[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by sachinpk

Folks...

Jayalalithaa may have to be in prison for the whole of this week. Her bail plea has been adjourned by the High Court of Karnataka. So now need to watch out for the situation in TN. Keeping fingers crossed. A ray of hope (that people would not riot) is the fact that her bail plea was not completely rejected, but just postponed.

The Hindu reports...

Taking this into consideration, I suggested my uncle to take the Calicut route. Why risk unnecessarily.

[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Hi,

My uncle is planning to travel to Bangalore on 1st, from Ernakulam. Which route would be better for him to take, the usual salem route or via Calicut?

Nitin

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Taking this into consideration, I suggested my uncle to take the Calicut route. Why risk unnecessarily.

What time is he taking this route today? Please inform him that the forest gates closes at 9pm

[sachinpk]

Checked up with a few folks in Attibele and Hosur. Life going on as normal. Sizeable police presence (Karnataka Police) at Attibele, but in TN side things seems to be going in the normal way.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by sachinpk

Checked up with a few folks in Attibele and Hosur. Life going on as normal. Sizeable police presence (Karnataka Police) at Attibele, but in TN side things seems to be going in the normal way.

Had been to chennai yesterday by car Via Attibele, Hosur,Rayakottai and Krishnagiri. Situation was normal. We will come to know the exact situation only after Oct 7th.

[vasoo]

I was at Kodaikanal during the arrest of Amma and drove to Kerala on 29th Monday without any issues en route. The overall road conditions are very good in TN part except for the moon-like craters in the towns of Periyakulam, Theni, Cumbum and other smaller towns till Kumily. The road in Kerala from Kumily up to Kottayam is in excellent shape.

[SAPVEN]

Originally Posted by kala

About SH33:
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3519987

The Naalaam Mile-Tharuvana-Padinjarethara stretch may not be all that smooth, but that would still be the best option. Even if go via Kalpetta, the Kalpetta-Padinjarethara road also has its own share of rough patches (and you'd be travelling at least 15-20 kms extra)

Hi Kala,

I recall reading in an earlier thread regarding a small confusion while passing thro Mananthavady (coming from Mysore) and joining the Calicut road (something abt a bypass and missing the turning ) .
I would like to know how to ensure that I am on the right track while passing through Mananthavady.

Thanks.

[binand]

Originally Posted by SAPVEN

I recall reading in an earlier thread regarding a small confusion while passing thro Mananthavady (coming from Mysore) and joining the Calicut road (something abt a bypass and missing the turning ) .

That was me.

There are several routes from Mananthavady to Kalpetta:

1. Manthavady > Valliyurkavu > Panamaram > Kainaty > Kalpetta
2. Manthavady > Naalam Mile > Panamaram > Kainaty > Kalpetta
3. Manthavady > Naalam Mile > Tharuvana > Kalpetta

Of these, route 2 is the best route to take in terms of road quality. This is the route taken by KSRTC and other buses going from Mananthavady to Calicut. This is what you ought to take.

When you approach Mananthavady from Kattikulam side, a few km shy of the town you will see a board announcing the bypass with road signs pointing to Calicut. This is route 1. This is somewhat shorter than route 2, but has a small stretch of uneven road (no potholes or anything, just that the road finish is not great). If you are OK with that, by all means take this route. Otherwise, go for route 2.

[SAPVEN]

Originally Posted by binand

That was me.

There are several routes from Mananthavady to Kalpetta:

1. Manthavady > Valliyurkavu > Panamaram > Kainaty > Kalpetta
2. Manthavady > Naalam Mile > Panamaram > Kainaty > Kalpetta
3. Manthavady > Naalam Mile > Tharuvana > Kalpetta

Of these, route 2 is the best route to take in terms of road quality. This is the route taken by KSRTC and other buses going from Mananthavady to Calicut. This is what you ought to take.

When you approach Mananthavady from Kattikulam side, a few km shy of the town you will see a board announcing the bypass with road signs pointing to Calicut. This is route 1. This is somewhat shorter than route 2, but has a small stretch of uneven road (no potholes or anything, just that the road finish is not great). If you are OK with that, by all means take this route. Otherwise, go for route 2.

Hey, thanks Binand ! But it seems that for route 2 & 3, are u advocating going through Mananthavady town ? What abt the bypass marked in the map(left deviation , just before entering town, which later joins the main road to Nalaam Mile( just before the Pazhassi Park). If the bypass is good, is there any marking for that ( it should be after the turning towards Valliyurkkavu ) ??

[binand]

Originally Posted by SAPVEN

Hey, thanks Binand ! But it seems that for route 2 & 3, are u advocating going through Mananthavady town ?

Not sure which bypass you are talking about, but for routes 2 and 3, this is what you should take: https://goo.gl/maps/xq5dK. Otherwise you'll end up in the traffic chaos and one-way mess within the town. Like all towns in this part of Kerala, the town center is quite narrow, bustling and suffers from indiscriminate parking.

[Mnjdnght]

Quick update from my Bangalore - Edappally drive on Oct 1.

Route: Home (Bannerghatta road) - Kanakapura road - Kollegala - Chamarajanagar - Gundlupet - Gudalur - Nadugani - Nilambur - Perinthalmanna - Pattambi - Wadakkancherry - Trissur - Edappally

It is, in general, not the logical route for this trip but 1) I had some visits to do near Pattambi and 2) had the advantage of spending less time in TN due to the simmering angst post the Jailalitha conviction.

Started from Bangalore around 5 AM reached my first destination near Pattambi at 3 PM. Breakfast was a long 1 hr stop, Thepekkadu - Gudalur was a mess, had couple of more stops for coffee, fuel etc., a 30 minute lunch stop and reasonable traffic from Nilambur to Pattambi.

Started at 4:30 PM after my visits and reached Edappally at 7:15 PM. Pretty heavy traffic on the Cheruthuruthy - Wadakkancherry sector, on NH47 and Alwaye - Edappaly had enough chaos due to dense traffic, ongoing metro work and post monsoon pot-holes.

Kanakapura road till Malavally: Good ride. No specific update.
Malavally - Kollegala:This is the best stretch in terms of road quality and pace. The bridge near Shivanasamudra across Kaveri is marked as a weak bridge now and heavy vehicles cannot use it anymore.
Kollegala - Chamarajanagar: Good roads except a few narrow stretches as you approach Yellandur. Also, a few KMs of road near Yellandur is patchy.
Chamarajanagar - Gundlupet: Patchy road but can keep a reasonably decent pace.
Gundlupet - Theppekkadu through Bandipur: Smooth roads but need to drop speed through the jungle (consideration for wildlife) and of course there are frequent speed breakers in case one can't rely on self discipline to maintain the leisurely pace. Sighted quite a few elephants and a few jerks pushing their luck going for those National Geographic cover photos.
Theppakkadu - Gudalur: Misery. Almost entirely pothole ridden with quite a few huge craters to negotiate. You end up behind a heavy truck and it can eat into your morning calm and all the goodwill generated from the good ride until then. Gudalur town had some Amma related action in progress but seemed calm.
Gudalur - Nilambur through Nadugani ghats: Roads are fine (maybe a few potholes at some turns) and once you enter Kerala they turn out to be excellent. You'll encounter at least a few reckless locals and youth who dare.
Nilambur - Pattambi through Perinthalmanna: Great roads and smooth ride. You'll have decent traffic all the way through with far and few empty stretches. The curvy roads present few overtaking opportunities when you end up behind slow and heavy trucks.
Cheruthuruthy - Thrissur - NH47 (Kuttanalloor): Great roads and same story about traffic. These being regular stretches for a lot of locals, you can see a fair share of dare devil action on the roads. Also, the traffic has increased, my guess being, due to the bad Palakkad - Thrissur stretch through Alathur/ Vadakkencerry (NH47).

Thrissur - Alwaye (NH47): No complaints. Good roads. Traffic signals are a pain some times. Toll is now Rs. 65.

Alwaye - Edappally (NH47): Very chaotic, dense traffic, metro work, post monsoon potholes - The right mix after an early start and a long journey :-)

Breakfast at Nijaguna residency Chamarajanagar: Slow service, maybe we were too early for them. Otherwise a good stop - clean toilets, decent food.
Lunch at Hotel Tharavadu Pattambi: Looks like a great popular joint for Non Vegetarians but they have a few Veg options too. We also spotted a Udupi hotel for Vegetatrians on the Pattambi - Guruvayoor road about a KM after the Bharathapuzha bridge.

Now a few days rest before heading back!

[sarathlal]

Quick update on the bangalore tvm route via nh7.
Road condition till muppandal is great as usual. The krishnagiri construction is also nearing completion and just a few more bridges to be completed. Newly done road is still unmarked though.

Muppandal to kaliyikkavilai road is horrendous with huge potholes and horrendously done patch up works

[rajivr1612]

Route update.
Did Chennai (Porur) - Kerala (Thiruvalla) trip yesterday.
Route: Chennai Bypass - Villupuram - Trichy - Dindigul - Kumily - Ranny - Thiruvalla.
Roads from Dindigul to Kumily are moon surface stuff with some good stretches in between. Rest all no issues.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by rajivr1612

Roads from Dindigul to Kumily are moon surface stuff with some good stretches in between. Rest all no issues.

Thats a good update. So looks like beyond Theni its bad till Kumily. So folks heading Thekkady straight away, need to take care.

Because the road till Theni is quite good as per what I hear (Thats about 70km from Dindigul).

[sachinpk]

Did the Bangalore->Attibele->Rayakottai->Palakkodu->Dharmapuri Byepass/NH47->Salem->Avanashi->Palladam->Pollachi->Palakkad->Thrissur route yesterday. Summary:-
1. We started at 0430Hrs (late by 30mins) in a convoy of two cars. Had checked up with friends (Amateur Radio Ops. mainly) about the situation in TN. Situation was peaceful.
2. Decided to skip Attibele toll booth so went via the TVS Factory route. I had pretty much plotted every major junction towards Rayakottai, but MapMyIndia did confuse me even there a little. Separate note on that in MapMyIndia Review thread.
3. Roads between Hosur and Rayakottai, Palakkode all the way to Dharmapuri was in excellent condition. Only minor irritant was the Palakkode byepass.
4. I heaved a sigh of relief that after a minor confusing drive through Hosur town, we finally did reach the state highway leading to Rayakkottai.
5. By around 0630Hrs we had joined the NH7 (tolled highway). Co passengers did admit that they felt we seem to have covered quite a distance by now. My question - is this route really shorter than the Attibele, Krishnagiri toll route?
6. Breakfast was as usual at Saravana Bhavan @ Vaikuntam. The place is now really getting crowded these days. People were lining up behind your chair (for occupying it) even when we were having food. Please budget around 45 mins to 60 mins at this place if you are going on a long week end, vacation etc. The service is really quick, but getting a place to sit is a problem.
7. Smooth roads (as expected) between Vaikuntam and Avanashi. The "highway under construction" after Kumarapalayam till Avanashi is becoming a bit irritating with humps, uneven roads etc.
8. We took the Avanashi->Mangalam->Palladam->Pollachi route. May be it is because of a public holiday, even this route had a higher volume of traffic yesterday. But I did manage to maintain a higher speed even with this (when compared to the pathetic L&T byepass route, and Walayar etc. etc. etc.)
9. By 1140Hrs we reached Chandranagar byepass. Again folks travelling with me (and a few other friends) did feel that we have made it quicker than expected. And from then on roads were not really great. The Chandranagar bypass is really bad. Even in Palakkad town I found main roads having very big pot holes, nobody seems to bother. Palakkad->Pathiripala->Ottapalam->Shornur road was once again in good condition. This is an excellent road which has withstood all rains etc. for years together now. Shows the constructions standards of the Malaysian company who did the work.

Came back to say: There was absolutely no problems all across the route which we took in Tamil Nadu. People were going on with their business. In a couple of places AIADMK folks were holding peaceful protests on the road side under the watchful eyes of the Tamizh Naadu Kaaval. When we did the Attibele to Rayakottai stretch it was pitch dark, but no rioting or stone throwing by anti-social elements.

[vasoo]

Planning to drive from Kottayam to Thrissur tomorrow. I hear that MC Road is in bad condition until Koothattukulam/Mvpa. What is the best suggested route ? How is the Kalady bridge bye-passed?

Originally Posted by sachinpk

Did the Bangalore->Attibele->Rayakottai->Palakkodu->Dharmapuri Byepass/NH47->Salem->Avanashi->Palladam->Pollachi->Palakkad->Thrissur route yesterday. Summary:-
...
9. By 1140Hrs we reached Chandranagar byepass. Again folks travelling with me (and a few other friends) did feel that we have made it quicker than expected. And from then on roads were not really great. The Chandranagar bypass is really bad. Even in Palakkad town I found main roads having very big pot holes, nobody seems to bother. Palakkad->Pathiripala->Ottapalam->Shornur road was once again in good condition. This is an excellent road which has withstood all rains etc. for years together now. Shows the constructions standards of the Malaysian company who did ...

Didnt you try the Pollachi > Muthalamada >Vadakkencherry route? I am planning to drive from Thrissur to to Bangalore on Sunday. Hope this route is in good shape. I have not done this route before. How difficult is to navigate the Pollachi town ? Any landmarks for connecting to Palladam road?