[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by dailydriver

One can say that, but though the road from Belur to Chikkamagaluru is alright, driving through heavy rain isn't.

These shouldn't be the apprehensions from those who regularly do these sections. Also, the torrential rains in this region is nothing new as far as the justice to the term malenadu goes. This year has been even more difficult. But what has changed the game today is not these rains but the drivers around us and the sheer number of vehicles on wet roads which wasn't the case a decade before. This makes it extremely difficult to drive these days.

Having said that, for tourists, it makes no sense to be there on this weekend because they can't do anything anyway, while in the town.

the doubled effort for seeing others and to be clearly, timely being seen by them

The kind of mental effort and stress that goes here is immense and you will realise this once you complete the journey and breath easy. I can imagine this situation as you explain!

[r.K]

I'm headingto chikmagalur this long weekend; this was planned last month. Is it safe to visit in the rains now? Will be driving from Bangalore

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by r.K

I'm headingto chikmagalur this long weekend; this was planned last month. Is it safe to visit in the rains now? Will be driving from Bangalore

I don't wish to say more:

• Roads to Chikmagalur are not a problem, you can drive without issues
• Intensity of rains have reduced but regular rains if not torrential are expected over coming days as per forecasters and weather experts
• Many roads leading towards the hills/estates are not in great shape, undergoing repairs
• Rescue operations are still on in many locations and life is yet to get back to normal
• Lastly, better to avoid travel for at least 2 more weeks, weekenders visiting these places will only hamper the rescue and rehabilitation work

The Town of Chikkamagaluru is never an issue. It is the roads that lead to popular places including Homestays and resorts which are cause for concern.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by paragsachania

• Lastly, better to avoid travel for at least 2 more weeks, weekenders visiting these places will only hamper the rescue and rehabilitation work

The Town of Chikkamagaluru is never an issue. It is the roads that lead to popular places including Homestays and resorts which are cause for concern.

I second this. Of course, there will still be some weekenders out there in the upcoming holidays, but I request everyone to not head out to these areas. We have already seen how badly these places will be crowded during long weekends. If even in ideal conditions there are traffic jams, overcrowding, pile ups etc, then in this condition it could be worse. Hence, avoid travelling to these areas as far as possible. As far as I am aware, the ghat roads have issues with landslides and flooding and even the road to Mullayyanagiri is also affected. Hence, why take the effort of harrowing the traffic, rain etc just to sit in the homestay or maybe do some shopping on MG Road in CKM?

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by audioholic

Hence, why take the effort of harrowing the traffic, rain etc just to sit in the homestay or maybe do some shopping on MG Road in CKM?

I learnt that roads leading to some popular homestays too are under repairs while few homestays I know aren't accepting any booking for coming weekend as well.

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by r.K

I'm headingto chikmagalur this long weekend; this was planned last month. Is it safe to visit in the rains now? Will be driving from Bangalore

Depends!

Depends on where you are going to stay and what you are planning to do while in Chikkamagaluru.

The town itself is safe and largely unspoilt. Drive five kilometres away on the Lingadahalli, Mallandur and Mudigere roads and you are looking at signs of destruction. As on date, most major tourist attractions are all either naturally or administratively cut off. So, it would really be wise to take a rain check (bad pun!) before proceeding with your trip.

I am not sure whether you follow Kannada news channels/papers. If you do, you would have come across scores of videos and photos that showcase the actual scene in the area; and living in the town, I can vouch for their genuineness.

Having said that, there isn't any reason to panic, unless of course one gets unnecessarily adventurous. So, I would advise you to either post your itinerary here so that we can let you know local, real time information or at least check with your hosts about the same.

[r.K]

That really helps thank you! I would be staying @Trivik Resorts from 16th to 18th. I checked with the resort and they said the roads leading to the resort are clear and good for driving.

This is a non-refundable booking and I've already paid in full (MMTrip) and was planned about a month back; hence going ahead.

As for the sight-seeing, was planning to do the usual - BabaBudangri, Mullayangiri, Kudremukh, Hebbe falls, and maybe Kemmangundi peak.

If you can tell me the places that are safe to visit (must-visit or casual - not very particular owing to current conditions) I'd be grateful. Thank you!

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by r.K

As for the sight-seeing, was planning to do the usual - BabaBudangri, Mullayangiri, Kudremukh, Hebbe falls, and maybe Kemmangundi peak

TRIVIK guys can take you up to their property; no issues there. But the approach roads are indeed blocked by the district administration and tourist vehicles were being sent away right from the Kaimara check post. With rains subsided, things may improve by the time you arrive.

Kemmanagundi had a landslide earlier this week and hence tourist entry was banned; effectively ruling out Hebbe falls too. Mullayyanagiri can be covered since you are anyhow going to stay at TRIVIK. Bababudangiri is possible, but will depend on the road conditions on the day of travel. Kudremukha is at a significant distance from Chikkamagaluru and given the damage enroute, its better to avoid the place this time.

You can visit Hirekolale and Ayyanakere lakes and pay a visit to Belur, Halebidu and Belavadi temples as well as to the Yagachi dam and backwaters.

[r.K]

Thank you @dailydriver, this is very helpful. Kemmangudi was optional, will drop that now. Will keep all of you posted on how things are, when I reach. Thanks!

[null]

Originally Posted by r.K

Thank you @dailydriver, this is very helpful. Kemmangudi was optional, will drop that now. Will keep all of you posted on how things are, when I reach. Thanks!

From what I heard earlier this week, all tourists are being stopped at Kaimara itself - to prevent any disaster further ahead in Mullayangiri etc. I am not sure how you will be able to reach the resort. Do reconfirm with the resort guys about this point before you start.

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by null

From what I heard earlier this week, all tourists are being stopped at Kaimara itself - to prevent any disaster further ahead in Mullayangiri etc.

It was/is indeed the case, as evidenced from the below photo taken at the Kaimara checkpost a while ago.





But just as I was clicking, a convoy of senior officers passed me on their way to the hills for an inspection of the road conditions. Rental jeep drivers (their livelihood depends on this) told me that the entry ban is likely to be lifted by tomorrow

I am not sure how you will be able to reach the resort. Do reconfirm with the resort guys about this point before you start.

As told in my previous post, the TRIVIK guys can take their clients up; it isn't a problem. The problem is deciding whether to risk driving on the roads. If one doesn't want to (very unlikely in case of Bhpians), then the hotel can/does arrange for transportation from inside the town.

[dailydriver]

Travel to Mullayyanagiri and Bababudangiri has been banned for tourists till 30th August 2019. Charmadi ghat too remains closed till 14th September 2019.





To understand the rationale behind these road closures, it is necessary to look at the collateral damage the recent rains have caused in the area. As per official figures released yesterday, the list of quantifiable/quantified destruction is as follows:

950 kms of roads (188.3 crores)

159 bridges (48.81 crores)

34 Lakes (3.8 crores)

2065 electric poles (1.91 crores)

34 BSNL Towers (50.5 lakhs)

1565 hectares of crops

1454 houses

A total of 26 flood relief centres have been opened in the district.

As can be seen from the above statistics, a lion's share of losses is of the arterial roads - roads that we drive on, could have, would have driven on, had they been intact.

It will be a while before normalcy returns!

Source: Prajavani & Kannada Prabha

[r.K]

Quick update: the blockage is still in place. As for coming to Trivik, their guy is there at the Kaimara check-post with the guest list. Those who have made bookings in advance are let through. Trivik's manger told me this.

As for me, I followed Google maps and took the trail road near the Hirekolale lake; it's a stretch of 3kms of bad road, and it joins to the main road after the check-post. I inadvertently bypassed the check-post. It's drizzling slightly here;started an hour ago.

[paragsachania]

The shortest route that one would take to reach Belur Road at Thanneruhallu was via Huluvagilu road over the railway tracks. This is 600m long but the condition of this road was never consistently good.

The other choice to reach Belur road road was by turning right on the bypass at via either Holenarasipura Road (first intersection) or Gorur road (second intersection). However, despite of Gorur road being fully concretized from bypass till Santhepete Circle, the BM road inside Hassan City is in bad shape due to ongoing pipeline work.

Last Friday when I drove to Chikmagalur, even the Holuvagilu road (Shortest one) was closed as it was undergoing repairs and hence I drove till end of bypass and turned right onto BM road and then reached Thanneruhalla junction to turn right for Belur Road.

The representation below shows the same:



Shortest Road that is closed : LINK
Longer Route that bypasses the messy town road fully : LINK

Given the current condition of roads inside Hassan City, best is to take the longer route which is peaceful and adds extra 5 minutes to overall time to get out of the city peacefully.

[Ketan]

Originally Posted by dailydriver

Travel to Mullayyanagiri and Bababudangiri has been banned for tourists till 30th August 2019. Charmadi ghat too remains closed till 14th September 2019.

Attachment 1905612

Attachment 1905613

To understand the rationale behind these road closures, it is necessary to look at the collateral damage the recent rains have caused in the area. As per official figures released yesterday, the list of quantifiable/quantified destruction is as follows:

950 kms of roads (188.3 crores)

159 bridges (48.81 crores)

34 Lakes (3.8 crores)

2065 electric poles (1.91 crores)

34 BSNL Towers (50.5 lakhs)

1565 hectares of crops

1454 houses

A total of 26 flood relief centres have been opened in the district.

As can be seen from the above statistics, a lion's share of losses is of the arterial roads - roads that we drive on, could have, would have driven on, had they been intact.

It will be a while before normalcy returns!

Source: Prajavani & Kannada Prabha

That's quite some indication of the devastation. We have a ride around Aug 31 planned, plan is to go thru HDKotte - Kutta - Mallali - BisleGhat - Charmadi (via Dharmashala), but if Charmadi is going to be closed, we may change the plan. I guess local news would be best to figure if the roads to Chamadi are open or not!