The highway criss-crossing the Konkan territory consists of equal parts neat stretches and mind-boggling winders. The Ghats section, especially, needs an alert mind and good knowledge of the capabilities of the machine. But it is nothing to worry about really.
Nevertheless, it is better to attack the Ghats section during the day. In the night, the NH 17 becomes a highbeam nightmare, what with the oncoming traffic turning you blind.
Averaging sixty on the road is possible, but that depends a lot on what car you are driving. In the Sumo, the diesel torque helps you with the climbers, but you lose time getting the car into the right gears. We managed a decent 50 kph, but the innumerable stops meant that the onward trip took no less than seventeen hours.
But the upside is that, even after some aggressive third gear driving, the Sumo returned 12 kpl. This meant I was in Goa home and dry in just one full tank of 55 litres, which cost me just under Rs 450. A little number crunching will tell you that it amounts to around 75 paise per km. Which is just about 9 paise per adult per km traversed!
Tell me another mode of transport that is cheaper on the pocket? Even Konkan Railway is going to cost more, I guess.
