[asdon]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

What is the road condition from Sagara to Jog falls at this time?

Sagar to Jog is in very good condition, what I got to know from a team mate who is from Shimoga, not sure about the remaining section though.
Do take the Bhadrabati bypass to reach Shimoga, it will be on your left side just before Bhadrabati town.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by asdon

Sagar to Jog is in very good condition, what I got to know from a team mate who is from Shimoga, not sure about the remaining section though.
Do take the Bhadrabati bypass to reach Shimoga, it will be on your left side just before Bhadrabati town.

Asdon,

Is it that bad? Because the natural NH206 takes one through the bypass.
Are you suggesting one should always go through the city?

How is the traffic in the city? And also the road conditions? With upgrades happening
to NH206, I hope this by-pass should also get upgraded.

[voodoochild]

Ampere, the regular NH206 goes through Shimoga. The Bhardavati bypass is just that...a bypass of Bhadravati not Shimoga. It appears before you reach Shimoga, and is quite a nice ride. However, Shimoga must be passed through after this. Traffic conditions in Shimoga are nothing different from a regular medium-sized town. Hahazard movement and as usual no traffic sense. The road passes outside the local bus depot, so expect a small traffic jam.

Cheers
Rahul

[ampere]

Originally Posted by voodoochild

Ampere, the regular NH206 goes through Shimoga. The Bhardavati bypass is just that...a bypass of Bhadravati not Shimoga.

Rahul,
I was not referring to Shimoga at all.
What I wanted to know was the following:

- NH206 naturally bypasses Bhadravati town. (That is my thought. Correct me if I am wrong).
- If this by-pass is bad, how does one get through Bhadravati.
- How are the traffic conditions in Bhadravati.

Since Asdon mentioned not to take the Bhadra by-pass, I wanted to know more about the same.

[addyhemmige]

Originally Posted by asdon

Do take the Bhadrabati bypass to reach Shimoga, it will be on your left side just before Bhadrabati town.

Just a small correction. It is called 'Bhadravati' and not 'Bhadrabati'

Originally Posted by ampere

- NH206 naturally bypasses Bhadravati town. (That is my thought. Correct me if I am wrong).
- If this by-pass is bad, how does one get through Bhadravati.
- How are the traffic conditions in Bhadravati.

Since Asdon mentioned not to take the Bhadra by-pass, I wanted to know more about the same.

I don't think there should be a problem with the Bhadravati bypass. It should be in good condition.

Asdon says, take the bypass and not the road into the city. It is easy to miss this and go straight into the city. When you approach Bhadravati (from Bangalore), at the junction of the bypass and the road going into the town, the bypass curves to the left and the town road goes straight. Usually there are barricades on the road going to town.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by addyhemmige

Asdon says, take the bypass and not the road into the city. It is easy to miss this and go straight into the city.

Sorry my mistake. I thought he said, not to take the bypass. Hence the confusion.
Sorry again.

[hsprabhu]

Originally Posted by ampere

Rahul,

- NH206 naturally bypasses Bhadravati town. (That is my thought. Correct me if I am wrong).
- If this by-pass is bad, how does one get through Bhadravati.
- How are the traffic conditions in Bhadravati.

NH206 does not naturally bypass Bhadravati town. You have to make a left turn before Bhadravati town. Bhadravati town is best avoided.

I would suggest take the Shimoga bypass as well just before Shimoga town begins. This will join Shimoga-Thirthahalli road in the town. Make the right turn and that road takes you to Sagar/Jog Falls. This is easy and straight forward option but still you have to go through some traffic and messy bus stop junction (of course a walk in the park for those driving in Bangalore). Other option is to make the left once you reach the town. And make the first right. This is the new ring road in Shimoga. Problem is you will have to make 2 or 3 turns ahead to get onto Sagar road.

In any case I would suggest Shimoga-Thirthahalli-Agumbe-Someshwar-Halladi-Kundapur. Much shorter route. Unless you absolutely want to go via Jog.

[KarthikK]

thanks for the replies guys. I'll update this thread on the road conditions of Jog - Bhatkal after getting back from the trip.
one other query - any good suggestions for breakfast restaurants in Sagara? There'll be plenty of them for sure, but which one specifically would you recommend to be worth trying out here? any famous place here which serves the local region's specialities to try out?

OT - @addyhemmige will remember I had planned to take the mangalore route initially to maravanthe, but it has now been changed to include a detour via Jog, just for variety

[addyhemmige]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

one other query - any good suggestions for breakfast restaurants in Sagara? There'll be plenty of them for sure, but which one specifically would you recommend to be worth trying out here? any famous place here which serves the local region's specialities to try out?

OT - @addyhemmige will remember I had planned to take the mangalore route initially to maravanthe, but it has now been changed to include a detour via Jog, just for variety

Yes, I do remember Karthik.

For breakfast in Sagar, there is a Hotel Varadashree on your right side when you enter Sagar (from Shimoga). It seems to be the only decent place around. This is just before the lake.

[Fauji]

Karthik,

a) Bangalore - Shimoga via Arsikere is in good condition. You can do it in four and half hours with a break. Where are you staying in Shimoga? You can look at this home stay. My sister-in-law had stayed here and they were happy.

Harekere Homestay in Shimoga, Harekere Homestay, Book Harekere Homestay.

b) Shimoga - Jog is also in good condition.

c) As i read some where on the forum like Addy says Kargal road is not good. I recommend you to go via Honnavar and then on to Maravanthe. Jog - Honnavar road is very scenic and don't miss to stop at the view point to enjoy the Sharavathi valley where Sharavthi takes a sharp turn.

Take a look at this snap i found on flickr

sharavathi river | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Sharavathi Valley | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by Fauji

Karthik,

a) Bangalore - Shimoga via Arsikere is in good condition. You can do it in four and half hours with a break. Where are you staying in Shimoga? You can look at this home stay. My sister-in-law had stayed here and they were happy.

Harekere Homestay in Shimoga, Harekere Homestay, Book Harekere Homestay.

b) Shimoga - Jog is also in good condition.

c) As i read some where on the forum like Addy says Kargal road is not good. I recommend you to go via Honnavar and then on to Maravanthe. Jog - Honnavar road is very scenic and don't miss to stop at the view point to enjoy the Sharavathi valley where Sharavthi takes a sharp turn.

Take a look at this snap i found on flickr

sharavathi river | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Sharavathi Valley | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Thanks Fauji. We will be doing it via the NH-206 itself. In fact just last weekend our team-BHP meet return route was along this road, it is fully tarred up along the entire stretch and is fantastic.

Since we are just halting for a night at shimoga and don't have much time here (will be reaching shimoga at around 9pm, thursday and leaving shimoga on friday early morning), we booked at a regular lodge called Surya comforts near Durgigudi area in Shimoga. I will keep this homestay in mind though for future trips, already bookmarked. Thank you very much

Ok then I'll avoid SH50 from Jog to Bhatkal. I'll take your advice and change the route to go from Jog to Honnavar and then to Maravanthe along the coast. The snaps of sharavathi valley on that page look beautiful, waiting to capture some photos of this view on friday

Thanks @ampere, @Asdon, @Fauji and @Addyhemmige for your inputs, once again!

[Fauji]

Quick update on the roads. We drove back from Goa via Honnavar-Jog - Shivamogga last week.

Honnavar - Jog falls :- Surprisingly excellent road. Lot of relaying on this stretch. Very few patches on the ghat. No big deal at all. The road is not broad at ghat and is like a single way. Need to be careful with oncoming trafic - though the traffic is vey less - at curves. We did Honnavar - Jog in one hour and fifteen minutes comfortably with a break for ten minutes at Sharavathi valley view point.

Jog - Shivamogga :- Excellent condition. Roads widened at many places. Pleaure to drive.

Shivamogga - Bangalore :- We did NH 206 via Arsikere. Road condition is excellent . Did Shivamogga - Bangalore (Tumkur road toll gate on NICE road ) - Shivamogga in four hours flat . Good news is that road widening activity on Banavara - Arsikere stretch is complete. The another surprise was the road within Tiptur town. It is relaid and excellent except for last 500 meters.

New restuarants spotted - Hotel Shri Pavitra close to Sagara bus stand.

Another well known option in Sagara for stay and eat is Hotel Varadashree.

[asdon]

Originally Posted by Fauji

Quick update on the roads. We drove back from Goa via Honnavar-Jog - Shivamogga last week.

Million dollar Question - how is the road between Ankola & Honnavar now?

[Fauji]

Originally Posted by asdon

Million dollar Question - how is the road between Ankola & Honnavar now?

Asdon,

It is in excellent condition. I know it used to be in bad shape. Now it is a pleasure.

[narayans80]

A question on Yana, how far is the trek from the road to the rocks. I took the road that said Yana 15 km which is like 15 km from Kumta on Kumta-Sirsi road. We had to give up after a 10 min trek. It was raining cats and dogs and there wasn't a soul at the check post or the 15 km stretch from the main road.