[RevvMusic]

It was the onset of the much awaited monsoons of 2012 on one hand. On the other hand, my family needed a much awaited break from the daily hustle-bustle. Amidst all this, however my mind had been continuously poking me to embark on a road trip, but no one knew the real reason behind it except me. The reason was to savor my Palio 1.6 S10's incredible power and handling all over again on those mountain highways. You may call it love, or addiction, or plain obsession, but this special car indeed has the power to ignite so much of that emotional quotient every time you sit at the wheel, or when you're simply staring at it's stance.

Having enough reasons now to embark on this trip, I started to search for a good place to recline ourselves at Wayanad. 31st May 2012 being Bharat bandh, and my office having declared a holiday, gave me ample time to search for a good homestay. Called up nearly 6 homestays in Kalpetta, but all of them were already booked for that weekend. Finally got through to this homestay named, "Summer Villa", and confirmed my booking for 2nd and 3rd June. With a skeptical mind as to how good this homestay would be, I thought of giving it a try and proceeded with the rest of the preparations, i.e. getting the car ready and fit (More details on the homestay later)

With the Spare wheel serviced, coolant topped-up, and all of the electricals & belts inspected, I tanked up the car on my way back from office at Shell on the evening of 1st June. An early dinner, a Pizza feast (that's what the family wanted), and we crash down and have a sound sleep. The next morning, 3am, the alarm rings, and we are on our feet again to get ready to be able to leave by 4.

Bangalore, 4am, 2nd June, I fire up the mighty 1.6 engine, and the S10's semi sport exhaust's throaty growl fills up my apartment's parking space. Transmission engaged, and we start our journey to the beautiful western ghats. Mysore Road seemed a breeze at those early hours of the morning, with very less traffic, and I was able to maintain a comfortable speed of 90-100kmph throughout. It was only the unmarked speed breakers that created a nuisance, and I jumped over one of them at 90kmph. Other than that no hiccups. 5.45am, we reach mysore, and break for tea and some idlis. The drive till mysore was pretty uneventful, but the best was yet to come.

Having tanked up our stomachs, we proceeded towards the ooty road, and took a right towards Sultan Bathery. Soon landscapes ended, and we entered the Bandipur forest. With the virgin sunrays piercing through the thick canopy, it posed a sight to behold. I was enjoying this drive to the core now. After a long time I was enjoying my S10 this much. It was again amazing me with it's terrific handling capabilities, the lusty tone of the exhaust note, amazing cornering, and an engine that seemed to have endless power. Having munched the miles to Kalpetta by 9.30am, I called up Mr.Pramod of "Summer Villa" homestay and he seamlessly guided us the way. The road was pretty steep to "Summer Villa" as it was on the slope of a hill, amidst coffee plantations. Finally, we reached the place, and our reaction was, "Niceeeeeeeee !!!! ". Greenery, tall trees, thick canopies, coffee plantations, varieties of flowers all around, varieties of birds and their endless distinctive chirps, and thinking that amidst all this we would be staying for 2 days gave us goosebumps!

Our host, Mr. Pramod, of Summer Villa took our contact details and handed over the keys to the house. The first thing that we noticed when we entered the house was that it was so so much clean with no speck of dust to be found anywhere. Even the bathrooms were spic and span. An impeccably maintained place by Mr Pramod and his wife I must say. They gave us a warm welcome with some nice tea to savor. The authentic kerala food that they had given us for lunch and dinner was simply mouth watering too. After freshening up, we planned to do some sightseeing, and we left for a drive to the western ghat roads of Wayanad district. I can never forget the thrill and satisfaction that I had while driving on those roads surrounded with so much of pristine nature that seemed so surreal. I will let the pictures do the talking on behalf of me, as i don't think I would be able to justify the beauty in words.

On the 3rd evening at 4pm, we started our return journey. As soon as we entered the forest, it started raining cats and dogs. Consequently, it proved out to be one of the most enjoyable and thrilling rain drives I had ever encountered with bisons, deer, and elephants giving you company. I have included a video for everyone to cherish that experience of mine driving in the rain through the forest. The canary yellow color of my S10 seemed to leave a trail of yellow mist behind. The second part of the video shows my S10 munching the miles, shot by my friend who joined us on the highway on our way back. We were finally back home to Bangalore by 10pm, and with those surreal images of the beauty of the western ghats in my eyes, I crashed onto the bed, to continue the journey in my dreams

Driving in the Forest with Heavy Rains Lashing - YouTube

Well, as i mentioned earlier, one of the prime reasons to embark on this trip was to enjoy my S10 all over again, but there was another part to this story too, and that was photography. A combination of Driving, Photography, and Music is what takes me to cloud 9.

My S10 lived up to my expectations, churning out heaps of power miles after miles, and with no hiccups for even a single time for those 706 kms. Climbing steep hill-roads seemed to be a left hand job for her. And one thing that everyone who has accompanied me in my S10 for long drives has told me over and over again, is the unmatched level of comfort that it offers for this segment. Nonetheless, everytime I step on the A-Pedal, it brings a big grin to my face even today. Wrapping it up, my S10 gave me a mileage of 15.1km/litre with 90% AC on, calculated by the tankful to tankful method.

Now I would let the pictures do the talking.

[Fiest@DuraTec]

Those are excellent, pure wallpaper materials some of them. I loved the pics, you got more ?

[RevvMusic]

Originally Posted by Fiest@DuraTec

Those are excellent, pure wallpaper materials some of them. I loved the pics, you got more ?

Yes, I think I've got one more. Here it is. Hope you like it

[Fiest@DuraTec]

Originally Posted by RevvMusic

Yes, I think I've got one more. Here it is. Hope you like it

You saved the best for the last ? That one is mindblowing !!

Seeing all those pics I am sure thats not the end, you've got a lot more, don't you ? And specially some of that hot shot in yellow would be lovely to watch.

[fuel_addict]

Nice pictures. Driving in the rains is always a pleasure and the S10 can only multiply that pleasure I am sure. Pic #4 is the best. Has shades of Ladakh in it.

[Klub Class]

RevvMusic, your clicks left me speechless for a while! Absolutely drool material, my friend. Thanks for the video, I'm addicted to Fast Car - Tracy Chapma.

Well, we did the Calicut - Kalpetta - Sulthan Bathery - Gundlupet - Mudhumalai - Masinagudi - Ooty - Pykara - Gudalur - Nadugani - Nilambur - Calicut circuit on June 2nd. The umpteen unmarked speed-breakers all along the Bandipur stretch takes a toll on enjoying the drive to the fullest, sadly. How I wish we had met each other on the way. Sigh

Now that you've set our expectation high, do update the thread will more wallpaper materials and videos at the earliest. And if I may ask, where are the S10 pics?

PS: I've given this thread a well deserved 5 star rating.

[RevvMusic]

Originally Posted by fuel_addict

Nice pictures. Driving in the rains is always a pleasure and the S10 can only multiply that pleasure I am sure. Pic #4 is the best. Has shades of Ladakh in it.

Glad that you liked the pics. As you rightly said, drives in the rain no doubt possess a peculiar 'pleasure bearing' phenomena that is unmatched, and most of it is due to the sheer setting that the rains, the road, and your machine set for you to relish. And Indeed, when you have a machine in the form of a S10, the pleasure surely multiplies.

Originally Posted by Klub Class

RevvMusic, your clicks left me speechless for a while! Absolutely drool material, my friend. Thanks for the video, I'm addicted to Fast Car - Tracy Chapma.

I'm thrilled to hear those words. It really feels good. And yeah, "Fast Car" is an iconic song by Tracy. It's one of those songs I've been listening since my schooldays. There is a story hidden in those heart wrenching lyrics. Not sure, whether you have paid attention to it yet.

Originally Posted by Klub Class

How I wish we had met each other on the way. Sigh

I too wish that we, and our S10's should have met on the way. Just imagine, two rare S10's, a winding road, Monsoon God pouring, and some soul touching music. How does it feel?

Originally Posted by Klub Class

And if I may ask, where are the S10 pics?
PS: I've given this thread a well deserved 5 star rating.

S10 pics would be coming soon! A photoshoot is planned for her And yah, thanks a lot for the rating.

[coloneljasi]

Brilliant photographs, RevvMusic! I tend to visit or drive through Wayanad every now & then since I live not far from there. But the beauty of the place gets to me each time and yes, the monsoon is the best time to see the greenery of the district.

Too bad the roads around here tend to disintegrate after a few rains, atleast they're good in some parts....

[Viper21]

Hey Revvmusic,
Breathtaking pics. IMO, the best time to see kerala is the monsoon season ,and your pics say it all.
Quick question: How many Kms from Bangalore? Are the roads well marked? How long did you take to cover the distance?

Also PM me the details of the homestay . Lovely pics again, Palio is a superb car, and with the s10, its nothing short of an awesome thrill.

[RevvMusic]

Originally Posted by Viper21

Hey Revvmusic,
Breathtaking pics. IMO, the best time to see kerala is the monsoon season ,and your pics say it all.
Quick question: How many Kms from Bangalore? Are the roads well marked? How long did you take to cover the distance?

Also PM me the details of the homestay . Lovely pics again, Palio is a superb car, and with the s10, its nothing short of an awesome thrill.

Glad that you liked the pics Yes, the Western Ghats is in its full beauty during the monsoons.

Wayanad is about 270Km from Bangalore. The roads are well marked. From Bangalore, take the Mysore road. Through Mysore, take the Ooty road and look for a signboard that tells you to take a right towards Sultan Bathery. That road will lead you to Wayanad through the Bandipur Forest. Road conditions are good except for a few kms of bad patches in the forest. It generally takes 5 to 5.5 hrs to cover the distance. Leave early morning and you will cover it smoothly.
I'm still a newbie on the forum so don't have the option to PM you. The homestay name is "Summer Villa". That's their website on which you can get all the details Homestays in Wayanad, Holiday Homes in Wayanad, Holiday Cottages in Wayanad, Holiday Homes in Wayanad

And yah, as you rightly mentioned, the S10 is indeed nothing short of an awesome thrill, and that is only realized when you drive another car from this segment immediately after driving a S10.

[Coooolcat21]

Lovely pics and writeup. Would really like to see the S10 in the western ghats.
Regards

[jags_bhandary]

Very good post and is so fresh. Am planning to visit this Saturday. Appreciate if you could provide some details on the home stay.

[RevvMusic]

Originally Posted by jags_bhandary

Very good post and is so fresh. Am planning to visit this Saturday. Appreciate if you could provide some details on the home stay.

Thanks jags_bhandary . As I mentioned in the last post, the homestay is Summer Villa and it costs around Rs.1500 for 24 hrs. A very nice and clean place, worth the 1500. Homestays in Wayanad, Holiday Homes in Wayanad, Holiday Cottages in Wayanad, Holiday Homes in Wayanad is their website, and Mr.Pramod, the host, is a very helpful guy. Do book the homestay immediately as it is likely that bookings would get over. Do let me know if you need any further information.

[rock18]

Amazing pictures man!!!! Please post more of them and post some S10 pictures as well.
15kmpl is a very good mileage for S10 cosidering the fact that you did a lot of ghat driving also.
I never got more than 13.5kmpl in highways. How much are you getting in city?

[RevvMusic]

Originally Posted by rock18

Amazing pictures man!!!! Please post more of them and post some S10 pictures as well.
15kmpl is a very good mileage for S10 cosidering the fact that you did a lot of ghat driving also.
I never got more than 13.5kmpl in highways. How much are you getting in city?

Thanks a ton buddy for going through the pictures. Soo glad that you liked them. Since the day I had bought my S10, my hand has been itching to write a dedicated ownership thread with full fledged pictures and all, but have been caught up with so many things since then that the mood to actually sit down and pen it down hasn't happened. But JayD's recent S10 thread has provoked me to finally collect myself and write my own. I promise it will be up soon and with full flair.

Anyways, i get around 10 kmpl in city if i drive like a good boy. But how can a S10 be driven like a good boy :-D Hehe
Drive like a bad boy and i get 8 kmpl in city. How much do you get in city? And whats the billa number of your S10? Have any pics?