[tilt]

Looks like I missed out on yet another Ooty trip :( Had to go to Cochin to attend a wedding; but made a couple extra days in Kumarakom on the banks of Vembanad lake, so it was not a total loss.

Awesome pictures Ravi. The photo locations, food locations and staying locations all look to be amazing.

So you folks had a few unplanned hairpin turns eh! Hmm... wonder who was leading the pack

Can't wait for the next trip. Cheers.

[Dr.AD]

As always it was a great trip, and certainly as memorable as the original one that was the motivation behind this "commemorative" drive! Thanks RSUDARSANAN for organizing this (it goes without saying that the organization was just fantastic), and thanks to everybody for the wonderful company and for the great time we had together.

Here are some pictures that I took:

The Hotel:

The reception of the hotel where we stayed (No, the A4 was not part of our convoy, although we would have loved to have an A4 in the convoy for sure):



The place where we had bonfire:



Some miscellaneous photos around the hotel:











Drive to Emerald Lake:

Akshay ("AkshayS") and Mohit ("7-seasons") along with Akshay's Fiesta (or should be call it the "classic" now?):



Our convoy doing some mild off-roading on our way to Emerald Lake:





My car parked on the side while waiting for the convoy to regroup:



The two Fortuners and the Rapid waiting for the 320D and the Figo to show up (which was held back due to an unfortunate puncture mentioned by KiloAlpha earlier):



And here they come (this picture to demonstrate the SuperZoom of my camera :-)) I took it literally from other side of the hill where I was standing:



Finding Emerald Lake:

Finally, we reached a spot which at first we were not sure was the right spot - the Google map, Nokia map, and our own expectations of what we thought would be Emerald lake, were giving contradictory signals.



But in the end, we were convinced (and now after looking at abirnale's photo I am really convinced) that it was the right spot. It didn't matter really, since we enjoyed being there regardless of whether that was the intended spot or not!



Some of us started surveying the area, wondering if we could bring in the cars:





Some detailed inspection of the water going on:



The captain posing happily, after being convinced we were indeed at the right spot. All is well!


To be continued...

[Dr.AD]

...Continuation from my previous post...


Photoshoot at the lake:

Waiting for the full convoy to form:





A good photo-op with Captain's car, while we wait for the formation to complete:



And now we have the full house:









Some miscellaneous shots around the lake and the bridge (abirnale's photo shows his car exactly on this bridge, while we were under it, although not at the same time :-))













Captain posing next to the bridge:



Chaith.turbo setting his camera "on the rocks" for a group photo:



Time to depart, but before that, KiloAlpha tops up air in his front left tyre using portable inflator:







And while we were just about to leave, some clouds gathered on the horizon, but it still did not rain. The rain eluded us throughout this drive.



And finally, to conclude this, a couple of shots of my car. My faithful companion on all these drives:





Well, that's all folks. Thanks again to all those who joined, and looking forward to meeting all those who could not on the next drive!

Thanks,
-AD

[GTO]

Great report, guys! Thanks for sharing. This one is going straight to the homepage .

[drive2eternity]

Woah, the pics really make me feel jealous.
I wish I could have joined you guys.

One day I shall definitely and it'll be my 1st of many T-BHP outings.

So, when is the next one?

[Arindam_Nayek]

Ooty has always been very close to my heart. The beauty gets even bold during the rains and the winter. Missed this trip but the pictures and the narration keeps us connected to all your experiences along the trip. Wish to join the family in one of these exciting meets.



I am already feeling hungry now, the Delicacies are hard to resist

[7-Season]

As always,

An amazing trip.. very well planned by our captain Ravi... Amazing people...very interesting discussions...

The sheer pleasure of the trip can be said when I discuss these trips with my friends and colleague they are Awww..And I know I have been part of something special..

Thank you Akshay(AkshayS) for introducing to the wonderful world of Team-BHP..

Thank you all for sharing wonderful pics and making each and every trip special..

Looking forward to driving many a miles ahead.. Eagerly waiting for Next one.. Dr. AD..

Cheers!!
Mohit

[dreamliner17]

"so near and yet so far..."

How on earth does one miss something like this !?

After my friends back out of my 'Mumbai-Ooty' trip by car, i decide to take a train to Bangalore and then a KSRTC Airavat to Ooty, and reach Ooty on 7th July and stay there till the 11th. Whilst i was busy analysing my route by bus on the 'Intercity Bus Travel' thread and then writing down my experience with the same, 'this' is what i miss out on

Atleast i am happy to say, i could be a part of the experience by not being an active participant

[chaith.turbo]

Ok, here are some from my camera.

Convoy inside the forest..


Some even wondering what's happening...





Always on time for food



View from the restaurant






Hotel Welcoming us


Bonfire late evening, very few of us joined it though.












Ramagiri all ready for next return round of bends...







Yay!! to us


And finally big thanks to Ravi sir.

[RSUDARSANAN]

It's been a delightful commemorative drive and it does call for acknowledgements that are due.

It's a privilege and a great joy for me to thank, in turn, all those who have contributed in one way or the other to make the drives a success:

a. to the team at TBhp for providing a platform
b. to all who have taken time off to participate, so drives happen and how
c. J and KK for support, in real time



Cheers

[SunnyBoi]

Some pictures from me!

KiloAlpha's Figo touching a very important speedo landmark! I mentioned this as "hitting a landmark" to the group and were wondering what we crashed into



Crossed Gundlupet!



Enter Bandipur!



Wildlife at Bandipur!



A different kind of wildlife inside Bandipur, possibly related to the baboon species. Ones who click selfies while sticking outside the window of a moving car. Thankfully the LTD sticker was fake.



Chaitu's Fortuner and Akshay's Fiesta



We were all greeted by this pretty bird as soon as we crossed into Tamil Nadu



Aah, almost reached ooty!



Scenery through an empty wine glass - at The Culinarium



Expert foodie photographer amongst us. Just look at the concentration!



Interesting "Idea" at advertising in Ooty



Pizzas at Sidewalk Cafe, which me and KarthikK visited after saying byes to the group

[sumzup]

Woooooooooooow! Couldn't stop the gap widening between my lips. Tough luck for me as I missed out again on this wonderful journey which I was looking forward to. Looks like time has played a mischievous game yet again and I ended up a loser. Better luck next time, I suppose.

[RSUDARSANAN]

Addendum:

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Finding Emerald Lake:

Finally, we reached a spot which at first we were not sure was the right spot - the Google map, Nokia map, and our own expectations of
what we thought would be Emerald lake, were giving contradictory signals...

...It didn't matter really, since we enjoyed being there regardless of whether that was the intended spot or not!

Curiosity got the better of me. Exchanged pms with laluks and gave Google map a second look up.

...we were indeed at the right spot. All is well!

YES, we were spot on, at the spot, we arrived at. Planned for Emerald and got Avalanche as bonus. The spot being a confluence of sorts, only under the bridge, though not much water has flowed under it .

The bridged embankments separate Avalanche and Emerald lakes ... two lakes (sides) of the same bridge (coin), huh .

Setting the record straight:

(Heads)
Rides at Avalanche lake


(Tails)
Riders at Emerald lake


Cheers

[shramik]

Originally Posted by RSUDARSANAN

Addendum:



Curiosity got the better of me. Exchanged pms with laluks and gave Google map a second look up.



YES, we were spot on, at the spot, we arrived at. Planned for Emerald and got Avalanche as bonus. The spot being a confluence of sorts, only under the bridge, though not much water has flowed under it .

The bridged embankments separate Avalanche and Emerald lakes ... two lakes (sides) of the same bridge (coin), huh .

Setting the record straight:

(Heads)
Rides at Avalanche lake
Attachment 1393040

(Tails)
Riders at Emerald lake
Attachment 1393041

Cheers

Regrettably I missed the trip.....I have a house in Ooty just 2 Kms before the Culinarium (towards Ooty), could have hosted an evening at home....Next time perhaps....!

[RSUDARSANAN]

Originally Posted by FORTified

...looking forward to the next meet.

Originally Posted by shetty_rohan

..."when is the next one?"

Originally Posted by fusionbang

...Anyway there is always a next time...

Originally Posted by chaith.turbo

...I will probably be on all of your drives by default from now on.

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

... and looking forward to meeting all those who could not on the next drive! Thanks,
-AD

Originally Posted by drive2eternity

...One day I shall definitely and it'll be my 1st of many T-BHP outings.
So, when is the next one?

Originally Posted by Arindam_Nayek

Wish to join the family in one of these exciting meets.

Originally Posted by 7-Season

.. Eagerly waiting for Next one..

Originally Posted by sumzup

...I missed out ...Better luck next time..

Sooner than later

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/team-b...ug-2015-a.html