[Waxeloquent]

Originally Posted by luvurride

Is this Annapurna Gowrishankar? And can you please point out where exactly is this? Is it somewhere near karumathampatti?

Yes it is. It is approximately 12km from where you turn on Avinshi Road to Coimbatore airport. It comes on left side as you drive from Cbe to Bangalore, behind Reliance petrol bunk (hence not visible from the highway). You have to drive back on service road after an U turn. Well this is when you drive to Bangalore. I do not know where one has to turn to right to go here while driving to Cbe. Will figure it out next time. hope this helps.

Cheers

[ramzsys]

Completed a round trip.

Onward trip was totally traffic free as i started on a weekday early morning at 3 AM.

There were a few bridges being re-built(i witnessed this throughout NH209 right till Dindugul) so be prepared to get down from the road- this is in TN side.

In the return, started by 10 AM yesterday from Coimbatore- 2 PM at Nijaguna. Had a sumptuous lunch for about an hour there. This time, the restrooms were clean.

There was a new board mentioning about Barachukki falls after crossing Kollegal- 6 km from the main road- so took that deviation. Another 1 hour spent there.

From here onwards, there was consistent traffic in this highway and it became a beeline after Harohalli. Initially i thought about going through the city(ORR-Silkboard) but then the traffic made me take NICE road.

On a general note, the traffic increase on the highways is making weekend trips chaotic and stressed(not exactly the traffic, but the traffic mannerisms. The bumper to bumper city driving style is getting extended on the highways as well).

[suresh_gs]

Folks

Latest toll charges between Bangalore and Coimbatore by Car as on 12th September 2014

[etrast75]

Has anyone tried the Kollegal- Hasanur road recently which avoid chamrajnagar? How are the road conditions? Plan to travel to CBE via NH 209 coming weekend and wanted to see if kollegal-hasanur is an option compared to the regular kollegal-chamrajnagar-hasanur road.

Last I heard , the roads on karnataka side were bad and the tamil nadu side was ok.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by etrast75

Has anyone tried the Kollegal- Hasanur road recently which avoid chamrajnagar? How are the road conditions? Plan to travel to CBE via NH 209 coming weekend and wanted to see if kollegal-hasanur is an option compared to the regular kollegal-chamrajnagar-hasanur road.

Its bad at the border. But over all wont recommend. It goes through forests and absolutely no facilities. Wont recommend for a family drive. Totally desolate road.

[graaja]

Originally Posted by etrast75

Has anyone tried the Kollegal- Hasanur road recently which avoid chamrajnagar? How are the road conditions? Plan to travel to CBE via NH 209 coming weekend and wanted to see if kollegal-hasanur is an option compared to the regular kollegal-chamrajnagar-hasanur road.

Last I heard , the roads on karnataka side were bad and the tamil nadu side was ok.

I tried this road a couple of months back while coming from Mysore. I would not recommend it at all. About 20 kms before hassanur, the road is just one lane wide, full of blind turns and runs through thick forests. Traffic is very sparse, no cell coverage and till I reached Hassanur, I was scolding myself for having taken this road with the family. I would recommend taking the Chamrajnagar road which is much safer. The condition of roads from Chamrajnagar is good as well. The only stretch that is bad is Nanjangud to Chamrajnagar, which I guess you will be avoiding anyway.

[NPV]

Taking a long shot here..
Anyone know of if/where one can get Dasara/Golu dolls (Clay/Plaster of paris) at Kaveripattinam ? I'd earlier heard Cuddalore is one place where these dolls are made but I also remembers someone recently mentioned Kaveripattinam also for these.

Anyone from this place/having any insights would be of great help

[ampere]

Originally Posted by NPV

T
Anyone from this place/having any insights would be of great help

I dont remember exactly. But I do remember some one telling a place close to Kumbakonam closer to Aduthurai. Let me check and confirm.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by NPV

Taking a long shot here..
Anyone know of if/where one can get Dasara/Golu dolls (Clay/Plaster of paris) at Kaveripattinam ? I'd earlier heard Cuddalore is one place where these dolls are made but I also remembers someone recently mentioned Kaveripattinam also for these.

Anyone from this place/having any insights would be of great help

To the best of my knowledge, panruti is famous for tbe navarathri gollu dolls.

[sai_ace]

Did the CBE -BLR route via Sathyamangalam last weekend.

I started from thudiyalur in CBE.

The route taken was Thudiyalur - Karamadai - Bhavani Sagar - Sathy - Dhimbam - Germalam - Kollegal - Malavalli - Kanakapura - Diary circle -Ulsoor Lake.

Door to Door was 314 Kms. Two lane Highway throughout. I started at 6 AM in the morning. Had a breakfast break at Sathy. Reached home at 1:15.

Thudiyalaur - Karamadai : Regular Mettupalayam road, Kept low speeds as dawn was breaking and the headlights were quite useless.

Karamadai - Bhavani Sagar: Avoiding Mettupalayam and Annur, Reached Bhavani. Great roads, rains have taken some toll though. You need to go via a small hamlet called Aalangombu.

Bhavani Sagar - Sathy: Till you reach Sathy town, easily some of the best driving roads. Curves, crests, dips and fantastic views.

Sathy - Dhimbam: Exiting sathy town is easy, and then the 27 Bends which did prove quite tricky to a newbie like me as it was raining, and there was some heavy traffic from the other side.

Dhimbam -Germalam: Skip Hasanur and take a small right towards germalam which leads directly to Kollegal. Smooth narrow roads, totally devoid of traffic and incredible views of lush forests and plantations on either side. A trip through this roads literally sees the external temperature meter fall down rapidly.

Germalam - Kollegal: The TN section is great, whereas there Karnataka section ranges from bad to Ok. The recent rains are a culprit too. This road to be avoided if you have one of those soft bouncy suspension cars as the road is absolutely not level. Mind you its patched but not level.

Malavalli - Kanakapura- BLR: No surprises, decent roads, disgusting traffic and loads of urban morons trying to overtake . This section can get to your nerves.

All in all, this route when you want to avoid the monotony of the 4 lane highways, avoid the rising tolls, Avoid that extra 50 odd kms, avoid the mess that is Attibelle AND enjoy some fresh air, enjoy some scenic panaromas, enjoy some seriously good curvy tarmac.


cheers!
sai

[suresh_gs]

How do we get to germalam frolm the dhimbham ghats. Route map plz. Another route to be tried would be the kollegal metur route via ramapura

[ampere]

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

How do we get to germalam frolm the dhimbham ghats. Route map plz.

A few km after Dimbam, you should see a right turn before Hassanur. This SH goes to Kollegal via Germalem. Some sections of roads are pathetic while some are good. The only issue with this section is, absolutely no support. And on top of it, the roads around the ghats are extremely narrow and high on wild life. I have seen some horrible accidents on this stretch. There is a forest check point at Germalem as well. Yes the views are good. But please note its NOT a recommended route when with family.

Route Link

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

Another route to be tried would be the kollegal metur route via ramapura

This SH meets the Kollegal Mettur road. The Mettur road is rough and pathetic around MM hills. This was the same section, where on the border there was a disruption. Earlier, many never went on this side, because this was the main location of the bygone brigand. (Palar/Gopinattam/MM Hills/Germalem)

[ramzsys]

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

Another route to be tried would be the kollegal metur route via ramapura

If you have contact with any TNSTC-Salem staff, then it is easy to enquire about the latest condition of this route. They operate buses to Kollegal via Madheswaran malai/bhetta.

Originally Posted by ampere

But please note its NOT a recommended route when with family.

This area was recently declared as a tiger reserve(and thus, the very recent conflict between forest dwellers/ authority).

With family, suggestion is always the 4 lane roads except for certain 'extended weekends'-we get 4 lane from end to end which takes not more than 5.5 hours with breaks and not exceeding 100 kmph speeds.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by ampere

A few km after Dimbam, you should see a right turn before Hassanur. This SH goes to Kollegal via Germalem. Some sections of roads are pathetic while some are good. The only issue with this section is, absolutely no support. And on top of it, the roads around the ghats are extremely narrow and high on wild life. I have seen some horrible accidents on this stretch. There is a forest check point at Germalem as well. Yes the views are good. But please note its NOT a recommended route when with family.

Route Link



This SH meets the Kollegal Mettur road. The Mettur road is rough and pathetic around MM hills. This was the same section, where on the border there was a disruption. Earlier, many never went on this side, because this was the main location of the bygone brigand. (Palar/Gopinattam/MM Hills/Germalem)

Amp, I was in Mysore from Oct 30 to Nov 1. Enroute to Mysore near Maddur, i saw a KSRTC bus operating from Bangalore to Germalem. I was under the impression all these days that we may not have govt buses operating on such remote routes.Good to see one.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

Amp, I was in Mysore from Oct 30 to Nov 1. Enroute to Mysore near Maddur, i saw a KSRTC bus operating from Bangalore to Germalem. I was under the impression all these days that we may not have govt buses operating on such remote routes.Good to see one.

Suresh,

Mysore-Germalem is typically through Bannur-Kollegal-Germalem and not through Chamarajanagar-Hassanur-Germalem.

Because the section that I refer to being quite dense and wildlife prone is 209 intersection between Hassanur-Dimbam to Germalem. Buses dont take that route. They go via Kollegal.