[ampere]

Originally Posted by sachinpk

Our previous trip was in similar lines only. Again it was rather unplanned*, because of which we started late from Bangalore (by around 8AM). By the time I reached Mangalore, fatigue had started and so we camped at Udupi.

Check with Samurai. He does it quite often. Not sure he takes the Mangalore route. I think he usually does : Uppinangady-Belthangady-Bajagoli-Karkala

The other option is Agumbe.

CR Patna-Arsikere-Thirthahalli-Agumbe-Someshwar-Hebri-Manipal

[paragsachania]

Driving on long weekend this side?

The ultimate route to take all depends on what day one travels to this side of the state apart from the usual dependencies like good places to stop and refuel.

On a long weekend, I will always avoid Shiradi no matter what - You get to drive at good pace till Hassan beyond which on a single carriageway, maximum Bangalore traffic either won't overtake a slow moving vehicle or won't allow anyone to overtake too. This become very frustrating at times.

To beat this, it is better to leave very early, say 0400 Hours from Bangalore.

And to say that there are lesser options to stop by and eat or visit cleaner rest rooms is passe'. There are so many places now, in the name of Coffee Shops that offer very clean rest rooms on most of the routes - Charmadi, Kalasa, Kuduremukha, Agumbe; Thanks to heavy flocking of private vehicles from Bangalore on weekends, the locals now know where to make business from!

Places to Stay:

As on today, I myself was shocked to believe that Chikmagalur has ~30 Decent Lodges/Hotels within the city of which at least 20 have come up in the last 3 years alone and have very good reputation as of today. So if you don't get to stay at a good Homestay, make Chikmagalur town as base and then head for sight seeing.

The Balur - Kalasa - Samse section too has many Home stays. Incidentally, Kalasa just had one good place to stay by standards and now I noticed a Brand new swanky hotel (yet to open) right as you exit towards Kuduremukha from here - So things are indeed changing, and at a rapid pace.

Same is applicable for Sakaleshpur - Hanbal belt as well as Thirthalli also which now boasts some very good home stays.

Drive in opposite direction:

This is very important if you have dared to drive on a long weekend. Even if you manage to reach your destination with a super early start, remember that you need to meet the same tourist traffic when you get onto sight seeing mode over subsequent days.

For instance, I was stationed at Chikmagalur last weekend as I reached on Friday morning itself. We completed Hirekolale Lake and then Mallandur on the same evening and settled down for the day.

The next day, it was easier to visit Mullayanagiri as Bangalore crowd would still be on their way to Chikmagalur but spotting so much clouds, It was clear that we weren't heading there : There is no point to visit here when you can't see the beauty around these hills which is covered by clouds and mist.

Instead, we made a plan: Chikmagalur - Mudigere - Kottigehara - Kalasa - Samse - Kuduremukha - SK Border - Bajagoli - Ujire - Charmadi - Kottigehara - Chikmagalur.

We could have easily twisted the above route the other way round but that we simply didn't because:

• We get traffic only till Kalasa as most Bangalore traffic would have straightaway planned Kalasa-Horanadu and then Sringeri
  
  
• We would get only limited oncoming traffic between Kalasa - Kuduremukha because very less would have reached Sringeri on a Saturday morning and then heading for Kalasa via Kuduremukha
  
  
• We would also get very less traffic on Charmadi - Not many prefer Charmadi to reach Dharmastahala or Mangalore. So easy to navigate and climb up without getting stuck behind beeline of immature & inexperienced traffic
  
  
• Not to forget the fact that rarest of the rare from Bangalore will do Chikmagalur-Mudigere or back (There is apparent reason to do so). So this was an ultimate experience as well.
  
  
• We started back from Chikmagalur on Sunday morning at 0700 Hours and with a break at Swati at 0900 for Breakfast, we were home by 1030 Hours, and very peacefully

Route conditions itself:

• Nelamangala to Hirisave : Most sections have now got fresh layer. This also means all those small rumblers, especially after Bellur Cross Toll have vanished - Expect fresh ones to get in place soon.
  
  
• Just a Km before Bellur cross toll towards Hassan, there is a small bridge under repairs but the location is a nasty one - Keep an eye on signage when you drive around here.
  
  
• Belur - Chikmagalur: Section right from Bennur Gadi till Magadi Hand Post has got fresh & wide layer : Road works were in progress when I last drove few weeks back and now this is completely done - This is only 5 kms but easily saves times as the road earlier was patchy and narrow near tank-bunds and culverts
  
  
• Kottigehara to Kalasa: This is brilliant now with not even a single bad patch. Last time when I drove, there were few patchy sections but not anymore
  
  
• Kalasa - Kuduremukha: This remains as good as before
  
  
• Bajagoli - Naravi - Guruvayanakere: This was patchy when I last reported. As of now, its brilliant too. All sections that required attention are either patched up or have a fresh layer of asphalt
  
  
• Charmadi Ghats: Overall, I would refer this as the most sustaining ghat since past 4 years despite taking all the beatings when Shiradi was closed. Very few sections are bad with huge potholes created due to flowing water but this should not become a reason to not take this road - You will realise this when you drive. The bad sections as I could recall were just 2-3 and each one not exceeding 50 meters.

On a long weekend, if your headed towards Kalasa, it also makes sense to do Hassan - Sakaleshpur - Hanbal - Jannapura - Mudigere instead of Hassan - Belur - Mudigere because Hassan to Belur you will get lot of traffic heading towards Chikmagalur too while Sakaleshpur - Jannapura will be very empty. Relatively, this option is even faster.

[alokgunhal]

Quick Weekend Trip to Enjoy the Rains

Long weekend coming up. Long time since we ventured out. Where shall we head to was the discussion. We narrowed upon Dandeli but had to cancel due to non-availability of a specific place to stay - That trip can wait.

Then we decided to keep Udupi as the base and travel around. The idea was to visit Krishna Temple, Pajaka on 24Jun. Next day do a drive in the rains and see some places which we hadn't seen before.

The Plan

24Jun - Bangalore - Udupi
25Jun - Udupi - Gokarna - Udupi
26Jun - Udupi - Bangalore

Stay: Hotel Sri Krishna Residency at Udupi. I recommend this place to anyone who is looking to have a decent stay at Udupi with family. The temple is a mere 3 minute walk and just about 2 minutes from the main road connecting to Manipal.

24-Jun: We had decided to take the Agumbe route to Udupi while planning. Started at 5 AM from C V Raman Nagar and within 40 minutes we were on the Nelamangala stretch. Being a long weekend we anticipated long queues, but surprisingly we passed through with a breeze. This was the first time the FastTag was put in use.

The weather was pleasant and we breezed through until we stopped at A2B at around 7:40 AM. A2B was super crowded (we usually avoid such places on the Day 1 of the drive). Since we had packed breakfast from home went a little ahead, parked and were done with breakfast in 20 minutes.

We continued the drive and passed by Hassan and Belur. Upon reaching Chikmagalur called up Parag (who was at CKM) and he mentioned that he had just started towards Kudremukha (just missed meeting him). Onwards to Agumbe we continued via Aldur - Balehonnur - Sringeri. Reached Agumbe at 12:20 PM and had a quick lunch at a hotel in the bus stop. Soon after continued towards the Ghat road stopping briefly for a quick photo at the viewpoint.

Agumbe Ghat road is freshly tarred and it was butter smooth (hope it holds up like that for sometime). The drive through the ghats was really enjoyable with the weather complimenting the drive.

At 2 PM we reached the hotel and after a brief rest visited Pajaka (we took a auto as I did not want to take the car out) and then spent time at Krishna Temple.

25-Jun : Started from hotel on a overcast day at 7:30 AM. Went straight to Diana and filled up on some dosas and the mandatory Gadbad ice cream. Then it was a drive towards Gokarna. The four-lane road is almost upto Kundapur and beyond that the route was rough with multiple diversions. With the rain giving company it was slow drive but still enjoyable with all the greenery and nature around us.

Stopped at Maravanthe for a quick break and photo session.

Continued driving towards Gokarna and reached at around 1:30PM. Spent some time at the Om Beach as the temple was closed until 5PM. Had quick visit to the temple at 5 and started back to Udupi at 5:30 PM. The rains again accompanied us till Udupi and we reached at 9:30PM. Had dinner at Hotel Kediyoor and returned to our room for a good night's sleep.

26-Jun: Started from Udupi at 9:30 AM (after a quick visit to the temple and breakfast at Mitra Samaj). We initially planned to take Shiradi Ghat route but then decided against it considering that the weekend traffic would be higher. Charmadi route it was! Took the Udupi - Padubidri - Nitte - Bajegoli - Naravi road to join Belthangady.

Continued towards the Charmadi Ghat with rains accompanying us intermittently. Except for 2 - 3 bad patches where there are huge potholes the entire Charmadi ghat section was a breeze to drive with the rains, clouds and greenery giving a enjoyable drive. reached Kottigehara at around 1:30 PM and had a few Neer dosas. Continuing we again stopped at Fresh Bean Cafe at Banakal for a quick cup of coffee. This place had good clean rest rooms and the coffee was good as well.

From here I wanted to try a different route and decided to take the SH27 just before Gonebidu and reach Sakleshpura via Hanbal. This route was excellent with the tarmac being smooth and rains again accompanying us. Upon reaching Anemahal the we met the traffic headed to Bangalore and boy was it a wise decision to take Charmadi. From then on it was the usual route via Hassan - Bellur Cross - Nelmangala to reach home at 9PM.

Overall it was a welcome drive in the rains with family after a long time on a long weekend.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by alokgunhal

Quick Weekend Trip to Enjoy the Rains

Was waiting for your update Alok. Thanks for sharing. Will help most folks here.

This was the first time the FastTag was put in use.

The only grouse about FASTag experience on this route are the following:

-- The Nelamangala (40/-) one makes FASTag lane as cash lane often upon spotting too many vehicles. Kills the whole purpose here.

-- The 2 Tolls of Kirisave and Shantigrama, both managed by L&T have no exclusive FASTag lanes. So those with Cash also enter here. And at times, I have had to get into arguments with the toll folks here that if there is no dedicated lane for FASTag, they cannot insist those with Tag to take the same lane that is marked FASTag

Upon reaching Chikmagalur called up Parag (who was at CKM) and he mentioned that he had just started towards Kudremukha (just missed meeting him).

We decided that we will meet but our Kalasa - Kuduremukha plan was impromptu! I guess it made a lot of sense to take that circuit and was fun indeed .

The four-lane road is almost upto Kundapur and beyond that the route was rough with multiple diversions. With the rain giving company it was slow drive but still enjoyable with all the greenery and nature around us.

This section of erstwhile NH17 is now no more the same. Beyond Baindoor, massive 4 lane work has ensured that the driving pleasure is gone. Else, its always a fantastic experience to do Mangalore - Goa through this road and you for sure remember few drives we did towards Goa.

The rains again accompanied us till Udupi and we reached at 9:30PM. Had dinner at Hotel Kediyoor and returned to our room for a good night's sleep.

This works immensely well. Udupi being a larger center has more options to stay and eat than Kollur or Gokarna.

[quote]We initially planned to take Shiradi Ghat route but then decided against it considering that the weekend traffic would be higher. Charmadi route it was! Took the Udupi - Padubidri - Nitte - Bajegoli - Naravi road to join Belthangady. [quote] Couldn't have been any saner decision than this.

With new layer even on sections between Karkala and Guruvayanakere, things have got faster here too, sans any traffic which is icing on cake.

reached Kottigehara at around 1:30 PM and had a few Neer dosas. Continuing we again stopped at Fresh Bean Cafe at Banakal for a quick cup of coffee. This place had good clean rest rooms and the coffee was good as well.

This was important to hear from you. Many BHPians have stopped here. There is an IOCL station attached which accepts cards too. Coffee tastes better and rest rooms are as clean as any others good ones you find in cities. Glad the experience was good.

From here I wanted to try a different route and decided to take the SH27 just before Gonebidu and reach Sakleshpura via Hanbal. This route was excellent with the tarmac being smooth and rains again accompanying us. Upon reaching Anemahal the we met the traffic headed to Bangalore and boy was it a wise decision to take Charmadi.

Exactly the same what I have mentioned in my earlier post. That its better to Skip Mudigere - Belur - Hassan and to the Hanbal route. Faster any day on a long weekend.

[razeetg]

Went from Bangalore to Mangalore and back last weekend. Early morning to Mangalore and evening 5PM from Mangalore. There were heavy rains at the ghats, and I had to drive slowly, especially because I'm not too familiar with the locations of the pot holes. Some of them have been filled it looks like, but quite a few, almost impossible to spot when it rains. Anyone going that way when it rains, drive carefully. Under powered trucks on that route mean that you might have to drive at less than 20km/h for some time. Also, road work going on a lot of places. Some resurfacing on the toll roads, some widening (4 laning) work etc.



Drive safe peeps

[DejavuTrip]

Just read this http://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsD...?newsID=458598 Has anyone seen this first hand?

[razeetg]

Originally Posted by DejavuTrip

Just read this http://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsD...?newsID=458598 Has anyone seen this first hand?

Not sure where Addahole is. I came via Uppinangadi - Gundya to Bangalore (from Mangalore), started at around 5PM. Should have been in Gundya by 7. I didn't see anything like this. By 7 I think rain just started. Must have happened after that.

[DragonHawk]

I returned from Puttur yesterday and has been quite an eventful drive till Sakaleshpur. I usually prefer early morning start around 4am and I am quite used to the irritating full beam of incoming Mangalore bound buses. But yesterday`s journey was different, had couple of close shaves. More details below.

Scene 1:
Near miss of head on collision with Durgamba bus:

https://youtu.be/CgJPsu-8SMk

For one thing my braking was not effective and the other for a moment I felt I lost control of my car as it was skidding due to wet conditions and lucky for me I was holding my steering tight and we both were slow. It would have been a different story altogether if either of us couldn`t stop our vehicles in time.

This incident has literally shaken me off and took some time to get things to normal.

Scene 2:

Broken down car with blinkers on. Yes this is perfectly fine but what if the car is broken down in a blind curve and you have incoming traffic occupying your space.

https://youtu.be/UQmmYQgd5mE

As far as Shiradi ghat is concerned. Potholes have developed and thanks to the recent rain stretch between Gundya and temple near Shiradi gate has become a slugfest and this section has transformed itself like a gravel road. One need to take extra precaution while coming from Sakaleshpur as road doesn`t provide good traction and you need to keep an watch on the speed as braking is not effective on gravel roads.

I have been driving on this stretch for more than 8 years and every time it has thrown me some surprises. One of important learning I had is to never take things for granted. You may have taken this stretch for umpteen number of times and you may know every inch of the road but one second is enough to destroy your confidence. So drive safe and always be in control of your car.

[DragonHawk]

Update on Bisle Ghat stretch.

Saturday I went for a ride to Mallalli falls and thought of exploring the Bisle ghat. Before taking the deviation I checked with a local about the road and he informed that concrete work is not yet complete, however I can drive all way till Subramanya. Since I didn`t had any other plans, I decided to explore the stretch.

Majestic Mallalli falls.


Contrary to my previous report http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3926236, road is fully tarred till Bisle view point. Due to monsoon concrete laying work is stopped and there is still 4-5kms of work pending.













Anybody willing to try this route, please be aware that concrete road is slippery as vehicular movement is less, fallen tress and small landslides were a common sight as toughening of road shoulders is yet to be completed and add to that road where work is still pending is not that wide and width is sufficient for 2 cars to pass comfortably and better be prepared to move back and forth if a truck comes by.

[Shubbi]

Not sure if this has been reported here before - a new hotel called Hotel Seethanadi has come up between Someshwara and Hebri (just before the left turn towards Varanga-Karkala). Good food, clean rest-rooms, humongous parking area.

Precise location -> https://goo.gl/6nL2xP

People especially doing Someshwara-Hebri-Udupi or Someshwara-Varanga-Karkala drives, can consider this.

[procrj]

Originally Posted by DragonHawk

Majestic Mallalli falls.

Have they finished the concrete road all the way to the Mallalli Falls view point? Last year when I was there about a 2 km section was not done and hence you had to either walk from the gate or take Jeeps to get to Mallalli from the main road.

[DragonHawk]

Originally Posted by procrj

Have they finished the concrete road all the way to the Mallalli Falls view point? Last year when I was there about a 2 km section was not done and hence you had to either walk from the gate or take Jeeps to get to Mallalli from the main road.

Yes now you can drive all the way till Mallalli Falls view point. As an entry fee they charge some nominal fee for all the vehicles depending on the class. For bike they charged around Rs 30.

[hothatchaway]

Originally Posted by DragonHawk

Update on Bisle Ghat stretch.



Contrary to my previous report http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3926236, road is fully tarred till Bisle view point. Due to monsoon concrete laying work is stopped and there is still 4-5kms of work pending.

.

Looks really nice. I have been wanting to ride to Bisle for a while and your update about road conditions is a boon. So decent roads all the way to the view point? Am planning to go via Holenarsipur - Arkalgud - Shanivarsanthe. Should I ride on straight from there following GPS?

[guyfrmblr]

I had been to Bisile ghat 6 years ago and all I remember was a beautiful and peaceful place in pristine condition. My native is very near to the lower part of the Bisile ghat near Subramanya but had ventured into the ghat only once in my lifetime. Last weekend my cousin who stays near Subramanya had been to Bisile and was shocked to see hordes of people all along the upper part of Bisile ghat. I guess the Government should not have developed the road there. Development of that road was the dumbest idea the Government could think of. I can only imagine the chaos after the entire road work till Subramanya is completed.

He shared few pictures of the surrounding areas of both the viewpoints of Bisile. My cousin has been to Bisile quite a few number of times but had never seen it in such a pathetic state. He stated that all these nuisance started only after the road condition was improved and the weekend warriors in Bengaluru registered vehicles started pouring in (No offence to anyone from Bengaluru, I'm a Bengalurnavnu myself):




This is near the view point which is further down the ghat. This was such a lovely place earlier which is now completely spoilt:


You can see a guy here crossing the safety fence (by making a hole in it) and venturing near the cliff for a selfie:


Its only a matter of time before Bisile turns into another Shiradi/Charmadi.

[DragonHawk]

Originally Posted by hothatchaway

Looks really nice. I have been wanting to ride to Bisle for a while and your update about road conditions is a boon. So decent roads all the way to the view point? Am planning to go via Holenarsipur - Arkalgud - Shanivarsanthe. Should I ride on straight from there following GPS?

I took the same route, once reaching Shanivarsanthe I took right turn towards Kuduraste, decent roads all the way till Bisle view point.


If you are taking this route for the first time then I suggest you to drive following GPS.

Originally Posted by guyfrmblr

Last weekend my cousin who stays near Subramanya had been to Bisile and was shocked to see hordes of people all along the upper part of Bisile ghat. I guess the Government should not have developed the road there. Development of that road was the dumbest idea the Government could think of. I can only imagine the chaos after the entire road work till Subramanya is completed.

Development activities in areas like Bisle comes with its own perils like commercialization. Mallalli falls area is one such example as I could see hotels, resorts coming up. This place has become a drunkards paradise as I witnessed couple of groups parked in the stretch dancing and drinking that too with loud music. I always believe wherever we go we should not leave any of our traces behind but sadly though not everyone follows it. I still remember when I first visited Kumaraparvata 17 years back, it was one of the places where I couldn`t find any plastics or other waste dumped but I was very much saddened when I visited 5 years back, this place had transformed itself like a dumping yard. Thankfully now they have banned plastics and overnight stay. So people should understand their responsibilities if not Govt should take initiative to make them understand.