We had initially planned to stay 2 nights at Hampi, but since we'd seen both the Tungabhadra dam and the Hampi ruins by 12 noon on day 2, we thought it would be good to move on to Shimoga after lunch.
So we packed quickly and went to the restaurant to unwind, while the kids had a quick swim in the Hotel pool. We finished lunch by 1400 hours and checked out. We were glad to know that the hotel accepted credit card payment. We asked for the route to Shimoga and also for the nearest petrol bunk. Ravi Bhat had given us 2 options to Shimoga:-
- Via Chitradurga and straight to Shimoga on the same National Highway
- Via Chitradurga, then turn right towards Hubli, take left at Harihar after Davangare, and then go to Shimoga via Malebennur and Sovalanga, which was around 40 kms longer.
Surprisingly the hotel staff were talking of a direct route to Harihara, which we discarded as we felt they were talking of truck routes. I spoke to Ravi Bhat and he contacted his people at Chitradurga, and quickly got back stating both option 1 and 2 have rough patches, therefore take option 1 as it is the shortest.
We then set out and filled up petrol at a HP bunk adjacent to the hotel--they accept only cash. As soon as we neared the dam, we had to turn left towards Chitradurga (right takes one to Gangawati and Hyderabad). We soon found the same heavy 18-wheeler trucks slowing us down on rough and curvy roads. But the sight of the mighty Tungabhadra river held us in awe for a few kms.
The signboard said Chitradurga was 115 kms away afte we'd crossed the goliath trucks, but the road was still horrid, forcing us to drive only in 3rd gear. Speeds above 50 were not possible for nearly 40 kms, and we were getting a bit anxious as it was already 1530 hours. Luckily the roads improved after that, and we were doing 100 to 120 speeds, but that is when the first scent of trouble emanated, which we unwittingly ignored.
It began with the engine sounding a wee bit hoarse at high rpms--a sort of sporty sound that I was used to in the Fiesta at high revs. But the Sonata is a super silent car, and that sound was unusual. My pal also said the pickup was marginally lower, but laughed it off saying people spend lots of money on FFEs to get that kinda sound. After a while, it dawned on us that the quality of fuel at Hampi was suspect---it took some distance for the Hyd fuel to get over, and the Hampi fuel was most probably causing the problem.
We continued undaunted, and I took over the wheel. I too noticed the engine getting coarser and the pickup dropping more, but not alarmingly low. However the sight of scores of windmills when we were nearing Chitradurga offered some respite. We stopped for tea on the outskirts of Chitradurga at around 1700 hours, and sought directions from some truckers. They too reccomended the direct route to Shimoga.
We set out again with my pal on the wheel. That is when the real tension started.
To be continued..