Considering the miserable evening traffic on NH17 especially till Managaon, it is going to be impossible to reach Ganapatipule before midnight.

I would return via NH4. But if it is a weekend, then expect heavu traffic congestion at toll gates on NH4 from Kolhapur and on Pune-Bombay expressway

More than 8 hours from navi mumbai to Ganpatipule! In that case I'll book a room at some resort in advance.... maybe MTDC. I had booked MTDC Mahabaleshwar last week but there was no water in the entire resort when I arrived. I hope this one will be better.

Return journey is on 3rd (Thursday), so NH4 should not have too much congestion. Could you suggest some places where I can stop on the way back for a couple of hours (or even overnite if it's that good) and admire the scenic beauty.

[filcord]

Originally Posted by suzuki san

Hi Guys,

As promised, below are the driving directions to access the Chorla Ghat via Belgaum......

That was really detailed. I am doing Goa to Pune early October, and was thinking of taking the Chorla Ghat route instead of Swantwadi-Amboli-Ajra, for two reasons, one that it would be a new experience, and second that it might be a better surface than the amboli-ajra route. Would that be right?

Also as we will be leaving Goa around 0530, any decent breakfast place by around 0730 hrs?