[kala]

Originally Posted by pariwar

Questions:

1. Any recent updates on the road conditions between Chamarajnagar & Gundlupet?

Not much of a change in conditions over the past 6-8 months. Fairly decent with occasional short bad patches - Nothing to worry about though.

1. Since I will be very early for Nijaguna, planning to stop for breakfast at Gundlupet. Any suggestions for a good Veg Restaurant with clean toilets for the wife?

Most of the restaurants in Gundlupet are before the town when coming from Mysore. So when going from Chamarajnagar you need to take a right at the T junction in Gundlupet and go a couple of kms to wards Mysore. There's a CCD, a Hotel Misty Rock and an Udupi restaurant. Not sure about the quality of the toilets in the last place, but the other two should be pretty good.

On the return, plan to take Coonoor - Mettupalayam - Bannari - NH209 route.
Question:

1. Any recent updates on the Puliampatti - Bhavanisagar - Bannari road conditions

No recent updates, but it used to be good about 6-8 months back, and can't see it deteriorating too much since it doesn't carry too much of traffic. By the way you don't need to touch Puliampatti - the shorter route is Mettupalayam-Bhavani Sagar-Bannari

Question:

1. Any really very good vegetarian restaurants that I should not be missing out on when in Ooty?

Hotel Nahar near Charing Cross is quite decent - though generally very crowded. Can't think of any other vegetarian ones.

[ravib]

Originally Posted by pariwar

Hi!

Am planning to go to Ooty on Monday, 12th May. 0500 hrs start from Bangalore University. Intend to do NH209 all through with a turn off at Chamarajnagar towards Gundlupet.

Questions:

1. Any recent updates on the road conditions between Chamarajnagar & Gundlupet?
2. Since I will be very early for Nijaguna, planning to stop for breakfast at Gundlupet. Any suggestions for a good Veg Restaurant with clean toilets for the wife?

On the return, plan to take Coonoor - Mettupalayam - Bannari - NH209 route.


Question:

1. Any recent updates on the Puliampatti - Bhavanisagar - Bannari road conditions

At Ooty, I plan to do the following:

1. Dodabetta Lookout
2. Botanical Gardens
3. Boating at Ooty Lake
4. Ooty - Coonoor Train (tickets already booked)
5. Upper Bhavani Lake - Emerald & Avalanche Lakes.

Anything else that I should definitely not miss out on?


Question:

1. Any really very good vegetarian restaurants that I should not be missing out on when in Ooty?

As @kala & @coolclouds provided road updates, few more points from my side.

Though NH209 is good, for 5 am start, i think Mysore road will do for you.

Ooty will be super crowded in this month. You will have parking problems in Doddabetta, so reserve some more time for it.
Upper Bhavani/Emerald/Avalance will take one full day. Suggest to pack food and go there as they are virgin forests and no facilities available. Hope you have read through the threads related to it in TBHP and know the procedures to get permission from forest department.

Don't miss the Tea Museum and if time permits, visit the Rose Garden too. They are nice places to see. I believe in the month of may, they conduct flower shows but not sure about the dates in Botanical Garden. Check it out.

Other places that are not in your list are Pykara & 7th mile. They are in opposite direction towards Gudalur. Plan based on your time availability but they are must see places too.

Last but not least, never return from ooty without having food in Nahar Nilgiris @ Charring cross. Awesome yummy food they serve

-Ravi

[NPV]

Originally Posted by ravib

Upper Bhavani/Emerald/Avalance will take one full day. Suggest to pack food and go there as they are virgin forests and no facilities available. Hope you have read through the threads related to it in TBHP and know the procedures to get permission from forest department.

On my trip last week I was told by the folks at the resort that there is no permission required for visits to Upper Bhavani/Avalanchi. Just drive down to Avalanchi check post, park your car there and take the Jeep ride organized by the forest department (IIRC Rs.150 per person).

[ampere]

Originally Posted by NPV

On my trip last week I was told by the folks at the resort that there is no permission required for visits to Upper Bhavani/Avalanchi. Just drive down to Avalanchi check post, park your car there and take the Jeep ride organized by the forest department (IIRC Rs.150 per person).

I thought for Emerald and Avalanche you don't permission but you need one for Upper Bhavani. Either the EB or the forest department. That's what if I remember @ravib had mentioned.

[pariwar]

Originally Posted by coolclouds

I think you should take regular Mysore road for a 5am start from Bangalore University.

Originally Posted by ravib

Though NH209 is good, for 5 am start, i think Mysore road will do for you.

Thanks. I stay on Mysore Road and am tired of it. I love NH209 and my car hates speed breakers. Usually travel to Kerala on NH209 and the recent past there have not been any trips. So will choose NH209

Originally Posted by coolclouds

You can try CCD Gundlupet which is open 24 hours. (Ph: 9379690379)

Originally Posted by kala

There's a CCD, a Hotel Misty Rock and an Udupi restaurant.

Thanks CCD or Misty Rock, it will be then.

Originally Posted by kala

Not much of a change in conditions over the past 6-8 months. Fairly decent with occasional short bad patches - Nothing to worry about though.

Thanks. Will take the Chamarajnagar - Gundlupet road and report on the latest conditions after my trip.

Originally Posted by kala

No recent updates, but it used to be good about 6-8 months back, and can't see it deteriorating too much since it doesn't carry too much of traffic. By the way you don't need to touch Puliampatti - the shorter route is Mettupalayam-Bhavani Sagar-Bannari

Thanks. Will be taking this route and report on the latest conditions after my trip. The route is as you mentioned, on Google Maps it is referred as Puliampatti - Bhavani Sagar - Bannari Road.

Originally Posted by ravib

Ooty will be super crowded in this month. You will have parking problems in Doddabetta, so reserve some more time for it.
Upper Bhavani/Emerald/Avalance will take one full day. Suggest to pack food and go there as they are virgin forests and no facilities available. Hope you have read through the threads related to it in TBHP and know the procedures to get permission from forest department.

Don't miss the Tea Museum and if time permits, visit the Rose Garden too. They are nice places to see. I believe in the month of may, they conduct flower shows but not sure about the dates in Botanical Garden. Check it out.

Other places that are not in your list are Pykara & 7th mile. They are in opposite direction towards Gudalur. Plan based on your time availability but they are must see places too.

Thanks Ravi.

Originally Posted by kala

Hotel Nahar near Charing Cross is quite decent - though generally very crowded. Can't think of any other vegetarian ones.

Originally Posted by ravib

Last but not least, never return from ooty without having food in Nahar Nilgiris @ Charring cross. Awesome yummy food they serve

Will definitely do Hotel Nahar with two solid recommendations that have come!

[samish_g]

Originally Posted by pariwar

Will definitely do Hotel Nahar with two solid recommendations that have come!

If you are fond of Chinese food, you may try Shinkows Chinese Restaurant. The ambience though not "starry", the food definitely is of top quality.

The location of the restaurant is here

And Wish you a SAFE and Enjoyable trip. Will be waiting for the travelogue.

Regards,

Samish

[pariwar]

Trip Report:

Onward Route : University - Chamarajnagar(NH209) - Gundlupet - Masinagudi - Ooty, Dep 0530 hrs - Arr 1215 hrs (incl. 1 hour break) Total Driving Distance & Time = 311 kms, 5 hrs 45 min

• NH 209 up to Chamarajnagar (180 kms - 3 hrs) - excellent road conditions continue, breakfast break at Nijaguna Residency, 1 hr break, food is ok, excellent toilets, discovered that they have free wi-fi.
• Chamarajnagar - Gundlupet - (31 kms - 30 min) - decent road, probably laid about 3 to 4 years back and has started deteriorating, occasional ruts/potholes but as Kala mentioned earlier, easily negotiable with any vehicle type. Sparse traffic, 60-80 kmph speeds maintainable.
• Gundlupet - Masinagudi - Ooty - (100 kms - 2 hrs 15 min) road conditions as documented earlier. Did encounter a handful of vehicles coming down (seemed to be more of local vehicles - Bolero Pick Up / TATA Sumo). On reaching Ooty checked with Cops, no vehicles allowed to return on this route says them.

Return Journey : Ooty - Coonoor - Mettupalayam - Bhavani Sagar - Bannari - Chamarajnagar - University (NH209) Dep 0915 hrs - Arr 2045 hrs (incl. Coonoor Sightseeing + Lunch Break of 4 hrs 30 min) (Total Driving Distance & Time = 345 kms, 7 hrs)

• Ooty - Coonoor - (23 kms - 30 min) excellent road, heavy vehicular traffic
• Coonoor sightseeing - Dolphin Nose, Lambs Rock, SIMS Park (all in the same direction) - approx. 3 hrs 45 min spent
• Coonoor to Black Thunder - (28 kms - 45 min) excellent road, manageable heavy traffic, stopped for lunch at a non descript restaurant immediately after Black Thunder and spent about 45 min.
• Black Thunder - Bannari (50 kms - 1 hr) Route: SH15 towards Sathy, turn off for Bhavani Sagar, turn off for Bannari. Road conditions are quite good with patches of recently asphalted road. Some road deterioration around Bhavani Sagar, but very much negotiable. Bhavani Sagar to Bannari has beautiful straight stretches with mountains straight ahead and very sparse traffic. Was cruising wherever possible at speeds between 80-100 kmph. Directions (signages in Tamil only and therefore had to ask around):
  • Take second left turn after Black Thunder (first left is a lovely broad road which leads to Kotagiri. Second left is comparatively smaller and is somewhat off a bye-pass for heavier vehicles skirting Mettupalayam). There is a barricade at this left turn, where smaller vehicles could head straight into Mettupalayam.
  • All along this road, you will see signs for Sathy, Erode & Gobi. Didn't see any signs in English for Bhavani Sagar.
  • Take the first left after seeing "Bhavani Sagar View Point" sign on the road. The road goes to the dam, keep to the left to cross police station.
  • Take left at the cross road after police station, cross the dam and the straight road leads to Bannari Amman Temple. Join NH209.
• Bannari to Chamarajnagar (64 kms, 1 hr 30 min) - Lovely forest drive, good roads, Dimbam Ghats with its hair pin bends and sparse traffic upto Chamarajnagar.
• Chamarajnagar to University (180 kms, 3 hrs 15 min) - Good cruise speeds between 80-100 kmph upto Kanakapura, late evening local two wheeler traffic & jay walking pedestrians in and around villages, lots of sand lorries heading to Bangalore.

Other Salient Points of Ooty Trip:

• Stayed at Deccan Park Resorts - mid size hotel, 60 rooms, old property with cottages, economically priced, excellent property, can't complaint about the service, sumptuous breakfast, lip smacking buffet dinner. Location is about 2.5 kms from Boat House.
• Lunched at Nahar, pretty decent food.
• Did the usual circuit of Botanical Gardens, Rose Show, Boating etc. Avoided most other heavy tourist sites. Took a trip to Avalanche but because of inclement weather and a good amount of waiting, hotfooted back to the cosy confines of the hotel.
• Completed one book and watched a lot of IPL.

[red.devil_19]

I will be driving to Ooty from Bangalore in my Beat petrol on 13th June. My ghat/hill driving experience is quite limited. Therefore, I am planning to stick to the longer but more gentle route as highlighted brilliantly by antorquetik

Planned route: Bangalore-Krishnagiri-Dharmapuri-Thoppur-Mettur Dam-Bhavani-Avinashi-Mettupalayam-Coonoor-Ooty



arunphilip: will really appreciate if you could tell me any good places to stop by for a quick coffee/tea between Bhavani & Coonoor. Would be travelling with Mom & Dad, so ideally would like the place to have clean washrooms.

Initially thought of driving past Salem, but then I noticed Mettur Dam can be covered by taking a slightly different route. Might have a stopover/photo-session near the Dam! Can I expect the water reservoir to be full in mid June?

Searched team-bhp & found some useful piece of info provided by suresh_gs on the Thoppur-Mettur-Bhavani stretch! Seems like the roads are good, but any update on the same would be most welcome.

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

Visit to Jayaveera Anjaneyar temple and Sri Laksmi Narayana Temple at Kumarapalayam near Bhavani

This was the first time I decided to travel on SH 20 (from Thoppur till Bhavani). Infact the alternate route was to take a diversion towards Omalur, Tharamangalam, and Sankagiri and then rejoin NH47 and proceed towards Kumarapalayam. Since I had already traveled on this stretch 3 times, I decided to proceed along SH 20.

Initially when I entered SH 20, the roads were slightly rough as some pipe laying work was in progress. After about a km or so, the road quality picked up. Very good 2L road all the way to Mettur via Mecheri. There was no problem commuting on this road as signboards were very clear.

METTUR BHAVANI ROAD UPDATES

Mettur to Bhavani is 44 kms and lot had been said about this stretch in terms of road quality as it is frequented by lorry traffic. Based on the valuable inputs given by one of our GH members, I found the road to be too good. Infact at many sections along the Mettur Bhavani stretch, road was completely re-laid with clear lane markings on the sides of the road and the middle. Throughout my journey, I was able to hit consistently 85-90 kmph. Speed breakers were there at village crossings.

For people residing in North Coimbatore, this route can be taken as an alternate to NH209 (via kollegal and chamarajangar). While proceeding towards Bhavani, you will cross a junction called Ammapettai. From here, the straight road leads to Bhavani while the road to the right takes you to Sathyamangalam via Anthiyur and Athani. For people residing in South Coimbatore, one can proceed towards bhavani, rejoin NH47 and go via Avinashi.
There are a lot of petrol bunks along the Mettur Bhavani Road. I had some difficulty in locating a good hotel to have a tiffin break. Finally reached Bhavani at 5:30 PM and located Hotel Saravana Bhavan (Not to be confused with the regular HSB). This hotel is located very close to the Bhavani bus stand.

Overall it was an enjoyable trip courtesy good roads especially the METTUR BHAVANI road. Hope the Krishnagiri- TV Malai road follows the same footsteps of this road.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...batore-45.html

While returning I will be taking the Ooty-Gudalur-Bandipur route, since I plan to visit Bandipur National Park on the way back.

[deepak_misra]

Originally Posted by red.devil_19

I will be driving to Ooty from Bangalore in my Beat petrol on 13th June. My ghat/hill driving experience is quite limited. Therefore, I am planning to stick to the longer but more gentle route as highlighted brilliantly by antorquetik

Planned route: Bangalore-Krishnagiri-Dharmapuri-Thoppur-Mettur Dam-Bhavani-Avinashi-Mettupalayam-Coonoor-Ooty

This seems to be a much much longer route. In case you are not very comfortable going by the Ghat, you can consider Guddalur route

Deepak

[Mr_Bean]

Folks,

I am planning to visit ooty in July 1st week, are the roads good all the way? I will be travelling with my wife who will be 5 months pregnant at that time.

Please help. I am OK with the longest route as far the roads are good.

Rgds,
Vinod

[Rajeevraj]

Originally Posted by Mr_Bean

Folks,

I am planning to visit ooty in July 1st week, are the roads good all the way? I will be travelling with my wife who will be 5 months pregnant at that time.

Please help. I am OK with the longest route as far the roads are good.

Rgds,
Vinod

While going you would typically take the masinagudi route. Roads are good apart from some rough patches around masinagudi. Return would be through the. Gudalur route as police generally stop people from descending via the masinagudi route. Ooty gudalur is not great as per reports here. There is a stretch in the forest before theppakad which is also bad ( you won't hit this via the masinagudi route). One thing you cannot avoid are the innumerable humps all through. Not something you want with a pregnant lady as a passenger.

You can also consider the kanakpura chamrajnagar gundlepet route. No humps and great roads. Only drawback is no good rest room stops.

[arunphilip]

Originally Posted by red.devil_19

arunphilip: will really appreciate if you could tell me any good places to stop by for a quick coffee/tea between Bhavani & Coonoor. Would be travelling with Mom & Dad, so ideally would like the place to have clean washrooms.

I would recommend Aryaas in Annur. Annur comes after Avinashi and before Mettupalayam. Aryaas will come on your left hand side. Good tiffin/coffee and quite good toilets. Very friendly staff.

Originally Posted by red.devil_19

Initially thought of driving past Salem, but then I noticed Mettur Dam can be covered by taking a slightly different route. Might have a stopover/photo-session near the Dam! Can I expect the water reservoir to be full in mid June?

If you want the scenic route, then go via Mettur (not sure about the water levels, though). But the most comfortable route would be via Salem - since its got a median and super-wide roads.

Originally Posted by Mr_Bean

I am planning to visit ooty in July 1st week, are the roads good all the way? I will be travelling with my wife who will be 5 months pregnant at that time.I am OK with the longest route as far the roads are good.

I will whole-heartedly recommend you take the route as Bangalore - Krishnagiri - Salem - Avinashi - Annur - Mettupalayam - Kotagiri - Ooty. With a pregnant wife, don't even bother with the Bangalore - Mysore route.

Bangalore to Avinashi are wide highways with medians, and are in great condition. Avinashi to Mettupalayam is a state highway without median. I think there are a few speed breakers, but nothing to worry about.

I recommend going from Mettupalayam to Ooty via Kotagiri because that road is good, and has fewer hair-pin bends, which might be better for wifey (quite scenic too!). The Mettupalayam to Coonoor road has heavier traffic and more hair-pin bends.

[Mr_Bean]

Originally Posted by arunphilip

I will whole-heartedly recommend you take the route as Bangalore - Krishnagiri - Salem - Avinashi - Annur - Mettupalayam - Kotagiri - Ooty. With a pregnant wife, don't even bother with the Bangalore - Mysore route.

Thanks, I calculated the total distance to cover, it was 431 kms. Won't it be taxing on pregnany woman? I am jumping into an unknown territory here
We just want to go out somewhere for 2-3 days, we thought of Yelagiri initially, later we realized that ooty would be a better option. I am adding yercaud also to the list, it is only 219 kms from Bangalore.

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

While going you would typically take the masinagudi route. Roads are good apart from some rough patches around masinagudi. Return would be through the. Gudalur route as police generally stop people from descending via the masinagudi route. Ooty gudalur is not great as per reports here. There is a stretch in the forest before theppakad which is also bad ( you won't hit this via the masinagudi route). One thing you cannot avoid are the innumerable humps all through. Not something you want with a pregnant lady as a passenger.

.

Appreciate your inputs

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Mr_Bean

Thanks, I calculated the total distance to cover, it was 431 kms. Won't it be taxing on pregnany woman? I am jumping into an unknown territory here
We just want to go out somewhere for 2-3 days, we thought of Yelagiri initially, later we realized that ooty would be a better option. I am adding yercaud also to the list, it is only 219 kms from Bangalore.

Yercaud is a much shorter drive - 4 hours max., so keep that option.
For a 3 day trip Yercaud will be more comfortable since you just need part of the day for the drive.
Ooty will mean a longer drive plus negotiating a lot of city traffic, you will feel this more when returning since you'd typically start after breakfast and reach Bangalore just in time for evening traffic chaos.
*GRT in Yercaud is an excellent place if available, they're generally full but now with schools open you have a good chance.

[arunphilip]

Originally Posted by Mr_Bean

Thanks, I calculated the total distance to cover, it was 431 kms. Won't it be taxing on pregnany woman? I am jumping into an unknown territory here
We just want to go out somewhere for 2-3 days, we thought of Yelagiri initially, later we realized that ooty would be a better option. I am adding yercaud also to the list, it is only 219 kms from Bangalore.

If you go to Ooty via either the Mysore route, or via Salem, I found it took me 6 hours without any breaks (yes, I'm a little crazy like that); despite the Salem route being longer. The roads via Salem are impeccable, so that makes it easier on the body. But yes, I agree with your wider concern about whether a journey of 7-8 hours (with breaks) will be comfortable for your wife.

Yercaud is a great idea, simply because Salem is just 3 hours from here (specifically EC).

Whatever you do, don't drive to Mangalore with your wife