[sv1976]

If Amboli is going to be crowded (assuming its around noon when we reach there) does it make sense to take the Karwar route while going to Calangute and do Amboli while coming back with a 9am start from North Goa on October 2nd? Given that both are holidays plus the long weekend and timing at Amboli is more or less the same in both options.

Also, will there be a significant difference in traffic for the drive through south Goa to Calangute?

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by sv1976

If Amboli is going to be crowded (assuming its around noon when we reach there) does it make sense to take the Karwar route while going to Calangute and do Amboli while coming back with a 9am start from North Goa on October 2nd? Given that both are holidays plus the long weekend and timing at Amboli is more or less the same in both options.

Also, will there be a significant difference in traffic for the drive through south Goa to Calangute?

Amboli crowd is not something that you need to be bothered about,would just slow you down a little around the waterfall, nothing more than that.Time taken via Amboli or via Karwar is going to be more or less the same.

[DigitalOne]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

Hi dreamdiesel

I am going to Goa on 22nd October for Dasara festival. Usually I take the Hubli-Ankola ghat road but this time need to go to Honavar first. Thinking to take Shimoga-Sagar-Hovavar route. I have Maruti Estilo and the journey depends on condition of the roads in that ghat section. I will be having my 2 year old daughter with me during this travel.
Is it OK to go via this route? I will not do a continuous journey due to my kid and will make a stay at Shimoga on 22nd night after starting from bangalore.

Originally Posted by DigitalOne

Hello,


NH4: Bangalore --> Tumkur --> Hiriyur --> Chitradurga --> Davangere (bypass) --> Harihar (Byepass ?) --> Ranebennur --> Haveri (Bypass) --> Hubli (Bypass)
--> then NH67/63 --> Yellapur --> Ankola --> then NH 66 towards Karwar and Goa.

Query 1: Google Maps shows me big deviation at Chitradurga. A left turn towards SH48 and then turn right back towards NH4. This seems to be quite unnecessary to me. Is this some sort of a bypass?

!!

I just came back from the Goa trip.

Onward journey: Took the Hubli-Ankola-Karwar route. Amazing route with very beautiful scenery on the Hubli Karwar stretch. Roads are in pretty good shape.

Observations:
The Kamat Upachars ( indicated in the other posts) are blink-and-you-miss-them kind of places. Though I had prepared reasonably, I missed the one at Sira and also the one before Hubli and had to turn back. When I inquired at one of the Kamat why there weren't direction boards some distance away, he said they don't have permission. Wonder why when there are boards on the Bangalore-Chennai route, so cannot be a National Highway rule or something.

There were a lot of signboards showing AH 47 on this highway. What does it mean?

There is no big deviation at Chitradurga. Must be a temporary quirk of Google Maps. It didn't show the deviation the next time I searched :-) .

You can go fast on this road but it is not Idiot proof. Lots on driving on the wrong side. Take care.

Return ( Goa --> Bangalore ): Took the Karwar --> Honnavar --> Sagar --> Shimoga route. (@rajivtelang,) Roads are atrociously bad between Ankola and Honnavar. The roads between Honnavar and Jog falls are bad in stretches. From Jog Falls to Bangalore, through Sagar and Shimoga, roads are pretty fine with only minimum bad stretches. I don't recommend the route now.

Stay at Hotel Mayura Gerusoppa, Jog Falls, was pleasant. The hotel rooms have a nice view of the falls. It is a decent place to take a break if you are planning to drive to/from Goa. Beats the Shimoga town based hotels/lodges for a relaxing stopover. Don't expect 5-star services and you won't be disappointed.

Again, thanks a million to team-bhpians for the great info provided here .

[NPV]

Originally Posted by DigitalOne

Onward journey: Took the Hubli-Ankola-Karwar route. Amazing route with very beautiful scenery on the Hubli Karwar stretch. Roads are in pretty good shape.

Observations:
The Kamat Upachars ( indicated in the other posts) are blink-and-you-miss-them kind of places. Though I had prepared reasonably, I missed the one at Sira and also the one before Hubli and had to turn back. When I inquired at one of the Kamat why there weren't direction boards some distance away, he said they don't have permission. Wonder why when there are boards on the Bangalore-Chennai route, so cannot be a National Highway rule or something.

There were a lot of signboards showing AH 47 on this highway. What does it mean?

You can go fast on this road but it is not Idiot proof. Lots on driving on the wrong side. Take care.

Return ( Goa --> Bangalore ): Took the Karwar --> Honnavar --> Sagar --> Shimoga route. (@rajivtelang,) Roads are atrociously bad between Ankola and Honnavar. The roads between Honnavar and Jog falls are bad in stretches. From Jog Falls to Bangalore, through Sagar and Shimoga, roads are pretty fine with only minimum bad stretches. I don't recommend the route now.

The route you took for your onward route is indeed in good shape

About spotting the Kamat restaurant - very true. During my trip few months ago, the only Kamat I could spot easily was the one before Dobbaspet! We did not stop here as it too early so had breakfast at Davanagere.
On the way back we stopped at the Kamat near Ankola and we almost missed this one too before we realised it has to be accessed through an opening next to the Indian Oil petrol pump.

AH stands for Asian Highway, you can look it up on the web for more info.
None of our roads are idiot proof - you will have to be alert at all times for oncoming traffic in your lane!

The ghat road between Honnavar - Sharavati valley was not in good shape even few months ago when I traveled. Also we experienced too many instances of cattle, people, bullock cart, etc criss-crossing the 2 laned roads between Shimoga and Tumkur at the blink of an eye, so have to be careful on this route. But, our stops at Jog Falls and the Tyavarekoppa Lion and Tiger safari made it worthwhile taking this route.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by DigitalOne

The Kamat Upachars ( indicated in the other posts) are blink-and-you-miss-them kind of places. Though I had prepared reasonably,
I missed the one at Sira and also the one before Hubli and had to turn back.

Originally Posted by NPV

About spotting the Kamat restaurant - very true. During my trip few months ago, the only Kamat I could spot easily was the one before
Dobbaspet! We did not stop here as it too early so had breakfast at Davanagere. On the way back we stopped at the Kamat near Ankola and we
almost missed this one too before we realised it has to be accessed through an opening next to the Indian Oil petrol pump.

This is where having a dedicated GPS device helps a lot. Before you embark on the journey, you should find out all these places and mark them as
your waypoints. Even though content is available in a GPS map, it does not get highlighted, unless searched. Marked waypoints are always highlighted.

I have never missed thanks to this. If I dont spot a location which I marked in my GPS, I would search for where it went !

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by ampere

This is where having a dedicated GPS device helps a lot. )

Slightky OT but since we are on GPS,MMI maps is offering their Sygic maps for Apple Iphones at 29USD.The offer was there earlier and I guess they have brought it back again now.

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by DigitalOne

Return ( Goa --> Bangalore ): Took the Karwar --> Honnavar --> Sagar --> Shimoga route. (@rajivtelang,) Roads are atrociously bad between Ankola and Honnavar. The roads between Honnavar and Jog falls are bad in stretches. From Jog Falls to Bangalore, through Sagar and Shimoga, roads are pretty fine with only minimum bad stretches. I don't recommend the route now.
.

Thanks a lot but I need to visit Honavar anyways, it will not matter if I take Hubli-Ankola or Shimoga-Honavar route. None of the options can save me from the bad roads between Ankola and Honavar

Now as my destination is Goa the choice I am left with is to take the Shimoga-Honavar route and save traveling distance and of course visit these bad road once. While returning from Goa I am anyways taking my favorite Ankola-Hubli road.

[pramodpk]

Came back after a Goa trip yesterday. Took the Bangalore - Hubli -Belgaum - Amboli - Sawantwadi - Mapusa - Saligao route and Saligao - Panaji - Margoa - Karwar - Ankola - Hubli - Bangalore for the return.

Started at 4:55 AM from Brookefields and reached Mapusa at 5:30 PM. It took some time to reach the final destination at Saligao. Total distance - 694 KMs.
The Belgaum - Amboli road is broken but can be easily managed during daytime. There is no place where you have to bring the car to a complete halt to negotiate the potholes. Just that the surface is broken and potholes are present. Could not spot any decent restaurants after Tumkur till the Kamat between Ranibennur and Davangere. Stopped at Kamat for breakfast at 9:19 AM covering a distance of 313 KMs. Had a late lunch at Kamat Amboli. Liked the ambience and food.


Started at 6:25 AM from Saligao and reached home at 6:45 PM. Total distance 716 KMs. Roads were excellent. NH 17 from Goa to Ankola is in excellent condition. NH 63 between Ankola and Hubli is also excellent except the ghats where the surface is eroded a bit. Could cover Saligao - Hubli in 5.5 hours with multiple breaks totalling 1 hour. Could not spot any decent hotel after the Kamat yatrinivas after Hubli. Stopped at 'Evergreen hotel' around 30 Kms before Chitradurga but did not eat there as the place was very dirty. Finally had to manage with bananas and biscuit for lunch. Stopped for snacks at Kamat Upachar after Tumkur toll. Did not encounter long lines at the toll booths in Nelamangala or Tumkur.


I would recommend the Hubli - Ankola - Karwar route to any part of Goa as it would be faster. I do not regret taking the Belgaum route since I wanted to explore the new route and it is scenic too.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by pramodpk

Could not spot any decent hotel after the Kamat yatrinivas after Hubli. Stopped at 'Evergreen hotel' around 30 Kms before Chitradurga but did not eat there as the place was very dirty. Finally had to manage with bananas and biscuit for lunch. Stopped for snacks at Kamat Upachar after Tumkur toll. Did not encounter long lines at the toll booths in Nelamangala or Tumkur.

There is a Kamat at Sira.

Location

[pramodpk]

Originally Posted by ampere

There is a Kamat at Sira.

Location

yes. I remember spotting this but it was well past lunch time and I wanted to cross Tumkur toll booth before the traffic builds up. This is very close to a diversion.

[hrman]

Originally Posted by pramodpk

Came back after a Goa trip yesterday. Took the Bangalore - Hubli -Belgaum - Amboli - Sawantwadi - Mapusa - Saligao route and Saligao - Panaji - Margoa - Karwar - Ankola - Hubli - Bangalore for the return.


Started at 6:25 AM from Saligao and reached home at 6:45 PM. Total distance 716 KMs. Roads were excellent. NH 17 from Goa to Ankola is in excellent condition. NH 63 between Ankola and Hubli is also excellent except the ghats where the surface is eroded a bit.
.

Thanks for the fresh update. I will be going this month for the Dassera holidays to North Goa, Bardez and was a bit confused between the Belgaum-Amboli route and the Hubli-Ankola route. Now I am clear that Ill stick to the Hubli-Ankola route.
Just curious, what was the average speed, highest speed and your mileage for the trip?.

[pramodpk]

Originally Posted by hrman

Thanks for the fresh update. I will be going this month for the Dassera holidays to North Goa, Bardez and was a bit confused between the Belgaum-Amboli route and the Hubli-Ankola route. Now I am clear that Ill stick to the Hubli-Ankola route.
Just curious, what was the average speed, highest speed and your mileage for the trip?.

I was maintaining 100 - 120 KM/h on the expressway and on the Hubli - Ankola road. Did not exceed the official speed limit of 70 KM/h inside Goa. I touched 140 KM/h only on couple of occasions but I usually do not maintain such speeds. I did not check the average but I guess it is around 15 KM/L.

[motorpsycho]

Hello All,

Has anyone tried the Dharwad-Kelgeri -Goa route, the SH 34, I went on a drive on this route on Ganesh Chaturti till Kumbard ,the road has been widened and tared , though not sure how much of it has been completed. For now the road looked fantastic with nice curves ,it's quite scenic too with most of the road cutting through jungles.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by motorpsycho

Hello All,

Has anyone tried the Dharwad-Kelgeri -Goa route, the SH 34, I went on a drive on this route on Ganesh Chaturti till Kumbard ,the road has been widened and tared , though not sure how much of it has been completed. For now the road looked fantastic with nice curves ,it's quite scenic too with most of the road cutting through jungles.

SH34 to Alnavar from Dharawad was in tatters before monsoon (Jan-Feb time).
I dont know its current status. If it has been tarred that is good news.


By Kumard, do you mean Kumbharwada on the Joida-Kadra road?
(I dont know about this, hence asking)

Also do you mean the full Dharwad-Alnavar has been tarred?

[motorpsycho]

Originally Posted by ampere

SH34 to Alnavar from Dharawad was in tatters before monsoon (Jan-Feb time).
I dont know its current status. If it has been tarred that is good news.


By Kumard, do you mean Kumbharwada on the Joida-Kadra road?
(I dont know about this, hence asking)

Also do you mean the full Dharwad-Alnavar has been tarred?

There was news in the papers a few years ago that the work would start. So looks like it's coming to completion now. Pics are in my friends DSLR will post them ASAP.

Yes the same place ,There was a board in a monastery in this village that spelled it a Kumbard. There is a very nice place in the village of Kumbard/Kumbharwada called Handibadanganth. Check it out if you happen to be on the way.

The road beyond Alnavar has been tared but not the whole stretch, the work is being completed.

Click here for the project


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