[rajshenoy]

Well. just couple of days back i said something and i would like to take it back now.. again i am on a route hunting mode and guys, plz update me on best route for Udupi ?

From the visuals, Shiradi looks ok to me as i have driven through the worse of shiradi before.. but the Traffic jams are onething i would like to avoid

is the hassan-belur-chikmaglur-sringeri-agumbe route still good ?

or Charmadi ?

[addyhemmige]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

Well. just couple of days back i said something and i would like to take it back now.. again i am on a route hunting mode and guys, plz update me on best route for Udupi ?

From the visuals, Shiradi looks ok to me as i have driven through the worse of shiradi before.. but the Traffic jams are onething i would like to avoid

is the hassan-belur-chikmaglur-sringeri-agumbe route still good ?

or Charmadi ?

From what I heard from a friend who did that a week or so back, it is still holding up against the rains and in good condition except for a few places.

No news about Charmadi, though. I don't even know if it has been opened after it was closed 3-4 months (dunno for sure) back?

[laluks]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

From the visuals, Shiradi looks ok to me as i have driven through the worse of shiradi before..

Unfortunately the depth is not visualisable in these 2d images.

It is doable. As per the forum, if Civic with its GC can do any other cars can do. It only depends on the driver. It was a good timepass game anyway

[rjstyles69]

Originally Posted by lohithrao

laluks, actually "SHiradi" was hell couple of years back, remember driving in 1st and 2nd gear all through the ghats in my OHC...but anyways in matter of a week or 2 it will be a nightmare!

Lohit the condition of the roads doesn't look all that deplorable like it used to be in 2006 or so. I remember the roads were much worse than the ones depicted in the pictures. My friends Safari busted its suspension while going downhill, however my baleno came out unscathed.

[lohithrao]

Originally Posted by rjstyles69

Lohit the condition of the roads doesn't look all that deplorable like it used to be in 2006 or so. I remember the roads were much worse than the ones depicted in the pictures. My friends Safari busted its suspension while going downhill, however my baleno came out unscathed.

Agree with you riju, remember that there was no sane patch in the entire ghat...only huge potholes...hope the condition does not get that bad

Btw Safari shocks busted! guess he tried to rip over those pot holes?

[rjstyles69]

Originally Posted by lohithrao

Agree with you riju, remember that there was no sane patch in the entire ghat...only huge potholes...hope the condition does not get that bad

I remember the way the trucks were driven uphill, still clearly etched in my mind. Slot the truck into gear and then no more brakes, simple let the truck roll and do the climb and the vehicles coming downhill had to make way for these over-loaded trucks.

Worst of it was to see these huge tankers tilt to about 65 degrees or so and take the curves and you are at that curve waiting for the truck to pass. Used to be really scary man, I remember my friend saying " dude if this truck topples we are mince meat "

Originally Posted by lohithrao

Btw Safari shocks busted! guess he tried to rip over those pot holes?

This happened about 2 kms before Gundya, where in he gave way to an oncoming truck,hit a pot-hole(understatement) and the suspension went bust.

[arin_12]

Originally Posted by prabhusati

Last year, the Government spent 40 crores to repair the Shiradi Ghat and this year they spent 3 crores to fill up the pot holes. Both got washed away. This gives an indication of the quality of work. I am sure with the amount that has gone into this stretch during the last 10 years, we could have easily built a road which can withstand 100 tonne trucks!!

Yes Boss !!! Thats the quality of the Contractor. Hope we all are aware how the Fly Overs/ Bridges/ Metro Cons in India are collapsing.
More work means more tender means more earning.They will never built quality road and we travelers are the sufferer.

[zaks]

I have been hearing about the bad road conditions near Mangalore for years now, why don't the people there complain and make and hue and cry about it?

Or are they taking pride in their region being a dirt track for motor heads

[CaliAtenza]

i was in the shiradi ghat 2 days ago...its beat to hell. All the tarred sections are pretty much torn up in the bulk of the ghat section, but the cement sections have held up well. The constant rain isnt helping as well the seemingly endless stream of tanker trucks.

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by CaliAtenza

i was in the shiradi ghat 2 days ago...its beat to hell. All the tarred sections are pretty much torn up in the bulk of the ghat section, but the cement sections have held up well. The constant rain isnt helping as well the seemingly endless stream of tanker trucks.

How bad are the Traffic jams? Road condition is one thing and these truckers cause another headache of breaking down and causing big jams.

More than the road condition, its the traffic that makes it look like Real Hell

[lohithrao]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

How bad are the Traffic jams? Road condition is one thing and these truckers cause another headache of breaking down and causing big jams.

More than the road condition, its the traffic that makes it look like Real Hell

Actually the tanker traffic is a big pain, most of them are very slow...many of them are Lonnng and yes some of them break down..

last year during monsoon had a tough time over taking....i remember of overtaking 30+ of them and when i found some more in front of me i gave up and drove behind them:(

best part after overtaking a big gang of them i dint ant to stop at all, not even to take a leak

Guys anyone knows about the "Charmadi"?? i feel that will be a better option...

[dkamath]

Airavats take about 9 hours to and fro M'lore, even via. the Madikeri route. The roads are undoubtedly in bad condition and there's no way the drivers can avoid riding over potholes. Also, the Airavat i boarded during the return trip came along the Thokkottu - Melkar route, to touch NH48. Not sure if it was our bus alone or all other Airavats are avoiding the Pumpwell->BC Road in their return trips.

[sgiitk]

The advice I got from a local - DO NOT! As simple as that.

[sushrutha]

Originally Posted by lohithrao

Guys anyone knows about the "Charmadi"?? i feel that will be a better option...

Charmadi might have choked to landslides(Though I don't have concerete information), it's raining like anything there.
My option as of now to travel towards Mangalore is BLR-HASSAN-BELUR-MUDIGERE-KOTTIGEHARA-KALASA-KARKALA-PADUBIDRE-MLR
Even Sringeri route is submerged (ref today's Deccan Herald)

[sumirish]

As our Son was joining Manipal University, we recently drove from Chennai to Manipal and back . Chennai to Bangalore on Day 1 was a breeze. On Day 2 we hit the Bangalore –Nelamangala-Hassan Bypass – Sakleshpur - to the Mangalore NH17 junction. This was one of the worst motoring experiences ever. The roads were horrible in the Shiradi ghats and we were crawling between miles of truck traffic. The drive took 11 hours to reach Manipal and it took all the fun out of driving. I decided never to attempt this stretch again. On the way back from Manipal to Bangalore, we took the Agumbe-Shimoga- Arisikere-Tumkur route and this was a much better option. Although the distance was much more than the Sakleshpur route and the time taken to Bangalore was still about 10 Hours, it was a far more enjoyable and relaxing drive.

My car was a Ford Ikon Flair and I got excellent fuel consumption at 18 Kms/ltr in the long flat stretches.