[NPV]

Originally Posted by revhappy

I am confused whether I should take the Agumbe ghat route or the Hulikal ghat route. Agumbe ghat route was awesome during onward journey. But I am a but skeptical about going upslope on those steep curves. I did Hulikal route in 2013 and the roads were very bad, but the curves manageble. Any suggestions?

Hulikal if I remember correctly was repaired sometime in 2015 or so.
Also, Agumbe is a short ghat section so it shouldn't be so difficult, just my opinion.

[aithalsandy]

Originally Posted by NPV

Hulikal if I remember correctly was repaired sometime in 2015 or so.
Also, Agumbe is a short ghat section so it shouldn't be so difficult, just my opinion.

Not sure about the latest conditions of hulikal ghat, but the road afterwards till Shimoga is good (either via Thirthahalli or Hosanagara).

I agree with NPV, total ghat section is 15km with 12 hairpin curves and good tarmac (atleast for now ), can be done in 30min. Also, no big vehicle are allowed in Agumbe. If you are sceptical on climbing, tail some decently driven car, may be any of the Mangalore-Shimoga bus. You will go slow but he will make it easy for you.

Take a call on your comfort levels.

[revhappy]

We took the Kundapur siddapur Hulikal hosanagara honahalli then took AH47 before Harihara the before chitradurga there is a diversion that goes to Challakere and then Bellary.

Overall, the route was good except the stretch of about 50 Kms before Harihara.

[aithalsandy]

Originally Posted by revhappy

We took the Kundapur siddapur Hulikal hosanagara honahalli then took AH47 before Harihara the before chitradurga there is a diversion that goes to Challakere ....

Any specific reason to select this route?

I thought Hosanagara-Shimoga-Chitradurga was a peaceful choice.

[revhappy]

Originally Posted by aithalsandy

Any specific reason to select this route?

I thought Hosanagara-Shimoga-Chitradurga was a peaceful choice.

Google suggested this route as the shortest. Also I thought the AH47 stretch would be a treat to drive, which it was. But yes, in hindsight, I should have taken a different route.

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by revhappy

The road is good, no potholes, very scenic in between a forest. I don't remember the amount of time.

Thanks for the update. I had to travel from Kolluru to Sringeri and hence took the Agumbe route. It is indeed good and worth taking, if not for the pot hole-less roads, at least for the thrill of going through the curves. Had to miss the mesmerizing scenery because I travelled at night.

[indusboy]

Originally Posted by abhinav.s

BLR-Hassan-Belur-Chikamagalur-Aldur-Balehonnur-Jayapura-Agumbe-Manipal-Udupi route. If you are not driving to Mangalore, this seems to be a good route for travelers going to Manipal/Udupi direct.

We took this during the Christmas break, and I would recommend this to anyone going to Manipal/Udupi. Picturesque and way less traffic. A little bit of bad surface for 10-15Kms after Chikamagalur, other than that very nice and smooth.

[hothatchaway]

Anybody been on the bisle ghat lately? I went up there on a motorcycle in July when it was raining and went upto the viewpoint. The road was being freshly laid at the time.

Planning for a day trip upto the view point over the weekend.

[procrj]

Originally Posted by hothatchaway

The road was being freshly laid at the time.

Was checking out a few youtube videos posted over the last month and from what I can gather, it looks like the last few kms to the viewpoint from Vangoor side has decent tarmac. Again this is based on inferences from a few videos and not based on road info from someone I know.

[unk9ja]

Originally Posted by hothatchaway

Anybody been on the bisle ghat lately? I went up there on a motorcycle in July when it was raining and went upto the viewpoint. The road was being freshly laid at the time.

Planning for a day trip upto the view point over the weekend.

The roads are excellent till about 100 odd meter from the view point. I drove down to Mangaluru via Bisle ghat on 05/12. The route I took was Girinagar Nelamangala CR Patna Arkalgud Shanivarasanthe Kudurasthe Bisle ghat uppinangadi Mangalore. Road beyond the view point is stewn with stones and need a bit of careful driving.
Added_flavour and me did a loop during monsoon and at that time, it was enjoyable drive. This time I had a few oops moments on the stones.

[suresh_gs]

Folks

I drove to Mangalore from Bangalore via Hassan by pass, Belur, Mudigere and Charmadi Ghats. Very good roads all the way except for a mud road surface in Charmadi for a few mts and some broken stretches from Hassan to Belur but very much driveable.
Will update photos later...

[aithalsandy]

Hello All,

Posting update on road conditions on Agumbe-Shimoga section just in case if anyone is interested.

Road upgrade is in full swing from Mandagadde to Shimoga, while Mandagadde to Agumbe is good.

Overall 60% good, 20% average and 20% is under construction.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

Folks

I drove to Mangalore from Bangalore via Hassan by pass, Belur, Mudigere and Charmadi Ghats. Very good roads all the way except for a mud road surface in Charmadi for a few mts and some broken stretches from Hassan to Belur but very much driveable.
Will update photos later...

Folks

Returned back to Bangalore on 1st Jan. Left Mangalore at 7 45 AM and reached Bommanahalli by 4 PM entering through the city.
I took the Shiradi Ghats. Prior to the concrete stretch, the road is in a shambles for about 10 kms or so. I was lucky enough not to scrape the under body of the car. This is very much doable provided one exercises caution and this route is by far the fastest route compared to Charmadi Ghats
I felt the Charmadi Ghats was far too scenic compared to Shiradi Ghats.
Will update my travelogue with photos shortly...

[rahulb22]

Looks like Shiradi would be closed from mid-January. Refer article below.

http://www.newindianexpress.com/stat...5-1742165.html

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

This is very much doable provided one exercises caution and this route is by far the fastest route compared to Charmadi Ghats...

This is really not true. Both of these routes almost take similar times depending on the time of the day and traffic pattern.

Having taken both these ghats on quite a regular basis, I would say the difference between both these routes won't be anything more than 10-15 minutes anyway.

The only thing with Charmadi is that due to the terrain and ghats, it feels a lot slower than Shiradi.