Mahindra Adventure White Water Escape Kolad: Off-road weekend getaway

Road tripping with Mahindra Adventure has always ended up with me coming back with a suitcase full of memories. My first brush with Mahindra Adventure was during my internship with this magazine when I had the opportunity to take part in the Royal Escape, which took me palace-hopping and dune bashing across Rajasthan over a week-long expedition with the Mahindra Bolero Neo and the Mahindra XUV700 for company. My colleagues have tagged along on far more adventurous drives with Mahindra Adventure – to Hanle, Spiti and Arunachal Pradesh to name a few of the exciting destinations – and have always come back with a great story to tell. Which is why when a friend asked me if I was free on a weekend to join him for the Mahindra Adventure White Water Escape at Kolad, I eagerly took him up on the opportunity.

Mahindra Adventure White Water Escape

In the past, the Mahindra Adventure calendar has largely consisted of driving expeditions that span over the course of a week. The White Water Escape however is a part of their new and growing Weekend Escape category of events. The idea is to have the same level of top-notch expertise and thrills as a longer expedition, condensed into a one-day getaway that is closer to your city and does not require you to fret too much over carving out time from your schedule. Kolad, for instance, was a drive just shy of 120km from Mumbai, and that meant I didn’t have to stress too much over planning my trip. At 6am on a Sunday morning, I joined my friend Deepankar and his Mahindra Thar as we drove down from Mumbai to Kolad, with a bunch of his off-roading buddies joining us along the way. The journey was an uneventful one, but as we pulled up to the Orchard Cafe in the quaint village of Kolad, the scenes definitely got more exciting on seeing the turnout for the event, with close to 50 Mahindra vehicles including the Thar and the Mahindra Thar Roxx, the Mahindra Scorpio-N and even a Mahindra XUV500 and XUV 7XO. After completing registration, a quick breakfast and stickering up our vehicles, we were briefed by the instructors from Mahindra Adventure on our agenda for the day.

Off-roading with Mahindra Adventure

The off-roading activities at Kolad were split up into two zones, with half of the participants tackling the trails in Zone 1 before lunch and later switching to Zone 2, and vice versa. Rather than being behind the wheel, I was riding shotgun with my friend Deepankar this time, and once the road ended and the trails started, I got on foot and doubled-up as a spotter for the Mahindra vehicles making their way through the natural obstacles. I needn’t have sweated it too much though. For one, the Thar is immensely capable when off-roading, and two, the team at Mahindra Adventure makes the activity seem incredibly easy as it directs participants to cross obstacles in a smooth and safe manner. Apart from a few enthusiastic participants who chose to go over obstacles a touch too fast, there were barely any sounds of bumpers being scraped on the rocks or vehicles looking any worse for wear. For some of the participants, it was their first time off-roading with their Mahindra, and the capabilities of the SUVs continued to impress them to no end over the course of the day, as we tackled trails till early evening, with a short break in between for lunch. Had the rain Gods been kinder, we would’ve indulged in a spot of rafting too, something which Kolad has always been known for. Not that I was complaining however. Off-roading and seeing the Thar in its element has always been a joy to witness.

Signing up for off-roading with Mahindra Adventure

If the Mahindra Adventure off-roading experience is something that you would love to be a part of, signing up for one is fairly easy. Head to the Mahindra Adventure website by clicking here and take a look at the calendar of upcoming events, selecting the one of your choosing, and sign up. All you need to do then is drive down down with your Mahindra SUV to the event, and the Adventure team takes care of the rest. You don’t need to be an experienced off-roader, these events are easy for newbies as well, all that remains is for you to choose your destination.