Sleeping on Ambolgad Beach

January 15, 2011

peaceful

My 'omelette' is actually two fried eggs, but this is good as I've forgotten all about asking for fried eggs.... or scrambled eggs.

The tea is sweet and after it I drink a litre of water before setting off at nine.

There are no clouds to be seen. You could stake your life on it not raining here. Incredible India.

The cyber cafe is tucked away in a booth at the back of an optician's shop. When I log in there's a list of previous users, so I know I'm not alone.

There's a sign on the way out of the Nata village and it says Ratnagiri is straight, but there's a left and I take it as it seems like it'll be interesting.

It's an empty lane that drops down through a grove of mango trees shading the rough tarmac.

When I reach the bottom a water buffalo is plodding along it and I follow along until it gets to a young one and noses up to it like any loving mother would.

The lane is a shortcut and it T's into the main road, which is the state highway, as before - number 4 - and it crosses a wide river. On the far bank is a pink-painted temple.

The road then climbs and it's steep and I need my smallest gears.

The road does this a lot - drops and climbs and crosses a river and between are long parts where there are few trees and the grass has been turned drier than a bone by months of sunshine. It's flat on these high sections, which is welcome.

I wonder what it looks like here in the monsoon season - lush probably.

The wind is in my face, slowing me down and keeping my skin dry.

There's a sugarcane squeezer at a junction and I have a few glasses for just six rupees a go.

Last night the doctor gave me some info' about this part of the coast and I added a few place names on my rudimentary map that he told me about and this includes a village called Nata, where he said I'd find a bed.

Nata is my goal as it seems there's not much before it. This area is like a wilderness.

I see a kingfisher with its brilliant blue. It's too far away to get a good photo and it flies away when I try to get closer. It takes me ten minutes to find this out, with me trying to get in a position in front of it so that the sun is shining on it.

What can I say?... It's hot and dry here.

Dan and Lennart from Sweden ride over the crest of a hill and we all stop and chat and exchange info' and Dan says I'm famous and we laugh about it. He has a great map showing all the villages and silly old me doesn't make a note of it or take a close-up photo, but do remember to take a snap of the two of them before we go our separate ways. They've only got a few weeks ad are heading to Goa.

Nata isn't much and the lodge I ask about is down a lane and I ride along it and it drops steeply and it's about 7 km before I reach the place by which time I'm seriously wondering where the hell it is I'm going.

There's large property by a beach and the woman inside tells me they're fully booked tonight. There's only three rooms. It's called Samindar.

I'm not riding back - not up those hills to Nata and my tent will get used for once and I explore the long beach.

Dinner is at the house-cum-restaurant and it's really nice. I have prawns and a chicken dish, which is a bit like a korma, but not quite, and it comes with a fried egg on top.

They sell beer and I have a chilled can of Kingfisher. It doesn't get much better than this.

The other guests include a group of guys who drove 10 hours from Mumbai and just found this place by chance. It baffles me how they did it. Thisspot is pretty remote.

Before it gets dark I push my bike onto the deserted beach and head along the damp part towards an outcrop where there are some rocks sticking out of the sand and find a place within sight of the Saminder Beach Resort's house, but which also seems a little private.

My bike gets lent against a rock near my pitch and after doing that I walk back to the guesthouse with just the glow of its lights to see by together with the glowing moon and have another Kingfisher.

It's a bit early to sleep and even after the second beer it's still only nine.

I lay in my all-mesh cocoon and look up at the sky. There are many stars out and the moon is very bright, while in the distance far across the Arabian is a lighthouse and its beam appears every now and again.

My sleeping bag gets used like a duvet and this and my red wool top feel damp with dew, which makes me wonder about getting a chill here.

The sound of the nearby waves is nice.

When I open my eyes it's dark as the moon has disappeared somewhere -perhaps behind the outcrop - and the stars are incredibly crisp and shiny now.

When I open my eyes again there's an orange glow. It's not really dawn, but before that as there's no sign of the sun, just some warm colour to the east, so I get out of the tent and take some photos and look around for a few minutes before getting back under the sleeping bag and trying - successfully - to sleep a bit more.

Today's ride: 65 km (40 miles)
Total: 3,215 km (1,997 miles)

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