[manjubp]

Hi BHPians,

We have a plan to visit Ooty from Oct 12th for 4 days. Request the information on the following from fellow BHPians.

1. Road condition between Mysore and Ooty
2. Breakfast/Brunch place between Mysore and Ooty
3. Any other information, usefull for the road trip, like gas stations, watchouts, etc.,

We are three adults and my 4year Son(will be seated in his boaster seat ) and only day time driving.

regards,
-manju

[Surprise]

Before Bandipur the roads will be pretty bad (very small stretch only) other than that roads are good.

which way r u planning to climb the hill - masinagudi or gudalur

where do u plan to stay in ooty

On u way to Ooty before bandipur, u can visit gopalsamy hills (good place) lots of reports in our travelogues section

[manjubp]

@suprise : Thanks for the response. Climbingup via Gudalur and down via masinagudi. Unless if someone suggest otherway. Staying in Holiday Inn. Plan to visit Gopalswamy Betta(Hills), while returining.

regards,
-manju

[rajshenoy]

I had gone till masinagudi abt a 1-2 months back.. i dont think roads wud hav changed much

i can say pretty good till masinagudi.. i dont know after that..

only small stretch as you near bandipur..from gundlupet.. abt 5 kms.. is bad.. but manageable

[Lukeskywalker]

Brunch could be at Pugmark- The restaurant run by jungle lodges and resorts just before you reach the Bandipur forest checkpost.

Fuel- You would be better off having a full tank at Bangalore itself, next best place would be Mysore or you hang on till Ooty.

Watch out for- just some amazing scenery and wild animals if you are lucky.

Road Condition- Not so good if you take the Gudalur route, but the Masinagudi route is pretty steep. Roads at the entry point of ooty are in pretty bad shape and the recent rains would have further deteriorated them unless some repair work has been done.

[rjstyles69]

Tank up in bangy and drive till ooty. Once in Ooty fill up from the bunk on the left side of the road. I think its BP, pretty easy to find too.

This bunk is quite prominent coz it has 2 floor's . Yeah 2 floors with fuel dispensers.

I once saw a bumper sticker which read " Ooty the queen of pot hole's " .

[akroy]

I am just back from Mysore Ooty trip yesterday...

My Alto survived the Masinagudi climb(36hairpins each with huge gradient) with 4 huge adults (300kgs) + luggage, it was indeed the stepest I have encountered and it was the endurance test for my car...I also pushed the car in first gear in the initial climbs just to test it but ended up reducing the coolant level...pls be patient while climbing, put to first gear if required, but dont push hard on first gear...still got a overall average of 17.5kmpl...
Undoubtedly it is the scenic road...Travelogue is coming soon...

Road via Gudalur is bad hence avoid it...Masinagudi is fine except few stretches before Bandipur and while entering Ooty...

While descent, pls be more careful, never ever put beyond second gear...my car was touching 50kmph easily in second gear till the brakes came to intervene...hence be more cautious and careful during descent...avoid hard brakings...

Good Food options:
1) Kamat Madhuvan (good breakfast joint)
2) Pugmark Restaurant (JLR, 1km before entering Bandipur FOrest)

Abhi

[Traxter]

Was lucky to see this nice tusker on the way up from Mys/Ooty back in May. Plus lots of deer..

Road was quite ok then. Saw at least two cars with their fronts slammed into the hill-side wall both on way up and down..exercise care when driving the Masinangudi route.

[kaushik_s]

Hey, I think better to tank up at Mysore and don't use Ooty Fuel.Seems like it is adulterated in most of the places there.So better be careful then to repent.
I just hope that Tamilnadu govt will wake up soon and repair the road via Gudalur. This route is much much more scenic then Masinagudi/Kalahatti route.People are surely missing some great vistas as they are not able to take that route. Places like Pykara lake,Sixth mile,shooting spot,Glenmorgan,frog hill viewpoint falls in that route and the drive through the Eucalyptus plantation is something to be experienced.
Another very beautiful place hidden from tourists in Ooty is the Avalanche and Red hills,(I think these areas called Upper Bhavani) The road is in horrible condition otherwise those places are much more scenic then any other places in Ooty itself.

EDIT : OT: Hey Lukeskywalker,isn't that picture in your signature is from ooty only? Red Hills, right?

[Lukeskywalker]

EDIT : OT: Hey Lukeskywalker,isn't that picture in your signature is from ooty only? Red Hills, right?

Yup! Kaushik, it is indeed, not Red Hills exactly, but a place called Destiny near Emerald, almost the same place!

[Surprise]

Originally Posted by akroy;581320[I

I also pushed the car in first gear in the initial climbs just to test it but ended up reducing the coolant level...[/i]pls be patient while climbing, put to first gear if required, but dont push hard on first gear...

Iam surprised that you managed to stay in 2nd gear during uphill (hope there is no way you could engage 3 rd).

During my visit to Ooty via masinagudi, my Swift struggled even in first gear and in few instances, when i tried to engage the 2nd, the car was about to stall. I managed to press the cluth in time and back to 1st gear. Adulterated petrol at Essar at Masinagudi could be one reason but not sure whether it can play such a huge role

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by Surprise

During my visit to Ooty via masinagudi, my Swift struggled even in first gear and in few instances, when i tried to engage the 2nd, the car was about to stall. I managed to press the cluth in time and back to 1st gear. Adulterated petrol at Essar at Masinagudi could be one reason but not sure whether it can play such a huge role

I've been up and down those slopes several times, and I do not recall any part of the drive that requires you to shift to first. You were probably not carrying enough speed into the climb, or your car has a problem - it may be the fuel.

The climb is a lot easier than the 36-hairpins-within-8kms tag seems to indicate. We've zipped up the slope in record time in a fully laden car with 'emaciated korean horses and bad handling'.

[Surprise]

Originally Posted by Steeroid

You were probably not carrying enough speed into the climb, or your car has a problem - it may be the fuel.

what were the speed u were talking about - 20 or 30 kmph

Also Iam new to these hill climbs, hence might be too slow and cautious in those hairpin bends

[esteem_lover]

Fuel could be one reason, but i think you need to carry some momentum into the curves, otherwise you will be stuck in first gear all the while.

[akroy]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

Fuel could be one reason, but i think you need to carry some momentum into the curves, otherwise you will be stuck in first gear all the while.

Still Masinagudi hill climb is damn steep, for lower powered cars (A, B segments), I think you have to put first at some point...probably in C classes and above you might not require it...
I have nice experience in hairpins hence I could survive on second gears because I was gathering enough momentum whenever I got chance...

This was the first time, I was putting first gear more often than any other drives...Actually I am not surprised that Surprise-Swift not pulling with full load in second gear...it is expected...

Abhi