Update on the Bangalore-Gudalur-Nilambur-Calicut and Calicut-Kalpetta-Bangalore Route I have just completed a Bangalore-Calicut round trip via Gudalur-Nilambur and return via Thamarassery Ghat/Kalpetta. Below are the timings and route update for both of these routes.
Onward - Bangalore-Gudalur-Nilambur-Edavanna-Areekode-Mukkom-Kunnamangalam-Calicut
06:35 AM - Start from Marathahalli, Bangalore
07:10 AM - NICE Road Entry (From Housr Road) - Being a weekday, this will be the best option to avoid the morning city traffic and all the humps and bad roads within the city. Try to take the Nice Road from the Hosur road entry itself. You will reach Mysore road in 30-35 mins from Silk Board Junction.
07:35 AM - NICE Road exit to Bangalore- Mysore Highway.
08:30 AM - 45 mins break for Fuelling/Breakfast at BPCL/Kamat just before Madddur.(This is a Company outlet and the fuel quality is excellent).
10:20 AM- Enter Mysore City
11:25 AM- Gundlupet - 20 Mins Rest/Coffee stop at Cafe Coffee day.
Mysore-Gudlupet Road is in excellent condition all the way. Can cover this distance in 45 mins if there is no much traffic.
1:15 PM- Gudalur
Although roads are in good condition, there are so many humps in the Masinagudi-Gudalur Forest section. Every 100 meters, you have to slow down for this humps and this takes lots of time to complete this strech. But the best part is you can spot lot's of wildlife on the way.
One other probelm may be with the winding roads in the Nadugani Ghat section. Some people may be get motion sickness with the winding nature of this road.
2:35 PM- Nilambur - 30 mins Lunch stop at KTDC Tarmarind Hotel, Just before Nilambur.
5:10 PM- Eranhipalam Jn.
From Nilambur, the route taken was Edavanna- Areekode- Mukkom- Kunnamangalam- Eranhipalam. Total distance is 66 Kms and the time taken was around 2 hrs. Roads are excellent all the way. Heavy traffic from Nilambur till Edavanna. From Edavanna, it's great 2 line roads and very less traffic till Kunnamangalam. From Kunnamangalam to Eranhipalam, it was very heavy traffic, especially during a weekday evening.
Total driving time will be around 8.5 to 9 hours (From Marathahalli to Eranhipalam Jn, Calicut) excluding breaks if you drive on an average speed. Total distance covered is 385 Kms from Marathahalli- Eranhipalam Jn.
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Return - Calicut-Thamarassery Ghat-Kalpetta-Batheri-Gundlupet-Mysore-Bangalore
Eranhipalam Jn to Adivaram is having very good roads in most of the places.
Thamarassery ghat is still in pretty bad condition in most of the hair pin bends, except the places where they had put the interlocking tiles. Going with a Low Ground Clearance vehicle may be an issue if you don't drive carefully. I have seen a Cruze got stuck in one of those Hairpin bends and struggling to climb up where there is no road and only big gutters and stone pieces exists. It took 1 hr for us to climb the ghat section.
Kalpetta - Sulthan Bathery - Muthanga road is patched up, but you will feel it rough and uneven. Once you enter the forest section, it is good roads in most of the places.
Below are the timings we took on this strech.
10:15 AM - Start- Eranhipalam Jn
12:30 PM - Kalpetta (30 mins Lunch stop)
1:45 PM - S. Batheri
3:15 PM - Gundlupet (15 mins rest break at CCD Gundlupet)
4:25 PM -Mysore City
6:50 PM - Enter NICE Road
7:15 PM - NICE Road Electronic City Exit.
7:30 PM - Silk Board Jn.
Total travel time excluding breaks is 8.5 Hrs. Total Kms travelled is 380 kms from Eranhipalam Jn to Marathahalli.
One more update on this route is that they are going to start the Thamarassery ghat section road repair from this January 1st week. During this time, there is a plan to ban all heavy vehicles (including buses) in this strech and to relay the entire ghat section roads. So this ghat section should get repaired probably in 1 or 2 months time if it all goes well according to this plan. |