[rahulb22]

Originally Posted by procrj

Arkalgud - Ramanathapura - Konanur - Kushalnagar is the route. Google sometimes routes you directly from Arkalgud to Konanur via a very narrow stretch of road - do ensure that you go via Ramanathapura. Arkalgud - Ramanathapura stretch was redone sometime last aug/sep and was reported to be good. Not sure if the road works you are talking about is after that time period.

I guess it the Arkalgud-Ramanathapura stretch itself, that I was talking about. So, between the above route and the arkalgudu - shanivarasanthe - somwarapete - madikeri route, which is recommended if I am going towards Mangalore?

[procrj]

Originally Posted by rahulb22

I guess it the Arkalgud-Ramanathapura stretch itself, that I was talking about. So, between the above route and the arkalgudu - shanivarasanthe - somwarapete - madikeri route, which is recommended if I am going towards Mangalore?

Arkalgud - Ramanathapura - Kushalnagar might be slightly faster as its not twisty. If you want a nice twisty drive then somwarapete - madikeri is good. Roads on both stretches are good except for a small stretch between Ramanathapura - Konanur temple which passes through Konanur town.

[Shubbi]

Any latest reports on Charmadi traffic chaos? Are the heavy vehicles restricted or is it open to all?
Have to drive to Udupi this Friday - 9th Feb, starting @6PM from Bangalore.

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by Shubbi

Any latest reports on Charmadi traffic chaos? Are the heavy vehicles restricted or is it open to all?

You would have completed the drive by now and hence better placed to answer the query .

Just out of curiosity, i drove along a part of this route yesterday and found that the chaos is yet to subside. Large tourist buses appeared to be the major cause of blocks at many places. Also, the sheer number of vehicles make it difficult for the authorities to regulate traffic. Until the Shiradi ghat is opened, traversing this route will demand a lot of patience and time.

Meanwhile, the raison d'être of the trouble:



Entrance to Shiradi closed: In front of Manjrabad fort, Sakaleshpura

[vinboy]

Hi need to travel to Udupi tomorrow I plan to start my drive from Bangalore at 4.00Pm . Need information about the traffic condition in the Charmadi route? Is it better to take the Chennarayapatna-Holenarasipura- Arkalgodu- Madikeri route?

[ampere]

Originally Posted by vinboy

Hi need to travel to Udupi tomorrow I plan to start my drive from Bangalore at 4.00Pm . Need information about the traffic condition in the Charmadi route? Is it better to take the Chennarayapatna-Holenarasipura- Arkalgodu- Madikeri route?

If its Udupi, why not Agumbe? You can go via Thirthahallu/Agumbe/Someshwar/Hebri/Udupi.

[Thilak29]

Originally Posted by ampere

If its Udupi, why not Agumbe? You can go via Thirthahallu/Agumbe/Someshwar/Hebri/Udupi.

What is suggested route to Thirthahalli ?
Map suggests via Hiriyur OR Arsikere with marginal travel time difference and both have some extent of tolls. Please advise if anybody is frequent on this route.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Thilak29

What is suggested route to Thirthahalli ?

You can do Bangalore-Chitradurga-Shimoga-Tirthahalli.
You get 4/6 lane upto Chitradurga and the road widening work closer to Shimoga is almost complete as per recent posts here, so this will be good if you start early morning from Bangalore.

Between Shimoga-Tirthahalli on this route you have option for quick visits to Gajanur dam and Sakrebyle elephant camp both accessible from the road directly.

[Thilak29]

Originally Posted by NPV

Bangalore-Chitradurga-Shimoga-Tirthahalli.

Thanks NPV. Is driving all the way to Chitradurga necessary, just wondering diversion at Hiriyur will help. Also, my requirement is to drive upto Hebri so exploring if Hassan - Chikkamagalur - Balehonnur - Sringeri - Agumbe route is any good,its scenic for sure.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Thilak29

Also, my requirement is to drive upto Hebri so exploring if Hassan - Chikkamagalur - Balehonnur - Sringeri - Agumbe route is any good,its scenic for sure.

I thought your destination was Tirthahalli. Even if it's not, having taken this route earlier, I would prefer this compared to Hassan-Chikkamagulur or Hiriyur-Tarikere route.

Hassan-Chikkamagalur is good but probably will have more traffic these days since Shiradi is closed.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by Thilak29

Thanks NPV. Is driving all the way to Chitradurga necessary, just wondering diversion at Hiriyur will help. Also, my requirement is to drive upto Hebri so exploring if Hassan - Chikkamagalur - Balehonnur - Sringeri - Agumbe route is any good,its scenic for sure.

I would any pick Agumbe if my destination is Hebri.

The traffic that you would encounter most will be till Belur after which it will still be the usual traffic to Sringeri that you will see after Belur since Mangalore or Kalasa traffic would have headed towards Mudigere anyway.

The progress beyond Chikmagalur will be slow mainly due to continuous twisty roads all the way but then nothing should be unusually heavy (In comparison) to how Charmadi gets when Shiradi is closed.

[RaguHolla]

Originally Posted by Thilak29

Hassan - Chikkamagalur - Balehonnur - Sringeri - Agumbe route is any good,its scenic for sure.

This route is good all the way except little rough patches between Chikkamagaluru and Adluru. Since as NPV mentioned Shiradi closed, vehicle taking Charmadi route give you company till Beluru. Thus traffic might be high between Hassan Nh75 junction till Beluru (This road is two lane). In addition, Shimoga-Thirthalli-Agumbe is short ghats (100km, less twists and turns) compared to Chikkamagaluru - Agumbe(121km, more twists and turns) route. If you intended to drive non-stop in ghats, Shimoga-Agumbe route is advised.

[amit1agrawal]

How about the route, Bangalore-Chitradurga-Shivamogga-Thirthahalli-Agumbe-Udupi. I went on this route till Agumbe 5 years back. The route was very scenic and roads were good too.
According to Google Maps, it's only ~30 minutes more than the regular route via Hassan, Shakleshpur. If the roads are in as good condition as they were 5 years back then I think this route will be worth the extra time.
I am planning a trip next week.

[nikipedia87]

I might have to travel to Bantwal next month for a function. Which route is better in terms of roads and traffic congestion - the Charmadi ghat one, or the one via Madikeri?

[aithalsandy]

Hello All,

A lot of people seem to have questions on roads around Shivamogga and Thirthahalli, more so after the closure of Shiradi. Pls check Bangalore-Shimoga thread for latest updates. I had updated a couple of months back, I suspect conditions would be similar.