The Great Driving Challenge | Spartan Hedgehogs

Chew up the Road!

252

746

08:20 PM

29 July 2009

like it

Comment(s)

(4) Comment(s) (38) like it

Trouble at Second Sight!

Posted By zinaida

Pretty proud of our discovery of the magical forests of ‘‘Chorla”, we decided to take a couple of friends up there as well, the next weekend. A friend decided we would drive in his jeep. Knowing how directionally challenged we are (at times), they weren’t too enthusiastic about walking 24 kms, just in case we managed to get lost again.

The jeep looked like it had a lot of stories to tell, it had seen its fair share of travels and adventures. But would it be able to withstand the rough roads, the streams and giant rocks of our route? The owner insisted it would. And who are we to contest his judgement! Remember….that blog I wrote about “CARnnections”? He was sure his “old man” would be able to handle it.

So we drive off to Chorla, this time a little more prepared. Our destination was….... the ruins of the fort…..... we missed the last time.

The first 2 kms, we drove on smooth dirt roads. The monsoon greenery is just another experience. The weather was beautiful. Its showed signs of rain, but the chill in the air was so welcoming.

We passed green fields with farmers going about their daily routine. This didnt look familiar at all (we definitely didnt take this route the first time…..... did we? Or I was probably just so caught up looking out for leeches, that i didnt notice!)

We drove past huge waterfalls….that I was amazed to see. Where are the tourism department guys? How come no one knows about these places? On second thoughts, its good this is undiscovered. Better than being exploited for selfish and monetary reasons.

The jeep seemed to be handling the rocks pretty well. *Pat on the back “old man”*. Trust me…some of these rocks (not even pebbles…............but rocks!!) were HUGE! Take a look….....

And then we came to a stream. Here is when the real adventure begins.

There was no other way to cross the stream than to drive across it, walk over it (there was the cutest little bridge made of something and leaves), or walk through the stream.

We unanimously decided to walk through the stream….....swim a little while, splash a little water around and then walk to the fort. We estimated from our map (I told you we came prepared, didn’t I?), that it would be about a 4 kms walk.

But our friend who owned the jeep was sure that his “old man” could easily make it through the water. I really didn’t like the idea. Remember Tip No. 8 of my blog “Moonsoon Driving”? But, we sportingly got off and watched in anticipation…....... ready with victory cheers, moves and our imaginary vuvuzelas.

But we rejoiced too soon. The jeep hardly set “foot” into the stream…......... and busted a tyre!! We didn’t know if this the moment to laugh and scream “I told you so”, or console the guy and say “Don’t worry, we’ll figure a way out”. And honestly, your brain doesn’t have the time to process “next steps” at times like these….... so laugh we did. Laughed and how!!

The jeep was stuck. The “old man” looked like he was crying for help. His “foot” was busted and jammed between two rocks. Ouch!!

We tried getting it out, but in vain. So we decided to walk across the stream and up the hill….........to check how far away we were from the fort.

But this is all we saw…..............

And then in a distance we saw something(s) move. We saw life! Human existence! We screamed and shouted to a couple of guys standing and taking in the scenery. They were startled to see us too…....... and then laughed at the story about the jeep! We didn’t mind…..............Laugh all you want, Mister…. as long as you figure a way to get the jeep out. And they did! Help, that is.

After 45 minutes of tugging, “the old man” was rescued. I could see the glee on his face. (Its some sort of a sixth sense with me and cars…I can read their emotions. Not as intense as Maggie and Herbie in “Herbie Fully Loaded”. but close. Hehehe)

We left the jeep to recover, splashed a little water around, like we intended to…...... walked and walked and walked…

And there was the FORT!!! (or whatever was left of it)

It wasn’t really much to see…........ but just the thrill of finally getting there was exhilarating!

We drove back into the sunset. The “old man” had recovered and was putting up quite a show. I actually can’t wait to go there again. There’s something so surreal about that place. It will call soon, I know!

Coming??

Page 1 of 1 pages

Latest SMS Feeds

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 17th Aug 09 12:59:02 PM

Beautiful drive from Nashik to Bombay, one of THE best roads we have driven on!

From : TWaC

Sent : 17th Aug 09 12:40:00 PM

Had fallen in love with Cedia. Now, it s time for detachment.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 16th Aug 09 03:20:55 PM

Bright, blue sky.. Cotton candy clouds.. We head to Nasik

From : TWaC

Sent : 16th Aug 09 01:30:31 PM

Heavy rains in Konkan. Near zero visibility.

From : TWaC

Sent : 16th Aug 09 11:58:04 AM

Back to Maharashtra

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 16th Aug 09 08:27:16 AM

on the road again, heading from udaipur to baroda

From : TWaC

Sent : 15th Aug 09 04:28:50 PM

Rain welcomes us at Goa

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 15th Aug 09 03:54:33 PM

In pot-hole territory. Thank god we are on empty stomachs!

From : TWaC

Sent : 15th Aug 09 03:36:16 PM

Now on the fringes of Western Ghats

From : TWaC

Sent : 14th Aug 09 04:05:56 PM

Touched Kerala once more. At Bekal Fort

From : TWaC

Sent : 14th Aug 09 04:02:45 PM

Morning drive through misty Coorg

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 14th Aug 09 01:31:24 PM

just reached jaipur... Its super warm here

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 14th Aug 09 01:17:21 PM

300km from home! :) :) racing to indore!

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 14th Aug 09 12:18:33 PM

Still pouring, hoping its also raining in MP where the soyabean farmers are looking up hopefully at the sky

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 14th Aug 09 12:08:08 PM

2361 Shivpuri

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 14th Aug 09 11:51:43 AM

Pouring all the way from Agra into Jaipur

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 14th Aug 09 07:54:28 AM

On our way to Jaipur

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 13th Aug 09 11:12:33 PM

Blogging! The bed beckons..

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 13th Aug 09 07:46:54 PM

Just out after seeing the taj mahal!

From : TWaC

Sent : 13th Aug 09 04:51:36 PM

Madikkeri - Ghats, rains and pot-holed roads

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 13th Aug 09 04:10:44 PM

10km from Gwalior, pulled over by the police to be asked Kya yeh sports gaadi hai? ;D

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 13th Aug 09 03:43:28 PM

Had breakfast AND lunch today! Niiiice! :D

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 13th Aug 09 12:38:26 PM

Still on the road to Agra...

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 13th Aug 09 08:04:32 AM

Heading to Agra. Its going to be a long drive..

From : TWaC

Sent : 12th Aug 09 06:31:31 PM

On our way back to Mysore

From : TWaC

Sent : 12th Aug 09 05:35:06 PM

In Wayanad. Western Ghats Kerala episode

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 12th Aug 09 02:42:18 PM

Tan! Tandan!! .. Aaja aaja dilli chhodein! .. Delhi dropped from plans. We head straight to Agra!

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 12th Aug 09 01:46:03 PM

It s hot at the Hawa Mahal! :|

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 12th Aug 09 12:59:33 PM

In Varanasi, walking along the ghats and looking at the Ganga

From : TWaC

Sent : 12th Aug 09 11:48:58 AM

Through Nagarhole National Park

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 12th Aug 09 11:41:21 AM

At Akad Cars, the Mitsu showroom. Mr. Abhinav, the MD, is tellim us the best way around Jaipur.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 12th Aug 09 09:13:27 AM

Good morning world! We are in Jaipur! Today s objective: getting Joe a pink shirt/kurta ;)

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 11th Aug 09 10:20:04 PM

In Varanasi, just got back to the room after the ganga aarti. Stunning.

From : TWaC

Sent : 11th Aug 09 09:03:36 PM

Swine flue alert in Hassan. We cancelled our stay and hit Mysore.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 11th Aug 09 07:55:47 PM

On NH8, long day comin to an end.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 11th Aug 09 04:51:56 PM

Dust storm outside, but IIM Outdoors is snugly cocooned in the Blackhawk :)

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 11th Aug 09 04:06:41 PM

30kms from Varanasi and its pouring..

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 11th Aug 09 01:51:31 PM

Leaving Jodhpur ... On our way to Ajmer.. Hoping to visit the dargah today .. Jodhpur was beautiful! *sigh*

From : TWaC

Sent : 11th Aug 09 01:40:47 PM

Cedia Sports turns its SUV mode on. Climbs Kemmana Gundi peak.

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 11th Aug 09 12:28:05 PM

Superbly bad roads on route to Varanasi. Soaking in the last sights of Madhya Pradesh.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 11th Aug 09 12:20:07 PM

Just had a long conversation with Mr.Brijraj Singh - great-grandson of HRH Ratan Singh .. Visit to Mehrangarh Fort delayed

From : TWaC

Sent : 11th Aug 09 12:20:02 PM

Driving through coffee estates to Kemmana Gundi peak

From : TWaC

Sent : 11th Aug 09 10:23:44 AM

Bhadra dam & WLS. Touch & go.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 11th Aug 09 08:52:51 AM

Just got up, not a single post been uploaded so far, gotta hurry.. ttyl :)

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 11th Aug 09 08:31:52 AM

Passing through the Panna Forest Reserve..stopped on a bridge..

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 11th Aug 09 08:01:54 AM

Heading from Khajuraho to Varanasi..

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 10th Aug 09 08:43:24 PM

Sitting at Raja Cafe having a European thali.. :)

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 10th Aug 09 07:56:44 PM

In Jodhpur old markets - SHOPPING!

From : TWaC

Sent : 10th Aug 09 07:50:45 PM

At Shimoga after a rainy day in rain forests

From : One Foot Wild

Sent : 10th Aug 09 07:40:11 PM

Back at the hotel after seeing the absolutely stunning temples of Khajuraho.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 10th Aug 09 06:47:10 PM

As the sun sets, we enter Jodhpur, today s travel - 396km, but not feeling blue at all :)

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 10th Aug 09 04:50:05 PM

100 km away frm jodhpur, horrible truckyktraffic on the way. Had lunch for the second time in four days! :)

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 9th Aug 09 02:27:22 PM

Just had tea with Mr.Dhanraj Mallik, Rann veteran & advisor to the BBC. Right now, on our way to discover some salt pans, thts how we spend our Sunday! ;)

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 9th Aug 09 12:05:24 PM

On state highway 07. Namrata s driving while I m writing and Enrique s crooning.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 8th Aug 09 07:30:34 PM

At the Vintage Villa of classic cars, droolin over the sports tourers. Got here after blastin the 88km NE1 Expressway in 42mins! Cedia, take a bow!

From : TWaC

Sent : 8th Aug 09 12:01:23 AM

Sagareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary A manmade forest spread over 84 sq km A haven for deers peacocks an many birds

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 7th Aug 09 10:25:40 PM

Ab hum bhi poore punjabi! ... Current track: Kangana .. For Gaurav from Chandigarh :)

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 7th Aug 09 09:56:45 PM

Just discovered d USB connector for the blackhawk s music sys... one of d best moments of d day! :D

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 7th Aug 09 05:28:25 PM

Reached our first destination Daman, it even has its own airport! :)

From : TWaC

Sent : 7th Aug 09 04:38:22 PM

We haven't heard the 'Suprabhatham' chant for many many years. While we were in Chennai and Kerala we used to hear that quite often. First day morning. And as we walk into this nice restaurant at Vashi for breakfast, the 'Suprabhatham' chant welcomes us. Perhaps a good omen on the first stop on first day.

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 7th Aug 09 04:19:19 PM

Just drove 21 km in our cedia, for the very first time! This vehicle is just so smooth!! :) 50 km from Daman. Joe s taken over coz we have to reach by 12

From : IIM Outdoor

Sent : 7th Aug 09 03:09:15 PM

Good morning! :) on our way frm thane to vapi. Jus done upma n rawa dosa at Kamat Vithals. Catch the pic on our flickr n twitter!

About us

"Zinaida! You, me. Mitsubishi! 3000kms. 4 days to go." Roohshad tells me at 01.28AM, Saturday. Roohshad is primarily an adventurer, a (ridiculously brilliant) photographer, artist and sometimes human.

Based in Bangalore, he's the centre of attention, and a big brat! I'm a DJ, a partner in Goa's biggest nightlife firm, a writer (and an angel of the lord). When not being awesome, I sing, play the Piano and drive better than your better than average man.

Trouble at Second Sight!

About us

Followers

Other Teams

Recent Posts