South India #HalfTicket

Bearded gyppo (L Pancham)
Feb 6, 2021
3 min read

Two years into the plan, the day of departure had finally come. It was magical and scary at the same time. Neither of us knew it would test both physically and mentally. We left without bothering to check the weather, while others had packed for a rainy day, I didn't bother to get one. I was too optimistic about how rainy it would be.

First Leg

Departure at 10 PM, we rode south. The roads were filled with trucks, they gave us company until the cold joined. Before we died of hypothermia, we decided to get some shut eyes. After some bad calls, we settled for a small shelter that is used as a storage unit. The constant honking of trucks kept me awake, while others rested calmly, I was excited about how the following days would go. As the sun rose and we were up and ready. We mounted our luggage on our bikes, we still hadn't experienced a single drop of rain.

Chasing Rain

The rain gods showed no mercy, we rode while it showered rats and cats on us. This became a lesson, to pack accordingly for the climate. It became clear that we were followed by dark grey clouds, the downpour slowed us down drastically. We still couraged up to go ahead and reach our destination. Later in the afternoon, we passed the clouds. We decided to have our lunch, we tasted the so-called famous Jigarthanda, P.S I wouldn't recommend this.

The clouds caught up with us, we still had 200 km to reach Dhanushkodi. We were behind schedule by 2 hours. I wanted to be there by sunset. I mustered up and rode for 150 km leaving my crewmates, later to realize that it wasn't a moral thing. They nicknamed me Half-Ticket after this incident. We reached Rameswaram and resided in the hotel. The hotel owner made sure we were very welcomed, we turned the hotel into a homestay. After dinner, we slept soundly.

Kissing Sri Lanka Hello

Excitedly we woke, we wanted to see the sunrise. The last 16 km is completely blissful. It's just you amidst the vast Bay of Bengal, you get lost on a straight road. That is how magical it is for a biker. We had forgotten we came as a group, we all lined up our bikes to get the picture-perfect shot of the place. It doesn't serve us only as a memory but as an achievement too. Our cellphones rang, it was Srilanka calling us, according to our network providers, we were out of India, it gave us a good chuckle. We watched the sunrise accompanied by the sound of rocks getting hit by waves. We had other plans to take care of, we reached our hotel at 12 and started packing.

It would be an excruciating ride to ride from the eastern beach to the west, but it had to be done. The rain accompanied us again, while others thought it was us 3 riders, let me make one thing clear, rain followed us everywhere. By the way, we had a free dinner in Tamil Nadu by a local who treated us. So, we thank him a lot.

East or West, we 4 are the best

Around 3 AM, we reached Varkala. The hostel "The Lungi Vibe" welcomed us even though we were past their bedtime. To feed our hungry stomachs, we resorted to Cup noodles and biscuits. At 4 we were fast asleep.

My alarm woke me up at 8, I went to see the cliffs that embanked the mighty Arabian Sea. It truly was astonishing.

By the time we came back, it was noon. We had to go to Coimbatore. We rode the coastal roads of Kerala, our heads kept getting tossed around.

By the time we got to our hotel, it was 3 AM. Our fatigued body didn't complain.

De-tour

The next morning just before breakfast, I saw the board to Ooty, I wanted to take a detour. Others had to reach Bangalore that day, while I had another day. I rode through Ooty reminiscing my year in Ooty. I played my "Ooty Playlist" that consisted of songs mainly from Karwaan. The gates to Bandipur would close at 6 PM and it was my deadline. While riding through Bandipur/Madumalai, all I could spot were Deers, wild boar and Peacocks.