[Rajesh K R]

I did a Mangalore - BLR run last week via Belthangady-Charmadi-Mudigere-Belur. The road updates :

1. Lots of culvert works going on in MLR - Belthangady section - slows you down - Not a great deal breaker though.

2. Charmadi ghats - surface is very good. In some sections of the ghat - the road is reduced to one car width. Pains to see the mountains which bore the onslaught of heavy rains - in two seasons.
3. Kottigehara - Mudigere Handpost - Again some culvert works slows you down - nothing major though
4. Mudigere Hand post - BLR : The usual good roads. Can make up time.

Door to door - i took exactly 8 hrs and driving time was 7 hours driving in a moderate pace. We had good rains for company from Handpost to Hagare.

[ajishanand]

Drove to Dharmasthala from Bangalore today. Started from Electronics city by 2.45pm and reached Dharmasthala by 9.15pm. The stretch from Sakleshpur till Shiradi ghat is pretty bad in condition. Lots of huge potholes and rough roads. Shiradi ghat is in pristine condition though. It was really a test for my Ecosport's ground clearance.

I will be returning tomorrow afternoon. Is there an alternative route to Bangalore which is in good condition so that I can avoid the bad stretch between Shiradi ghat and Sakaleshpur?

[procrj]

Originally Posted by ajishanand

Shiradi ghat and Sakaleshpur?

Charmady - Mudigere - Belur is your best bet if you want to avoid the bad stretch after Shiradi. Other option is Subramanya - Bisle but I have got very mixed reviews about the stretch before Bisle viewpoint.

[scorpion_blore]

Just did a trip last weekend with the below routes:
Onward: Bangalore - Sakleshpur - Shiradi Ghat - Kukke - Karkala
Return: Karkala - Belthangady - Ujire - Charmady Ghat - Mudigere - Belur - Hassan - Bangalore.

The drive from Bangalore to Sakleshpur was un-eventful, a very pleasant drive, although there were few bad patches between Hassan and Sakleshpur.
The initial part of the Shiradi Ghat from Manjarabad Fort is pathetic. The road condition was so bad that my new Amaze 2018 with 170mm GC scraped the bottom on 2-3 occasions. The later part of the route (about 20-30 kms toward Kukke) was much better.

The return drive from Karkala to Ujire and then via Charmaddi Ghat to Belur was a bliss. There were a few sections which were closed for repairs due to landslides. But it is something that can be managed, and since this stretch usually sees LMVs, it is not a big issue.

Those considering between Shiradi and Charmadi Ghat at least in the near future can definitely consider going via Charmadi Ghat. Yes, Charmadi Ghat is a bit tough to drive for inexperienced drivers, and there is a severe lack of facilities with no network coverage compared to Shiradi. One needs to proceed with caution in Charmadi.

[ravib]

Originally Posted by scorpion_blore

Just did a trip last weekend with the below routes:
Onward: Bangalore - Sakleshpur - Shiradi Ghat - Kukke - Karkala
Return: Karkala - Belthangady - Ujire - Charmady Ghat - Mudigere - Belur - Hassan - Bangalore.

I too did similar trip but for little longer for 4 days, to utilize Thanks giving holiday break in US
From your update, i guess I was misled about Charmadi ghat road condition as many local people said, the charmadi ghat roads are bad (which we heard in news many times), so had to take different detour long route towards Dharmasthala.

On 28th Nov Thursday => Bangalore-Hassan-Chikmagalur. Roads are pretty good all throughout. Left Bangalore at 4 pm and reached Chikmagalur at 8.30 pm.

On 29th Nov Friday => Chikmagalur-Sringeri-Srimane Falls-Agumbe-Sringeri.
Road conditions: Chikmagalur to Aldur is Bad. Beyond Aldur to Balehonnur to Sringeri, road condition is good and some places okay with lots of patches. Road expansion is happening as we get closer to Sringeri in last 15 kms.
Sringeri to Srimane Falls, majority of road is bad except for small stretches.
Sringeri to Agumbe has excellent butter smooth roads.

On 30th Nov Saturday => Sringeri-Jayapura-Balehonnur-Kalasa-Horanadu-Kalasa-Kudremukh National Park-Bajagoly-Belthangady-Ujire-Dharmasthala-Kukke Subramanya.

Road Conditions:
Sringeri-Jayapura-Balehonnur-Kalasa => Good to decent roads with occasional pot holes/patches.
Kalasa-Horanadu => Average Roads
Horanadu-Kalasa-Kudremukh National Park-Bajagoly => Average to Good roads in initial section. Later part of Kudremukh National Park till Bajagoly is good roads. Had to take this route as local people said not to go via Charmady ghats due to bad roads.
Bajagoly - Belthangady - Ujire - Dharmasthala => Bad to Average roads.
Dharmasthala to Kukke => Average patched roads to good roads.

On 1st Dec Sunday => Kukke-Shirady Ghats-Sakleshpur-Hassan-Bangalore. My update is almost same as yours. The road conditions 15 kms before Sakleshpur is horrible. Sakleshpur to Hassan is average with patches/bad. All other sections are good to very good.

Overall, i felt majority of roads are not good and one had to really slow down. It increases driving time and effort unfortunately.

-Ravi

[gypsyFreak]

Planning for Sringeri, Horanadu & Udupi piligrimage and beach trip from Bangalore in Jan 3rd week.
Any idea about the current condition of Belur - Gendehalli - Aldur - Sringeri route and good restaurants for lunch in this stretch.

[munishsurendra]

Road from sringeri to hornadu is pathetic which is via jayapura - heriur -basrikatte -balehole. This was suggested by locals here and had a really tough time reaching.

Well anyone travelled hornadu to dharmastala, suggest best route. Google maps showing different routes , one through charmady - shorter distance and other through bajegoli - belthangady.

[procrj]

Originally Posted by munishsurendra

jayapura - heriur -basrikatte -balehole.

this is known and hence best to avoid. AFAIK, Balehonnur - Magundi - Balehole - Hornadu has been the best route from Sringeri to Hornadu. Do check ravi's post above, where he has shared updates on the same.

Charmady - Ujire - Dharmasthala is your best bet. Roads are ok, Charmady is fine to drive as long as you don't have a problem negotiating some of the narrow sections. Else check ravi's post above for alternate route.

[manjubp]

Originally Posted by procrj

Charmady - Ujire - Dharmasthala is your best bet. Roads are ok, Charmady is fine to drive as long as you don't have a problem negotiating some of the narrow sections. Else check ravi's post above for alternate route.

Not really, I am just took this route last week. I would recommend you to take via Shiradi. Charmadi ghat road is not in best shape, while there is no craters on the road, but it is extremely patchy road and will slow you down and need too much of attention on the road. Now with LCV also allowed, I couldn't enjoy the route, as it was 2-3 months before.

[procrj]

Originally Posted by manjubp

Shiradi

Via Shiradi is a very long detour to get to Dharmasthala. Based on the last few updates on the BLR-Mangalore thread, Charmady still seems to be the better option when compared to Shiradi.

[gypsyFreak]

Originally Posted by gypsyFreak

Planning for Sringeri, Horanadu & Udupi piligrimage and beach trip from Bangalore in Jan 3rd week.
Any idea about the current condition of Belur - Gendehalli - Aldur - Sringeri route and good restaurants for lunch in this stretch.

Anyone traveled over the year end holidays. Would welcome updates on the road status.

[procrj]

Originally Posted by gypsyFreak

Anyone traveled over the year end holidays.

Assuming you are asking about Belur - Maravathi - Aldur route. A friend did take this 10 days ago and he mentioned that its drivable and took him approx 1 hour 10 minutes to get to Aldur. I think Belur - CKM - Aldur is faster and the distance is only 8 km longer as compared to the route in question.

[gypsyFreak]

Originally Posted by procrj

Assuming you are asking about Belur - Maravathi - Aldur route. A friend did take this 10 days ago and he mentioned that its drivable and took him approx 1 hour 10 minutes to get to Aldur. I think Belur - CKM - Aldur is faster and the distance is only 8 km longer as compared to the route in question.

Thanks.
What about food options beyond Belur?

[procrj]

Originally Posted by gypsyFreak

Thanks.
What about food options beyond Belur?

CKM is the only option, after which its Sringeri.
I prefer the below in CKM:
https://goo.gl/maps/CkufynCtLFHquehK6
https://goo.gl/maps/jvWHT67eJGVkmJzH8
https://goo.gl/maps/qbGLkrsc77rTgp4r9

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by procrj

Via Shiradi is a very long detour to get to Dharmasthala. Based on the last few updates on the BLR-Mangalore thread, Charmady still seems to be the better option when compared to Shiradi.

Actually via Shiradi has always been shorter whether it is Dharmasthala or Mangalore but the best part is that Via Charmadi, which adds another 15km to the overall distance, it has proven to be more efficient and quicker over the shorter route of Shiradi since years.

The only grouse with Charmadi is the feedback you will get to hear from drivers who may have expectations of wider roads or more facilities. Given the improved conditions between Sakleshpur and Hassan in the last 2-3 weeks, Shiradi should still be a better bet over Charmadi. Also, one need not be driving on the bad section after Gundya if he has to reach Dharmasthala.