[sforsarang]

Hi Friends, Its been quite a long time since I have posted a travelogue here in team-bhp's travelogues section and the reason for that is I typically drive to Parbhani which is my parent's temporary location at present (380 kms away from Hyderabad) and there's absolutely nothing which can be posted about that as I do not stop in between and do not carry camera along with me. This time however, I had a good reason to plan my drive carefully enough to be able to come up with a good content with nice photographs as it was my first ever long drive as a lone driver beyond 1000 kms and second I knew I would be visiting to such places where roads are great, scenic beauty is aplenty and gain much more knowledgable stuff which I can share with fellow T-BHPians.

Context - I had to attend my friend's wedding at Amravati on 30th June and the moment it was fixed, I had decided not to go by bus or train and instead take my red cutie along. On the other hand, red cutie was equally eager as she also had a point or two to prove her critics wrong !!!

Planning - I asked my parents to visit us in Hyderabad a week before the planned start date so that all of us can go together. Instead of directly going to the wedding place, I decided to visit my hometown Nagpur for a day or two, then move to the groom's hometown Warud (This place is called as Vidarbha's California because of its oranges. Although Nagpur is called Orange city but there are no oranges in Nagpur. They are everywhere around Nagpur in 100 to 150 kms range and Warud is the center of these). I had already gotten approved leaves for 5 weekdays so we had 9 days in all. So the planning went like this.

Vehicle - Red Cutie

Occupants - 5 people including driver (Mom, Dad, Sis, Wifey and yours truly)

Luggage - 2 suitcases, 3 skybags, 2 small carrybags (I had removed rear speakers already and although boot was completely stuffed with this kind of luggage, thanks to red cutie, the rear vision was still not blocked. I cant imagine this to be possible in any other car of its segment).

Route - Hyderabad-Nagpur-Warud-Amravati-Warud-Wardha-Hyderabad

Distance - Total distance 1500 approx (1490 to be precise)

Dates - 26th june to 2nd July

Travel - 26th June - Hyderabad to Nagpur (500 kms)

27th June - Nagpur - Warud (110 kms)

28th June - Trip around Warud in Orange gardens and other countryside places (remaining kms out of 1490)

30th June - Warud-Amravati-Warud (200 kms)

2nd July - Warud-Wardha-Hyderabad (590 kms)

Preparation - Got my red cutie serviced from an authorized maruti service station in Hyderabad (not sure if rules allow me to specify name) 2 days before for 25000 kms (no oil change as it was already done on 20k servicing). Service guys just did normal checks and washing, top up etc. I had specifically instructed them to do wheel alignment and balancing but in the evening to my surprise they told me that it is not possible because the rear tyres are not in a very good shape and are mostly worn out. I was shocked because my vehicle has just completed 25k and from what I knew, tyre life is around 40 to 50 k. I checked the tyres and they were really worn out, atleast completely smoothened from one side dont know how. Frontal ones were good. I asked my friend Anumod who works in MS with me and is an automobile expert too out of interest and he told me the same thing that I need to replace my rear tyres. Immediately I took my vehicle to the tyre shop and replaced factory fitted rear pair of JK tyres with Bridgestone 155/65 R 13 also performed the wheel alignment and balancing. That guy put new tyres in the front and front tyres in the rear. Spare one was replaced with one relatively good rear tyre as it was bent. Later that night I tanked up in Essar (the next day petrol because expensive by 3 rs.) All this happened just 2 days before my planned start date and at last my red cutie was completely ready and raring to go.



Beginning - On 26th (saturday) early morning 4.30 AM everyone woke up and by 5.45 AM we started from Hyderabad towards Nagpur. I took Miyapur-Kukatpally-Bowenpally road and even though it was pretty early, the traffic was a bit on the higher side (especially of heavy vehicles) in the city and it took around 40 minutes for us to get out of the city limits.

Hi-tech AP government (or NHAI ?) !

Once we crossed Runway-9, there were quite lesser vehicles around and we easily cruised at 80-90 kmph (Please note that I never drive beyond 100 as a principle before any of you take objection for me using the word cruise for 80-90 kmph speed!).


My destination in Nagpur was around 500 kms from my home in Hyderabad and hence I decided to take 2 short breaks in between after each 150 odd kms.


We stopped first at APTDC's Haritha restaurant which is approx 120 kms from Hyderabad and I found it a good place to have South Indian breakfast. Clock signalled 7.45 AM. Distance remaining 386 kms.



We halted for 15 to 20 minutes and started again. This patch of road till Kamareddy was quite good and 4 lane with divider throughout. Later it is merged with a 2 lane kind of narrow (but good) highway till Nirmal. NHAI work is in progress to make it a 4 lane highway with dividers till Nagpur.





At Nirmal, we clicked few of our ancestors merrily enjoying their breakfast which was being provided by the passing vehicles all the time ! We crossed the Nirmal ghat at around 9.45 AM and reached Adilabad at around 10.45 AM. I decided to take a short break after passing Adilabad city and we stopped for 15 minutes at a petrol bunk which had a restaurant adjacent to it. By then it was getting too hot and I had to switch on AC full time (which was getting a 'partial treatment' till now). Eventually we reached Nagpur by 2.30 PM where we all had a nice homemade food cooked by my grandma and aunt. Trip-meter showed 501 kms at this point.

All the snaps are clicked by wifey through her mobile camera.

[sforsarang]

Next day i.e. on Sunday 27th evening 5 PM, we started from Nagpur towards Warud which is 110 kms away. Road is quite good with lots of greenery and orange plantations around.



After crossing Katol, there is a huge statue of lord Shiva which we captured in our camera.


It was raining heavily once we approached Katol and it continued throughout the journey ahead. All in all a good 2 and half hours drive. We got delayed by half n hour as a huge tree was lying fallen on the road 20 kms from the destination and when we reached there, the crane was called to remove it from the way. We reached Warud at 7.30 PM and it was still breezing.

Next day i.e. on Monday we didnt have much to do so decided to move out and see the places in the vicinity. Everywhere there are orange plantations and forest area. Wifey caught a nice little strange chameleon on the road and we all gathered around it to see what exactly it is. We were told that it is 'elephant chameleon' and it moves very slow and like an elephant. It gave us many poses while we were busy clicking on the street. Here are a few for you.

[turbolover]

Nice cover Sarang!

I'm impressed -It has inspired me to revisit my recent trips and put up similar travelogues.

I'm particularly surprised by the amount of luggage that you were able to carry along with the passengers.

Did you notice any visible driving improvements using the Nitrogen like I told you to?

[Autocop]

Sarang,

Good start buddy. Your wife has done a great job with Camera work. Nice snaps. Likes them'all. Thanks for exposing the natural beauty of Vidarbha region. Keep it coming!

[MX6]

That elephant chameleon looks just like the creature I almost ran over on my drive between Yellapura and Sagara (in Karnataka). Just that I remember it developing red spots when I was speeding towards it at above 80 kph. Initially it had camouflaged itself to the tar colour and I thought it's a random twig on the road.
When it turned green with red spots I had to swerve to save that bugger. And then he limps around as though nothing happened.

[aroop]

Cool start. Your car in the first pic looks like showroom new. Was it taken when you had bought it? (25k km ago?)

Good pics too! But where are the oranges?

Good to know Waggy enthusiast enjoying the vehicle at legal speed limits

As you have mentioned, even I have found wagonR to be an extremely practical no nonsense car for the city and even highway (if you dont intend to go beyond 100).

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by aroop

Cool start. Your car in the first pic looks like showroom new. Was it taken when you had bought it? (25k km ago?)

+1. Even i had the same question. That snap seems to be 25K kms ago.

Look forward to pictures of the car from this trip. Also, it was recommended that you changed all 4 tyres with Bridgestone instead of only the rear ones. Reason being it will have uneven wear and tear again compared to front and resale value will go for a toss.

That chameleon picture was ughhhh ( I cant stand reptiles)

[hyd_traveller]

Originally Posted by sforsarang

by 5.45 AM we started from Hyderabad towards Nagpur.
I took Miyapur-Kukatpally-Bowenpally road and even though it was pretty early, the traffic was a bit on the higher side (especially of heavy vehicles) in the city and it took around 40 minutes for us to get out of the city limits.
We stopped first at APTDC's Haritha restaurant which is approx 120 kms from Hyderabad and I found it a good place to have South Indian breakfast. Clock signalled 7.45 AM. Distance remaining 386 kms.We halted for 15 to 20 minutes and started again.
We crossed the Nirmal ghat at around 9.45 AM and reached Adilabad at around 10.45 AM.
I decided to take a short break after passing Adilabad city and we stopped for 15 minutes at a petrol bunk which had a restaurant adjacent to it.
Eventually we reached Nagpur by 2.30 PM where we all had a nice homemade food cooked by my grandma and aunt.
Trip-meter showed 501 kms at this point.

This is very good driving by someone who is conservative (claimed maximum speed 100 kmph) : 475 km of highways in 7.50 hours.

One question, did you stop at the BP Ghar Dhaba, 15 KM after Adilabad, at Pipparwada Village on the Left Hand Side?

[sforsarang]

Originally Posted by turbolover

Nice cover Sarang!

I'm impressed -It has inspired me to revisit my recent trips and put up similar travelogues.

I'm particularly surprised by the amount of luggage that you were able to carry along with the passengers.

Did you notice any visible driving improvements using the Nitrogen like I told you to?

I am eagerly waiting for your recent Mumbai journey Turbo ! Yeah hats off to WagonR boot actually we have travelled with 7 folks twice inside city where 2 of the adults sat in the boot so not really surprised that she carried so much of the stuff smoothly! I could not use the nitrogen this time because of its unavailability at the place you told and lack of time to search other places.

Originally Posted by Autocop

Sarang,

Good start buddy. Your wife has done a great job with Camera work. Nice snaps. Likes them'all. Thanks for exposing the natural beauty of Vidarbha region. Keep it coming!

Thanks Autocop. I guess I went overboard with that strange chameleon's pictures but I was so excited that I attached all and could not preview. New to posting. Yeah return journey was exciting and adventurous too because of heavy to very heavy rains and low visibility. Update later by EOD today.

Originally Posted by MX6

That elephant chameleon looks just like the creature I almost ran over on my drive between Yellapura and Sagara (in Karnataka). Just that I remember it developing red spots when I was speeding towards it at above 80 kph. Initially it had camouflaged itself to the tar colour and I thought it's a random twig on the road.
When it turned green with red spots I had to swerve to save that bugger. And then he limps around as though nothing happened.

Yes MX6, there were a few villagers standing nearby who told us about it and that it will change colors every 5 to 8 minutes. Also, what was particularly strange about it was its fearless nature. It was dead slow in motion and not at all bothered by our presence like other chameleons who just run away spotting humans around.

Originally Posted by aroop

Cool start. Your car in the first pic looks like showroom new. Was it taken when you had bought it? (25k km ago?)

Good pics too! But where are the oranges?

Good to know Waggy enthusiast enjoying the vehicle at legal speed limits

As you have mentioned, even I have found wagonR to be an extremely practical no nonsense car for the city and even highway (if you dont intend to go beyond 100).

Aroop, you are right. It is just pure laziness on my part to be required to modify the snaps to hide number plate hehehe. I just used that snap to avoid that modification as it doesnt have original number ! BTW, there is hardly any difference between then and now in my red cutie! I will post the latest pic today.

Originally Posted by mobike008

+1. Even i had the same question. That snap seems to be 25K kms ago.

Look forward to pictures of the car from this trip. Also, it was recommended that you changed all 4 tyres with Bridgestone instead of only the rear ones. Reason being it will have uneven wear and tear again compared to front and resale value will go for a toss.

That chameleon picture was ughhhh ( I cant stand reptiles)

Hehehe that was a beautiful animal Mobike008 ! Yeah I thought so but the other 2 tyres were really in a good condition so refrained.

Originally Posted by hyd_traveller

This is very good driving by someone who is conservative (claimed maximum speed 100 kmph) : 475 km of highways in 7.50 hours.

One question, did you stop at the BP Ghar Dhaba, 15 KM after Adilabad, at Pipparwada Village on the Left Hand Side?

Not 7.50 hours hyd_traveller It took us around 8 and half hours with two short stops of 10 to 15 minutes each. Yeah we stopped at that same BP ghar dhaba and thats a real bad place to take a break. The rest rooms were too bad and there was nothing to eat in the dhaba not even coke or pepsi :(

[vnabhi]

Nice pictures. How was the FE? Out of 500 kms to Nagpur, how much was 4-laned?

[lejhoom]

Beautiful pictures. How come no cops bothered you in Maharashtra when your car doesn't have a number plate?

[sforsarang]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Nice pictures. How was the FE? Out of 500 kms to Nagpur, how much was 4-laned?

Thanks. FE was great as usual. With AC partially ON, around 24 kmpl (I tanked up twice for 1490 kms and the capacity is 35 litres. I still have 4 to 5 litres in.... so approx 24 kmpl..)

Originally Posted by lejhoom

Beautiful pictures. How come no cops bothered you in Maharashtra when your car doesn't have a number plate?

My car does have a number plate dear but I have posted that snap purposely when it didnt have one !! (brand new). Also, cops did stop us once near Amravati (because of AP number plate) but on knowing that we are Maharashtriyans only they just left us (anyway I had all the documents ready).

[sforsarang]

Originally Posted by sforsarang

Thanks. FE was great as usual. With AC partially ON, around 24 kmpl (I tanked up twice for 1490 kms and the capacity is 35 litres. I still have 4 to 5 litres in.... so approx 24 kmpl..)



My car does have a number plate dear but I have posted that snap purposely when it didnt have one !! (brand new). Also, cops did stop us once near Amravati (because of AP number plate) but on knowing that we are Maharashtriyans only they just left us (anyway I had all the documents ready).

Hey calculation mistake, I forgot that I tanked up thrice and not twice.. FE comes around 17 to 18 kmpl

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by sforsarang

Hey calculation mistake, I forgot that I tanked up thrice and not twice.. FE comes around 17 to 18 kmpl

Even that is good. But you have not stated how much of the road to Nagpur is 4-laned.

[sforsarang]

We went to Amravati for my friend's wedding on Wednesday 30th, attended the reception in Warud itself the next day and planned to start for a journey back home on Friday 2nd. As usual we got up at 5 AM, prepared ourselves for a long day and drive ahead and left Warud at 6.30 AM. The weather was pleasant and cool because of the rains last night. Since the road was wet and narrow, I maintained the speed of 60 / 70 kmph till Wardha where we reached at 9 AM. We drove further down to Hinganghat from where we got into the main Nagpur-Hyderabad highway roughly at around 10 AM. I tanked up my vehicle there, took a short break of 15 minutes and resumed. Wifey was busy taking photographs. Note that the road from Hinganghat to Adilabad (mostly around Pandharkawada) is pretty bad at the diversion joints and one needs to drive really carefully in order to make sure the vehicle doesnt get hit at the bottom. As we approached Adilabad, I spotted a snake lying on the road, most probably dead and the thing with snakes on road is that you spot them at the very last moment. You do not even get time to brake, watch or click snaps. Later on after crossing Adilabad city and towards Nirmal, we both spotted another live snake. It was big and thick scaled. Strange that it had to jump on the highway leaving lush green areas surrounding. We crossed Nirmal and soon it started raining heavily. At one point, it was so heavy that I continued with 50 kmph due to lack of visibility ahead. Switched on all possible lights of my vehicle including hazards and drove carefully through. It continued for some time till we approached Kamareddy and then stopped at Malgudi for afternoon meals. This is a good restaurant and it was recommended to me by one of my colleague in Microsoft. Eventually we touched Bowenpalli at 4.30 and our home in Gachibowli at 5.45 (thanks to a moderate traffic that time).

Note: I have attached only relevant photos here (relevant in the sense related to road, drive, vehicle etc.). For a complete photologue, you can visit my blog @ sforsarang

Here are some of the pics wifey clicked while I was driving.

Beginning of the return journey


Cattle doesnt know right and left, wrong side or correct side etc.


Guess what it is ?


Even village roads not on main highway are getting improved


But few portion of main Nagpur-Hyderabad highway is in pretty bad shape


Oh It started raining heavily


Really heavy


Very very heavy and low visibility


Its getting better now near Kamareddy


This is my red cutie !