Re: Trichy - Rameshwaram - Kanyakumari - Trichy Thanks to all of you for your suggestions. I am back from the trip and following was the route - timings - quality of roads in brief :
Date : 18th Mar : Trichy to Rameshwaram : via Madurai (NH45B + NH49) - 290kms
Started from Cantonment , Trichy - 7am. after filling fuel, checking air pressure, putting air in the stpeny, joined the NH45B from TVS toll gate. Driving on NH45B was a comfortable 100 to 120kmph in my super smooth Linea.
Reached Madurai - 8:30am. Moved on to join NH49 after the bypass. Intial 50kms was bit tough especially after driving at 100+ for the last 1.5hrs. Road surface is good but too much traffic and no space to overtake without taking chances.
Planned to take breakfast on the way but after entering NH49 - was shocked at the conspicuous absence of a decent food joint. Finally stopped at 9:30 at a place (road side - sorry, very poor in remembering names of places) and had some typical SI breakfast. Started again at 10.15am. The route next till Ramanathapuram was good - with less traffic and hence hardly needed to reduce speed below 60, average has been at 80+. Crossed Ramanathapuram and reached Rameshwaram at 11.45(Hotel Vinayaka - at Rly Stn - a new one , very close to the temple and clean and affordable in the below 2K per night segment).
As suggested by many, although this route is 70kms more, it was a stress free driving except for the hunger pangs in between and it seems that i have taken the same time as i would have taken via NH210 (thanks to the intial 130kms in less than 1.5hrs.
Date : 19th Mar 10am: Rameshwaram to Trichendur - 210kms: First 50 kms from Rameshwaram to Ramanathapuram is same route as above. Then moved on to the Keelakarai - Ervadi - Sayalgudi route. The entire stretch was guided by my MMI Navigator. At some stretches it was displaying SH and some places unknown road. The first 30 to 40kms was really bad surface from Ramanathapuram. Then the next till Tuticorin was just fantastic. It is a 2 way widened road with shiny surface (seems to be new) and nil traffic. hence i had my day till i neared Tuticorin bypass just past 12noon. My MMI misbehaved here. Since i knew i had to change directions from tuticorin , i relied on my MMI and moved on into the city (also one more reason was to find a good place to have a good SI lunch). But my MMI took me through the conjested and poorly managed city , bad roads and through one way traffic (from the opposite side with cursing onlookers - God was in favour since no police was at sight to fine me) and through some lanes and by lanes till i was out of the main town after 1 hour or so. Finally could find a OK hotel for lunch , and post lunch left Tuticorin for good at 1:45pm. My suggestion for future travellers is not to enter the Tuticorin city for lunch / dinner for you will just waste time. Better is to move on to Trichendur and you can have an array of high class hotels and multicuisne-restaurants which i found out later. The route next to Trichendur is so-so for 30 to 40 kms. Once i reached Trichendur, again my MMI misbehaved by taking me through the courtyards of some houses within the Trichendur town (my settings does not recommend for the shortest route but the fastest one) and took me straight to the doorstep of the temple at 3pm. But here i did not mind being taken through these bylanes because when i emerged from the bylane in front of the temple, i could find a very long queue of cars (the end could not be seen) and i would have got stuck behind all those had i taken the conventional approach road to the temple. Got the service of a helpful guide, who was prompt & smart enough to save time weherever possible and completed the special darshan after having a dip at the sea by 4:30pm. Had a quick snacks and tea-coffee break at Hotel xx International and moved at 5:30pm.
Since it was becoming dark, did not take the chance of continuing on the ECR which has been described my many as not friendly from the road condition aspect and especially in darkness when it becomes desolate place in times of emergency. hence decided to continue on the NH7A to tirunelveli and then towards KK. What could have been 90kms increased to 135kms. But did not mind this 40kms more since after TNVL is a fantastic 4 lane road so must have made up the extra kms wrt time. The road from TRCHNDR to TNVL was flat and smooth but too small to handle the amount of traffic. reached KK - Vivekananda puram at 7:30pm.
Date : 20th Mar : KK to Trichy - 380kms - the best of all roads - except for the 45kms Madurai bypass road connecting NH7 to the 4 lane part of the NH45B, all through was 4 lane driving and average speed of 90kmph. My driving pleasure could not have been better in my Linea in this trip. Most of the time, just had to hold the bottom of the steering wheel with the fingers and slouching arms and my Linea breezed past with my family at the back having their night sleep preponed by a few hours. The only companion was the USB and my wife sitting beside me giving the moral supports time to time for completing our first 1000+kms trip in a car. With 2 breaks of 20 + 40 mins (the 2nd one was Ghar dhaba at madurai on NH45B) reached home sweet home at 10.30pm.
The entire trip was 1059kms and fuel eff of 18.8kmpl. Not bad.
Last edited by saugdas : 21st March 2011 at 17:35.
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