A few weeks ago I booked tickets in and out of Mumbai from LHR.  That is the framework of my trip, arrive Mumbai Jan 9th 2025, depart Feb 5th 2025.  By Emirates, with my bike in a box as part of my luggage allowance. 

So all I need to do is decide where to ride.

My original plan was to ride North from Mumbai along the Maharastran coast - past a friend’s place in Dahanu (sadly he died in COVID) - and up to Surat and Kambhat, then into Western Gujarat and onwards to the Kutch.   Returning via ferry from Bhavnagar to Surat and train to Mumbai.

But the more I looked at maps and read the internet the more I realised I would be riding into a highly populated, polluted area with  swampy lowlands and busy roads.   The beaches looked drab and too accessible from Mumbai.  Not what I wanted.

Last year I revisited the coast of Southern Maharastra and rode South to Goa (see my Journal ‘Mumbai to Goa’).  That area is largely protected from Mumbai city by the large natural harbour South of Mumbai that forces the main roads inland and leaves a quiet, non industrial coastal region.  I could ride more slowly through that again……or I could visit Hampi further South and East and then ride back from there.

Hampi has been on my list of places to visit for a long, long time.  In the past I have seen the temples and sunrise at Ankor Wat in Cambodia which are stunning and Hampi also has an old lost temple and city complex.   Trouble is, Hampi in on the Decan Plateau behind the Western Ghat mountains and that means a big climb up from the coast, and I am not sure I will have time to ride there and back.

So my plan now is to take my bike on an overnight train from Mumbai to Hubballi and cycle the 100 miles from there to Hampi.   Then return to Mumbai by riding down the Western Ghats to the Maharastran coast and Northwards.

It sounds simple - but trying to organise an Indian Railways ticket this evening resulted in a fee paid to some media provider and phone calls to my credit card company stopping any future payments…..

I usually like to travel with maps but on this trip I am using Ride with GPS on my ancient iphone 5SE.   A copy of my approximate route is below.   I know there will be variations but I will be avoiding the Sahyadri Tiger reserve!  I also know that my mileage will be higher than the 676 miles calculated.

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