[ramzsys]

I plan to take the NH209 tomorrow morning to Coimbatore.

Folks, is there any news of any disruptions near CH nagara?

[prasad14]

Originally Posted by ramzsys

I plan to take the NH209 tomorrow morning to Coimbatore.

Folks, is there any news of any disruptions near CH nagara?

I do daily read kannada newspaper and haven't found anything that suggests a disruption. Just checked their online version too and didn't find anything. Have a nice trip.

Prasad

[bijujj]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Instead of turning off right to Munnar after Theni town, continue straight on NH220 towards Kumili & Kottayam. Straightforward route, one road all the way to Kottayam.

Route is as follows:
Theni-Kambam-Kumili-Kuttikanam-Mundakayam-Kanjirapally-Kottayam

I am planning to drive from Chennai to Kottayam and am planning to take the above mentioned route. I have couple of queries.

1.How is the traffic condition now? Is there any traffic jam near Kumali due to Sabarimala season.
2. How is the road condition? Is there any stretch between Dindigul to Kumali that I should avoid.
3. Since I am travelling with family, it will be helpful to know the best places/hotels to take break after Trichy.
4. If I start at 5:30 AM, typically when can I expect to reach Kottayam

Thanks lot
Biju

[sansvk]

Back from my Vacations in Kerala. Thanks to all who guided me through the roads in Wayanad.
Updating the road condition here.
BLR-MYS-Gundalpet--> No surprises, good roads, started early due to the Mandya blockage.
Gundalpet-Bandipur (Karnataka Border)--> Newly laid roads on one side (other side being laid); lots of speeds humps and trenches as you enter the forested area (as pointed out by others).
Kerala Border to Sulthan Bathery--> Horrible strech with lots of potholes.
Took the deviation after Sulthan Bathery towards Vaduvanchal, Mepadi and joined the NH back at Chundale and proceeded to Vythiri.
Can comfortably maintain 60kmph on this strech compared to the bad strech between Meenangadi and Kalpetta (which is being repaired).

Had to proceed to Palakkad after this. Thamaraserry ghats are in good condition. Took a left towards Manjeri from Thamaraserry. Roads got a lot better towards Areekode and Manjeri. The worst strech was the section closer to thamaraserry where road work was being done.

Return journey from Palakkad via the regular CBE-BLR NH. Only update is that the roads after Wayalar have been patched up, this makes for a decent sedate drive. Traffic towards Kerala is high owing to the Sabrimala season.

[Rajeevraj]

Originally Posted by sansvk

Took the deviation after Sulthan Bathery towards Vaduvanchal, Mepadi and joined the NH back at Chundale and proceeded to Vythiri.
Can comfortably maintain 60kmph on this strech compared to the bad strech between Meenangadi and Kalpetta (which is being repaired).

Thanks for the route update. Couple of questions:

Is this a straightforward route or any specific unmarked deviations to look out for?
Does it save time as compared to the regular Bathery-Kalpetta-Chundale route, or this route is relevant only to avoid the bad stretches?

[kala]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Thanks for the route update. Couple of questions:

Is this a straightforward route or any specific unmarked deviations to look out for?
Does it save time as compared to the regular Bathery-Kalpetta-Chundale route, or this route is relevant only to avoid the bad stretches?

About 5 kms after passing Sulthan Bathery on NH212, look out for a junction where there is a reasonably big road going left. I think it is marked as Ambalavayal. This is Kolagappara junction. Take the left turn towards Ambalavayal.

Follow this road and go past Ambalavayal till you reach a small town called Vaduvanchal (About 14 kms from Kolagappara). At that point you need to take a right turn, Can't recall the markings at that turn - could be marked Calicut or Meppadi. Going straight will takes you to Gudalur / Ooty.

This route will add about 17 kms to the distance (25 kms from Kolagappara to Chundale via Kalpetta, 42 kms via this route). With the current state of roads, you will probably end up taking the same time either way. So you may not save too much in terms of time, but you can avoid the real bad stretches. When the roads are good, NH212 will be much faster.

[sandsun7]

Originally Posted by kala

About 5 kms after passing Sulthan Bathery on NH212, look out for a junction where there is a reasonably big road going left. I think it is marked as Ambalavayal. This is Kolagappara junction. Take the left turn towards Ambalavayal.

one more sign you could look out for while coming from Sbathery is Edakkal caves. There are rather large signboards to all tourist places all over Wayanad including Edakkal caves.

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by gandalf

Hi What would be the best route to Thrissur from Bangalore

Heading down to Cochin for Christmas vacation on the 22nd. Looks like there will be a lot of team bhp cars for company on the highway.

I plan to follow the route ranjitp1 has suggested. What do you say ranjitp1?

Bangalore - Hosur - Krishnagiri - Dharmapuri - Salem - Bhavani - Perundurai - Kangayam - Palladam - Pollachi - Kollengode - Pazhayannur - Wadakanchery - Thrissur - EKM.

[XLR8]

Hi folks,
I am heading towards Mahe this weekend. Usually take the Sultan Bathery route but the Mananthavady route through Kabini is more scenic and shorter. However, the SH 33going towards Mananthavady has a 5 or 6 km deviation through a few villages. It takes one about 45 to 60 mins to cover this patch. Anybody aware of the condition of this particular road now?
Thanks.

[kala]

Originally Posted by XLR8

However, the SH 33going towards Mananthavady has a 5 or 6 km deviation through a few villages. It takes one about 45 to 60 mins to cover this patch. Anybody aware of the condition of this particular road now?

It's more like 15-16 kms, not 5-6 kms. (And feels like 45 kms ). Used to take more than an hour to cover this stretch till a few months ago.

Roadwork was supposed to have started on this stretch of road about a month ago, so there is a possibility of even more disruptions. No first hand info on the current state though.

[XLR8]

Thanks Kala. I will be traveling on the 22nd morning. In the meanwhile, if anybody has any info on the road condition, please do let me know.

[sansvk]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Thanks for the route update. Couple of questions:

Is this a straightforward route or any specific unmarked deviations to look out for?
Does it save time as compared to the regular Bathery-Kalpetta-Chundale route, or this route is relevant only to avoid the bad stretches?

It does save time. We were in two cars, one raced ahead of us from Gundulpet. And while we reached sultan bathery there were in Meenangadi. Using the above mentioned strech we reached Vythiri before the other car.
The other driver told me that the road was being redone, hopefully in a few weeks the NH should be in good shape

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by XLR8

Anybody aware of the condition of this particular road now?

My guess is you are referring to the HD Kote/Kota road to reach Mananthavadi. It is best that you do not venture down this road even even if it is in a suv. It is horrible and there is no sign of road repair ever taking place. Having personally driven on this patch by accident twice, it takes an hour and 45 minutes to cover the 20km odd stretch.

[sandeepmohan]

Any inputs on this route to Cochin....

https://maps.google.co.in/maps/ms?ms...22207,2.469177

[denver85]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

Any inputs on this route to Cochin....

https://maps.google.co.in/maps/ms?ms...22207,2.469177

I have done round trip from Bangalore to Kozhikode last week. The road conditions and traffic updates are give below:

Bangalore to Malavalli - Excellent two line highway. The traffic will be higher near Kanakapura. But nothing much to worry.
Malavalli to Kollegal - The roads are really nice and scenic.
Kollegal to Chamrajanagar - The roads are good with traffic increasing as we approach Chamrajanagar.
Chamrajanagar to Gundlupet - The roads are bumpy. Yet, will be able to keep a steady speed. Be careful about the while approaching the small bridges and occasional bad patches.
Gundlupet to Kerala Border - Roads are really nice. The road inside the forest is completely relaid. The humps are now replaced with slot/a cutting which can swallow a bike completely . Be very careful and negotiate these very slowly.
Kerala Border to Bathery - The roads are completely broken with some really bad patches.
Sulthan Bathery to Kalpetta - Bad roads, nothing more to say.
Kalpetta to Kozhikode - The roads are excellent. The ghat section is superb, you will definitely enjoy the drive here.
As per my knowledge the rest of the route is in good condition. There are some bad sections near Kuttipuram and between Kecheri to Thrissur.
Hope it helps