Solgere OTR with the Bangalore Jeepers on 24th August 2008

[aquamaverick]

The weekend i.e (22-24th September) had all the looks of being a typical weekend with nothing much to do except a long drive to the Airport to pick up a friend who was coming from the US.

Towards evening, I called up Anand to check if I could collect my jeep (MM540) which had been with him since his recent trip to Bhadra. Anand then informed me about their plan to drive to the Soligere trail, from Muthathi side (that he had planned along with Mukund, Suresh and Shahnawaz.

I jumped at the opportunity as i had missed the previous 2 OTR’s held at Coorg and Sakleshpur due to various reason.

This was the first time I was taking my MM540 for offroading since I had bought it from Anand more than a month ago.

We started by around 10 A.M Sunday morning with Anand, Suresh and myself in my MM540 and drove down towards “Metro” on the Kanakpura road which was the place we were supposed to meet up with Shahnawaz.

Shahnawaz joined us within a short while in his Gypsy and off we went towards Muttathi which was around a 100 Kms away. Mukund had informed Jammy that he would be catching up with us when we stop for Breakfast at Kanakapura.

The drive was fairly uneventful except for a small pit stop at Kanakapura for Breakfast and loading up on food, water and other essentials .

Mukund informed us the he was still some distance away and would join us shortly.

Meanwhile I realized that I had not checked on the diesel status and went along with Suresh to get the diesel filled. By this time, Mukund had caught up with Jammy and Shahnawaz and we decided to catch up with them once we got Diesel.

Finally after getting Diesel, we caught up with the other 2 gypsy’s. They were waiting for us near Satanur where we had to turn left to head towards Muttathi.

[Sorry no snaps were taken until this point]

[mjothi]

I was waiting for the pictures since Shanwaz was mentioning that only guy had cam and shot it. The moment I saw this thread, I was curious to see pictures, but again disappointment

[aquamaverick]

Before I continue with the rest of the OTR report, a small trivia about Muttathi.

Muttathi :-

Muttathi is a small village located along the banks of the river Cauvery. The Road to Muttathi runs parallel to the river and makes a pleasent drive. While you are there, you can dip into the waters and enjoy the feel of the running water. The place used to be pretty deserted until a couple of years ago. But now a days it does tend to get crowded atleast during the weekends. But even if it does , there is enough open space that you can always find some nice and empty area near the bank for yourself.

A little distance away is the Bheemeshwari Fishing camp. I have also heard that river rafting is one of the main attractions but not too sure about it.

How to Reach Muttathi :-

The best thing about Muttathi is that it is just 90 minute drive once you leave the town. Drive on the Kanakapura road through Kanakapura and Sathanur. Turn left at Satanur and drive for another 30 minutes to reach Muttathi.

I am also posting the route map on how to get to Muttathi and also address of the website where more information can be obtained about Bheemeshwari Fishing Camp.
Jungle Lodges & Resorts Bheemeshwari

[aquamaverick]

Mjothi, I do have some pictures and 2 video's. I was just mentioning that i didnt take any snaps during the drive to Muttathi.

[aquamaverick]

Once we turned left near Sathanur we had to wait for Chennappa (a forest guard known to Mukund although I am not sure about his name) who was supposed to be taking us to the trail
We used this waiting period to quench our thirst

Finally Chennappa arrived and got in along with Mukund which was the lead gypsy followed by Shahnawaz and Jammy in Shahnawaz’s gypsy and finally Suresh and myself in my MM540 bringing up the rear.

Chennappa took us through a jeep trail to the watch tower situated along the banks of the river Cauvery.
Here we spent some 15 – 20 minutes on top of the watch tower and also grabbed a quick bite (sandwiches).

The River Cauvery as seen from the top of the watch tower :-



The surrounding forest :-

[aquamaverick]

From Left to Right (Suresh, Mukund, Shahnawaz).



Cauvery River again.



Thats me but looking away.



Jammy with the sandwich and Suresh.



The 2 Gypsy's from the top of the tower.



Mukund grabbing a quick bite.

[Samurai]

Great stuff man, I am waiting for the elephant chase story. BTW, you should mention the T-BHP handles too so that members know.

Jammy = MM440
Shahnawaz = khan_sultan
Mukund = ragpicker
Suresh = Don't think he is a member here.

[akroy]

Another nice offroading update, Nice to see those pics, will be waiting for more updates here

Abhi

[aquamaverick]

Now that we were well watered and fed, we hit the trail that led to the top of the Solgere hill.



Khan_Sultan and MM440 pulling over to allow Ragpicker (Mukund) to take lead.

[khan_sultan]

Hey Karthik, at 2 pics per post you will need a huge number of posts to complete the OTR report buddy :-)

Speed up man -- try and post 'more pics per post'. I am sure lots of people waiting for the action to begin :-)

Cheers,

[aquamaverick]

All of us taking a break and allowing the engines to cool off.

This is my MM540.









Now since the engine was very hot, Jammy (MM440) came up with a innovative idea of heating our Ready to eat (Rajma) by placing it next to the engine so that when we stop for lunch, the "Rajma" would be ready to eat along with the "Vangibath" and "Poori" that we had already bought from Kanakpura.

[mjothi]

Originally Posted by aquamaverick

The 2 Gypsy's from the top of the tower.

Attachment 42495

Umm, the left one is Khan's and right is Mukund's, Right?

I will never forget the ride I had on Mukund's Gypsy with those "expensive" ICEs + reception of FM from adjacent car , windshield-less drive, and what not!!!

Originally Posted by khan_sultan

Hey Karthik, at 2 pics per post you will need a huge number of posts to complete the OTR report buddy :-)

Speed up man -- try and post 'more pics per post'. I am sure lots of people waiting for the action to begin :-)

Cheers,

Yes, I am one among those.

[maddy42]

Wow i am loving this. Looking nice now.

[aquamaverick]

Now with the engine cooling sufficiently we again started our drive through the trail.

Incidently before starting the trail, Mukund (Ragpicker) had folded his windshield and somewhere while driving through got a bad cut right across his nose.

Some shots of the trail. Sorry about the quality of pics as i am one of those point and shoot type of photographer.

The guys were of the opinion that the trail would have been trecherous if it had rained.





The Gypsy's and the MM540 were able to do a huge chunk of the trail without using 4WD.

Next thing we know, we reach a bend and see that the trail is blocked by a tree trunk tying right across our path. Seen in the picture are Shahnawaz (Khan_Sultan), Myself, and Chenappa our guide.



Our convey of Jeeps parked one behind the other while we were contemplating our next move.



Finally we decided to make our own way by driving around the fallen tree. But while scouting for any hidden hazards that might cause problems, Mukund found a small tree stump sticking out of the ground which might hit the bottom of the vehicles when we try to drive around the fallen tree trunk.

At this point i remembered that i had a swiss army knife (Victorinox) which i had carried (and also secretly hoped) for these kind of eventualities.

Picture shows Mukund cutting the tree stump using the victorinox.



Shahnawaz and myself look on as Mukund and Chennappa try to saw through the tree stump. Anand is the one taking the shot.

[Lukeskywalker]

Good pictures, looking forward to the actual action.
Cutting a tree stump with swiss knife??
Hmm, Rambo would get a complex.