There's an elementary way of solving this (and similar equations). Let's start with $$ 1+2^n=5^a(1+10^m) $$ which you want to solve in positive integers $n$, $a$, $m$. Clearly $m < n$ and $a < n$. As wccanard points out, $2$ is a primitive root modulo $5^a$ and so we obtain that $n$ is divisible by $2 \cdot 5^{a-1}$. In particular, $$ 2 \cdot 5^{a-1} \le n. $$ Now let's use the fact that $m < n$ are reduce the equation modulo $2^m$. We obtain, $$ 5^a \equiv 1 \pmod{2^m}. $$ As in your question you write this as $$ 4a + 16 \binom{a}{2}+\cdots \equiv 0 \pmod{2^m}. $$ This implies that $2^{m-2} \mid a$, and so $$ 2^{m-2} \le a. $$ The inequalities we now have show that the left-hand side of the equation is much bigger than the right-hand side as soon as the $n$ is large!