BHPian StupidFlanders recently shared this with other enthusiasts: Returned from South Goa on 23rd October. Some update about my route to the detailed helpful points already mentioned before.South Goa To Andheri, Mumbai: RouteStarted at 12:30 PM from Madgaon. Stopped for a quick fuel stop on NH-66 before Banda. Halted before Kankavli around 3 PM for a lunch stop at Shivam Family Restaurant. Small family run establishment for a reasonably priced Thali. Spent an hour there . Despite my recommendation of taking the Sakharpa stretch, friend drove through the Hathkamba part of the Nh-66. Though some stretches are double lane, there’s still a lot of work to be done and diversions eat into the travel time. Google Maps also show a diversion through a narrow road at Pali to bypass the Hathkamba junction which we avoided as we weren’t sure how it would be, which adds more KMs. Based on the details above, I’d still stick to the Sakharpa- Devrukh stretch despite the potholes in some parts to save time. Sangameshwar onward is fine until Mangaon with a small bad patch at Lonere for flyover work. Note that after Mahad there’s a stretch where water gets logged on the road after a heavy rain shower, which is not visible at night. Stopped for an hour (again ) for dinner at Mangaon at 9:37 PM – 10:40 PM. Though Google maps recommended taking the NH-66 through Indapur, Kolad until Vakan Phata, I generally avoid that part. The Nizampur – Pali stretch is butter smooth though narrow. If you are traveling at night and don’t like oncoming high beams with isolated driving through some foresty area, avoid this part till Pali and take the Vakan phata route till Pali instead. Post that it’s the usual until Expressway and Kalamboli. Reached Andheri at 1:30 AM. Shorter breaks and taking the Watul- Sakharpa- Devrukh stretch would have knocked out at least 1-1.5 hours off the total travel time.Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
