[ampere]

Originally Posted by bkishore_77

I'll be leaving to Mangalore in this coming weekend with my wife and she is carrying( 7 mths).
Is it ok to go via Shiradi in a Safari or do you think it is too much of a hassle. She prefers travelling in a car rather than any other mode of transport for compelling reasons.

Besides what you mention, I would still suggest to take the train to Mangalore.
That would be a much better option. Its not worth the risk.

[rajshenoy]

@ bkishore_77:
I drove through shiradi in first week of oct and it has gone bad(patch work??) but i dont think it would have rained much after that. besides Safari would be much comfortable than swift. Also the roads are excellent except for the 20-25 odd kms between sakleshpur and gundya. so NH48 would definitely be faster and less curvy compared to any other route you take.

But with monsoons gone away, i think train should be reach on time. but then its a matter of personal choice. if the doctor says she can travel, she can travel by car.

[Ash_bn]

@ bkishore_77:

Travelled between BNG and Mangalore this weekend. Road between sakleshpur and gundya is really bad. And if your passing this stretch after sunset then its horrible. I took about 2 hrs covering this stretch as it was raining heavily.
If your traveling by car(specially LOW CGs) then its a BIG NO.

[bkishore_77]

Originally Posted by ampere

Besides what you mention, I would still suggest to take the train to Mangalore.
That would be a much better option. Its not worth the risk.

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

@ bkishore_77:
I drove through shiradi in first week of oct and it has gone bad(patch work??) but i dont think it would have rained much after that. besides Safari would be much comfortable than swift. Also the roads are excellent except for the 20-25 odd kms between sakleshpur and gundya.
. if the doctor says she can travel, she can travel by car.

Originally Posted by Ash_bn

@ bkishore_77:
Travelled between BNG and Mangalore this weekend. Road between sakleshpur and gundya is really bad. And if your passing this stretch after sunset then its horrible..

Thank you all.
To clarify few things, I'll be starting from Bangalore at 7 AM. On consulting the Doctor, she was ok with we travelling in car.

And regarding the train travel, it is strict no no. Wifey has the fear of catching infection using the loo and i agree.

Any one have any info on the road condition between Belur--Gendehally---Mudigere ---Charmadi.

I don't mind travelling a few extra kms if it is a lesser devil than Shiradi

Thanks Again

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by bkishore_77

I'll be leaving to Mangalore in this coming weekend with my wife and she is carrying( 7 mths). Is it ok to go via Shiradi in a Safari or do you think it is too much of a hassle. She prefers travelling in a car rather than any other mode of transport for compelling reasons.

There isn't a single road between Bangalore to Mangalore that is fit for somebody in 7th month. Sorry, this is just not an option.

I have traveled Shiradi 3 times this month, one more trip to go before the month is over. The Shiradi gets me depressed these days. Two day back when I coming towards Bangalore, I had second thoughts at least twice. As I crossed Bajagoli, I was very tempted to turn left and take Kudremukh ghat towards Kalasa, but the added distance kept me going straight. Again at Ujire I wanted to go straight into Charmadi instead taking of right towards Shiradi.

The trouble is Shiradi is still the best of the bad options we have.

The Manipal-Bajagoli stretch, which is 40kms long, is a fiendish nightmare. It is so damaged at every milestone, I found it more tiring than Shiradi which is continuous bad road. This month there is a BHPian wedding at GV kere, that means two trips on this stretch within matter of hours for all the Udupi BHPians.

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by bkishore_77

Thank you all.
To clarify few things, I'll be starting from Bangalore at 7 AM. On consulting the Doctor, she was ok with we travelling in car.

And regarding the train travel, it is strict no no. Wifey has the fear of catching infection using the loo and i agree.

Any one have any info on the road condition between Belur--Gendehally---Mudigere ---Charmadi.

I don't mind travelling a few extra kms if it is a lesser devil than Shiradi

Thanks Again

Is She making one way journey or you are planning to bring her back as well ?
Return trip would mean double the trouble

You mentioned Safari isnt it.. why worry then. I dont think(hope so) Shiradi can go so bad in two weeks in dry weather. for safari, it should be more comfortable than swift that i drove. it will be the fastest way to reach mangalore for sure.

I dont drive SUV's so not an expert here, but any other route you take, it will have a lot of curves and thus can result in alot of body roll and can result in nausea

Atleast for the hatchback cars, front seat is the most comfortable seat to avoid sudden jerks, does same apply to safari ?

Edit:

FYI, I typically start at 4-4:30AM from bangalore so that 1. the roads will be empty 2. i can reach Shiradi pretty early so not much traffic here also. this way i can reach Mangalore much faster than say if i start at 7-8AM(there will be so much more traffic on the road) unless you have some reasons for not starting early, you can start bit early and avoid the traffic

[UB_007]

I will be driving from Bangalore this week on 26th. Plan is to leave Bangalore early morning and reaching Mangalore by afternoon. By early morning I mean start from Bangalore at around 4.30AM to reach home for lunch. Return journey would be on 1st November. Though we’ll be driving Alto, I still would choose Shiradi route. Unless it rains heavily filling the huge potholes with water, I feel driving Alto on shiradi stretch is manageable.
Any suggestion?

Originally Posted by Samurai

. This month there is a BHPian wedding at GV kere, that means two trips on this stretch within matter of hours for all the Udupi BHPians.

And yes I am also attending fellow Bhpian wedding at Belthangady on 31st this month. Is that Slicvic you are talking about? Then lets catch up at GV kere.

-UB

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by UB_007

Unless it rains heavily filling the huge potholes with water, I feel driving Alto on shiradi stretch is manageable.
Any suggestion?

-UB

No one can predict the rains !!
Other than that, i definitely feel shiradi is a good option.

BTW its pouring here in bangalore and the forecast says same for the rest of the week. not sure if the ghats/coastal areas receive rain !!

[NPV]

Originally Posted by bkishore_77

Folks,
Need an urgent advice. I'm no stranger to Shiradi ghat but this time it is a different situation. The last time I travelled over Shiradi ghat was in June when the patch work was almost done.

I'll be leaving to Mangalore in this coming weekend with my wife and she is carrying( 7 mths). Is it ok to go via Shiradi in a Safari or do you think it is too much of a hassle. She prefers travelling in a car rather than any other mode of transport for compelling reasons.

Given that all routes have one or more stretches of bad roads, there is an element of risk involved due to the situation in which your wife is.
Shiradi stretch of ~30Km is really bad, more so for your wife now. With the rains being as unpredictable as ever, the Shiradi route will be even more nightmarish. Hence it would be wiser to avoid that risk and take a train if at all possible.

[bkishore_77]

Originally Posted by Samurai

. Again at Ujire I wanted to go straight into Charmadi instead taking of right towards Shiradi.
The trouble is Shiradi is still the best of the bad options we have.

I was betting on Belur-Gendhally--Mudigere Charmady route which was quite popular last year since the Charmadi ghat road was newly laid as mentioned by Shushrutha. I guess no one has ventured in this route off late.

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

You mentioned Safari isnt it.. why worry then. I dont think(hope so) Shiradi can go so bad in two weeks in dry weather. for safari, it should be more comfortable than swift that i drove. it will be the fastest way to reach mangalore for sure.
Atleast for the hatchback cars, front seat is the most comfortable seat to avoid sudden jerks, does same apply to safari ?
you can start bit early and avoid the traffic

Yes. Even my wife is confident that we should make it through Shiradi albeit in a very slow pace in Safari . It is the constraints which are compelling us to take this mode of transport rather than train or air. She never liked the take off feeling of flight and now since she is carrying, she is even more averse to take a flight.

Originally Posted by NPV

. With the rains being as unpredictable as ever, the Shiradi route will be even more nightmarish. .

I agree. If it rains it is sheer misery. Hoping for the best.

[slicvic]

Originally Posted by Samurai

The Manipal-Bajagoli stretch, which is 40kms long, is a fiendish nightmare. It is so damaged at every milestone, I found it more tiring than Shiradi which is continuous bad road. This month there is a BHPian wedding at GV kere, that means two trips on this stretch within matter of hours for all the Udupi BHPians.

How long does the journey from manipal to GV kere take?

Originally Posted by UB_007

And yes I am also attending fellow Bhpian wedding at Belthangady on 31st this month. Is that Slicvic you are talking about? Then lets catch up at GV kere.

-UB

Looking forward to seeing you guys on the 31 st!!!


V

[bkishore_77]

Thank you all for the feedback. I made it to Mangalore without much of an hassle.I started from my home from BSk III stage,(trip meter reading 0Kms) took the Nice road, but was welcomed with heavy truck traffic since it is a single queue for the YEshwantpur-Nelamangala toll road. Here is my take on the road condition.
The first 130 Kms is an absolute bliss. It is 4 laned and can maintain decent speed.

The next 120 Kms i.e till Sakleshpur, the road is decent. So the first 250 Kms you can cover in good time. The ghat starts at 255Kms and the first 25 odd Kms is in ok condition. With some patience, you can avoid the bad stretches. The next 7kms i.e to Gundya check post and 2 Kms past Gundya check post, it is a continous stretch of bumpy road but can be done with some extreme caution and patience.

Once past these stretches, there are few bad stretches till Uppinangady where the patch work is goin though this was a newly tarred road in this January.
So overall except for those 10-14 Kms of 380Kms i.e 4% of the route, the rest of the road is GOOD.

Some patch work is going on in the Shiradi ghat but is just pot hole filling by mud and stones !!!

For me the benchmark for the worst condition of Shiradi ghat was in 2007-08 where it was craters all the way but the present state of Shiradi has long way to go to match that condition.

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by bkishore_77

Thank you all for the feedback. I made it to Mangalore without much of an hassle.I started from my home from BSk III stage,(trip meter reading 0Kms) took the Nice road, but was welcomed with heavy truck traffic since it is a single queue for the YEshwantpur-Nelamangala toll road. Here is my take on the road condition.
The first 130 Kms is an absolute bliss. It is 4 laned and can maintain decent speed.

The next 120 Kms i.e till Sakleshpur, the road is decent. So the first 250 Kms you can cover in good time. The ghat starts at 255Kms and the first 25 odd Kms is in ok condition. With some patience, you can avoid the bad stretches. The next 7kms i.e to Gundya check post and 2 Kms past Gundya check post, it is a continous stretch of bumpy road but can be done with some extreme caution and patience.

Once past these stretches, there are few bad stretches till Uppinangady where the patch work is goin though this was a newly tarred road in this January.
So overall except for those 10-14 Kms of 380Kms i.e 4% of the route, the rest of the road is GOOD.

Some patch work is going on in the Shiradi ghat but is just pot hole filling by mud and stones !!!

For me the benchmark for the worst condition of Shiradi ghat was in 2007-08 where it was craters all the way but the present state of Shiradi has long way to go to match that condition.

Glad you made it without any hassles.

Yes, everytime i think of bad state of Shiradi, i think of those years when it was horrible,slushy, full of craters and mining trucks.

[lohithrao]

I still remember a sight where a swift guy wondering how he would cross a huge crater, the crater where even a suv would have crossing witout being scraped. i was lucky to be on the bull and could get in and get out without much sweat....

those were the daysl

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

Glad you made it without any hassles.

Yes, everytime i think of bad state of Shiradi, i think of those years when it was horrible,slushy, full of craters and mining trucks.

[Samurai]

Yesterday I did my 4th trip of the month on Shirady. Now I consistently do Sakleshpur-Gundya in 1 hour. That's like 38kms I think, making my average speed 38kmph on Shiradi. People unfamiliar with this route might wonder what's the big deal.

This time I drove through Mangalore since I wanted to avoid horrible Karkala stretch. Reached Mangalore in 6.5hours including a 1/2 hour break at Mayura.

Originally Posted by UB_007

Though we’ll be driving Alto, I still would choose Shiradi route. Unless it rains heavily filling the huge potholes with water, I feel driving Alto on shiradi stretch is manageable.
Any suggestion?

There is nothing else for now.

Originally Posted by UB_007

And yes I am also attending fellow Bhpian wedding at Belthangady on 31st this month. Is that Slicvic you are talking about? Then lets catch up at GV kere.

-UB

I am frantically looking for people to share the misery of driving on Karkala route. Most of the Udupi BHPians are out of town.

Originally Posted by slicvic

How long does the journey from manipal to GV kere take?

Usually 1.5 hours. But it took 45 minutes extra last time.