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Old 3rd April 2013, 11:51   #1
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Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

The Western Ghats of Karnataka

When I reached home last Thursday evening, I had no idea on what was about to happen next. My brother had holiday on account of Good Friday and I decided to take advantage. I had been planning for a pilgrimage to Kukke Sri Subrahmanya since the last year when I was in Mysore, but the trip never materialized due to one or the other reason. I thought this was the opportunity –quickly made a plan for 3-day roadtrip covering the famous temple towns in the Western Ghats – Sringeri, Horanadu, Dharmasthala and Kukke. Had heard lot of stories about the scenic beauty of the Western Ghats, as well as the demanding Shiradi and Charmadi Ghats which test the man and the machine equally. Tried gleaning as much info from the web, but had too little time and was simply overwhelmed with the amount of info available, on where else, our good old Team-BHP site – The art of travelling on Bangalore-Mangalore/Udupi highway. Downloaded some new tunes, procured a car-charger for my new Sony-J from the neighborhood electrical store, stocked some munchies, filled up gas and air (yes sir, spare tire too) and I was set.

Started on Fri morning around 7:30am and came back on Sun evening around 7pm.

1. Day-1 -- Bangalore – Nelamangala – Kunigal – Belluru Cross – Channarayapattana – Hassan (Bypass) – Sakleshpur – Gundya - Dharmasthala – Ujire – Belthangady - Bajegoli - Passed thru Kudremukh National Park – Sringeri – Got to drive thru the Shiradi Ghats between Sakleshpur and Dharmasthala AND drove thru part of Kudremukh National Park on the way to Sringeri. Had darshan of Maa Sharadamba and Prasad. What more can I ask for Day-1!! As for roads: NH is NH, although there is lot of work happening on the Channarayapattana-Hassan stretch. Look out for those deviations where traffic from both directions gets merged. Averaged around 110 kmph/3100 rpm almost till Channarayapattana and did 80 kmph/2500 rpm on the Hassan-Sakleshpur stretch. From there onwards, speed becomes a non-factor as you enter the Shiradi Ghats. The sheer number of S-bends and hairpin bends keep your attention level extremely high. Sticking to lane driving made it exponentially fun to snake thru this stretch. It was a sight to watch caravan of those huge gas tankers grunting their way thru the Ghats – you feel for them. Happened to meet a local Samaritan when I stopped at a non-descript temple in Kudremukh National Park. The gentleman shared useful local info and gave some handy tips on the most scenic routes etc.
Recommendations:

a. Shortest route to Sringeri: Bangalore – Hassan – Belur – Chikmagalur – Aldur – Balehonnur – Sringeri. I didn’t take this route as I want to cover Chikmagalur, Belur and Halebeedu as a separate trip.
b. Stop at Mayura near Belluru Cross (an hour drive from Blore on a good day). Super-tasty food, a tad expensive but you won’t mind. Their mini-idlies are out of this world, but not available for b/f.
c. Stop at Hotel Surabhi at Sakleshpur – Akki Roti/Saagu/Chutney. Heavenly. Don’t confuse it with Surabhi NX – it is a newer hotel further down the road.
d. Accommodation at Sringeri is Temple-managed. Very well maintained. Basic, but clean and hygienic. Charges: Rs. 150. Free parking – it is safe.
e. Visit Vidyapeetham. The main temple is on one side and Vidyapeetham is on the other side. River Tunga flows in between. There are two foot-over bridges which reminded me of the Ram Jhoola and Lakshman Jhoola bridges of Rishikesh, although the water-levels are simply incomparable. Vidyapeetham is a large campus with a huge convention hall, world’s largest Veena, classrooms, temples of three Jagatguru Shankaracharyas. Temple’s two elephants call this campus their home, as well as the temple’s horse & peacock.

2. Day-2, Part-1-- Sringeri – Kachige - Jayapura (Bypass) – Makkikoppe – Halehalli – Horanadu – Roads are fine/motorable, but for an extremely bad stretch of about 10km from Makkikoppe till a large estate, where I couldn’t even do 10 kmph. On the positive side, extremely beautiful valleys and mountains and waterfalls, stopped plenty of times to capture photos – had chosen this route precisely for this reason. Had darshan of Maa Annapurneshwari and Prasad (awesome food!) at Horanadu temple. The temple itself is nestled in the mountains. Everything here is superbly maintained; was amazed by the quality & speed of work at the dining halls, not to forget super-tasty food. Rested for about half-an-hour, did some local shopping (Cashews, Almonds, Pistachios, Tea powder, Pickle), had nice coffee and started towards Dharmasthala. Was even more excited for what lay ahead. The region is rich with plantation estates – Tea, Coffee, Cardamom, Areca/Betel nuts & Coconuts to name a few.

3. Day-2, Part-2 -- Horanadu – Kalasa – Samse - Kottigehara – Kudremukh National Park - Bajegoli – Belthangady - Ujire – Drove thru Charmadi Ghats and Kudremukh National Park. Excellent roads and beautiful scenery. Stopped over at a tea garden which had a front store, was impressed with the fresh tea served, and bought some tea powder. Entered the Kudremukh National Park. Fun part was this stretch was mostly downhill, very tempting to zip at prohibited speeds. I confess I adhered to the 40 kmph speed barrier only sparingly, although never honked once even in the face of some mind-numbingly stupid drivers – these are two instructions among many, on the permit issued at the park entrance. There is no fee to enter the park, just some basic questions on the purpose/where you’re headed/how many folks etc and they give you a permit which needs to be handed over at the exit. They do jot down the time you are entering the park, and allow you 1 hr 30 min to exit the park, else you’ll be fined is what I’m told. No music, no honking – to not attract attention of the wildlife or bother them. I stopped-over at Kudremukh village, KIOCL (Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited), Lakya dam, and some more scenic spots. You gotta see it to believe it. Extremely dense forests where the sunlight struggles to hit the ground. The mountains are so thickly covered with vegetation! There are large stretches which are almost-dark and some portions where you’ll get some sunlight because one side of the road is relatively open. I recall seeing only one stretch of road of about 2 kms which was a straightline, rest all is curves, curves and more curves. Pure driving bliss! Exited the park after a little over 2 hrs 30 min, no questions were asked. Reached Ujire and stayed at ‘Panchami Residency’ for the night. It is on the Ujire-Dharmasthala road. Charged Rs. 1000 for a Non-AC room for Sat night. Room was ok; had a flatscreen. Not saying it was worth, but you see, it is pure supply-demand at play here. You will save if you manage to get the Temple-managed acco at Dharmasthala.

Recommendations:
a. If you have time (& could plan ahead), hunker down at a home-stay. Streams of Joy is a well-appreciated home-stay which is little away from Dharmasthala. Mr. Kashinath has been praised for his hospitality and personal attention to his guests. He plans activities as well as takes people to little-known places which are of natural/mythological significance. In fact, I called him up when I couldn’t get acco in Dharmasthala and went to Ujire on his recommendation.

4. Day-3, Part-1 -- Ujire-Dharmasthala – Short stretch of 8 kms. Took quick darshan ticket (Rs. 200) since there was a sizeable queue for the normal one. Turned out to be a good call since the quick darshan itself took an hour. Had darshan of Sri Manjunatheshwara and collected Prasad. It was still a quick get-in and get-out, surprised myself with the efficiency on a productive morning!

5. Day-3, Part-2 -- Dharmasthala – Gundya – Kukke Subrahmanya – Joined back the NH-48 fairly early, after which it was a fun drive till Gundya. Super-smooth road, traffic is relatively heavy as expected on such a popular route. Gundya-Kukke stretch is getting re-done, it is not as bad as some make you believe, although, expect to hit some rough patches. On the outskirts of Kukke, stopped at river Kumaradhara. It is a bathing ghat with facilities; I didn’t take a dip though. Had darshan of Sri Kukke Subrahmanya as well as Adi Subrahmanya. Most people know only of Kukke Sri Subrahmanya, but there is a separate Adi Subrahmanya temple as well. It is a short walk from the main temple, although walking bare-foot in the noon sun was not a pleasant experience. Thereafter, had some snacks/juice for a light lunch at Hotel Kumara Krupa (had read that this is slightly better than Neo Mysore Café, which is located exactly opposite to it). Started towards Sakleshpur, again, via Gundya. You can also come via Kukke – Madikeri – Mysore – Bangalore route, but I’ve done Mysore-Bangalore route enough times, so stuck to the via-Hassan route. Plus, the mini-idlies were still waiting for me 
A special mention of the car: While I cruised at 110 kmph on the NH, I also crawled at snail speeds of under 10 kmph in the ghats. AC was on for more than 50% of the time over the entire trip. Still, the car returned an unbelievable 18 kmpl!!

Total roundtrip distance: 1016 kms
Fuel: Opted for the usual Shell Unleaded to begin with. Refilled about 18 litres in two parts at IOC pumps along the way as there was no Shell to be found. Total fuel consumption: 57.07 litres.
Air: Chose slightly higher air pressure for the fronts (32 psi) to aid maneuverability in the Ghats. Rears were loaded at the usual 30 psi. There was no perceptible degradation in the ride quality due to higher air pressure in the fronts. The car was firmly planted at cruising speeds and precise in cornering. I was suspecting the slightly-higher front tire pressure to lighten the hydraulic steering a bit, but as I discovered later, I was wrong. The Palio still had the same awesome feedback which tells me exactly what my fronts are upto. The car performed admirably, competing with the big brothers on the roads (the Innovas/Scorpios). Respect. May be driving skills? (wink wink).

So, there it is. My most enjoyable roadtrip in India, yet. The routes I chose were so, in keeping with my attempts of exploring as much in the vicinity. Do I want to go back? You bet. Malenad in monsoon has got be awwessomme!!

Last edited by Jaggu : 3rd April 2013 at 12:17.
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Old 3rd April 2013, 14:39   #2
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Nice writeup Prashkul. Thanks for posting and sharing your experience on this holy weekend trip. Could you please post some snaps so that we can have a view of the wonderful Western Ghats of Karnataka that you cruised through?
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Old 3rd April 2013, 14:58   #3
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

You should know that your thread will be deleted shortly if there are no pictures. So hurry up and post the pictures.
How was the weather?
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Old 3rd April 2013, 15:21   #4
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Here are the pics...
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Old 3rd April 2013, 15:34   #5
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Some more, including my ride You gotta admit, it stands apart in the crowd
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Old 17th July 2013, 16:52   #6
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Thanks for the detailed update.

Quote:
Originally Posted by prashkul View Post
2. Day-2, Part-1-- Sringeri – Kachige - Jayapura (Bypass) – Makkikoppe – Halehalli – Horanadu
I have been wanting to do this route for quite some time. What is the distance b/w Makkikoppe (I believe this is on the main road) and Hornadu? How much time did you clock for this stretch? Also, isn't there another route that diverts off the main Sringeri-Jayapura road at Gadikal (see here)?

Quote:
Originally Posted by prashkul View Post
3. Day-2, Part-2 -- Horanadu – Kalasa – Samse - Kottigehara – Kudremukh National Park - Bajegoli – Belthangady - Ujire – Drove thru Charmadi Ghats and Kudremukh National Park
I guess Kottigehara is a typo here, if I am not mistaken.
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Old 3rd September 2015, 11:34   #7
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Experts,
I am planning to drive to Sringeri from Bangalore on 2nd Oct. Have never driven that route before? Any advises? How's the road condition? Any other suggestions ?

Thanks
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Old 4th September 2015, 13:09   #8
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Had been to Sringeri last weekend. The roads are good, no issues whatsoever. I would suggest you to take the Hassan bypass and reach the Belur road. Since the rains have been less this year, the roads after Chikamagalur are also in good condition.

Inside Balehonnur town, cememt road is being laid. This small stretch is the only bad one.

Bangalore - Hassan - Belur - Chikamagalur - Aldur - Balehonnur - Jayapura - Sringeri.

Rgds
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Old 4th September 2015, 14:00   #9
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Quote:
Originally Posted by qAnand View Post
I am planning to drive to Sringeri from Bangalore on 2nd Oct. Have never driven that route before? Any advises? How's the road condition? Any other suggestions ?
Alternate route could be via Shimoga-Tirthahalli.
Bangalore-Shimoga can be done via Nelamangala(Tumkur Road)-turn left onto Hassan/Mangalore highway NH48-Channarayapatna-turn right towards Arsikere--At Arsikere turn left onto NH206 to Shimoga.
OR Bangalore-Tumkur-Shimoga bypass-NH206 to Shimoga

On Shimoga-Tirthahalli route you can visit Gajanur Dam, Sakrebyle Elephant camp and Mandagadde bird sanctuary.

Then you can do Tirthahlli-Koppa-Sringeri (on the way is Kuppalli, Kuvempu's home/museum, nice place to visit with a good view point at Kavishaila next to the museum).

After Sringeri (temple visit?) you can visit the Sirimane Falls (Kigga temple on the way), then return via the Agumbe route where you can also visit the Kundadri hill, Agumbe sunset point and return to Tirthahalli if you want.

On the return you could even drive via Jayapura-Balehonnur-Chikamagalur-Belur-Hassan.
I did this route plan on an earlier trip and we stayed at Tirthahalli

Last edited by NPV : 4th September 2015 at 14:02.
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Old 5th September 2015, 16:06   #10
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Quote:
After Sringeri (temple visit?) you can visit the Sirimane Falls (Kigga temple on the way),
After kigga the road to sirimane falls is very narrow and one stretch of 2-3 kms is just loose gravel and stones. If you are travellings in a low GC car, you need to drive carefully.
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Old 29th September 2015, 18:27   #11
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

we are planning to do a trip from Bangalore to Kukke on Oct 2nd long weekend. We want to cover Sringeri and Dharmastala temples. Planning to start on Friday morning and return home on Sunday evening. Parents and 3 years kids would be also travelling. Request you to suggest the best route.
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Old 25th November 2015, 17:36   #12
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Any updates on the Bangalore - Hassan - Belur - Chikamagalur - Aldur - Balehonnur - Jayapura - Sringeri route? Planning to drive down this weekend.
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Old 6th December 2015, 13:39   #13
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Hi Friends,

Did the Madgaon(Goa)--Kollur--Agumbe--Sringeri--Horanadu--Jayapura--Koppa--Thirthahalli--Shimoga--Jog--Honnavar--Madgaon trip recently. With respect to the Horanadu to Sringeri / Jayapura route, I would request our friends to stick to Horanadu-Balehole - (you can either go via kalasa or take the bye pass towards left when you are coming on the Horanadu-Kalasa Main road).

Basarikatte-Shantigrama and further a direct link to your left to Sringeri which saves some kms and joins the Chikmaglur-Sringeri route, or you can take the straight road which also joins the Chikmaglur-Sringeri road just to the west of Jayapura. (People going to Sringeri may find this route slightly longer, say 10-15 kms more than the route which bifurcates at Shantigrama/ kogre). But my specific point is that of a request to kindly avoid the route shown in google maps. (Route Link)

This route right leaves opposite to the Kalasa road at Horanadu.) I was tempted as it showed as much shorter than the normal route via Balehole. It ended in a big experience of lifetime. Narrow roads, steep gradients (extremely rising and falling), hairpins, and what not. The important thing is, that I couldn't find mobile signal at most of the places and literally no traffic at all. All i could find in the opposite was a lonely tractor and one cyclist. Totally isolated area. I am sure that few of our friends will like such roads, but never try this route on anything less than a SUV,or when you are in a group of adventure seeking friends. I drove my Mitsubishi Lancer with my unsuspecting family with me . Indeed, I took it as a lesson.

Regards, Sampathkumar

Last edited by ampere : 6th December 2015 at 14:21. Reason: Formatted post for readability
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Old 14th December 2015, 11:58   #14
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

I am planning to do 3 days trip to Sringeri/Horanadu/Dharmasthala/Kukke. The starting point is Thirthahalli and final destination is Bangalore. I would like to know the best possible route that I can take. I would like to avoid driving on bad roads, even if involves driving more on the alternate route.
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Old 21st December 2015, 11:24   #15
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Re: Bangalore-Sringeri-Horanadu-Dharmasthala-Kukke-Bangalore

Dear Sir,
Starting from Tirthahalli,you can proceed to Sringeri via two routes.(SH27 or NH13 options) The NH route via Koppa (just take right before the Arch on the entrance of Koppa town to proceed towards Sringeri) will be much better in terms of road conditions,and is longer by about 5-6 kms only.
Sringeri to horanadu, the best route will be as follows. Take the SH27 towards Jayapura/Chikmagalur. At around 11-12 kms distance, you will find a Junction,(Agalagandi junction) where the SH27 takes right and another road leads straight.( Guidance written in Kannada only). Take straight, and proceed towards Shantigrama. From Shantigrama, take the road leading towards Balehole. ( Clear markings about the route for Horanadu is provided for this route only..So no confusion here)( At this junction, never take the route for horanadu, as shown on Google maps as the shortest, but strictly go via Balehole) At Balehole junction, take the road towards Kalasa, (Literally straight one as you approach it) and you may take the Bypass road to Horanadu,( leading towards Right, at Haluvalli, before the Bhadra river bridge, at about 6-7 kms from Bale hole Jn).You will join the Kalasa-horanadu road and proceed to Horanadu.

Horanadu to Dharmasthala can be done via two great Ghats. From Horanadu, you must come to Kalasa. From kalasa,you can either take the Charmadi ghat route, (Being the shortest, but expect slightly higher traffic at times)or the Kudremukha town route,to descend towards the west.) The Kalasa-Kelagur-Kottigehara-(charmadi ghats)-Ujire-(take left)-Dharmasthala will be about 90 kms, but the one via Kudremukh-Bakjegoli-Belthangady-Ujire ( Take Right)-Dharmasthala should be around 120 kms. you can visit the famous Hanumangundi falls on the route via Kudremukh,and the traffic here is also very less, compared to the charmadi route.
Dharmasthala to Kukke , you have a direct route via Nelliyadi. We are told that this route is not so good.The alternative route via Ujire, Belthangady, and uppinangady is much better. But the extra distance put in is considerably high, and if you consider driving at a normal speed, then the direct route should not be a big constraint here, considering the time saved
Kukke-Bangalore.. Kukke-Gundya and take the NH48 towards Sakleshpur ( Shirali Ghat route) Hassan and onwards. we are told that the Shirali ghat is likely to be closed after Jan 1st, 2016 for concreting works again. In that case, take the Kukke-sullya-Madikeri-Kushalnagar route. From Kushalnagar, you can proceed to Bangalore via Hunsur, Mysore bye-pass, Mandya and onwards to Bangalore. or Via Ramanathapura, Arakalgud,hole-Narsipura, Channarayapatna and onwards to Bangalore. The Second route is slightly longer, but the roads are excellent, and after CR patna, you can breeze through. The route via Mysore is good, but infested with N number of speed breakers.. Hope this helps you sir.
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