Coast to Coast 2021: Bhavnagar to Surat

The route for today was all set and marked into my atlas the night before. By 6:30 am, I was ready and all the stuff was packed. I planned to start around 7 am. As a token for the warm hospitality provided by them, I gave them the local Maharashtrian ‘namkeen’ called ‘Bhakarwadi’ which I was carrying as a travel pack. In fact, I had purchased them in bulk and until now, wherever I’d stayed, I gave it to the host helping me.

Soon, the aunty also woke up and prepared a nice tea for me. Having that, I was all set for today.

As per the instructions given to me, I had to ride till Nari Chowk and from there it was a straight road towards Dholera. This was the place I intended to reach in the first place. The atlas map and also google indicated that the surrounding area was completely brown in color which meant acres of baren landscape best used for salt farming.

The roads after exiting the city were still good which was a relief for me but the landscape was barren. Sun, by this time, was coming up the horizon and I stopped for a while to capture it. There was hardly any traffic and whatever vehicles passed were of GJ06 registration (Baroda registration number plate).

At around 8:20 am I reached Dholera city covering more than 60 km. My next stop was Pipli village which was more 16 km.

At around 10:15 am, I stopped for breakfast at Pipli village. The hotel’s name was Sarvoday and a south Indian dish of “Medu-Wada” was ordered.

At around 10:45 am, I was back on the road and heading towards Khambat village. I was riding on State Highway number 6.

The junction around Borsad was the busiest. The highway work was going on the side while the other side was jampacked with vehicles. It was a good struggle for around 15 odd km.

Taking right from Mahuvad, I was heading towards Jambusar which was around 60kms. This was the road of the “Dandi-March”.

I was imagining as I was riding, how this road would have been back in 1930 A.D. It was really a nostalgic moment for me and I felt proud about it. It was only after reading the road sign that I came to know the importance of this route.

It was late in the afternoon and I had missed taking my lunch. I planned to stop ahead on the way and munch on the bananas which I had bought in the morning. I’d planned on exiting Gujarat and enter Maharashtra today but, seeing the current timeline it was not going to happen. There was just too much distance to cover. Maybe on the map, it had looked like it was doable but on the road, there was too much rubber to be burnt! The good thing which really pleased me was the roads and little traffic on the state highways.

Few kms ahead, I missed sticking the bike to SH6 and instead wandered off towards SH161. Luckily, there was a village road connecting both of them. It was fun to drive on the small village roads soaking into the lush green surroundings.

Soon, after rejoining the highway, I stopped the bike and had my lunch which consisted of Bananas and ripe plums.

Arriving at Dahej didn’t take much time as the good roads helped to maintain a constant speed. A foul odor emanating from the chemical factories greeted me when I arrived in the industrial belt of Dahej. The smell was just unbearable and that’s how I am going to remember Dahej from now onwards.

Afterward, It was a sharp V turn towards the city of Bharuch.

By the time I got out of Bharuch, it was already 6 pm and the sun was going down fast. Surat was still 90 more km. I was to take the Hansot-Olpad route towards Surat.

From the current time, it looked like the possible end destination for today would be Surat. And I thought I could make it. But, I wanted to visit the Hazira port first which was on the outskirts of Surat city. It is from this place that the ferry service has been started which ends at Bhavnagar.

I had my friends staying in Surat and so I quickly phoned them and told them about my situation. The stay was arranged in no time which was at my friend’s flat itself. One of my college friends also lived in the city working as an assistant lecturer at SVNIT university.

Luckily, the road was good and I was able to maintain a constant pace. The sun was exactly at my 12 o’clock and I felt I was heading straight towards it.

I misjudged the board and instead took left instead of going straight. I got to know this when I doubted that the roads were village roads and not a state highway. Luckily, a boy agreed to help me out and escort me back towards the highway.

Reaching the city, I headed straight for SVNIT college where I met my friend. We had tea at the famous “Ashok Pan House” and reminisced our old college days.

After bidding goodbye to each other, I went straight towards my friend Ravi’s house.

I was knowing Ravi through the Bikers fraternity and we were social friends for about a year or so. It was the first time we were meeting face to face. He belonged to Surat’s biking club called “Bullet Battalions Surat”. After I freshened up myself we went outside as today was their official club meeting. It was a pure coincidence and a great opportunity to meet all of them. The meeting was being held at a cafe called ‘KOFFInaka” and we were the last one to join in.

I really enjoyed being in the company of like-minded persons passionate about traveling. I even introduced myself to all of them and sharing about my undertaken Coastal Journey. The dinner was ordered and it was just mind-blowing.

At around 10 pm we all bid goodbye to each other and I and Ravi went back to the flat calling the day off. Once again, before sleeping I studied the map and wrote down the places I would have to pass through on the atlas page itself.

It was time to enter the home state of Maharashtra tomorrow!