[SgtRuckus]

Driving back from Saligrama to Bangalore today .
Started from Saligrama and took the Goliangadi -> Someshwara -> Agumbe -> Balehonnur Road till Belur .

There's a huge BJP canvassing event for which they have blocked the main road .

This was around 12noon . Supposedly the road would be blocked for atleast 2 hours.

The cops manning the checkpost have no idea about any alternative routes. Some local suggested an alternate route via Alur. Take the right before entering belur town.

Multiple election check posts at Someshwara, Agumbe and other locations in between .

[its_saurabh81]

Originally Posted by karthikkv

We usually leave around 7-8 AM and drive leisurely with enough breaks. Can someone please give some ideas around the current condition of the routes and good restaurants for lunch or any other routes that you have taken.
Thanks.

Option B is good in my opinion. I had used it last month and planning to use again on 22nd April. The only challenge is lack of good clean eateries on the way. We usually stop at Mayura for breakfast and Growers Coffee House for a quick restroom and snacks break. Roads are mostly fine throughout the stretch.

[anoopBH]

Planning to travel from Bangalore to Kundapur on 29th April via Hiriyur - Bhadravathi - Agumbe route. Anybody travelled on this route recently? How is the road condition? I'm considering this route as this will have less traffic compared to Charmadi or Balehonnur route.

Also any suggestions on lunch options considering 4AM start from Bangalore would be helpful.

[etrast75]

Originally Posted by anoopBH

Planning to travel from Bangalore to Kundapur on 29th April via Hiriyur - Bhadravathi - Agumbe route. Anybody travelled on this route recently? How is the road condition? I'm considering this route as this will have less traffic compared to Charmadi or Balehonnur route.

Also any suggestions on lunch options considering 4AM start from Bangalore would be helpful.

Did part of this stretch early this month..
blore to hiriyur is on the main highway - no major issues.
hiriyur to bhadravathi is mostly good.. expect a few bad stretches but nothing major. expect traffic around tarikere and some around hosadurga..
roads in agumbe ghats are good - be careful with some moronic drivers who have no idea on how to drive in ghat roads.

Did not take bhadravathi-thirthahalli-kundapur road but every other road I took during the 1200 kms trip around that area was good with sparse traffic.

[Meph1st0]

Recently traveled from Bangalore to Udupi via the Shiradi for a change.
The route taken is as below - Bangalore - Hassan - Sakleshpura - Dharmasthala - Belthangadi - Karkala - Udupi
Distance is same as that through the Charmadi route and it took me almost the same time.

The roads are good for the most part. Hassan to Sakleshpura concrete work is ongoing, however the work is complete at least on one side. So you are mostly on good concrete roads.
Sakleshpur to Shiradi is well tarred and the road condition is excellent.
The Shiradi ghat is in good shape.
The progress after Shiradi towards Nelyadi is work-in-progress and one has to navigate through bad stretches.

Overall this is a good alternative to Charmadi and plus point for me was that my family did not vomit.

[ghodlur]

Recently travelled on the NH 75 from Bangalore till Sakleshpur and back and in some stretches the road cannot be called a NH at all. The worst was this NH becomes a city road in Sakleshpur going through single lane and crowded market place roads slowing down considerably with roads in not motorable conditions. The concrete work on one side between Sakleshpur and Hassan is done majorly with some portions still broken. The road after the Hassan turn towards Chikmagalur while return becomes the usual 4 lane fantastic roads and can cover up for the lost time.

Could see election check posts in 4 places but the way the checks were being done could put to shame the purpose of doing the checks.

[Oppanna]

Did a quick ride to Alankar and back from Bangalore. Onward ride was welcomed with drizzle till solur and post then not even a drop. It was complete dry. Majority of the construction is complete in Chennarayapatna bypass and if i recollect only 2 over pass construction is pending between Chennarapatna and Hassan.

Hassan to Sakaleshpura 46 kms road widening is 90% complete and at few places we need to drive/ride on other side which is still ok compared to how the road was 5 months ago.

Sakaleshpura bypass is incomplete and might not be ready before monsoon i guess.

Sakalespura to Heggadde got a new lease of life and fresh coat of tarmac is being put. Finally no more killer potholes in and around Anemahal.

Shiradi ghat stretch remains the same with no potholes.

Gundya to Nellyadi road widening is in progress and have couple of bad patches but manageable.

For those who are travelling to Mangalore i would still suggest to take Charmadi or even Madikeri route though it is longer by around 30 kms.

[vint]

Planning to visit a resort near Sakleshpur in next week, driving from bangalore with a family of 4. Wanted to know :
1. How is the road condition ? Any election related issues to be aware of ?
2. Which is the best breakfast option while going from Bangalore ? I know of Swati Delicacy, but its on the other side, would prefer something thats on the side of the road without needing a u-turn.
3. Any idea on how is the weather ?

[DetectiveMiles]

Travelled to Puttur(took left from Gundya to avoid ongoing construction) from Bengaluru and back via Shiradi Ghat.
Roads are in good condition right now, until the next rains, I feel.

Originally Posted by vint

Planning to visit a resort near Sakleshpur in next week, driving from bangalore with a family of 4. Wanted to know :
1. How is the road condition ? Any election related issues to be aware of ?
2. Which is the best breakfast option while going from Bangalore ? I know of Swati Delicacy, but its on the other side, would prefer something thats on the side of the road without needing a u-turn.
3. Any idea on how is the weather ?

1. Roads are good except small diverted streched where construction is going on.
2. There are multiple options, Food Culture, Dhruvatare, Kicchana Hallimane all close to Kunigal, then Hotel Mayura. Anagha Grand near Channaraya Pattana.
New place called Harsha Grand, haven't tried yet, but there is good crowd I see.
3. Weather was clear till past week, this week has rain forecasts.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by DetectiveMiles

Travelled to Puttur from Bengaluru and back via Shiradi Ghat.
Roads are in good condition right now, until the next rains, I feel.

I too travelled from Udupi to Bangalore via Shirady yesterday. Other than the construction stretch until Gundya, rest were fine.

Originally Posted by DetectiveMiles

New place called Harsha Grand, haven't tried yet, but there is good crowd I see.

I tried it during my drive towards Udupi two weeks ago. For a change, the place matches the name. It is grand, probably most posh restaurant between Bangalore and Hassan. The taali was ₹180 and it was similar to Mayura/Swati level.

[guyfrmblr]

Drove back from Sullia to Bangalore through Shiradi after ages. As others have already reported, road conditions are good except for the small under construction section near Ossur hotel. Also got a glimpse of the Sakaleshpur bypass. Once ready, I believe the town could be bypassed within couple of minutes compared to navigating through the crowded town which takes around 15 minutes.

[JMaruru]

Originally Posted by guyfrmblr

Also got a glimpse of the Sakaleshpur bypass. Once ready, I believe the town could be bypassed within couple of minutes compared to navigating through the crowded town which takes around 15 minutes.

Where is the entry/exit for this bypass?

[guyfrmblr]

Originally Posted by JMaruru

Where is the entry/exit for this bypass?

It's not open for driving as it's still under construction but you can get a very good view of it from one of the curves while driving down to Sakaleshpur from Gudya side. It's an arrow straight bypass. The approximate location of the bypass is as shown below.

[catchmeifuwant]

Trip: Bangalore to Mangalore
Date: 11 May 2023

Route: Bangalore - Hassan - Belur - Mudigere - Charmady Ghat - Ujre - BC Road - Mangalore

Road condition: Pretty good all the way through. A few rough tarmac and spots around Ujre

Time taken: Approx 8.30 hours, including three breaks for breakfast, coffee, and a lunch

----------
Trip: Mangalore to Bangalore
Date: 13 May 2023

Route: Mangalore - BC Road - Uppinangady - Nelvadi - Shiradi Ghat - Sakleshpur - Hassan - Bangalore

Road condition: Poor driving experience between BC Road and Nelavadi (up until the ghat section start) and near Sakleshpur town. The four-lane work is in progress, leading to far too many diversions. The roads around the diversion are in poor condition - no massive potholes thankfully, but loose gravel and uneven surface leads to an extremely unpleasant driving experience. It was also slushy due to the rains overnight. So the first two hours of the drive wasn't good.


Time taken: Approx 8.30 hours, including two breaks for coffee and lunch.
--------------

On the way back, Google was showing a couple of mins difference between the two routes and I decided to try Shirady ghat strecth. Poor decision in hindsight.

Charmady ghat is relatively narrow roads & much more winding than Shirady ghat. But it's definitely more scenic and pleasant to drive through.

[unk9ja]

Travelled to Udupi on Thursday and returned back on Sunday.
Onward journey: Bengaluru - Nelamangala - Hassan - Belur - Charmadi - Bangoli - Manipal - Udupi
Road conditions: Mostly excellent. Stretch between Hassan and Belur has started to lose its top patch at certain places and the noise gets into the cabin. WIP around 5kms to Manipal which has uneven rough surface. Most of the diversions on Hasan highway is completed and it is a breeze.
Pitstop at HVR, Hassan and Bhuvaneshwari hotel, Bajagoli.

Return journey: Udupi - Karkala - Kudremukha - Jayapura - Chikmagalur - Hassan - Nelamangala - Bengaluru.
I know it is a bit longer but had some errands at Karkala and Chikmagalur, so the detour.
The road between Karkala and Jayapura was an amazing experience. Going through the inner roads before joining at Jayapura.
Also visited the Tasty World Food factory on my return. It was worth the time invested in the visit.
Pitstop at Bhuvaneshwari hotel, Bajagoli, Tasty World Food factory, Chikmagalur and Mayura at Bellur cross.