Day 2: Kashid - Murud - Rajapuri-Dighi-Borli-Shrivardhan

The early morning weather was moderately chill. Unavailability of milk meant, breakfast was a mix of black coffee & Good Day. Finally, left the sandy shores of Kashid; for Murud by 7.00am. Murud is at a distance of 16km from Kashid & the road is quite a neat one with some testing uphills along the way. However the last 2-3 km from the Palace onwards, towards Murud town, is in despicable state. Completed the distance in about 1hr 10min. On route, you pass the villages of Nangaon & Mazgaon.

Murud is a quite town with few tourists floating around; @ this time of the year. The beach is definitely inviting & has a beautiful feel to it. Moving ahead after a round proper nashta, it was time to head for the jetty @ Rajapuri.

For all those planning to make a trip down the coast; kindly bear in mind, the distance between the town & the jetty is a shocker. Being a hilly terrain, the jetty in most cases would be beyond a few hills. That would mean, if you are a pedal pusher like me, then u need to work out some sweat, before taking a relaxing & rejuvenating ferry ride.

Crossing over to Rajapuri jetty from Murud, one has to overcome a few steep uphills before the final dive into the jetty.

There is a fort by the name Kasa , a few meters into the sea. The surprising fact is; despite being surrounded by salt water on all sides, u still get fresh water inside the fort. Since I was on a express trip, couldn’t take the luxury of visiting the fort; instead was more keen on crossing over to Dighi on the other side.

The forts & palaces of Murud were under the rule of Sidhi Jowahar.

Folks @ Rajapuri are extremely friendly & it is very easy to get a conversation going. On knowing about my solo trip plans, immediately on que; they are quick suggest the importance of having a companion along. This was the case all through the journey & had become a ritual for me to narrate a story of how my friends ditched.

Rajapuri, being a predominantly muslim area, boarding & lodging are not allowed. One possible reason, the place has not lost its character & old world charm. From here, by bicycle was loaded on the deck of the ferry & here I managed to have an interesting conversation with the ferry minders; Salim & Usman. They updated me on the route ahead & the possible time & distances that I might have to cover on route to Shrivardhan.

Started cycling from Dighi to Borli Panchattan by 11.00am . This is one route, that made me cringe. The steep gradient, mid day sun & the lack of shade, meant I was exposed to the elements. Didn’t take long before, I was tanking up electral + Glucon D, gamcha while also managing to fill air in the tyres. After nearly an hrs slog, managed to reach relatively flat ground, over the hill. From here on, it was a long winding journey to Borli.

On route, between Dighi & Borli, you will not find any substantial places to eat or rest. The terrain is quite barren & villages are few & far between. So, ensure that you are sufficiently tanked up with water & other eatables.

Finally, managed to reach Borli in about an hr & 20 min. Along the way, met up with 2 kids who were cycling on their rs. 3500/- bicycles. They were in fact wondering; why I didn’t invest in a new cycle? Rohit, an 8^th grader, intended to become an engineer.

Borli is a reasonably big village with restaurants & other amenities available. There also exists a cycle repair shop, in case of any issues. A large school under the aegis of Royal society has come up on a large tract of land. Saw school buses plying on the way.

The religious place of Dive Aghar is located about 1km from Borli. This is the site, where a goden statue of Ganesha is presently placed. The staue was unearthed barely 2 feet below ground level, by a villager about 9 years back. Ever since, it has become a place of religious significance.

A coastal route leads directly to Shrivardhan from here. Though the route is not completely tarred, it has quite a character. Sea cliffs by the ocean, with villages in between; it is a formidable terrain early on; but eases out to a joyous ride further ahead.

Just before approaching Shrivardhan, I was chased by an elderly man on a bike. Speaking in English, he was keen to know about my trip & mentioned about his wanderings on his British made bicycle. He apparently was an employee of LIC & was based in Mumbai. Quite a colourful character, he wished me good luck; while leaving.

Shrivardhan reminded me of my native place in Kerala. The similarities are quite stark; from the modest but large houses , to the front porch, the back yard farm, the clay kiln etc…

A few enquiries & before long I was nestled in the confines of a family owned lodge by the name Ashirwad. In all, I had managed to cover about 50 km. Given the modest number, I was a bit low on confidence while looking ahead. Had no clue for a while, how to proceed from there on & was also looking @ the option of leaving the cost & hitting the highway.

When in doubt, it is always a good practice to interact with the locals & gain a better understanding of the terrain & area around. After a brief rest, it was time to roam around the place.

Amit, the owners son, had informed me about a group of ppl including the head post master & a few rickshaw drivers, who had left a week earlier for Goa along the coastal route. That gave me a good place to start y research. On meeting up with the remainder of the auto rickshaw drivers, realised, they had a rough route map; which they promptly handed it over to me. My chaste Marathi meant, the phone conversation with the postmaster was as trivial as remembering Mendeleef’s periodic table. All the same, these conversations gave a certain resemblance of certainty to the coastal route ahead. Another attempt to start a conversation in a tea stall ended up as a free for all debate on the best route to follow. That was quite an event full discussion. A few more such discussions back @ the lodge & I was quite close to finalising my travel plans. To help me recover from 2 days of cycling, had decided to be a bit conservative & start the following day only by 10.30am. This would also help me give additional time to finalise my plans.