[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

That is nice to know. My last experience was over a year ago and that was truly horrible. There's nice 4 lane road and then suddenly you have a huge crater in front of you and no road.

Well, now you dont really need to be bothered about the crater but watch out for speebbreakers (most of them marked), especially between Davanagere and Haveri!

Even that bad stretch nearing the 2 railway crossings has been asphalted time and again due to constant deterioration, otherwise this was the worst part.

Am sure your experience this time will be different in case you take this stretch.

[reignofchaos]

Thanks for the news. I'll probably take NH206 while going and return by NH4.

[chethan.ram]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Thanks for the news. I'll probably take NH206 while going and return by NH4.

Please post your comments once you are back. I plan to do it in November.

Information given by paragsachania seems to be really helpful. Thanks brother.

[reignofchaos]

Yup I'll definitely post my report soon. I'm gonna leave at 2-3am tonight.

[chethan.ram]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Yup I'll definitely post my report soon. I'm gonna leave at 2-3am tonight.

Have a wonderful time in Goa.

[reignofchaos]

Posting from Goa. I took the Tumkur-Tiptur-Shimoga-Sagar-Jog route and there are numerous bad patches all the way. The roads are in pretty bad shape compared to what I saw them two years ago. Highly avoidable route.

From Jog, hearing about how bad the honnavar route is, I took Jog-Siddapur-Kumta and that bit is mostly okay other than around 10-15km of potholed road between siddapur and kumta. Jog to Siddapur is beautiful brand new tarmac - amazing road. This bit was potholed the last time i travelled on it.

NH17 from Kumta onwards to South Goa is most fine other than a few manageable bad patches around Karwar.

I'd say avoid NH206 unless you must see Jog falls. Please take the NH4/NH4A or NH4/NH63 route.

[chethan.ram]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Posting from Goa. I took the Tumkur-Tiptur-Shimoga-Sagar-Jog route and there are numerous bad patches all the way. The roads are in pretty bad shape compared to what I saw them two years ago. Highly avoidable route.

I'd say avoid NH206 unless you must see Jog falls. Please take the NH4/NH4A or NH4/NH63 route.

This is a very good piece of information. Thank you so much. Which route do you plan to take while coming back? And also how was the weather throughout?

[reignofchaos]

Originally Posted by chethan.ram

This is a very good piece of information. Thank you so much. Which route do you plan to take while coming back? And also how was the weather throughout?

Probably gonna do NH4A/NH4. There's no way I'm spending 12-13 hours again and that too on bad roads.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Probably gonna do NH4A/NH4. There's no way I'm spending 12-13 hours again and that too on bad roads.

You certainly won't regret NH4 even it meant passing the under construction stretch for sure. It would surely make sense to take this road now.

[JLN]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Posting from Goa. I took the Tumkur-Tiptur-Shimoga-Sagar-Jog route and there are numerous bad patches all the way. The roads are in pretty bad shape compared to what I saw them two years ago. Highly avoidable route.

From Jog, hearing about how bad the honnavar route is, I took Jog-Siddapur-Kumta and that bit is mostly okay other than around 10-15km of potholed road between siddapur and kumta. Jog to Siddapur is beautiful brand new tarmac - amazing road. This bit was potholed the last time i travelled on it.

NH17 from Kumta onwards to South Goa is most fine other than a few manageable bad patches around Karwar.

I'd say avoid NH206 unless you must see Jog falls. Please take the NH4/NH4A or NH4/NH63 route.

This is great information. I am planning a road trip in end September and was planning to do the Jog route - staying near Jog overnight. Based on your feedback on the bad roads, I am now planning to do the NH4 route and skip Jog. Thanks a ton - you definitely saved me some money on the hotel, and the trouble of driving through bad roads. I will eagerly await your feedback on the return trip through NH4.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Posting from Goa. I took the Tumkur-Tiptur-Shimoga-Sagar-Jog route and there are numerous bad patches all the way. The roads are in pretty bad shape compared to what I saw them two years ago. Highly avoidable route.


I'd say avoid NH206 unless you must see Jog falls. Please take the NH4/NH4A or NH4/NH63 route.

Thanks for the route update. The Tiptur-Arsikere-Kadur-Tarikere sector has been in bad shape for quite some time (even before the rains).

I have a suggestion for a slightly longer route, but has fine roads all the way, which is Bangalore-Hassan-Chickmagalur-Tarikere-Shimoga-Jog.

[reignofchaos]

Yup - in detail, here are the places where the bad roads are

Completely broken roads inside Tiptur and Tarikere town

Bad stretch before and after Sagar

A really bad stretch of around 10-15km between Sagar and Jog

There a level crossing somewhere between Tarikere and Shimoga
which has 1km of no road on both sides. Its basically a lot of stones

Other than these, you'll find sudden potholes on the road so you can never be
sure and increase speeds since you might end up ruining your car's suspension.

Surprisingly NH17 was almost perfect other than one or two landslide affected places and around Karwar.


PS: If you are looking for reasonably priced accommodation in Goa, this one is highly recommended

http://www.thezurihotels.com/Retreat-Goa/index.aspx

I got a 3 night deal for around 6000 bucks for a suite since its off season. Let me tell you this 2000 rupee suite bests almost every 10k+ 5 deluxe star room I've been in. The beach is almost walking distance and the place is exquisitely beautiful. Has free breakfast and wifi thrown in as well.

[techn0l0gist]

I had the (mis) fortune to drive between blr-goa thrice since last month :'( the best route in terms of road surface and comfort is Bangalore - Tumkur - Davangere - Haveri - Hubli - (take left to ankola via yellapur) - ankola - karwar - goa .

[itwasntme]

Did Bangalore-Goa-Bangalore via NH4/4A (Tumkur-D'gere-Haveri-Hubli-Kittur-Bidi-Ramnagar--Londa-Ponda-Madgoan-Colva 2 weeks back. Took around 9.5 hours with 1.5 hours break.

My 2 bits:
1. All bypasses now open including Ranibennur.

2. The ROBs at the 2 level crossings are still a long away but at least the roas has
been tarred recently.

3. Look out for marked/unmarked speedbreakers on NH4

4. Avoid Kittur-Bidi route. While it probably does save time/distance, the road is a total mess and the chances of a puncture are high becuase of the narrow road, very high drop-offs, lack of shoulders and razor-sharp stones.

5. Look out for a few (but deep) potholes on the Ramnagar-Ponda stretch as the trees cast shadows on the road thus hiding the biggies! Also be aware that the mining trucks can put quite a thick layer of mud on the road and any unplanned braking on these spots can be lethal. SLOW down on these stretches and plan ahead for braking/turns etc. I came across 2 Tata 407s which seemed to have understeered/oversteered off the road.

6. Be very careful on NH17/17B in Goa itself as it is overall quite narrow, there are very very few SAFE overtaking spots and the local traffic is quite aggressive.

7. Ensure ample windshield washer liquid/fluid etc as there can be a lot of muddy road spray thrown up; washing them off immediately with wipers/spray can mean the difference between life and death!

Hope this helps!

[JLN]

Originally Posted by techn0l0gist

I had the (mis) fortune to drive between blr-goa thrice since last month :'( the best route in terms of road surface and comfort is Bangalore - Tumkur - Davangere - Haveri - Hubli - (take left to ankola via yellapur) - ankola - karwar - goa .

Can you please provide more details? Since you have mentioned "Misfortune", is the road you have mentioned even worth driving in or should I just take a flight/train/Volvo to Goa?

If the road is worth driving in, which are the bad parts to watch out for, other tips?

From the other posts, the Shimoga route seems pretty bad; the Kittur route is also bad. So I guess the options are what you have suggested or going up to Belgaum and driving to Goa from there.