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-   -   Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty : Route Queries (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-travel-queries/36388-bangalore-mysore-ooty-route-queries-76.html)

Since you're heading to Masinagudi, it's better to go via Gundlupet (I'm assuming you are going from Bangalore, though your location shows Mumbai!)

Now, the catches:
-Bangalore-Mysore road has heavy traffic in peak hours/weekends and several speed breakers/now being converted to barriers, painful in dense traffic
-If going via Mysore, Nanjanagud-Gundlupet is being widened, can be a pain
-The alternate route via Kanakapura has lower traffic but not many options for food/breaks
-The bridge over river cauvery at Shivanasamudra is closed so you will need to detour via Talakkad

Given the above, you can start early from Bangalore, say 5am and go via Mysore, you will have to also endure the road work between Nanjangud and Gundlupet.

Alternately, take Kanakapura-Malavalli-Talakkad-Chamarajanagar (you can break at Nijaguna Residency-plan to reach here by 7am or later, so 5am start should be good). Then do Chamarajanagar-Gundlupet-Mudumalai forest and turn left to Masinagudi near the Vistor's centre at Theppakadu
*From Gundlupet, there is a right turn that goes towards Muthanga to the Kerala side, ignore this and go straight towards Tamil Nadu/Mudumalai forest).

While returning back from Ooty, i tool the masinagudi hair bin bend route. Below is the complete video of the descent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6R0jMgL-Pwk

Just returned to BLR last evening via the route suggested here and it turned out fine. Surely nowhere close to the mayhem of Mysore road. Rather scenic & the slow-rustic kind. I have previously taken this path about 11 years ago, the only difference this time around being the detour to avoid bridge works at Kollegal. Not much seems to have changed along the way except for road quality which has seen an improvement (NH209 sections are lovely)

From Kanakapura Toll on NICE road to Masinagudi it took about 6 hours including a break of 45 minutes at Nijaguna Residency. On the way back it took us about 15 minutes lesser despite driving gently through the forests.

The route traversed was Blr>Kanakapura>junction nr Malavalli>head towards Talakadu>Purigali>T.Narsipura>Chamaraja Nagar>Gundlupet>Bandipur

Without any hesitation i recommend this over the Mysore Road route to Bandipur. Yes, eating options are fewer. But its not like they don't exist. Preference ultimately!

Did you take a right turn at Purigaali and go directly to T.Narsipura via Sosale or a left turn at Purigaali and go via Talakad ? If the former, how are the road conditions between Purigaali and Sosale now ? (That route though shorter had a few kms of bad sections earlier)

@Kala - fair question. i turned right at Purigali and headed towards T. Narsipura (instead of going all the way to Talakad) soon after Purigali, the road conditions are decent. however, in one of the villages (Sosale perhaps) there's a bad patch of 1 km. Even that looks to be getting fixed - gravelled - and should be done within a week. And it seemed too little a price to pay for the luxury of not being bumper-to-bumper on Mysore road. I'm unable to compare it versus the all-the-way-to-Talakadu detour since i haven't been on it.

Reading from your previous posts, I get the impression the longer one via Talakad maybe even better.

A quick query for NH-209 & SH-17 regulars. Please suggest petrol bunks which are open 24/7 on these routes.

HP in Kankpura is open from 6am. There is one IOL in Yelandur that was open at 9pm. not sure about 24 hrs.

Lots of bunks along SH17 are open 24x7. However I don't think any are open on NH209

There actually is none that is open 24 hours on that route. I mean, between Kanakapura thru Gundlupet on NH 209.

hi
I made a family trip from bangalore to Ooty on 20 June on my xylo and returned on 22 June. Onward after crossing masinagudi junction on the highway, I took the 20 odd hairpin bend road, which was totally 36 km to Ooty and I reached in record time. I don't remember how long I drove exactly since I took a break for tea and local "bajjis". The stay at Ooty was terrible since it was raining or drizzling all throughout the 2 days that I spent there and I heard that due to storm winds and continuous rains, trees have fallen on the roads and electric lines have been cut and some places roads were blocked. Although armed with this news I was hopeful that I could climb down the hill on 22 nd with less or no blocks and I was lucky. Also I could not take the hair pin bend route, since from ooty, I was following the sign board towards mysore and that took me via the longer route via Pykara and Gudalur with quite less hair pin bends. Nevertheless, i could see fallen trees and electric lines cut and repair works in process. Also the pykara reservoir was filled. Sharing some pictures.

Hi All,

I have planned a trip with family to Ooty this Sunday. Am planning on taking the Masinagudi route to Ooty post crossing Bandipur (take left from Theppakadu).

Had couple of doubts after going through multiple threads on the route -

1) If we were to start at 6:30 am from Bangalore (Sunday), would you suggest the Bangalore-Mysore-Gundalpet road or Bangalore-Kanakapura-Chamrajanagar-Gundalpet road? I understand the Bangalore-Mysore road has infinite speed breakers as well as dense traffic while crossing towns, however, does this out-weigh the diversions / 2-lane road that goes through Kanakapura-Chamrajanagar onward to Gundalpet?

2) Also, as I read in other posts, there is road-widening work in progress on the Mysore-Gundalpet stretch. Can someone who has recently been on this route shed some more light on this? If my memory serves me right from my previous trips to Wayanad and Bandipur, this road was always a 2-lane road - so is the same tarmac available for driving, or has the motorable road reduced from the existing 2-lane?

3) Just for sheer driving experience, I was contemplating on taking the Gudalur route on the way back from Ooty, but again, that road is in shambles. For a person who has been through there recently (Ooty or Sultan Bathery), how bad is it? If it's too bad I am planning to stick to the Masinagudi route even while descending.

I am planning on taking a pit-stop at the Cafe Coffee Day at Gundalpet before entering Bandipur. Are there other options available for tea/coffee/nature breaks after turning left from Theppakadu on to the Masinagudi-Ooty route?

:OT My mom, who is accompanying us on this trip, developed an injury on her foot, which prevents her from walking continuously at least for 2 more weeks. Considering she has 8 stitches on her foot, we have put off all sightseeing plans, and will consider only those options that involve minimum walking (she is recovering well post 2 follow up dressings, so I am optimistic that she can handle short bursts of walking). So Botanical Garden and Tea Factory is ruled out. We will take a call on the Doddabetta Peak based on her condition on Monday, however, I am not too hopeful (as a steep climb will put more pressure on her foot). I even tried to book the Nilgiri Mountain Railway so that we can have a ride to Coonor and back, but the timings are not working out, especially since we need to make sure her bandage doesn't get wet if at all we are stuck in rain (which reminds me that I need to get a dressing done for her in Ooty as well since she has been recommended to change the bandage on alternate days - something I can check with the hotel staff)! So, I am thinking of driving to Coonor from Ooty and back on Monday. I have been to Dolphin's Nose (correct?) earlier, but I don't remember the way and also if I can take the vehicle right up to a point where in there is less than 100 meters to walk to the view point? Any pointers on this route is highly appreciated(Ooty - Coonoor - Dolphin's Nose - Ooty).

Despite this rider, I am committed on the trip since my mom last visited Ooty 22 years ago, and she has been very supportive despite getting her foot injured. Seeing her optimism and enthusiasm, I just want to go ahead with this! Worst case scenario - we will just spend 3 days at the hotel and come back!

#1 6:30 am start on Sunday to Mysore - Weekend traffic is very dense (on Saturdays especially) but again being Sunday, I'm not so sure. If you do take this road, start by 5am, will be worth it. That way, you can reach closer to Mysore by breakfast time (past 7am). Biggest advantage on this route is presence of lots of food options but that is not very useful when you start early!

My personal choice would be to take the more peaceful NH 209 route via Kanakapura-Malavalli-Purigaali-Talakkad-Chamarajanagar and stop for breakfast at Nijaguna Residency. The bridge over river Cauvery is closed near Shivanasamudra, hence the detour via Talakkad, but extra distance is not much and road is in good condition. Read other posts on the Calicut thread for details of the forks where you need to make turns.
Then take Chamarajanagar-Gundlupet-Mudumalai-Theppakkadu-Masinagudi-Ooty. The 36 hairpin bend route is awesome with great road condition.

#2 Yes, even quite recent posts have confirmed the road widening work still in progress. This stretch will remain 2 laned but will be wider. Since there is work in progress, there are diversions. You can avoid all this by taking the route mentioned above.

#3 Gudalur route - on your way back from Ooty you may not have a choice at all and will end up taking this route since cops usually don't let vehicles go downhill on the 36 hairpin bend route. There were some rough stretches on this route but not too sure if it's patched up recently.

Also near the Gundlupet Coffee Day on the other side of the road there is a hotel with restaurant called DeShell, that was quite decent when we visited last.

If you take Chamarajanagar route, the place where you join Gundlupet road is beyond the Coffee day and DeShell and you'd be turning left to go towards Masinagudi. If you need to go to one of these places, make a right turn and drive about 1-2Km.

There is also a Coffee Day near Masinagudi just before the ghat road with hairpin bends start.

Mysore Road actually has lost most of the humps, It has been replaced by movable barricades. Provided traffic is not too high, this ensures that can maintain decent speeds through the barricades instead of slowing to a crawl as in the case of humps. So there is no need to avoid Mysore Road just because of the humps. I would avoid Mysore Road only to avoid the Mysore-Gundlepet Stretch.

If you have to start at 6.30, it would definitely be better to take the Kanakpura Route. If using Mysore Road, as NPV mentioned, better to start latest by 5.30.

Folks,

I am planning a trip with family (2 kids & wife) to Ooty starting tomorrow. Tentative Plan is as follows:

1. Start Thursday,2nd July early morning @ 5 AM.

2. Reach Mysore by 10 AM and visit Chamundi Devi Temple and then the Zoo.

3. If able to finish early, then off to Ooty, else take rest for the remaining of the day in Mysore.

4. Considering worst case scenario, start for Ooty on 3rd morning by 8 AM to reach there by noon.

5. Return Journey to Bangalore on Sunday early morning, maybe 7 AM, to reach Bangalore by 5 PM evening.


I really wish to take my kids through Bandipur and am definitely going to take the Masinagudi route.

Have done this route in 2009 and it was a memorable drive and wish to repeat it again.


Few questions,

Is it possible to include Coonor in this itinerary?

Pls suggest routes and what roads to avoid?

Hotel Options possibly within Municipal limits because of small kids.

Since you plan to goto Chamundi Temple and Mysore Zoo in your list tomorrow, then i think it will easily take till 4 pm or so including lunch. No point in hurrying up and seeing the zoo. So would suggest you to rest for the day in Mysore itself and drive to Ooty on friday morning.

Since you are returning to Bangalore on Sunday morning, you are left with only from Friday noon till Saturday night at Ooty. Don't think its a good plan to include Coonoor in this trip. Better spend good time in Ooty itself for 2 days and then start your return journey. Incase, if you plan to drive back to Bangalore via Mettupalayam-Salem route, then you may consider a touch-and-go option to Coonoor on Sunday. But I would say, spend good time in coonoor in your next trip.

As i read from this thread, Mysore-Nanjangud-Gundlupet roads are under construction, so would take more time. If you are returning via Gudalur, then road conditions are not great till Theppakadu.

Hotel Lake View is a good place to stay with family.

-Ravi