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Its a viable alternative. But again there are some pretty bad stretches till you get on the madikeri-mysore road. Also the twists and turns on the iritty-virajpet stretch (especially the forsest part) doesnt agree much with the family if one is going at moderate speeds. The traffic is also comparatively very less for the route I take.

Did Bangalore-Kannur last sunday. Took the following route: Yelahanka-Anandarao circle-Mysore road-Srirangapatna-Bilikere-Hunsur byepass-Peryapatna-Siddapura-Ammathi-Virajpet-Perumpadi-Koottupuzha-Iritty-Mattanur-Kannur.
Road condition was good except for around 15-20kms after peryapatna on siddapura road. This road is full of potholes, humps and is very narrow at some places even single laned! Below are a couple of pics of the bad stretch:



The perumpadi-makutta Ghat section is still in very good condition

Good news for us -> Karnataka to develop Hunsur-Kutta road

This came today's Mathrubhumi (Bangalore Edition) also. So once this is ready, our travel time to Kannur will reduce considerably as we get good stretch till Gonikkoppal.

Thanks
Rajesh

Drove to Payyanur from Bangalore last weekend. Took the Gonikoppal route Blr to Pay and the Madikeri-Kushalnagar route way back.As said by others the Gonikoppal route is in ruins and will cause considerable stress to both driver and car(drove the XUV500).To make matters worse when passing through Gonikoppal town we were caught in a small jam of sorts holding us up for about 15-20 minutes.But this pales in comparison to the number of 'hold ups' due the number of potholes on this stretch.Took a full 9 hours including a 45 minute break to cover 346 Kms.The Madikeri Kushalnagara stretch wasn't all that better with really bad stretches after crossing the Kerala border and up untill Kushalnagara.Furthermore, on the way to Madikeri, you pass through densely forested ghats and extremely narrow stretches winding through thick foliage.There were some stretches were we didn't see a soul or other vehicles for around 8-10 Kms, even when driving through at around noon. So obviously wasn't a much traversed route.And the foliage is such that you'll not have sunlight at some pockets making you wonder if its daytime.Took 9.5 hours to reach Bangalore, a distance of 400 Kms through this route.So not sure which of the routes is better, the Gonikoppal route though rough seemed safer and was indeed shorter while the Madikeri route was longer, relatively less rough and one of adventure and suspense, not knowing what the next turn will bring to you! Having done Delhi-Mumbai-Bangalore and Bangalore-Coimbatore-Palakkad, I had begun to take great roads for granted, so this stretch was quite a trip back to the real world!lol:

Which route did you take on the return journey? Payyannur-Kannur/Taliparamba-iritty-virajpet-Madikeri-Kushalnagar-Hunsur or Payyannur-kanjhangad-Panathur-Madikeri-Kushalnagar-Hunsur?

In fact if you look to byepass the Hunsur-Gonikoppal-Virajpet stretch, next time I suggest you go via hunsur-Peryapatna-Siddapur-Ammathi-Virajpet. Distance would be around 15km extra, but roads are far better. There is a stretch from Peryapatna, around 15km odd where you might find lot of potholes, but other than that, route is pretty good, at least in comparison with the gonikoppal stretch.

Took the Panathur-Madikeri stretch on the way back.

How was Panathur route?

The only time I drove through that route (Madikeri-Bhagamandala-Panathur) last August I just loved the drive !! Roads were rough and narrow, but the thick forest was a real treat. Should drive through that route during monsoon, you'll be greeted with thousands of waterfalls all around you, the scenery is simply out of this world !

Yes, during monsoon its a real treat to eyes, but some times falling trees on the road make your drive memorable for ever...!!!

Thanks
Rajesh

Not sure the exact length of it, but from Payannur to Panathur the initial few KMs are excellent - looked liked newly built roads. However, as you approach Panathur and cross it for Bhagamandala towards Madikeri, the stretch gets rough, very narrow and dicey.I wouldn't take this stretch during Monsoons. I was praying all through that it doesn't rain - there were quite a few trees swooping down towards the narrow road and the possibility of getting stuck is high, that is if you are lucky enough for a tree not to fall on you.Furthermore, the route hardly had any traffic -so the wilderness and the thickly forested area may be stressful and a bit unsafe, if no additional hands to help if in trouble.The Gonikoppal route had relatively more potholes and for a longer stretch - but none of them big enough to devour a car.So if one drives slow, it might still be safer during monsoons.

Planning to visit Kannur this weekend. Any update on Hunsur-Gonikoppa road condition? or is it better to take Siddapura route?

Latheesh, hope you were able to make it. Any update on the road condition??
Any effect of monsoon so far..?

Thanks
Rajesh

I took Siddapura route and it is good. Monsoon did not do any major damage

[quote=kala;2692284]Yes, the road from Kabini to Mananthavady via Bavali is very much open. And it was in pretty good shape except for the initial 4-5 kms from Karapur when I travelled last a few months ago.

Kala, can you please confirm the condition of the road starting from Mysore to Manathavady, via Kabini (SH 33) ? I think this could be a viable alternative to the Nanjangud-Gundlupet-Sultan Battery route, since traffic in this sector is pretty heavy sometimes.
I am planning to go to Calicut next week, and thought of taking this route, if the road is good.

About 15 kms of this road is pretty bad shape, starting from the Nagarahole WLS entrance where the straight road through the forest is closed for public traffic and so you have to take a detour that goes through some 5-6 villages. Once you pass this 15 kms and land back on the SH33, the road is again pretty good except for periodic speedbreakers (which are at least well marked, so less of a menace). That 15 kms would take you 45 minutes at the very least.

This was the condition of the road about a year+ back when I travelled that way last. Could have become worse or better, haven't heard any feedback recently.

If you're travelling to Calicut, you will not gain any time going this way. The Gundlupet-Batheri route is much better.