[RajeshK]

Originally Posted by masin4

.some tips if you are in a sedan be very careful roads are non existent in the Siddapura->Ammanthi-> Virajper stretch KSRTC buses are flying over the broken roads causing havoc with dust took me back at least 10 years seeing the poor quality/rather absence of any road at least for a good 35kms that will take you 2+Hours to cross due to rains making the situation bad.

Originally Posted by sandsun7

Are you sure you are taking about Siddapura-Ammathi-Virajpet stretch? Last when I travelled in September, it was extremely good. I did this stretch after dusk and still could maintain an average of 70-80 easily. In fact it was relaid just around June this year. And as far as I remember, there are very few KSRTC buses on that route.. Most of the buses that run on that stretch are private buses.

@masin4, As Sandeep rightly mentioned, are you sure about the route..? I feel you are talking about the direct Hunsur - Gonikoppal route, but still it much better now than it used to..!!

Also please see that via Sulthan Batheri is too longer ~400km instead of the direct ~310kms. This may not worth as there are better alternate routes available.

[masin4]

Originally Posted by RajeshK

@masin4, As Sandeep rightly mentioned, are you sure about the route..? I feel you are talking about the direct Hunsur - Gonikoppal route, but still it much better now than it used to..!!
Also please see that via Sulthan Batheri is too longer ~400km instead of the direct ~310kms. This may not worth as there are better alternate routes available.

Hi,

I can be mistaken since it was dusk I had planned to drive to virajpet as mentioned in an earlier post and then deviate to virajpet. However at a "Y" bend about 15km's before kushal nagar I saw the direct road to Virajpet it looked liked a recently laid road and was good for quite a distance .It is approximately 30kms of road that is being relaid that was the problem and there were many KSRTC buses going to Virajpet that were plying on this route .The road was worse since it is in the process of being relaid and the the surface due to recent rains has become very uneven.I need to return on Tuesday any alternate route info will be appreciated

[kala]

Originally Posted by masin4

I can be mistaken since it was dusk I had planned to drive to virajpet as mentioned in an earlier post and then deviate to virajpet. However at a "Y" bend about 15km's before kushal nagar I saw the direct road to Virajpet it looked liked a recently laid road and was good for quite a distance .It is approximately 30kms of road that is being relaid that was the problem and there were many KSRTC buses going to Virajpet that were plying on this route .The road was worse since it is in the process of being relaid and the the surface due to recent rains has become very uneven.I need to return on Tuesday any alternate route info will be appreciated

I think the Y fork with a clear marking for Virajpet on the left fork is the one just after Hunsur (It's about 35 kms before Kushalnagar, not 15). If I remember right there are no clear markings at Periyapatna at the junction where you turn towards Maldare / Sidhapura. (If at all there is a marking, I think it would be marked as Sidhapura).

So in all probability the road you travelled would be the direct Hunsur-Gonikoppal-Virajpet road, which is still being relaid in many parts.

[sandsun7]

Originally Posted by masin4

Hi,

I can be mistaken since it was dusk I had planned to drive to virajpet as mentioned in an earlier post and then deviate to virajpet. However at a "Y" bend about 15km's before kushal nagar I saw the direct road to Virajpet it looked liked a recently laid road and was good for quite a distance .It is approximately 30kms of road that is being relaid that was the problem and there were many KSRTC buses going to Virajpet that were plying on this route .The road was worse since it is in the process of being relaid and the the surface due to recent rains has become very uneven.I need to return on Tuesday any alternate route info will be appreciated

As Kala said, the deviation you took would be the route to Virajpet via Thithimathi Gonikoppal which has been in terrible state since a year or so. This deviation comes 5kms after you pass Hunsur town bypass. Yes, relaying is going on and the surface would be still very rough.

While returning, you could go into Virajpet town after taking left at Perumpadi checkpost (approx 4 kms after the end of ghat), proceeding further to Siddapura via Ammathi, taking a right at Siddapura town at the first traffic island, go further for 25-30 kms via Maldare forest to enter Madikeri-Mysore road at Periyapatna. The last 10 kms or so of this stretch is not great, everywhere else you will find good roads. If in doubt, at Virajpet town, ask for Siddapura/Ammathi, never Hunsur/Mysore - You may be redirected to the bad road via Gonikoppal by the locals. Happened to a friend recently.

Originally Posted by kala

I think the Y fork with a clear marking for Virajpet on the left fork is the one just after Hunsur (It's about 35 kms before Kushalnagar, not 15). If I remember right there are no clear markings at Periyapatna at the junction where you turn towards Maldare / Sidhapura. (If at all there is a marking, I think it would be marked as Sidhapura).
.

Yes, there are no markings other than Orange county resort's board. That too does not mention Virajpet.

[masin4]

Originally Posted by sandsun7

Yes, there are no markings other than Orange county resort's board. That too does not mention Virajpet.

Thank you for the information sandsun7,will try the same.You are correct there are absolutley no markings on the route after Husnur ,except for orange county and occasional "tamara" resorts

[akeel]

Hi All,

Could one of you please provide me with an update on the status of the below roads.

How is the stretch between Hunsur-Anechowkkur Gate road?
How is the road condition after Anechowkkur Gate up to Gonikoppa?
How is the Periyapatna-Anechowkkur Gate stretch?

Thanks
Akeel.

[avira_tk]

Originally Posted by akeel

Hi All,

Could one of you please provide me with an update on the status of the below roads.

How is the stretch between Hunsur-Anechowkkur Gate road?
How is the road condition after Anechowkkur Gate up to Gonikoppa?
How is the Periyapatna-Anechowkkur Gate stretch?

Thanks
Akeel.

Past Hunsur its pure hell if you are in a car, especially something with ground clearance. Did the stretch to Thalassery on 31st Oct, took me nearly 3 hours to get to Iritty from Hunsur. Incomplete earthwork all over the place and enormous pot holes, you can fly past this if you have an off roader.

[sandsun7]

Originally Posted by akeel

How is the stretch between Hunsur-Anechowkkur Gate road?

Bad. Speeds of over 20-30 not possible. Work is going on, was just drivable a couple of weeks ago, but fresh reports say it is now worse.

Originally Posted by akeel

How is the road condition after Anechowkkur Gate up to Gonikoppa?

Intermittent stretches of good and bad roads upto Gonikoppal. Bad again after Gonikoppal upto Virajpet bypass

Originally Posted by akeel

How is the Periyapatna-Anechowkkur Gate stretch?

Rough, with potholes patched up

All reports compiled from other Tbhpians posts. I do not take that route at all nowadays. If your destination is Iritty or past it, better option would be to go via Periyapatna-Maldare-Siddapura-Virajpet.

[masin4]

Originally Posted by sandsun7

While returning, you could go into Virajpet town after taking left at Perumpadi checkpost (approx 4 kms after the end of ghat), proceeding further to Siddapura via Ammathi, taking a right at Siddapura town at the first traffic island, go further for 25-30 kms via Maldare forest to enter Madikeri-Mysore road at Periyapatna. The last 10 kms or so of this stretch is not great, everywhere else you will find good roads. If in doubt, at Virajpet town, ask for Siddapura/Ammathi, never Hunsur/Mysore - You may be redirected to the bad road via Gonikoppal by the locals. Happened to a friend recently.


.

Thank you for the route information sandsun7 as you have mentioned the roads are good except for the last 10~15 kms ,however much better than the gonikoppal route that I took while going.

[Latheesh]

I did not make any trips to Kannur in last 7 months. Sad to hear that Hunsur-Gonikoppal is still in bad shape.

[gk_fiesta]

I will be doing Bangalore - Mysore - Periyapatna - Siddapura - Virajpet - Iritty - Taliparamba tomorrow. I will post the updates after the ride. Hopefully, it will be good. Only worry is Periyapatna - Siddapura stretch.

[gk_fiesta]

Drove from Bangalore to Taliparamba today. Took the below route:
Bangalore - Mysore - Periyapatna - Siddapura -Virajpet - Iritty- Taliparamba.

Bangalore to Periyapatna is a no-brainer. Good roads throughout.
Periyapatna - Siddapura: About 30kms, with 50% bad roads. There is a diversion towards left about 1 km after Periyapatna town which goes to Siddapura. The first 11-12 kms are bad, then it is good. But intermittently few bad patches are still there. But any day better than the route through Gonikoppa. I think this is the best option till the Gonikoppa road is repaired.
Siddapura - Virajpet- Iritty: Good roads throughout, except few patches of pot-holes in the ghat section. but heavy traffic and narrow roads compared to roads in KA.

Total distance covered was around 352 kms, out of which 268 kms (Bangalore to Perumbadi checkpost) was done in 6.5 hours, the last 84 kms(Perumbadi - Iritty - Taliparamba) took 2.5 hours :(

This ride was special to me in 2 ways: One, this was my first solo ride in my Thunderbird 350, and second, the first inter-state trip in my bike. All the rides other than this was within Karnataka so far.

[bijubalan]

I had been to kannur from bangalore first week of november. I had taken the longer but better route via hunsur-periyapatna-kushalnagar-guddehosur- siddapura-virajpet. Except the 20 km stretch between guddehosur-siddapura drive had been a breeze. I now think it would be better to take direct route from periyapatna to siddapura via maldare. Read in the thread that last 2 km in this stretch is horrible. But still may be a better choice in terms of time.
I agree with sandsun7

Cheers

[gk_fiesta]

Originally Posted by bijubalan

I had been to kannur from bangalore first week of november. I had taken the longer but better route via hunsur-periyapatna-kushalnagar-guddehosur- siddapura-virajpet. Except the 20 km stretch between guddehosur-siddapura drive had been a breeze. I now think it would be better to take direct route from periyapatna to siddapura via maldare. Read in the thread that last 2 km in this stretch is horrible. But still may be a better choice in terms of time.
I agree with sandsun7

Cheers

Agree with bijubalan on the route via Kushal Nagar. It is a breeze.

Just came back from Taliparamba, via Iritty-Virajpet-Siddapura-Kushal Nagar-Hunsur-Mysore.

As mentioned in my earlier post, while going I had taken Periyapatna-Maldare-Siddapura route. So while coming back I wanted to check out the route via. Kushal Nagar.

The road from Siddapura till the turn towards Dubare elephant camp (about 13 kms) the road surface is slightly bad but should be okay in a car (I was riding a bike). From the Dubare camp turn till Kushal Nagar the roads are good.

Having seen both the routes during this trip I would prefer route via. Kushal Nagar if in a car. (Maldare if in an SUV). Reason being, the time taken between Periyapatna and Siddapura via. Maldare and Kushal Nagar would remain same. Through Kushal Nagar I would get more of good roads which I can cover faster with no torture to vehicle and travelers.

Below is a summary. I think people can choose their route based on their preference of % of good/bad roads.

Periyapatna-Maldare-Siddapura: 28kms (12 kms good, 16 kms bad, doable in a good SUV)
Periyapatna-Kushal Nagar-Siddapura: 47 kms (34 kms good, 13 kms bad, doable even in a car)

[kala]

Originally Posted by gk_fiesta

Having seen both the routes during this trip I would prefer route via. Kushal Nagar if in a car. (Maldare if in an SUV). Reason being, the time taken between Periyapatna and Siddapura via. Maldare and Kushal Nagar would remain same. Through Kushal Nagar I would get more of good roads which I can cover faster with no torture to vehicle and travelers.

Below is a summary. I think people can choose their route based on their preference of % of good/bad roads.

Periyapatna-Maldare-Siddapura: 28kms (12 kms good, 16 kms bad, doable in a good SUV)
Periyapatna-Kushal Nagar-Siddapura: 47 kms (34 kms good, 13 kms bad, doable even in a car)

Are you sure you took the same amount of time via Maldare and via Kushalnagar ? I just checked the GPX file corresponding to my last drive on the Maldare route (was 2-3 months ago) and I found that the first 18 kms from Siddhapura took me 23 minutes (Average of 46kmph) and the last 10 kms took me 21 minutes for a total of 44 minutes. Yes the last 10 kms is bad, but SUV only territory ? Not really.

The 25 kms from Periyapatna to Kushalnagar generally takes me around 25 minutes. Do you think one can do the remaining 22 kms to Siddhapura in under 20 minutes ? I think around 30 minutes would be more like it with normal driving.