[roamingrao]

Saagar se.....


Shikhar tak





First, for those who do not understand the hindi phrase 'Saagar se Shikhar tak', it translates to - from the ocean to the peak. ( saagar - ocean, Shikhar - peak )

Well, what an year 2011 has turned out to be for us ! We dreamt of driving from Kanyakumari to Kashmir ( along the western coast and border ) and made it happen in two phases. The first, from Kanyakumari to Mumbai in May 2011 and continued from Mumbai to Kashmir in October 2011.


Come, let me share what our incredible motherland treated us to !

























































































Statistics

Phase 1 : 11 days. 18th May 2011 to 28th May 2011, 4080 kms

Route taken and places visited :

Bangalore - Madurai - Kanyakumari - Suchindram - Nagercoil - Padmanabhapuram Palace - Kovalam - Thiruvananthapuram - Varkala - Alappuzha ( alleypey back waters ) - Fort Kochi - Athirapalli falls - Thrissur - Guruvayur - Kozhikode - Bekal Fort - Mangalore - Murudeshwara - Om Beach, Gokarna - Palolem beach - Panaji - Fort Agauda, Calangute and Baga beaches - Terekhol - Vengurla - Sindhudurg, Malvan - Ratnagiri - Ganapatipule - Harihareshwar and Diveagar - Mumbai - Bangalore


Phase 2 : 22 days. 1st October 2011 to 21st October 2011, 9885 kms

Bangalore - Mumbai - Vadodara - Nadiad - Rajkot - Dwarka - Jamnagar - Bhuj - Fort Lakhpat, Koteshwar and Narayan sarovar - Radhanpur - Barmer - Koohdi ( Khuri ) and Jaisalmer - Jodhpur - Bikaner - Sriganganagar - Fazilka - Hussainiwala border, Firozpur - Amritsar - Jammu - Pahalgam - Srinagar - Gulmarg - Sonamarg - Kargil - Leh - Srinagar - Patnitop - Pathankot - Ludhiana - New Delhi - Agra - Gwalior - Jhansi - Sagar - Seoni - Nagpur - Hyderabad - Bangalore


We : me, my wife and our two daughters - Gudiya and Titli aged 14 and 12
Our drive : 2005 Crde Scorpio Slx fondly called Chhota Bheem ( vayu putra, you know !! )
Our constant companion - Who else ? The one and only H V Kumar


A combined trip of 33 days, across 14 states, 13965 kms and 6 'S' !


It was during initial planning when Titli came up with this interesting fact ( and so true ! ) - Our quest saw us experience and touch 6 different forms - all starting with the letter S - the Arabian Sea, the Sand (y) beaches, the Salt pans, the Sand dunes and the Snow. I know I have missed out the 5th S in between. Guess !!! No, its not the Sun or the Scorpio - they were with us throughout !

So, keeping our tryst with S, Kanyakumari to Kashmir ( K2K ) was changed to Saagar se Shikhar tak ( SsSt ) ! Fair ?


Apart from H V Kumar, we would like to thank members Khoj, ramkya1 and Rajesh1968 for everything that they have done to help and guide us in this trip. I would recollect their contributions as we drive...


We, as a family, would like to wholeheartedly dedicate each and every word of all our posts to that lone Sipahi, be it a sailor, a jawan or an airman, standing and braving the harsh elements, guarding our nation at our borders and sacrificing his comforts for our wellbeing. No words could describe their selfless duty for their nation. My wife could'nt stop herself in penning a hindi poem praising our jawans -will share it with you all at the end of the travelogue.. Vande mataram. Jai hind !



No idea on the 5th S ?

Hint 1 - you can see it in one of the photographs
Hint 2 - no... its easy ! no, no, its not Shikara either !

[roamingrao]

Planning and preparation

When and how many days ?

Well, the 'dream' stage started as early as January 2011, in fact on the 1st of January 2011, while driving to Mantralayam for a darshan of Rayaru. A new year resolution on the road, for the road and by road - K2K ! and unlike other mundane resolutions - we stuck to it !

An initial workout of plan came upto 43 days !! No way !! we simply cannot afford so many days - but the plan was a detailed one for driving on the west coast and border from Kanyakumari to Kashmir at a relaxed pace. So, back to the map and calculator !


We had been to most parts of Kerala, coastal Karnataka ( of course ! ), Goa and Konkan region of Maharashtra in our earlier drives. So, we redrew a plan to just 'touch and go' this stretch and drive from Mumbai onwards at a leisurely pace. Now, the number of days reduced to 35.
Yes, 8 days less than 43, but 35 DAYS away from home and factory and on road ?? Brooms started flying inside our house !! - Do you call yourself a breadwinner ?

Staring at the fact that we could not do this below 35 days and yet see all places of interest, we resigned. Chalo, some other time....
Our last remaining resolution of two months had taken the same path as others !


Come March, with plans drawing up on how to spend the summer vacations, it suddenly dawned on me - how could it be if we split up the K2K drive and drive on the coast till Mumbai during summer ? and continue from Mumbai to Kashmir during the Dasara ( October ) vacations. Silence. And then............. Eureka !!

I still remember that day. I was complimented by Titli - appa, you still have some grey cells left !! Titli ki maa was upset though - she had to cut short her maike vacation. I did not complain. Why should I ? For me, staying way from factory for 10 days in May was going to be tough. October 20 days ? blame it on Ayudha pooja ! everybody in Bangalore would be on a holiday !

Anyway, hectic restructuring continued till we finalised on a split 10 + 20 days drive. The proposed itinerary was shared with HVkumar who also gave some tips for our proposed SsSt drive on the eastern coast in 2012 !!


Dates finalised ? tick Yes. Route chalked out ? tick Yes. List of places of interest to visit ? tick Yes. What else ?

Aah yes ! Hotel booking ? Tick NO.

Yes, really, sachhi mein, we took it as it came... no bookings done ( though we prepared a list of hotels in the proposed places of night halt ).

Why ? We knew we would drive during off season to all the places... in May ( Kerala to Goa and Maharashtra ) and in October ( Rajasthan to Kashmir ).

Result ? Bargained and got the best prices in the best hotels at all places !!! above all, well below our budget !


Here, I must again thank Hvkumar who suggested me to get a letter from a hotel owner in Srinagar. Sir, the letter reaped rich dividends at the entrance to Jawahar Tunnel. Thank you.




So much for planning !




Chhota Bheem is in pristine condition. He had undergone a complete overhaul ( no, not the engine, just the suspensions ! ) just before our GQ drive of 2010. 30 k kms later, after numerous trips down the Shiradi ghats and also to Chennai, Shirdi and tirupati, he is still gunning for more. All he asks for is 6 litres of mobil delvac every 8k kms and of course, diesel. Normal diesel. Now, with this 14 k km trip under his belt, he still seems to say -come, push the pedal and hear me whine !

His clutch has run for almost 65k kms, so was apprehensive - will i survive Kashmir ? A quick test run by his doctor was enough for him to gain confidence and retort - Yes, I'm fit. I just had to fit a gear lock. Xenos Bangalore did it for me.


He does not need any spares. But my good old (read maruti 800 days) habits die very hard. Kya kare ? A hands-on man by choice and profession, I have a habit of stocking all kinds of tools and necessary spares inside a big army trunk which occupies almost one third of the boot space - hydraulic jack, mini compressor, nylon tow rope, jumper cable, stanley auto tool kit ( 36 pcs ), complete set of ring and open spanners, screw driver set, set of allen keys, foot pump, drilling and grinding machines ( battery operated ) with all kinds of bits and grinding discs, metal paste, full set of spare bolt and nuts, hose clamps, silicon adhesives, gasket maker and sealant, ducting tape, pipe with funnel, multimeter, spare wires, fuses, spare headlamps, spare belts, spare tube, and of course 5 litres of spare diesel, coolant and a litre of engine oil. Again, he does not need any !!

Enough ? no, not yet... the trunk also has spare dresses and spectacles, umbrellas, plastic sheets, exhaustive medicine box with first aid kit, car inverter, rat deterents, Hit / mortien spray, napthalene cubes, powerful torches, car battery operated blower. Now, I am looking for a portable welding machine !!!!

Titli ki maa slaps her forehead whenever I open the tool trunk / box ! I quickly add - if not for us, all these may be of some use to someone needy on the highway. And it has happened..... and I would do it again - just for their smile ! Imagine a cab driver smiling at you ! Instant therapy !



ICE ? what's that ? Chhota Bheem does have a rickety CD player that jumps tracks at every road hump or a pothole ! So, when the roads are smooth, we devote the first hour to religious chants and then, its free for all - I prefer to hear KK ( not todays KK but kishore kumar ), wife prefers modern hindi songs and the kids want Justin Bieber and Cody Simpson. Poor CDs. If they were to speak and decide, they would never like to come with us again. By noon, everybody is silent - no more songs. That's when i enjoy the most - listening to the turbo dancing to my right foot !


And where are the photographs ? Oh yes, we do have a simple Point and Shoot camera ( canon SX100IS ) and we just do that !! So, please pardon those blurs, shakes, tilts, dust specks, noises and insect marks on the windshield - it all happens when we you set out to see sunset 350 kms away after lunch !!


All these would'nt have been possible without divine grace. We drove to these temples : January - Mantralayam. March - Ambalpady Sri Durga Parameshwari devi, Udupi. April --Kukke Subramanya swamy and our supreme mother Polali Sri Raja Rajeshwari Devi, near Mangalore. May - all the renowned temples in Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra during phase1. July - Shirdi Sai baba and Shri Shani Shingnapur. September - Our Tirupati Thimappa ( Lord Venkateshwara / Balaji ). Their grace have ensured a trouble free drive - 14000 kms of it - without any hiccup !



Ok, Lets shift gears - its late now, iam still in my factory at 11pm - instructing on work for the next ten days. I can hardly expect to sleep tonight - fill diesel, load the bags, have bath at 2am, do pooja / japa and start for Kanyakumari at 3am to embark on our Saagar se Shikhar tak drive. see you tomorrow..

[roamingrao]

Day 1, May 18th 2011

Home, Bangalore - Kanyakumari, 745 kms

Our plan for the day is to reach Kanyakumari before sunset, but not before a quick visit to Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar temple in Madurai. Leaving home at 320am after our pranams to lord Hanuman, we make good progress on NICE road, join Hosur road at Electronic city and dart through Hosur and Krishnagiri. Hardly any traffic on this side of the road - all the overnight buses from kerala and Tamil Nadu are headed to Bangalore on the other side of the divider.


Sunrise at Thoppur ghat










Salem is seen through before the city wakes up.

Magical roads takes us to Karur - the North South corridor has done wonders to this stretch.

Namakkal is unnoticed !

We sneak into Karur and break our fast in a small restaurant on Kovai road. Kurunchi Hotel. What does kurunchi mean ? seems to be the only decent restaurant close to the byepass.




Dream stretch from Karur to Dindigul







a board next to the toll plaza says we are looking at renga malai.







Truck traffic builds up from Dindigul. On the stretch towards Madurai, we notice diversions towards Palani and the hill station of Kodaikanal.

1015am, we divert from the highway at Samayanallur, cross the vaigai river, ask our way and head straight to the parking lot behind Madurai railway station. An autorickshaw takes us to the western gate ( Gopuram ).











Mobile phones are allowed, belt is allowed, cameras are allowed but not swiss knives !! combs also are not allowed. We come out of the gopuram and look for a place to keep the swiss knife. A flower garland vendor agrees to keep it safe, but for a charge - two garlands worth Rs.100 ! We wonder how many times the garlands would have entered the temple !

The temple complex is huge. 14 imposing Gopurams ( pagodas / entrance towers ) form the skyline of the temple. The history of the temple dates back to the 7th century but the present structure is said to be built in the 16th century. An ancient temple. Very ancient city.

Entering the outer precincts ( prakarams ) of the temple from the western gate, we enter the main temple from the southern end - opposite the tallest gopuram in the complex - said to be the most sacred way to enter the temple and see ourselves in a corridor surrounding the sanctums of Sri Sundareswarar ( lord Shiva ) and Meenakshi Ammal ( goddess Parvati ) - the main deities. The corridors are lined with huge pillars carved and magnificently painted.

We stand in a long queue and as custom has it, first have darshan of Meenakshi Ammal and then Lord Sundareswarar. we go around and appreciate the temple architecture and surroundings.










In front of the sanctum of lord Sundareswarar. Notice Nandi facing Lord Shiva.







The Golden flagstaff






The 100 pillared hall lined with carvings of Yali, a mythological beast - a symbol of the ruler of this region - the Nayaks.








On our way out, we stand next to the huge temple pond with a Golden lotus. Porticos surrounding the pond are adorned with 16th century paintings.












By walking around the pond, one can view all the 14 gopurams of the temple complex ! This gopuram is the eastern gate.







A glass caged model of the temple complex







A whole day would not be sufficient to completely view the temple and its grandeur. The temple is open from 5am to 1230pm and again from 4pm to 10pm.




After spending close to two hours inside the temple, we walk out to some shops selling brasswares surrounding the gopurams








We head back to our car, but not before having hot idlies for lunch at the famous Murugan Idly shop. West masi street.













215pm, driving out of Madurai, we look towards Thirupparankundram hillock temple and soon join the highway towards Kanyakumari



Sivakasi diversion







An hour later, this new restaurant on Gangaikondan byepass drenched our parched throats on a hot summer afternoon. Clean rest rooms too ! Capsi Drive in restaurant, Rajapudukudi.







Shortly later, magnificent Tirunelveli byepass







Our first view of the western ghats from near Panakudi








515pm, we are diverted from the highway to a small road that leads us to lands end of India - Kanyakumari. In no hurry to find a hotel room, we wander around the beach road, light house road and sunset point.







Vivekananda Rock Memorial






Saint Tiruvalluvar statue






We visit the ancient Kanyakumari Bhagavathi amman temple and stand under the open pillared mantap at Cape Camorin.







The Wandering Monk exhibition showcases the journey of Swami Vivekananda in his short lifetime. Each rare photograph speaks of his journey to a town / city and his contribution to the history of spiritual India. Impressive. cameras are not allowed inside.












Just before we retire, the moon provides us this oppurtunity to carry a splendid picture in our mind - moonlight reflecting on the sea around the Vivekananda rock memorial. My camera does no justice to the spectacle !








We excited to be here. Tomorrow, we start on our quest - Saagar se Shikhar tak.


but not before witnessing a spectacle that makes all to wake up at 5am - even on a holiday !!

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Travelogues Forum. Thanks for sharing!

[tht'snotME]

What does kurunchi mean ?

Kurunchi or Kurunji is a rare flower which blossoms once in 12 years

[2500cc]

Is the 5th S - Snow ?

[Fauji]

Ashok,

So another treat in the offing!! Wonderful pictures and details as usual. Looking forward to more to come.

[skumare]

Can't wait to read the rest, the other "S" - I guess it is "Sainik".

[unni.ak]

K2K!! Bring it on. What a trip indeed!! This is on my list of To Do's! Looking forward to your narrative, pics and drive logs.

[hvkumar]

Truly an incredible drive!
You have an amazing family which can take the rough and the tough so cheerfully.
And a car which can go on and on without any complaint.
I don't think there has been a TL so far that has explored so many parts of India so comprehensively in one trip, and the photos tell the entire story - it views like an Incredible India or a mile Sur Mera Tumhara video, truly one TL that you can use to showcase India!

The missing S - you have roused my curiosity!
Sikh?
Sikhara?
Spirituality?

We are waiting for you to tell us all about the details of the drives, the facilities & hotels, uniqueness of each of these places.....

[AlphaKilo]

Fantastic trip across the length of the country. Its always my dream to do such a trip across the length and breadth of the country.
OT: I do now see and very proud to say(i'm a madrasi! no offence meant to others but just being proud ) that TN has one of the best highways and roads in the whole of the country.
back to topic: S - Soldier?S - Spirit of driving?
Inspite of the image quality the moon lit picture has turned up very well. Good work sir.

[idlebrain]

Roamingrao sir - That was simply awesome. Kudos to you & your family members' enthusiasm for travel. Your GQ TL is one of my favorite TL. And now this one too.

The pic with Saint Thiruvalluvar in complete darkness, but with well lit temple behind the statue. Simple superb. I liked it.

Have you planned to visit the day after full-moon day? or it just happened.
Thanks for sharing.

[sami316]

This travelogue is as close you get to an Incredible India drive. Really amazing, considering you did it with your family and not some Male Friends. I am hooked on to this TL and waiting with bated breath for the next update to unfold.

[speedsatya]

Wow! thanks so much for sharing these pics !

Stones,Sky,Swami Vivekananda?

[akaush]

Roaming Rao Sir,
Excellent start to the travelogue, I am hooked and definitely waiting for more.
the 5th S could be Sarhad, looking at photos of BORDER or Sarovar, looking at golden temple pond.