[100Kmphormore]

Congratulations Karthik! Woah this is a bouncer from nowhere saaar. I was thinking from our conversations that you would probably go for the 2023 390 Adventure and hit up those offroads! It’s a very capable bike that can only rival the R3 as you said. A quickshifter/blipper, USD forks - is all it needs to complete the set - it should have been mandatory feature at 6L+ on road.

[abhi_tjet]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

Deja Vu - Return to the sportbike roots - What can be better than a Ninja? Two Ninjas!

Wow! Congratulations Karthik. There is no pleasing some men when it come to bikes. The more the merrier.

That’s a striking colour you bought there. Wishing you hundreds of safe kms on the same.

[krishsreedharan]

Congratulations Saar! That was definitely an un-expected bouncer from you. Wish you very many more happy miles and smiles with the pocket rocket!

[AtheK]

Congratulations KarthiKK saar, you picked up a bike which should have ideally already replace N300 and we should have seen way more then what we see them on our roads.

So first RC390 and now Ninja 400 in the group, guess a write up on the first track day is not too far off.

Wish you many happy miles on your new bike, it is a beauty indeed.

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

[b][i]Deja Vu - Return to the sportbike roots - What can be better than a Ninja? Two Ninjas!

Congratulations and all the best Karthik!! Extremely happy for you, properly different and entertaining stable. Look forward to reading another fantastic review from you for this baby when you have the time. Loved the idea of changing the tyres from the beginning.

You are what, 6.3, 6.4? Doesn’t the bike feel a wee bit cramped for your frame. Guess since you won’t be using it for your tours it doesn’t matter much.

Look forward to this weekends trip details as always

Have a blast and ride safe.

Cheers

[Sebring]

Congratulations Karthik. This surprise purchase came out of the blue, wasn't expecting it. Eagerly waiting for the review :-)

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by fusionbang

Congratulations Karthik KRT edition looks amazing on the Ninja's and I am in love with this color. I was in love with this color when I first saw the Ninja 650 KRT Edition, with some white accents. This looks eye catchy on the Ninja 400 and I am sure you will have fun on that twin cylinder beauty. Wish you a lot of happy miles.

Thanks a lot fusionbang!
Indeed it is very catchy and overall a nice looking design among today's choices.

Originally Posted by 100Kmphormore

Congratulations Karthik! Woah this is a bouncer from nowhere saaar. I was thinking from our conversations that you would probably go for the 2023 390 Adventure and hit up those offroads! It’s a very capable bike that can only rival the R3 as you said. A quickshifter/blipper, USD forks - is all it needs to complete the set - it should have been mandatory feature at 6L+ on road.

Thanks a lot 100Kmphormore! Oh no, I wouldn't want to buy a 390 Adventure when I already have the CB500X for any such stuff - cross country touring or exploring remote places .

Yeah, a few gizmos and goodies wouldn't have hurt Kawasaki, guess they are happily flogging what (basic package) works for them instead of putting efforts to update the gizmo list.

Originally Posted by abhi_tjet

Wow! Congratulations Karthik. There is no pleasing some men when it come to bikes. The more the merrier.

That’s a striking colour you bought there. Wishing you hundreds of safe kms on the same.

Thank you so much for your kind words abhi_tjet! Haha true on the more-the-merrier part!

Originally Posted by krishsreedharan

Congratulations Saar! That was definitely an un-expected bouncer from you. Wish you very many more happy miles and smiles with the pocket rocket!

Thanks a lot for your wishes krishsreedharan sir!

Originally Posted by AtheK

Congratulations KarthiKK saar, you picked up a bike which should have ideally already replace N300 and we should have seen way more then what we see them on our roads.

Thanks a lot AtheK sir! Indeed as you said, this should have already replaced the N300 here like it has in the global market. Instead Kawasaki is contented with flogging that 300 for some more time after localizing its production, while they import this N400 in limited numbers and keep it as a premium offering.

So first RC390 and now Ninja 400 in the group, guess a write up on the first track day is not too far off.

Wish you many happy miles on your new bike, it is a beauty indeed.

Thank you! Hope I get to have some fun soon.

Originally Posted by Cyborg

Congratulations and all the best Karthik!! Extremely happy for you, properly different and entertaining stable. Look forward to reading another fantastic review from you for this baby when you have the time. Loved the idea of changing the tyres from the beginning.

Thanks a lot for your kind words Cyborg sir!

You are what, 6.3, 6.4? Doesn’t the bike feel a wee bit cramped for your frame. Guess since you won’t be using it for your tours it doesn’t matter much.

I am 6'1" and it is quite comfortable for me actually. It can be used for touring too, but maybe I will just do daytrips and very occasional overnight stays if doing solo - the N1000 and the CB500X take care of any 2-up touring anyway. The ergonomics have a good balance between comfort and sporty stance. That said, the only improvement area is the seat height which can be a bit taller for me - fortunately Kawasaki themselves offer an OE Accessory called 'High Seat' which takes the seat height from 785mm to 815mm, that will ease out things even more for taller riders. I have placed an order for the same and it should be here in a couple of months.

Look forward to this weekends trip details as always

Have a blast and ride safe.

Cheers

Thank you, I have a few trip reports lined up for this week as usual

Originally Posted by Sebring

Congratulations Karthik. This surprise purchase came out of the blue, wasn't expecting it. Eagerly waiting for the review :-)

Thank you Sebring sir! I'll write the review as soon as I get some time to click pictures and pen down my observations after clocking a couple of thousand kilometres in a month or two.

[wolfy]

Beautiful addition to the garage Karthik! looks great!
that 400 is such a capable machine. Have seen a few on the track and boy can they fly and carve corners! Wishing you unlimited happy miles!

Cheers!

[surjaonwheelz]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

I'll hopefully find some time to pen down an ownership review of the Ninja 400 in the weeks to come.

Your answer lies in this post, lol! No superbike though - just a middleweight sportbike.

KarthikK's garage is turning out to be a desirable one which is practical too!

Congratulations on the baby Ninja... There's no other Ninja 400 review on the forum. The details you bring in might serve as one

In addition, looking forward to the Hi-viz green riding gear set!

Happy cornering,
surjaonwheelz

[WalterWhite]

Congrats @KarthikK. Ninja 400 looks fantastic in the original Kawasaki Lime Green color. Waiting for the 1st Ninja 400 ownership review in the forum... I wish you a lot of thousands of happy miles on your Ninja Assassin.

One month back, I was also looking for a sub 500cc motorcycle as an upgrade to my 5.5-year-old Lex(Yama Fazer 25). And I have finalized the 2023 Ninja 300 Lime Green. Ninja 400 was also on my shortlist but I had to let go because of my budget constraints. I also didn't want to go for any single-cylinder motorcycle. But gave Honda CB 300R a shot because of the Honda badge and a lot of positive reviews. But Honda's little cub couldn't pass my refinement test at cruising speeds (120kmph). I had summarized my thoughts here (Test Ride : Why I chose the Kawasaki Ninja 300 over the Honda CB300R)

Now, I am waiting for the Ninja 300 delivery...


I am leaving the pic of the 2023 Ninja 300 Lime Green below. The color theme looks precisely similar to the Ninja 400. Good job from Kawasaki. I think this is the first time they bring their flagship color to the Ninja 300 after localization.

[aqualeo2040]

Congrats Karthik!
I still remember your Thunderbird.

Quite a journey from there.

Where did you source the Diablos from please? My Ninja might need new shoes shortly.

[KarthikK]

Monsoon Ride to the Nilgiris (Coonoor and Ooty) (July 2023)

After the June month's monsoon ride to Chikmagalur's coffee estate land, we thought of riding once again to the mountains in the monsoon month of July, but this time to the tea estates and lush green of the Nilgiris mountains, situated at a higher altitude of 8000 feet and sufficiently cold to give us the chills in this wet season, quite literally. This was a 3-night, 4-day trip in total. We decided to do a mix of touristy sightseeing, some cafe / restaurant hopping and some venturing off the beaten path to round off the entire holiday into a nice mix of experiences. Since this must have been the hundredth time we were visiting this region, we decided to try two different properties that we hadn't gone to earlier, one each in Coonoor and Ooty, dividing our stay into 2 nights in Coonoor and 1 night in Ooty. The better half has a penchant for picking heritage themed properties over regular resorts and hotels, and I loved these two properties she had shortlisted, which constituted this trip.

In Coonoor, we chose Neemrana's Wallwood Garden, a 20th century bungalow renovated into a quaint little hotel. In Ooty, we chose King's Cliff, a 200 year old British bungalow renovated into a heritage hotel.

On Day 1, we decided to leave early as we usually do, around 5 AM. The Ninja stopping for a short break at the Mysore expressway toll plaza in this pic. Being a weekday, the expressway was quite empty at that hour



For breakfast, we stopped at Radisson Blu Plaza, Mysore city. They have decent parking space for superbikes, and a nice spread for the buffet breakfast



The breakfast restaurant in Radisson Blu Mysore



This IOC COCO bunk on Mysore-Ooty highway now stocks XP100 - https://goo.gl/maps/6mEgdVHRrMfEmjNW6.
After a short fuel top-up there we proceeded towards Gundlupet and Bandipur along the standard Ooty route. Stopping along sunflower fields near Gundlupet



Lush green forests of Bandipur, as seen from the TN checkpost



Although it was monsoon, there was no sign of any rain. The skies were blue and the weather was rather pleasant. We stopped once at Masinagudi just before the hill climb began - for some hot chai and Mirchi Bajjis at a roadside shop.





Beginning the steep ascent to Ooty along the 24 hairpins - the Nilgiris mountains can be seen in the background



After crossing Ooty town, we had to proceed further towards Coonoor. We stopped for lunch at one of my favourite places in this route - The Culinarium. It is set on a cliff and overlooks a valley. Here is a picture of the awesome view from one of the tables at the Culinarium.



We relished the amazing Pasta, their signature Pot Pie, and some awesome dessert and Sorbet to wind up a fantastic lunch at this place



Admiring the tea estate carpets between Ooty and Wellington




Post this, we took the Wellington shortcut road to reach our hotel in Coonoor before 2 PM. Stopping near the Wellington Gymkhana club golf course for a quick picture.



We reached the Wallwood Garden hotel on time. The whole property had a fantastic Victorian era charm on the outside.







There was a nicely done up drawing room



The dining room was fantastic as well. This was a tastefully done up table in the restaurant



And they also had a small restaurant overlooking the scenery outside



The rooms were simple but sufficiently equipped with the necessary amenities.





After a quick break and freshening up, we departed for the Coonoor railway station to do a touristy thing while in the Nilgiris - catch a ride on the famous narrow-gauge Toy Train which runs between Coonoor and Ooty and back (in fact this train runs between Mettupalyam and Ooty but we needed just the Coonoor-Ooty stretch). For folks who want to ride on the toy train, please ensure you book your tickets on IRCTC weeks in advance because there are very few seats. Ad-hoc bookings cannot be guaranteed and can result in disappointment, and there are long queues of tourists waiting to book ad-hoc at these stations. Pre-booking on IRCTC website avoids both these issues. We had pre-booked our tickets almost a month in advance so we could directly just get into the trains.

Waiting at Coonoor's toy train station platform to board the toy train



Some picturesque sights from the toy train chugging along the green mountains between Coonoor and Ooty.





The same train doubled up for the return journey in the reverse direction. We just had to shift seats to another cabin. Sights from Ooty's toy train station





Some more sights from the toy train during the return journey





After reaching Coonoor, we hailed a rickshaw to ferry us back to our hotel. The sun was just about setting by then, so we got nice cups of steaming hot Chai and Pakoras in the hotel's garden seating



For dinner, we walked to a famous Pizzeria nearby by name Open Kitchen. The Pizzas were decent here but not worth the hype it receives on social media.



Devouring Pizza at Open Kitchen Pizzeria, Coonoor



We strolled around the main town and had a cup of hot chocolate at the famous Moddy's store (The Modern Stores on Google maps) and walked back to our hotel to call it a day.

[KarthikK]

Monsoon Ride to the Nilgiris (Coonoor and Ooty) (July 2023) continued...

On Day 2, we woke up leisurely and enjoyed a simple yet sumptuous south Indian breakfast at the Wallwood garden's in-house restaurant. It was a good 'detox' change from the heavy continental food of the previous day anyway



We then set out to explore a few scenic routes and trails around Coonoor. Our first trail was along the Dolphin's nose viewpoint road. While this road is usually crowded with tourists, an early start to this place helped have most of the places to ourselves until the hordes of tourist vehicles started arriving.



The clouds were constantly covering and revealing the valley views from atop the mountains.





A tiny stream flowing down through the tea estate gaps



Stopping along the way to admire some more picturesque views











If you look closely, you can see a herd of Wild Gaurs foraging amidst the tea plantation greenery . This region is famous for sighting these gentle giants.



After visiting the Dolphin's nose viewpoint, we retraced our way and then proceeded to explore the route to another point - a small reservoir called Ralliah Dam, only to learn that it is now out of bounds for outsiders to visit.
We were passing time exploring some interior roads which led to beautiful viewpoints such as these







We came across this beautiful and unspoilt natural lotus lake in a small valley point, full of thousands of Lotus flowers blooming naturally



Post-this, we had a short stop at a restaurant called La Belle Vie, part of 180 McIver boutique villa in Coonoor town. It was still too early for lunch, so we just had some short-eats here and got out after admiring the architecture of the place. Later we got to know this villa was used for shooting the famous Bollywood film Kapoor and Sons, a few years ago.





It was still noon, so we proceeded to explore a local pine forest around the outskirts of Coonoor. There wasn't too much to do there, we just spent some time admiring the beauty of being inside the pine forest.



The Ninja inside the pine forest tree maze



Who says a Ninja 1000 cannot offroad, lol!





Skywatching through the tree maze



The better half admiring the stunning feel of a deserted pine forest straight out of a horror movie.



Post this pine forest ride, it was time for lunch. We decided to go to a Kashmiri place called Habba Kadal Heritage. The better half wanted to check out some of their handicraft offerings and I thought it would be a nice change to try out their authentic Kashmiri cuisine for lunch too, in their traditional ambience setting.

Habba Kadal Coonoor's traditional seating arrangement



Trying out their Kashmiri cuisine in vegetarian offerings - Clockwise order from top left - Kashmiri Tea called Kehwa, Kashmiri Shufta (dessert made of caramelized cottage cheese and dry fruits) and Phirnee, Kashmiri Thali and Kashmiri Teher rice with Kashmiri Dum Aloo



A traditional vegetarian Kashmiri Thali containing dishes such as Dum Aloo, Lydir Paneer, Chock Nadru, Rajma, Haak, Teher rice and Radish chutney.



Post-lunch, we returned to the hotel to discover that the staff offered to shift our room to one with a better view, so we took up that offer. This was the room for Day 2.





Watching the sun go down with some hot pakoras and cold coffee.

[KarthikK]

Monsoon Ride to the Nilgiris (Coonoor and Ooty) (July 2023) continued...

A nice way to spend time with a splendid view



We decided to stroll inside Coonoor town to see what new places we could try. Along the stroll, there was this nice point from where we could catch a glimpse of this tiny hill town



We also ended up visiting the famous Nilgiris supermarket which happened to have a nice collection of Cheese varieties. Coonoor, by the way, is famous for Cheese factories. Me being a self-confessed cheese enthusiast, couldn't resist picking up a few cheese blocks to take back home



Post this we strolled to find some woodfired Pizzas at an eatery called Hopscotch. We had a simple dinner here and headed back to the hotel to call it a day.





The following morning, we woke up early to check out a park which was adjacent to our hotel, called Sims Park. There wasn't anything significant to our interest to stay there too long. They had preserved a few nice old trees and had tons of trivia on many old tree varieties but that was about it.







A world map of sorts, made out of plants of different colors



Post a short and quick breakfast back at the hotel, it was time to check out a bit early and proceed to our next destination. Here are some pictures of the Ninja before departing from Wallwood Garden.





We checked out early but that was because we wanted to try out something new - we wanted to try out a Gourmet Tea Tasting session at a property called Tranquilitea.



Exploring the tea plantations near Tranquilitea



It was a very informative session, with a lot of knowledge thrown in on the history of tea, the history of this region and how tea plantation came to become popular here, the different varieties of tea and the tasting itself.



There was a small high-tea menu of sorts with some confectioneries and pastries to accompany the tea tasting.



Post this, we exited Coonoor and proceeded to Ooty for our next halt. Before that, we wanted to try out Badaga cuisine for lunch. Badagas were the original tribal natives of Ooty prior to British occupation during the 1900s. While there are a lot of Badaga descendants in and around this region in various professions, sadly there are hardly any restaurants which serve the original traditional fare of the Badaga cuisine and their specialties. I did some research online and found that Taj Savoy did serve some simple Badaga dishes at their restaurant, so we went there for lunch. Funny as well as sad as it sounds, it took a 5-star chain to resurrect and offer the forgotten native cuisine .

Taj Savoy on a cloudy afternoon





The indoor restaurant was a better option for the cold weather



Simple Badaga cuisine for lunch - steamed rice, a gravy called Avarai Uthaka (gravy made with beans and potatoes) and a side dish called Nilgiri Kai Kari (vegetable curry made with mint and eggplant)





Passing some time at the Savoy's lush green gardens



Post this sumptuous lunch, we headed towards our next stay - King's Cliff hotel, which was located at some altitude above Ooty town atop one hillock. This was a 200 year old bungalow initially inhabited by a British aristocratic family and later converted into a heritage hotel. They also house a famous in-house restaurant called Earl's Secret, which seemed to be very popular with tourists in Ooty (not the hotel, just the restaurant seems popular).

Entering King's cliff



Lovely landscaping here in the garden



The interiors were straight out of another realm of Victorian era



Glancing inside the indoor restaurant called Earl's secret, complete with fireplace



Our room was equally pretty and elegant, done up with a great tasteful choice of color combinations





The room had its own functional fireplace too.



We didn't have any other agenda after checking in to King's cliff. We were just strolling around the property after most of the (famous restaurant) guests left post-lunch. There was this small coffee shop at their outdoor restaurant.



Our room had a door which led to an open garden with a sitout to enjoy the beautiful mountain vistas over a cup of tea

[KarthikK]

Monsoon Ride to the Nilgiris (Coonoor and Ooty) (July 2023) continued...

Another such seating area in the garden



The main outdoor portion of Earl's secret





Their other restaurant called The Glass House



The very elegant interiors in the living area, reminiscent of a bygone era





More views from the garden outside our cottage room





Most of the old building's structure is still preserved, including passages such as these



Some interesting trivia hung up on walls, such as this one - showing a map of Ooty a hundred years ago.



They had a nice garden, albeit a bit compact





The better half spent some time browsing through their in-house memorabilia shopping store



While I was content admiring the views from outside the store





In the evening, we had an early dinner at the indoor part of their Earl's Secret restaurant



They made some fantastic dinner for us - in clockwise order from left top - tomato soup, Bruschetta, Cannelloni pasta and some white chocolate Brownie



We got the staff to set up a fire at our in-room fireplace and this was a welcome experience for the cool single digit temperatures on that night.





After a good night's sleep, we awoke the next morning to find the place completely covered in mist and clouds.



The Ninja in front of King's cliff bungalow



Even the day-time temperature was quite freezing cold - check the right bottom corner of the console



Post breakfast, we had to start our return journey homewards. Not without a departing picture in front of the property as always



We were returning on a weekday, so there wasn't much traffic anywhere in Ooty town or the Gudalur detour route. We had a blast on the Ninja cornering on the fantastic series of curves along the Ooty - Gudalur highway on a deserted weekday.



Stopping to admire some lovely views between Ooty and Gudalur







Passing Pykara lake and a series of Eucalyptus forests on the way back





We didn't stop anywhere except for a short break at CCD Gundlupet and a short refuel break before Mysore. We then took the empty (thanks to being a weekday again) Mysore-Bangalore expressway to quickly reach home before 4 PM and draw the curtains on a fantastic 4 day trip to the Nilgiris, enjoying some fantastic weather, food and scenery whilst letting the litre class beast enjoy some silken mountain roads to boot. This trip clocked a simple 700 km to open the account for the month of July. This entire trip was done with IOC's XP100, thanks to availability of XP100 in Mysore (en route) as well as in Ooty



That's all for now. Until the next update, thanks for reading!