Day 11 – The final frontier (Thekkady to Kerala Backwaters)
Well, it is finally coming to an end… Today is an emotional day as it involves the last of our riding together. We travel past one of India’s largest Arch dams and tackle the tricky roads of the Idukki wildlife reserve towards our night’s stop at the amazing city of Kottayam. Today was also pretty trecherous as we ride on the most dangerous highway in India…
Fortunately, my ‘delli belly’ has disappeared and I woke this morning feeling the best I have the entire trip. Unfortunately for some, last night’s partying got the better of them…
We left the Tiger reserve and embarked on a day of fun and silliness. Everyone’s spirits were high and the group has really bonded together. Ali, the photographer, jumped on the back of my bike again today and we set off to find some great picturesque photos.
We stopped on the side of the road to give some kids pens and balloons. Pretty much without exception the Indians we met on the side of the road throughout the entire trip only has two questions for us… 1) “What is your good name?” and 2) “From where you come?” Any conversation outside those two questions is unchartered territory for them.
Our next stop was a gorgeous mountaintop. On the way up to the top, we had to navigate an incredibly steep road and my bike broke began smoking and spewing oil out of the engine casing. At this point, Ali intelligently noted said “Is the bike supposed to smoke like that?” I collapsed in stitches of laughter and told her to hitch a ride to the top while I rolled down the hill to find a mechanic.
The mechanics tightened something and sent me back up the hill. Whatever it was that they did, worked. I arrived at the top to find the most fantastic view. The pictures speak for themselves.
Later along today’s 190km route, I found Adele on the side of the road with the Medics. It was her turn for ‘delli belly’ and she had been vomiting all morning. She had been pretty tough vomiting then getting back on and riding then vomiting and getting back on (where did all this grit come from?) But by the time I found her, she had lost the will to live and I put her on the back of my bike as she was in no state to ride and she refused to get in the ambulance, insisting that she was going to ride to the finish. You gotta love Adele. She has more courage than most men I know.
Determined to make it to the finish, she wobbled on the back of my bike for an hour before flagging down the mechanic who was riding her bike for her. She clambered back on her bike and rode to the meet-up point.
About 10km up the road, were 150 bikes waiting for us. We were pretty much the last riders to arrive for our procession into the Kerala Backwaters. The excitement in the air was electric. 150 bikes revving and hooting their horns. The locals were mesmerized and delighted, probably wondering where these aliens came from.
Once everyone had gathered together, 150 of us, whooping and yelling, departed for our beach hotel. I cannot do justice in words to the feeling one gets riding in a pack of bikes. The noise is deafening and the energy is tangible. We blocked up the roads and all other traffic was forced to give way to the sheer volume of our presence.
Adele and I arrived at our hotel, holding hands while riding and completely blown away by the entire experience. As we arrived, we were honored with floral wreaths and fresh fruit juice.
Our resort is stunning. We are staying in a chalet on stilts overlooking the sea with hammocks strung underneath it. Oh, what a good life I live… I am blessed.
We were all silenced though as we heard that Mike, the South African seasoned award winning photographer on the trip had been rushed to hospital with damaged lumbar vertebrae in his spine after hitting a local on the dangerous highway coming in. We all called him and he was ok but was to be flown back to the UK in a leer jet. The local man who ran into the road and was hit had a fractured pelvis. He was taken care of too but we were all reminded of being careful in India. It is trecherous and beautiful and humbling. Thank god for insurance companies.
After our pensive time over Mike’s accident, we remembered that Mike wanted us to party in his absence and drink a few for him. So we all dressed up in our Indian attire this evening and partied the night away. Adele looked like a princess in her sari and I looked like Imran Khan in my outfit. Toby dressed up as a Royal Enfield (he had been secretly getting parts off the mechanics over the last few weeks) and Fraser was some kind of road peasant. It was hilarious. 150 dressed up drunken bikers was a sight to see. We all ended the evening with 20 of us skinny dipping in the infinity pool to beat the heat and mozzies and it was an epic end to an epic trip. Rachel and Adele, the novices on the trip had loads of bikers beating their breasts over the girls and their courage and how much they inspired us all. They were very popular on the trip and it did them good to realise the impact they had on everyone there.
Tomorrow is the last day of this adventure called EnduroIndia. It is not a riding day, but a resting day where we will all reflect and come to terms with what we have learned and experienced over the last 2 weeks. It frustrates me that I cannot convey in words the magic we have experienced over the last 2 weeks, so I hope the pictures do it some justice.
More updates to come…
Tagged with: enduro india
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