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Old 4th December 2014, 09:00   #991
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Re: Bangalore - Ooty - which is the best route for quality of road

Quote:
Originally Posted by sminni View Post
Google maps shows distance
BLR-Mysore-36 Hairpin as - 273km and
BLR-Salem-ooty as 418km
is that correct as the difference is significant?
Can I come back via Mysore route?
I suggested coming back via Avinashi since cops may not allow you to take the 36 hair pin bend route on the return and Gudalur route has broken roads.
Another option is to come back on this route:
Ooty-Mettupalayam-Sathyamangalam-Gobichettypalayam-Chithode (join NH 47 here)-Salem-Bangalore.

Roads are good on this route as well and distance will be lesser than Avinashi route. Just need to time it well to avoid traffic in Sathy and Gobi.
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Old 4th December 2014, 15:00   #992
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

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Originally Posted by sachinpk View Post
Gents, so can I assume that travel via the Kanakapura->Malavalli->Kollegala->Chamarajanagar is out of the question for some time? Because that narrow bridge is now closed down for maintenance/reconstruction?
This question hasn't been clearly answered. So can some one clarify if the above route is open for light motor vehicles??
Quote:
Originally Posted by addyhemmige View Post
This bridge was closed to heavy vehicles since a long time. They were diverted through Talakad which makes the distance approx 20 kms longer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sachinpk View Post
And now they have been closed for smaller (or light) vehicles as well?
Quote:
Originally Posted by adi_gt View Post
I can personally vouch for loosing control on this route while coming down this 36 pin hairpin.
Wow that was a hairy experience. Thanks for posting as the lessons learnt are for all of us here on team bhp. Also when was this trip of yours? as I have read that they do not allow coming down the 36 hairpins.

One more route query, If the Gudalur route is bad and lengthy, how would Mettupalayam, Sathyamangalam, (through reserved forest) to Chamrajpet be?

Last edited by goandude : 4th December 2014 at 15:04.
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Old 4th December 2014, 15:20   #993
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

Quote:
Originally Posted by goandude View Post
Wow that was a hairy experience. Thanks for posting as the lessons learnt are for all of us here on team bhp. Also when was this trip of yours? as I have read that they do not allow coming down the 36 hairpins.
It was on the Ugadi day 31st March this year. From that point onwards, I have started to use engine breaking even on city flyovers which can be found
deserted sometimes on Sunday Night. .
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Old 4th December 2014, 15:24   #994
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

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Originally Posted by goandude View Post
One more route query, If the Gudalur route is bad and lengthy, how would Mettupalayam, Sathyamangalam, (through reserved forest) to Chamrajpet be?
Presume you meant "ChamarajNagar".

The route from Sathy - Dhimbam - Chamarajnagar is very good. Winding twisty single lane routes with 20 + hair pen bends between "Bannari" and "Dhimbam" . Once you finish the ghats and beyond Dhimbam and onwards to Chamarajnagar , the roads thru the forest are nice and its one good drive for sure. Scenic and very beautiful.

The only issue on the ghats is that when some truck breaks down, it slows you down quite a bit.
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Old 4th December 2014, 15:25   #995
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

Quote:
Originally Posted by goandude View Post
So can some one clarify if the above route is open for light motor vehicles?
As per updates on this thread and another forum, the bridge is closed for all types of vehicles

Quote:
Also when was this trip of yours? as I have read that they do not allow coming down the 36 hairpins.
I don't think there is a ban always. It is enforced in rush time and that too not in early morning hours.

Quote:
One more route query, If the Gudalur route is bad and lengthy, how would Mettupalayam, Sathyamangalam, (through reserved forest) to Chamrajpet be?
Since Chamarajpet - Kanakupra route can not be taken due to closed bridge mentioned earlier you may have to join Gundulpet and then proceed towards Mysore. This KM wise will be the longest one I guess.
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Old 4th December 2014, 15:32   #996
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

Quote:
Originally Posted by jkrishnakj View Post
Presume you meant "ChamarajNagar".

The route from Sathy - Dhimbam - Chamarajnagar is very good. Winding twisty single lane routes with 20 + hair pen bends between "Bannari" and "Dhimbam" . Once you finish the ghats and beyond Dhimbam and onwards to Chamarajnagar , the roads thru the forest are nice and its one good drive for sure. Scenic and very beautiful.

The only issue on the ghats is that when some truck breaks down, it slows you down quite a bit.
My bad, I did mean Chamrajnagar.
So if this is a good route, have many people used it? And how much would it add to your trip in kms?
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Old 4th December 2014, 15:34   #997
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

Quote:
Originally Posted by sachinpk View Post
Gents, so can I assume that travel via the Kanakapura->Malavalli->Kollegala->Chamarajanagar is out of the question for some time? Because that narrow bridge is now closed down for maintenance/reconstruction?

Sorry, if this point has been already answered. But I wanted to double check. So for the Kozhikode, Wayanad bound traveller the speed-breaker filled Mysore state highway is the only choice??
Quote:
Originally Posted by addyhemmige View Post
This bridge was closed to heavy vehicles since a long time. They were diverted through Talakad which makes the distance approx 20 kms longer.
Which bridge is this? And when did this happen? Is this the bridge on Cauvery, before Kollegal? If so, cars/SUVs will have no problem on that bridge.

Quote:
Originally Posted by NPV View Post
I suggested coming back via Avinashi since cops may not allow you to take the 36 hair pin bend route on the return and Gudalur route has broken roads.
Another option is to come back on this route:
Ooty-Mettupalayam-Sathyamangalam-Gobichettypalayam-Chithode (join NH 47 here)-Salem-Bangalore.

Roads are good on this route as well and distance will be lesser than Avinashi route. Just need to time it well to avoid traffic in Sathy and Gobi.
That's a pretty long route. It makes sense to take that if one is going to Coonoor, but Ooty - Coonoor is again one hour extra.

Quote:
Originally Posted by goandude View Post
This question hasn't been clearly answered. So can some one clarify if the above route is open for light motor vehicles??

Wow that was a hairy experience. Thanks for posting as the lessons learnt are for all of us here on team bhp. Also when was this trip of yours? as I have read that they do not allow coming down the 36 hairpins.

One more route query, If the Gudalur route is bad and lengthy, how would Mettupalayam, Sathyamangalam, (through reserved forest) to Chamrajpet be?
You will have to climb the Sathyamangalam hairpin bends. At times you can get stuck in traffic. I do sometimes take Sathyamangalam - Germalam - Kollegal route when coming back to Bangalore, no traffic, beautiful forest. But that is just for the sake of taking a different route.

Re: Sigur/Kalahatti Ghat route (36 bends): Cops sometimes stop vehicles during weekends. You might still be able to convince them that you can drive down, or need to drive down.

Re the hairpin bends: doable in any vehicle, as long as you know how to handle a vehicle in the hills, and/or drive carefully (I have done that route 50+ times, in different vehicles - Indica, SX4 and Fortuner). Which means using proper momentum and precaution (e.g. maintain safe distance from vehicle in front, especially at a bend) when climbing up, and engine braking/right gear when going down. I read the experience of the T-BHPian on the last page, that was a ridiculous thing to do - driving down fast on a steep road.

Last edited by nilanjanray : 4th December 2014 at 15:42.
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Old 4th December 2014, 15:35   #998
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

Quote:
Originally Posted by goandude View Post
My bad, I did mean Chamrajnagar.
So if this is a good route, have many people used it? And how much would it add to your trip in kms?
Satyamangalam to Chamarajnagar is excellent surface with sparse traffic and beautiful greenery.

Take the 36 hairpin bend road while going up. I came down through this route during my recent two trips. Once cops stopped me, but I convinced them that I'm proceeding to an estate in Masinagudi and second time, there were no cops during a weekday noon.

Last edited by coolclouds : 4th December 2014 at 15:40.
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Old 5th December 2014, 09:15   #999
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

Quote:
Originally Posted by nilanjanray View Post
Which bridge is this? And when did this happen? Is this the bridge on Cauvery, before Kollegal? If so, cars/SUVs will have no problem on that bridge.
Yes, it is the Cauvery bridge near Shivanasamudra falls. Used to be blocked for HTVs only till about a month back, but closed completely now.

Going via Talakad or T.Narsipur are the two work-arounds available, not sure if the Malavalli-Bannur-T.Narsipur-Chamarajnagar is decent enough or not now - the Malavalli-Bannur section had lot of road work happening and was quite bad the last time I went that way . Will try to explore the Malavalli-Talakad-Madapura route this weekend.

Quote:
Re the hairpin bends: doable in any vehicle, as long as you know how to handle a vehicle in the hills, and/or drive carefully (I have done that route 50+ times, in different vehicles - Indica, SX4 and Fortuner). Which means using proper momentum and precaution (e.g. maintain safe distance from vehicle in front, especially at a bend) when climbing up, and engine braking/right gear when going down. I read the experience of the T-BHPian on the last page, that was a ridiculous thing to do - driving down fast on a steep road.
+1 to that. Losing control of the vehicle when not driving it the way it ought to be driven doesn't mean that the particular stretch is very risky to drive. One can never stress more on using the right gear when driving on ghat roads - a typical thumbrule is to use the same gear while climbing down as the one you would use for climbing up that stretch.
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Old 5th December 2014, 10:04   #1000
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

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Originally Posted by kala View Post
Yes, it is the Cauvery bridge near Shivanasamudra falls. Used to be blocked for HTVs only till about a month back, but closed completely now.

Going via Talakad or T.Narsipur are the two work-arounds available..
There should be some proper alternate route identified. This bridge is in a main road, and if it is closed down then the local district administration would have identified an alternate route. We need to figure out which one is that .
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Old 5th December 2014, 10:27   #1001
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

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Originally Posted by sachinpk View Post
There should be some proper alternate route identified. This bridge is in a main road, and if it is closed down then the local district administration would have identified an alternate route. We need to figure out which one is that .
When they closed the bridge for HTVs they never put up any boards anywhere saying the road was closed, and in the initial days I've seen private buses turning back from the Kollegal side of the bridge (There is no alternate road from that end of the bridge - you need to go back a long way).

That shows how much the administration cares about inconvenience to the public, so I don't expect to see any diversion boards - I guess it is entirely upto us to experiment and find viable alternatives.
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Old 5th December 2014, 11:47   #1002
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

OK Thanks for all the inputs. I have decided to take the Mysore road to Mysore and then via Gundlupet Masinagudi Ooty. And attempt back the same way if the cops don't stop us.

Q1. How would be the traffic getting out of Bangy through Town hall, then the flyover, Nayandahalli, Mysore at 6 am. Or should I opt for the rather circuitous route of ORR, Elevated road, NICE road, Mysore road?

Q2. Is the Mysore Bypass completed? Or does one have to drive thru the city?
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Old 5th December 2014, 12:05   #1003
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

Quote:
Originally Posted by goandude View Post
OK Thanks for all the inputs. I have decided to take the Mysore road to Mysore and then via Gundlupet Masinagudi Ooty. And attempt back the same way if the cops don't stop us.

Q1. How would be the traffic getting out of Bangy through Town hall, then the flyover, Nayandahalli, Mysore at 6 am. Or should I opt for the rather circuitous route of ORR, Elevated road, NICE road, Mysore road?

Q2. Is the Mysore Bypass completed? Or does one have to drive thru the city?
1. When is your ride planned? If it is a weekend/year end, would recommend leaving by 5am. Post 6, traffic going out of Bangalore is very high. Where are you starting from? If accessing NICE road is not too much of a detour, that will be better.

2. The bye-pass is done. But going through the city is much shorter. Once you cross the Columbia Asia Signal (the bye-pass junction) just keep going straight till you hit a T junction, take a right and then first left. Go past the KSRTC stand, road curves left, post that take the first right. Go past the palace and exit on the road to Gundlepet curving towards left.
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Old 5th December 2014, 12:19   #1004
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

^^ Second what Rajeevraj mentioned.
I did the mistake of taking Hudson circle, Mysore road from Marathahalli few months back driving towards Mysore (Kabni) around 6.00 AM. Apart from the broken city roads (which to an extent is repaired now), I had to dodge intercity buses which had started arriving towards Kalasipalaya in the morning.

And as you get late you end up having to spend more time in traffic on SH 17. So if NICE road is nearby, it is best to take that and.

However you have mentioned ORR - Elevated road - NICE road - Mysore road. If you are meaning BETL/ Hosur road elevated road, no need to take the same. From silk board proceed towards Hosur taking the road below elevated road and get on to NICE road.
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Old 5th December 2014, 12:49   #1005
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re: Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries

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Originally Posted by Rajeevraj View Post
1. When is your ride planned?

2. The bye-pass is done. But going through the city is much shorter. Once you cross the Columbia Asia Signal (the bye-pass junction) just keep going straight till you hit a T junction, take a right and then first left. Go past the KSRTC stand, road curves left, post that take the first right. Go past the palace and exit on the road to Gundlepet curving towards left.
Leaving on Saturday 27th and coming back 30 th early morning departure from ooty.

Thanks for the detailed explanation. I always get lost when going through Mysore

Quote:
Originally Posted by mpksuhas View Post
So if NICE road is nearby, it is best to take that and.

However you have mentioned ORR - Elevated road - NICE road - Mysore road. If you are meaning BETL/ Hosur road elevated road, no need to take the same. From silk board proceed towards Hosur taking the road below elevated road and get on to NICE road.
Thanks. I think NICE would be the way to go. I'm coming from ITPL side so it will be ORR> Silk Board> go under elevated road PES College> U turn> Nice road.
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