[ant_vas]

This message is coming to you straight from the banks of Tungabhadra, I just came here this morning by Hampi Express.

The river looks amazing! what place is this? looks like modern construction on the river bank

[androdev]

Originally Posted by ant_vas

The river looks amazing! what place is this? looks like modern construction on the river bank

It's a fairly old place called Hampi's Boulders. There is lot of water now thanks to Thungabhadra reservoir being full due to good rains.



The river is even better (IMO) when dry, exposing amazing stone erosions, boulders, etc. making a great hiking trail.

[Sandy28]

Travelled from Bangalore to Hospete today morning. Took the Tumkuru - Hiriyur - Chellekere route. At Hanagal, turned left on to Kudiligi via Gudlekota and then right on to Hospete. Route till Gudlekota is excellent. Hanagal to Gudlekota is single track but superb road with sparse traffic. Also very scenic with interesting rock formations. Post Gudlekota road starts getting patchy and bad. Kudiligi to Hospete has numerous diversions as road widening work is in progress.

[Hells Bells]

Read that parts of Hampi's heritage structures were inundated over the weekend as the water release from dams continued. Any insights to how the weather is playing out and if it would be safe to drive over to Hampi this coming (17-19) weekend?

[ant_vas]

I also plan to visit this weekend would be glad to get a latest update on the roads and water levels in Hampi. Though i don't plan to visit the monuments but its always good to have the information readily available just in case you need it

[Hells Bells]

I am monitoring the Tungabhadra board website to get a sense of inflow to the dam and then make a call. It is tangential at best but gives a sense of water build up The inflow has dropped significantly since 12th Aug peak (when the flooding was reported).

https://tbboard.gov.in/

[Sandy28]

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

Read that parts of Hampi's heritage structures were inundated over the weekend as the water release from dams continued. Any insights to how the weather is playing out and if it would be safe to drive over to Hampi this coming (17-19) weekend?

I came to Hampi on 11th August and will be returning back today to Bangalore. You can read my post above for the route update from Bangalore to Hampi. Though Tungabhadra is flowing full, there is no inundation of any of the major monuments nor any flood alert. Infact when we visited the dam on 11th evening, 30 of 32 dam gates were open. Yesterday evening we saw that many gates have been closed.

Weather is very nice. Cloudy so not at all hot. Good for family and kids. Occasional light rains are there which adds to the fun. Yesterday we did a day trip to Badami also. Overall no issues. You can go ahead with your plan.

[ant_vas]

Thanks for the update Sandy

Weather is very nice. Cloudy so not at all hot. Good for family and kids. Occasional light rains are there which adds to the fun. Yesterday we did a day trip to Badami also. Overall no issues. You can go ahead with your plan.

My travel plans also include visit to Shri banashankari temple on saturday and hampi on sunday.


what route did you take to badami from Hampi and how is the road condition to badami

[Sandy28]

Originally Posted by ant_vas

Thanks for the update Sandy

what route did you take to badami from Hampi and how is the road condition to badami

While going, I took Hospete - Bewoor - Sudi - Jalihal - Badami route. Took me 3 hrs to cover the 130 km. This route is the suggested option by Google. NH50 is excellent. Once you turn left on to Bewoor - Jalihali stretch, the route is narrow single track route till around Sudi. But road condition is excellent with sparse traffic. You will pass through many scenic rural countryside with plenty of fields esp sunflower fields. Sudi - Jalihal stretch is patchy and broken but fairly ok.

For return, I took Badami - Guledagudda - Amingad - Hungund - Hospete route. This is an alternate option suggested by Google. Only reason for taking this route was to try a different route. This is a longer route both in terms of time and distance. Also road till Amingad is not very good - patchy and broken. I will not suggest doing this route unless you just want to try a different route.

Note: On both routes, there are no restaurants or break areas. Not even a proper tea stall except the roadside ones. Fuel stations are also few. So plan your food, fuel and bio breaks.

[ant_vas]

While going, I took Hospete - Bewoor - Sudi - Jalihal - Badami route. Took me 3 hrs to cover the 130 km. This route is the suggested option by Google. NH50 is excellent. Once you turn left on to Bewoor - Jalihali stretch, the route is narrow single track route till around Sudi. But road condition is excellent with sparse traffic. You will pass through many scenic rural countryside with plenty of fields esp sunflower fields. Sudi - Jalihal stretch is patchy and broken but fairly ok. For return, I took Badami - Guledagudda - Amingad - Hungund - Hospete route. This is an alternate option suggested by Google. Only reason for taking this route was to try a different route. This is a longer route both in terms of time and distance. Also road till Amingad is not very good - patchy and broken. I will not suggest doing this route unless you just want to try a different route.

Thanks Sandys you made my day. My travel plan involve the exact same places to visit onwards and on the return journey from badami. Your response has been really helpful

[venkatesan]

Please update based on your experience.

[Hells Bells]

I did the Hampi drive via the Chitradurga-Hospete route over 17-19th Aug. As has already been highlighted before, the stretch from Bangalore-Chitradurga is pretty good with wide 6 lane high way with median. I was able to do pretty decent speeds on this one and with the roads barricaded with fencing on both sides, I was at ease from the worry of a moron/animal darting in unannounced.

Post Chitradurga, the stretch goes bad within meters of making the right turn with series of patch work roads accompanied with small stretches of newly laned highway. The succor of new roads is far and few than the broken patches though and is a huge kill joy. On the good side, I scrapped the underbelly of my vRS only on precisely 4 speed breakers - 2 on each side and this was a big concern for me while exploring the other routes.

However, there are stretches of the SH45 (Arabhavi-Challakere) which are very nice inspite of being 2 lane road. It goes through picturesque route with fields on both sides and smooth tar road. The Ujjayini-Kudiligi stretch starts looking better when one considers how bad the NH50 is post this stretch towards Hampi.

Overall, it took me close to 6-6.5 hours each way of driving time. The only bright spark was Hampi itself (my first trip) which made the whole thing worth it with it's gorgeous architecture and history.

[Rajeevraj]

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

I did the Hampi drive via the Chitradurga-Hospete route over 17-19th Aug.

Thank you for the updates. Planning a trip this week. Did you return via the same route? Since you mention Challakere, did you return via Challakere- Hiriyur? Will that be the better option as compared to Chitradurga?

A general question. Is there any decent place to stop for a break once we leave the main NH (either at Chitradurga or Hiriyur)?

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

A general question. Is there any decent place to stop for a break once we leave the main NH (either at Chitradurga or Hiriyur)?

On both routes Chitradurga-Hospet and Hiriyur-Challakere there are almost no decent places for a break after turning off from the NH. If taking Chitradurga-Hospet route, you can stop at Ravi Mayur Kamat on service road (hope I got that name right, search earlier posts and you will even find a picture of the place). Alternatively, you can drive a few km ahead on the NH, stop near the Nijalingappa Memorial that has a Mysore cafe adjacent to it. You can then make a U-turn and head back towards the Hospet turn off.

If you're taking Hiriyur-Challakere route then maybe the eatery inside VRL bus hub or the Kamat in Sira (right side) are options.

*There is also Upadhya veg on right side near Hospet turn off, Chitradurga.

[Hells Bells]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Did you return via the same route? Since you mention Challakere, did you return via Challakere- Hiriyur? Will that be the better option as compared to Chitradurga?

A general question. Is there any decent place to stop for a break once we leave the main NH (either at Chitradurga or Hiriyur)?

I returned via the same route and did not explore the Hiriyur route this time so can't help you on that end.

As NPV has stated, once you get off the NH at Chitradurga, there are no decent options to eat. There are two Kamats between Bangalore and Chitradurga with the one in Sira (it would be on the other side of the road when coming from Bangalore) closer to Chitradurga. We had stopped at a CCD before we hit Sira while coming back from Hampi as CCD has better (read cleaner) restrooms and we were not looking for a place to lunch (only grab a coffee).