[alto99]

Came back from Pune-Kerala trip yesterday.
Day1 (27th) : Was supposed to start at 4 AM but got delayed till 6 AM as battery was down due to map light remaining on for more than 24 hrs. Took NH4 to reach Bangalore at about 8PM with breakfast/lunch/tea breaks. Road condition is bad (potholes/uneven surface) from Shirwal to 15 kms after Satara. Good thing is there are no diversions anymore on NH4. Speed breakers are present after Belgaum; some unmarked.
Day2 (28th) : Started at about 9:30 AM from Bangalore. Reached Munnar via Salem-Perundiyar-Udumalaipet at about 7 30 PM. Drove for about 10-15 kms in thick fog in the evening (was very dark even though it was just 6 PM) at speeds of about 10kmph. Road condition is good except Udumalipet-Munnar where its average. Tamilnadu checkpost guards were shamelss enough to ask for tips. Kerala ones were honest.
Day3 (29th) : Sightseeing in Munnar (Dam/Lake/Top station) + shopping. Road condition is good except for some sections.
Day4 (30th) : Started from Munnar at about 9 AM for Thekkady. Took a wrong route for Thekkady (via Idukki). Road condition was below average till Puliyanmala after which it is excellent. Reached at about 2 PM only to find that boat ride was full. So went on for elephant ride and started towards allepey at about 530. Reached allepey at about 930.
Day5 (31st) : Allepey houseboat (stay)
Day6 (1st Nov) : Checked out from Allepey and started towards Ooty at about 930AM. Had to break at Kochi at about 1045 as I had a feeling car had developed a whine in front wheel. Was either tree twigs stuck somewhere or the road surface as there wasnt any issue as diagonised by Cosmic Honda.Started towards Thrissur at about 1130. Reached Coimbatore via Shoranur at about 430 (after lunch break). Road condition all the way was good. In coimbatore spent about 30min time in finding Ooty road as I missed a turn within the city. After I found the road it was a nightmare for next 15-20 kms. There are literally no roads in this section. Rain water was flowing like river at couple of places. These are the worst roads (or rather no roads) encountered throughout the journey. Reached Ooty at about 9 PM. Road condition after the nightmarish roads is good.
Day7 (2nd) : Visited rose/botanical garden and Doddabetta and started towards Mysore at about 1.30 PM. Reached Mysore at about 630PM as drive through Madumalai/Bandipur national park was with lots of stops. Road condition is good but with quite a few potholes till Gudalur
Day8 (3rd) : Visited Mysore zoo, chandan /silk factory and started towards Kolhapur by 11AM. Orginal plan was to go through Channarayapattana, Arassikere Huliyar to hiriyur. Ended up taking wrong turn in Pandavapura and decided to continue through Turuvekere. Roads are good but lots of speedbreakers and occasional stretches with potholes. Reached at 10:15PM in Kolhapur.
Day9 (4th) : Started from Kolhapur at about 2 and reached Pune by 630PM. As said earlier road condition is bad along the same stretches from 10-20km before Satara to Shirval.

Thanks all for guidance.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by alto99

Day2 (28th) : Started at about 9:30 AM from Bangalore. Reached Munnar via Salem-Perundiyar-Udumalaipet at about 7 30 PM. Drove for about 10-15 kms in thick fog in the evening (was very dark even though it was just 6 PM) at speeds of about 10kmph. Road condition is good except Udumalipet-Munnar where its average. Tamilnadu checkpost guards were shamelss enough to ask for tips. Kerala ones were honest.

Great drive.

The above in quote is exactly what I keep warning most folks all the time.
One needs to time his entry to Munnar correctly. Else he would end up driving in think fog and darkness as you had to. (Even I suffered the same)

A three hour earlier start from Bangalore should have solved that problem.
Also since you did not return back on the Udumalpet-Munnar route you might have missed the best part of the route (Udumalpet-Munnar) trying to hurry up in reaching your destination.

An ideal start at 4 from Bangalore would have lead you to spend maximum time on the Udumalpet-Munnar section enjoying the vistas.

Also which section of roads on CBE-Ooty was horrible? Can you mark them on Google maps? That would help others as well.

[alto99]

Originally Posted by ampere

Great drive.

The above in quote is exactly what I keep warning most folks all the time.
One needs to time his entry to Munnar correctly. Else he would end up driving in think fog and darkness as you had to. (Even I suffered the same)

A three hour earlier start from Bangalore should have solved that problem.
Also since you did not return back on the Udumalpet-Munnar route you might have missed the best part of the route (Udumalpet-Munnar) trying to hurry up in reaching your destination.

An ideal start at 4 from Bangalore would have lead you to spend maximum time on the Udumalpet-Munnar section enjoying the vistas.

Also which section of roads on CBE-Ooty was horrible? Can you mark them on Google maps? That would help others as well.

We were actually steady on Udumalpet-Munnar and stopped multiple times. The last stop was at about 530PM at a place from where one can see a huge waterfall. After that it got dark in minutes and fog took over.

Here is the section on google maps which was worst.
Oppanakara Street to NH 67 - Google Maps
Note that it is approximate. I was already frustated as I had missed a left turn and ended up in very small lanes. After i joined Ooty road after first few kms the nightmare started and ended after approximately 10 kms. It may be more or less but is definitely within the strech marked above.
The road is under construction (being expanded probably but one cannot even guess what they did to the existing road!).

Edit: Thankfully managed to get out of above without a single scrape for which civic is too popular. Karnataka wins when it comes to mountains on roads. Scraped too many of them from Mysore to Hiriyur and also on NH4.

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by alto99

We were actually steady on Udumalpet-Munnar and stopped multiple times. The last stop was at about 530PM at a place from where one can see a huge waterfall. After that it got dark in minutes and fog took over.

Here is the section on google maps which was worst.
Oppanakara Street to NH 67 - Google Maps
Note that it is approximate. I was already frustated as I had missed a left turn and ended up in very small lanes. After i joined Ooty road after first few kms the nightmare started and ended after approximately 10 kms. It may be more or less but is definitely within the strech marked above.
The road is under construction (being expanded probably but one cannot even guess what they did to the existing road!).

Edit: Thankfully managed to get out of above without a single scrape for which civic is too popular. Karnataka wins when it comes to mountains on roads. Scraped too many of them from Mysore to Hiriyur and also on NH4.

Glad to know you had a successful drive.Seeing your drive times within Kerala looks like you did a real slow drive within Kerala.Nevertheless hope it was fun.Is there a link to the pictures/travelogue?

[alto99]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Glad to know you had a successful drive.Seeing your drive times within Kerala looks like you did a real slow drive within Kerala.Nevertheless hope it was fun.Is there a link to the pictures/travelogue?

Overall I had to drive a bit slower than normal as the car was loaded with 5 adults + luggage as I had to be extra careful on potholes/speed breakers. In kerala, I did not have routes for Munnar-Thekkady/ Thekkady - Allepey as I was planning to skip Thekkady. I dont think I took correct route to Thekkady. Add to that the rains. It was raining heavily in Munnar and very heavily throughout the drive from Thekkady to Allepey.

[sandeep joshi]

One general question:
In south Indian states like karnataka , kerala , TN ,
are signboards on state highways , also in cities like mysore, ooty and on National highways are in only local languages or in English also ?

As I did not know any south Indian language , just wondering how you travel if all signboards are in kannada or malyalayam?

[alto99]

Originally Posted by sandeep joshi

One general question:
In south Indian states like karnataka , kerala , TN ,
are signboards on state highways , also in cities like mysore, ooty and on National highways are in only local languages or in English also ?

As I did not know any south Indian language , just wondering how you travel if all signboards are in kannada or malyalayam?

Many of them are in English.
I use a GPS app (offline) on my mobile and download routes suggested by google which the app on overlay on the maps.
While traveling from Munnar to Thekkady at one junciton GPS was not working (cloudy + lots of trees and hills). Mistake I did was to asked a local and he guided me to a alternate route. Later when GPS started working I was way off the planned route.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by sandeep joshi

As I did not know any south Indian language , just wondering how you travel if all signboards are in kannada or malyalayam?

Signboards are pretty decent and available in English in most places.
The other easier option is to buy MMI Maps for Mobile (Available for Iphone and Android).
They are available at about 2.5K.

[atul_31]

Hi,
Just wish to share my experience of driving from Mumbai to Kanyakumari and Kerala. 2.11.11 to 13.11.11


My Machine – Ford Fiesta Diesel, about 4 yrs old, done 89000 kms


Distance covered - 3930 kms.


Fuel – 249 lts


Pre-drive checks – Serviced, New tyres with alignment, Suspensions changed, Clutch work done.


Day 1 – Mumbai to Bangalore (NH 4) 1000 kms in 13.5 hrs. Started at 4.45 am. Breakfast at Kolhapur (9.30 am). There is a McDonalds on the opposite side but no other decent joint. Lunch at Davangere (2.30 pm). Forget the name of the place but there is only one decent place so don’t miss it. At Bangalore took the NICE ring road to completely bypass Bangalore traffic and reached Hosur road. Stayed for the night at Hotel The Lark (Mango suites) at Electronic city. Superb place for a night-cap. Excellent roads overall , all double laned except for a 30 kms patch between Dharwad and Hubli.


Day 2 – Bangalore to Kanyakumari (NH 7) 650 kms in 9 hrs. Visited Meenakshi Temple in Madurai on the way (1.5 hr halt). Beautiful roads. Total toll paid from Mumbai to KK - Rs.1385/-


Day 4 – Kanyakumari to Kumarakom. Approx 250 kms. Had to change plans and start from KK at 12 midnight because of impending Kerala strike. Challenging to say the least. Had to ask my way many times and had to travel thru small village roads with no signage. Reached by 5.45 am. Really don’t know which roads inner roads I took (confusing names). Would not recommend doing it at night unless one is really familiar with the roads.


Day 6 – Kumarakom to Thekkady (NH 220 – Kottayam Kumily road) 125 kms. of twists and turns. Did it in 3 hrs. Strongly recommend Tab. Avomine for those prone to motion sickness. Decent road though.


Day 8 – Thekkady to Munnar . About 100 kms. Took about 4 hrs. Thekkady to Cumbam. Left on to Cumbamettu – Nedukandam – Munnar.


Day 10 – Munnar to Bangalore – 525 kms . About 9 hrs. Started at 6.15 am. Enjoyed Munnar to Udumalpetai drive. Munnar – Udumalpetai – NH 209 - Palani – Odanchathiram – Vedasandur – NH 7. Could have gone thru Tiruppur to Salem (70 kms less) but did not know condition of roads there.


Day 11 – Bangalore to Mumbai. Started at 5 .15 am. Encountered foggy conditions till Tumkur but manageable.


Good signages overall except Tamil Nadu where I found many boards only in Tamil (even on National highways).


Many thanks to ‘Ampere” for suggesting the route. Always willing to help with more info if anyone is planning a trip.

[joen23]

Hi Friends, I am planning to do a trip by road to trichur from Thane/mumbai. I will be driving a Honda city. Need advise on road conditions, best route to take. Also what kind of mileage can i expect from the city on this long drive?
About the car, its going to be a year old in june
I had upsized the tires to Yoko195/65/15 done close to 7000k.
pls advise on tire pressures as well considering the heat.

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by joen23

Hi Friends, I am planning to do a trip by road to trichur from Thane/mumbai. I will be driving a Honda city. Need advise on road conditions, best route to take. Also what kind of mileage can i expect from the city on this long drive?
About the car, its going to be a year old in june
I had upsized the tires to Yoko195/65/15 done close to 7000k.
pls advise on tire pressures as well considering the heat.

Fastest route would be Thane-Pune-NH4 all the way till Nelamangala(Bangalore)-NICE Road-Hosur-Salem-Coimbatore-Palakkad-Thrissur.

Day 1:Thane-Hosur or Bangalore
Day 2:Hosur or Bangalore-Thrissur

If you want to go via Goa,then the route is:

Thane-Panvel-NH17-Goa-Mangalore-Kasargod-Kannur-Kozhikode-Akkikavu-Pannithadam-Kecheri-Puzhakkal-Thrissur.

Day 1:Thane-Karwar or maybe Honnavar/Muruduseshwar
Day 2:Off to Thrissur

However the NH17 would be a slow and tiring drive,NH4 is the preferred route.Traffic is dense,single laned road,widening in progress at many locations etc.

Road conditions excellent all throughout.Mileage is entirely dependent on your style of driving/use of a/c,fuel quality enroute and only you would know what is the current FE of your car.You might see an improvement of around 3-4kms per litre in the FE on the highways on long drives.Maintain standard tyre pressures,only precaution I would take is not to fill or check air at any of the pumps enroute while running,as tyres when hot give out wrong indicators.It is best to check air pressure before you start your drive when the tyres cooled and are at normal temperatures.

More details at this thread http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...-kerala-4.html

[joen23]

Thanks Ranjit but why do say Thane-Hosur-trichur is the fastest. i will be doing almost 200k more than the route I had planned...thane-pune-Dharwad-gokarna-Trichur(NH-17)
I guess till kerala border the roads are fine after that, no idea.

[PRADEEP KUMAR]

Good signages overall except Tamil Nadu where I found many boards only in Tamil (even on National highways).

Quite surprising!!.
Am sure all NH's have the local language and English beneath it.
TN State highways ,definitly yes.
Doubt this!
cheers!!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by joen23

Thanks Ranjit but why do say Thane-Hosur-trichur is the fastest. i will be doing almost 200k more than the route I had planned...thane-pune-Dharwad-gokarna-Trichur(NH-17)
I guess till kerala border the roads are fine after that, no idea.

Thats because the whole route is four lane as compared to NH17 which is only 2-lane with lots of twists and turns.
The difference of 200 km would show up as much less stress and fatigue while driving on the GQ.

[joen23]

Hmmm, so you guys suggest I take the Hosur route? If its a 4 lane right thru i dont mind actually doing that extra distance. Thanks