[ram1980]

It is human tendency to ignore the best things in life when they are very near, isn't it?
I would extend this analogy to tourist destinations also.

I have been living in Bangalore for last two years. During this time I have visited Coorg, Chikmagalur & Mysore but never the Nandi hills. The reason was it being so near and so probably not worth it! For those not in the know, Nandi hills is a small tourist spot about 60Km from Bangalore.

Last week, during the usual after-dinner walk in our terrace on a Saturday, it was windy; the monsoons were almost there in Bangalore and we were having light rains almost every other day. My cousin had come that weekend and we were both wondering what to do on the next day (Sunday) and I just said to everyone we will go to Nandi hills to see the sunrise in a tone when your boss decides the plan of action in an official meeting. And to my surprise all (read as "home minister") agreed to this plan.

We started promptly at 5 AM and google was telling me it will take 90 minutes to reach the destination. I already knew we can't make it before sunrise (the main reason I wanted this trip ). After an hour's drive , I knew that due to that morning fog that day it didn't matter and I was happy that we didn't plan to start even earlier.

We reached the destination by 6:15 AM. The drive has around 8 hairpin bends and is tailor made for first time drivers to a hill station. On the way we saw so many bikers. Apparently it is a popular spot for bikers/cyclists which I didn't know till then.

Misty roads - From the car parking you need to walk for 15-20 minutes to get to the top where there is a fort and temple.




Nehru Nilaya - apparently Jawaharlal use to stay here


Misty conditions ensured that sunrise view was not possible that day even if we had reached on time. We were glad that it didn't rain as it was very cloudy till 8AM.
This spot is called Tipu's drop.


My camera doesn't do justice to the actual view






My ride. Got to confess I'm loving my car in these drives rather than the usual the traffic infested city roundabouts. The steering feel is awesome.






One of the many views offered while coming down. While driving up it was very foggy






Spotted in a café at the end of the hill before joining the highway


Summarized below are the key points as reference for anyone visiting this place from Bangalore

• Distance from Hebbal flyover in Bangalore to Nandi hills: 55 kms; it will take about 60 to 70 minutes to reach there
• My timings: started by 5AM; reached there by 6:15AM; reached home after the a coffee shop break by 11AM
• Hairpin bends: around 8. Only the last 8-10 kms can be considered as ghat section. As I said earlier this will be a great drive for first time drivers who want to try out hill station driving experience
• Toll : 120 rupees for return trip in the highway
• Car parking charge: 100 rupees
• Best time to be there: early morning around 6AM. If possible be there before sunrise. If there is less fog, the sunrise view should be great. I will try to catch it next time.
• Shops: There is one dosa stall and a restaurant at the top which is decent. There is one snack and ice cream shop.
• From car parking you will need to walk for 15 minutes to reach the top where there are few shops and a temple. Walking is easy due to neatly laid steps. Even elders can manage to climb it easily.
• The pathway to top has park like setup and can be a great picnic spot
• There are old tree houses near car parking. Need to be careful to climb them as they are damaged and also many monkeys roam there.

Overall, it was fun trip for my family. All of us enjoyed including by dad who is 70 years old as the hill climb was not too tedious. It is so close to Bangalore that you don't need to really 'plan' for this trip. I will be surely visiting this place during non monsoon season to check out the beautiful sunrise. Until then ciao..

[Aditya]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Travelogues Section. Thanks for sharing!

[Dhiwakar92]

Hi Folks

I'm thinking of going on a solo drive to Nandi Hills in a rented Ford Figo for an early morning drive (5 AM is when I plan to start from Indiranagar).
Will hatchbacks be capable of driving on Nandi Hills or would you recommend a first timer like me to rent an SUV ?

I'm only asking this because this will be my first solo trip away from the city and I'm a little nervous about the difficulty of the drive to the peak.
Any advice for first timers is most welcome

[Stryker]

Oh, don't worry, Dhiwakar92. Nandi Hills is a very gentle hill station. We've done it on a moped (a Luna to be precise) riding double! So any car can easily do it. Just watch out for the fog though.

[amods]

Originally Posted by Dhiwakar92

Hi Folks

I'm thinking of going on a solo drive to Nandi Hills in a rented Ford Figo for an early morning drive (5 AM is when I plan to start from Indiranagar).
Will hatchbacks be capable of driving on Nandi Hills or would you recommend a first timer like me to rent an SUV ?

I'm only asking this because this will be my first solo trip away from the city and I'm a little nervous about the difficulty of the drive to the peak.
Any advice for first timers is most welcome

It is a piece of cake for any vehicle with > 2 wheels fitted with a motor. If you have confidence driving uphill, go for it as there are few sharp hairpin turns with steep climb.

[vikasshu]

Nandi hills is easy but one needs to be careful. I remember a scary trip to Nandi hill few years back. There were 4 adults and 1 kid in a well maintained fairly new Santro Xing. It was one of those lovely bright sunny mornings of Bangalore and we decided to visit Nandi hills. We were busy in our conversations around multiple topics of our interest. I think in no time we reached one of those sharp hairpin bends. My elder brother who is an extremely good engineer but very poor driver, was at the steering. I think he was lost in conversation and was in a higher gear. All of sudden the car engine stopped and it started to roll back. My brother panicked and started shouting. I was with him on the front co-passenger seat. Somehow lightning struck me and I pulled the hand brake. And thankfully, we were able to control the car.

As I mentioned, my brother is not a good driver and he was now shocked as well. I tried to encourage him to start the car again and move on but he panicked again because of car rolling back. Traffic started to pile up behind us and people were honking. Now situation was turning really precarious. I asked him to vacate the seat so that I can take charge but it seems he just froze there on his seat. In the meanwhile, one of the Indica taxi driver who was just behind us, came out and pulled out my brother. He immediately started the car and like an expert of the hills, took us out of that situation. We offered him some money as reward but he declined. My brother immediately asked me to take charge of the car and then we finally reached Nandi hill after a long long drive. Till today it gives me goosebumps even when I think about the situation.

Lessons learned:

• Hairpins need respect and hill climbing requires good concentration and you can not take things lightly.
• Never ever give rookies a chance to take a difficult course.
• There are good people all around us.

It is an amazing drive but do not lower your guard.

[Miyata]

According to this article in Bangaloremirror, no private vehicles allowed on weekends for Nandi hills -

Travellers will now be asked to park their vehicles at the foothills and travel in a designated Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus to the top.

Many people are sure going to miss this occasional weekend outing.

[ajithbr]

Originally Posted by Miyata

According to this article in Bangaloremirror, no private vehicles allowed on weekends for Nandi hills -



Many people are sure going to miss this occasional weekend outing.

Is this true?
Anyone been to Nandi Hills recently? How is the food availability there now?

From city, the only toll gate is the one just before Airport turn-off, right? Are they accepting cash or only FastTag these days?

[condor]

Originally Posted by ajithbr

Is this true?
Anyone been to Nandi Hills recently? How is the food availability there now?

private vehicles have been banned on weekends for quite sometime.

The food was never great. The best I have had was almost 30 years ago when a friend had cooked egg-bhurji - we had gone there on a couple of KB100's and had carried a camping stove and the required stuff..