[cruze'ader]

My Friend - "YAY! We are finally going to GOA!!"
Me - "We are finally DRIVING to Goa!"
Another Friend - "Can't believe we have to wait 3 more weeks!"
Friend No. 3(Skeptical about the plan) - "You guys are crazy!"


And to any other 3rd person sitting next to us on the walkway of Bessie beach, Chennai, this plan would have indeed sounded crazy. Although, they might have been equally jealous about all the fun we would have had.


Some Useful Statistics:

1. Total distance travelled(roundtrip) - 790 kms.
2. Fuel filled - 4000/-
3. Tolls - 630/-
4. Stay at Golden Nest resorts - 2800/-
5. Food - 2000/-

Bear in mind that the above expenses are for 3 people combined. Individually, it was pretty cheap costing us roughly 3k per person.

Some Other Tips:

1. Start early or you might not be able to do anything the rest of the day after reaching yercaud.
2. Because it gets dark pretty early, most of the sight-seeing options are not worth visiting after 6.
3. It takes a max of 6 hours to get there from Chennai, including the hill climb. So, starting at 7 a.m. will get you there around lunch time, which is just perfect.
4. There are 2 routes to climb the hill. One through Salem city and the other one is before Salem city. My suggestion, take the route before Salem city while going uphill and the other one while coming down. Ill explain why a little later in this paragraph.
5. Don't bother with carrying change for tolls, because all toll plazas have their fees rounded off to decent numbers, and you get exact change in return every time.
6. Any other points, ill mention as and when I remember.

Before I "WRITE" any further, let me assure you that you are NOT going to be amazed by this travelogue. After reading the outstanding travelogues by so many legends here on TBHP, it feels like all I really want to do is make a fool of myself by penning this travelogue down. But then, its only because of these excellent travelogues that I even had the slightest thought of writing one myself someday. And since I'm relatively new to all the tools on this forum, pictures will be at the end of the travelogue. So here goes nothing.

The Decision:

Back to para 2, we were all so excited about this Goa trip. Because all of us would get what we wanted most. Me - Unlimited driving, My Friends - Unlimited partying. Someone, sitting next to us there on the beach, was probably praying that we never get to have all that fun. And we didn't. At least for now. There were a lotta concerns about the plan. About how much time we would take to reach there, how much we would have to spend, decent accommodation availability since we were planning to go around the new years, would it be safe to travel with girls in the car at night, etc. etc. So we came to a conclusion that we would have to postpone Goa. Enter Yercaud!

After a loo-----------oot of discussions, research et. al, it was clear that Yercaud is a very good option to spend a weekend at peace. So all was planned, hotel booked, car taken care of and all that was left to do was wait for the D-day. And the saying is true. When you are awaiting something with all your heart, the evil guardian of time slows the whole clock just for you. So a week feels like a month. But it did arrive, slowly and painfully. And it was the much awaited D-Day!

The Drive:

The fuel was filled and the air was checked the previous night. We planned to leave sharp at 7, and somehow, most amazingly, we did. Right at 7. The drive was quiet monotonous with just straight roads most of the way. The traffic at the toll plazas can irritate you though, as there is more than a 200m line at every bay. Especially at the initial plazas. Things get much better towards the end of the journey. There are around 6-7 plazas either side. But most of them charge a nominal fee.

The first major change in direction comes just before Ulundurpet, where you have to take a right to go to Yercaud. By this time, 70% of the journey is done. On getting closer to Yercaud, I had the option of taking one of the two routes which I can take to climb. My suggestion is this - if you have a normal sized car, which isn't too big(and by big, I mean the likes of Fortuners, The Germans, etc.), please take the route before Salem city. All you have to do is punch in Pagoda Point as the destination and the GPS will automatically highlight the route I'm talking about. There are a few reasons for this. Firstly, this road doesn't have any checkpoints as opposed to the 3 police checkpoints on the other road. This road is nowhere as awesome to drive on as the other one which takes you through Salem, but its got amazing views, very sparse traffic and is very peaceful to drive on.

Make sure you drive carefully though, as the road is pretty narrow, and although there are stone culverts to prevent the vehicle from falling in case of a mishap, the oncoming traffic, if any, will mean that you have to have your eyes and ears open at all times. But relax, as you are on the mountain side and not on the cliff side. So you have no chance of falling! Also, there are a few extensions on the road which were useful in case there is bigger oncoming traffic, but they are very far apart. The road was extremely scenic though, and if it wasn't for my passion for driving, I would have happily been a passenger and enjoyed the view.

Take a slow drive on this road as the views are very beautiful and you might not want to miss any of that. The road is not that great in terms of the road surface. There are a few potholes, and in certain narrow areas, there are road widening works in progress.

We first visited the Pagoda point because, as I mentioned earlier, this is the first place that comes up when we take this road and it makes sense to visit it now, than later. Its a nice view point, but you can only spend around 15-20 mins here, and it'll become boring after that. By this time, we were hungry enough to eat with showels rather than with spoons. We checked in to the resort we had booked. It is called the Golden Nest Resort and is at close proximity to the main lake. To describe the experience at this resort, and to be fair to it, it deserves an entire paragraph.

The Golden Nest Resort:

Initially, we were supposed to stay at the Grange Resort, which is also a good place, but we ended up staying here. The actual tariff for a Deluxe room in Golden Nest is 4000/-. So initially, we didn't even bother calling them. But then we did, and realised that they had a discount going on, which meant that we will get the same room for 2800/- for 3 people with breakfast and taxes included. My booking was done by the resort manager, one Mr. Saravana Kumar, who can be contacted on 08144081440. The room was very impressive. It had good views, 1 bedroom, a living room with a sofa-cum-bed and a mini kitchen. The room was very cosy with a beautifully comfortable bed. It had all the stuff we needed except a heater, which is absolutely essential at night, as it gets so cold! But they compensated by giving us many extra blankets. The hot water is available only during morning and night times and not during the afternoons.

But something which this resort absolutely excels in, is hospitality and customer satisfaction. The management is most humble and helpful. The food is extremely tasty! This comes from a person who doesn't consider a day complete without eating non-veg. But I was mighty surprised with even the veg dishes they had to offer. Lunch was both mouth-watering and mouth-wateringly cheap at 150/- for an unlimited veg buffet! Dinner was even more amazing with a good variety of both veg and non veg dishes on offer. Dinner was also cheap at 350/- for an unlimited non-veg buffet. Both meals included dessert too. And even though we came back to the resort almost at the closing time for dinner, they waited patiently until all three of us could finish in peace and were very happy to serve too. The breakfast next day, was an interesting affair too, with the usual bread/butter, along with a variety of other famous South Indian dishes.

The best part of the resort was the bonfire and the golf carts for guests. Yes, wherever we wanted to travel in the resort, we would be taken in a golf kart. See it in the pics at the end of this write-up. Whether it was for going from the room to the restaurant, or just going to the car parking to pick up something from the car, all we had to do was give a call to the reception and a very humble driver would arrive within 5 mins to take us anywhere within the resort. No walk required at all! The resort is located on a cliff and the view from the restaurant and the garden near the restaurant is amazing! There are also a few gym equipments on the open garden, which gives you a mind-blowing view of the mountains and valleys while working out. And this was not your run-of-the-mill gym. It was located in the open air, right at the edge of the garden. So you literally work out at the end of a cliff! Nature at its best!

Also, the resort organised a free bonfire for the guests, and, even though we came late, and the bonfire time was over, they put new logs in and created an awesome bonfire for just the 3 of us. We socialised with a couple of more young travellers like us, who joined us later, who had come from B'lore. They were a fun group and we had a nice time talking to them and listening to music.

Places We Visited:

We were running on time shortage so there were jus a few places that we visited. I already mentioned Pagoda Point.

After visiting Pagoda point, we checked in to the resort, freshened up and then headed to Kiliyur falls. Now, if you search for Kiliyur falls on your android device's GPS, it'll tell you that its right next to Pagoda point. But its not. This is one of those very rare times that I've found GMaps to be misleading. Luckily for us, Kiliyur falls was right next to the resort where we stayed at. So if you want to reach the falls, punch in Golden Nest Resort as the destination on your phone/GPS, and then when you are just about 100 meters before the resort, you will see a road leading towards the right, with a small board indicating the falls. Follow this road 3 kms and you are at the falls. Be aware that this road gets very narrow at some points and always watch out for oncoming traffic.

The Kiliyur falls is a very nice place to visit. Although there was very less water when we went, it was fun going there and we got some of the best views of the mountains. Beware, there is quiet a trek to reach these falls. Definitely not recommended for the elderly. There are steps which lead all the way down to the mouth of the falls. How many steps? Definitely more than 200. Going down itself was quiet a challenge. Don't even get me started on the coming back part. There was a small stall just before the start of the steps and the vendor over there recommended that we travel with some channa, mango etc. from his stall and also some water. We thought he was just trying to make a sale, and besides, were too proud to admit that we might not be able to do this if we don't eat on the way back! How wrong were we! And how we wished we had paid some heed to what the vendor had warned us about.

For those who have any doubts, the falls is a totally safe place to visit with your families too. There are a lot of people around even till 5 p.m. And besides, the people are friendly, and generally mind their own business. So have no second thoughts about taking your wife/kids there. Although, be prepared for a beating of a lifetime from your better halves for making them take this trek in the first place! I would suggest that you don't go to these falls after 5.30. By the time you are done with the trek back up, it'll be too dark. 4 or 4.30 p.m. is the right time to visit it.

After this trek, we were too tired to even think about doing anything for the next couple of hours. But it was well worth the time and energy spent. We still wonder how in the world we ever managed to trek back to the car and drive back to the resort. After having reached the resort, we crashed and slept peacefully for an hour. The resort arranged for some tea and coffee. It was a much needed refreshment after all the exhaustion! By the time we were able to get out of the resort again it was already 8 p.m. But we were ok with this, since that was a part of the plan. Got out of the resort, and stopped at one of the numerous bajji-shops all along the lake. The lake was just right next to the resort. But at that time, all the bajji-shops were closed. They generally close by 7 apparently. So we finally found one shop open after a lot of search. I really wish we hadn't found this shop at all! Had really bad stomachs after eating those bajjis. The tea was excellent though. I don't know if it was just our bad luck that we found that one shop or if all were like that. I would never have anything to eat from those shops again.

After this, it was time to visit Ladies seat. Although Ladies seat is a very famous spot, we had planned to visit it only during the night. Visit this place in the night, and you will thank me for giving you the tip! Remember those Hollywood movies which show you all the beautiful lights of Las Vegas from atop a mountain? The last movie which had that, as far as I can recollect, is Hangover 3. Well, what they show in the movie is stunningly beautiful! And if you want to experience something even remotely close to that right here, head over to Ladies seat at night. This place gives a panorama view of Salem city's lights at night. Although you might not be able to see the city itself, it just cannot be described in words how beautiful the view is! Its like stars have fallen on the ground! Do bear in mind that it will be absolutely dark at night since there are no lights at all. But its safe to go with family also since there will be no one around. You won't be alone though. There are 2 security guards who sit inside the watch tower. They are very friendly and recommend you the places from where you can get the best views.

My suggestion is, carry a torch with you, or even a phone's flashlight, if its bright enough. Make sure that you go to the guard tower and let them know that you are there so that they can watch out for you. If you don't inform them, they might not even notice that you are there. I was just one guy and had two girls with me. Though we were initially doubtful if it was safe, we had absolutely no problems. This place is totally safe. Some other view points right next to Ladies Seat are Gents Seat and Childs Seat. We gave these other seats a miss, since we didn't want to miss the bonfire at the resort.

So after this we headed back to the resort, and had a very late but equally tasty and fulfilling dinner. The bonfire was absolutely fantastic amidst the chilly night air. I would definitely suggest you to carry woollen clothes as it can become terribly cold at night. Or maybe, I just have a small threshold to cold. 15 degrees Celsius at night was like the Arctic Pole for me! Listened to some nice music at the bonfire, and then we called a golf kart to take us back to the room. It was one awesome day!

The Drive Back:

As I had already mentioned, I had planned to take a different route while coming back, and boy was it totally worth it! This, by far, has to be the BEST hill road I've driven on so far! If you want to find it on GMaps, punch in Salem city as your destination when you are in Yercaud. This is the road that will be highlighted in the maps. The tarmac was absolutely smooth with no lesser than 20 hair pin bends to throw the car around! Although Cruze is not the best car for curves, I nevertheless had amazing fun in it. I assure you, that if you are driving a car which loves curves, like a 320D or even a Punto, you will literally bless the government that laid this road. 20 hairpin bends with butter smooth tarmac! I don't think it gets any better than that. This road is longer than the road I took while going uphill. And I didn't regret it one bit. It was just that much fun. I was happy about my decision to take the other road while going uphill, because, at the end the of the climb down, I came across no lesser than 3 police checkposts who were checking most of the cars. This would have made me lose time. They don't stop the cars coming downhill. So an easy drive back.

But the disadvantage of taking this road is that to reach the highway again, you will have to drive right through Salem city with all the traffic and diversions. And if you don't have GPS, things get worse. My phone's GPS lost signal many times, because of which I took so many wrong turns. And finally, by the time I found the highway again, I was 30 mins behind schedule. Once you reach the highway, its again a monotonous drive back all the way to Chennai. We stopped at a very average place for lunch. There are many places where you can stop for having lunch, but they are very average, and nothing excellent. Once I was on the outskirts of Chennai, I decided to take the Vandalur-Kelambakkam link road right next to Crescent College. This turned out to be a good decision as I skipped all the Tamabram traffic and reached all the way back home without a fuss.

I'm posting a few pics taken during the trip below. Let me warn you that, all these were just taken with a phone cam and I'm not great with pictures. And if you have spent your time reading till here, thank you for being patient. And comments to better this are always welcome!

[narayan]

Nice write up cruzader. At the right time too since I am driving down to Yercaud day after tomorow. Just wanted to recheck on your advice on the routes part. Is the route you too for going up good enough for a Safari Storme given the narrow road width ?
Was the police checking specific to that day or its a routine affair ?

[cruze'ader]

Originally Posted by narayan

Nice write up cruzader. At the right time too since I am driving down to Yercaud day after tomorow. Just wanted to recheck on your advice on the routes part. Is the route you too for going up good enough for a Safari Storme given the narrow road width ?
Was the police checking specific to that day or its a routine affair ?

Thanx narayan. I think the safari can very well go through this narrow road. It's big enough to take a safari. Just make sure your windows are down and no music is on, so that you can hear vehicles coming. As I have already mentioned, the traffic on this particular road is very sparse. So careful driving can take you there without any issue. There are a couple of blind turns, so make sure you put your car's horn to good use.

Also, the police checkup seems to be a daily affair. Because I noticed 3 checkposts. So you will lose time if they check you and driving through Salem city means you wil lose even more time.
But make sure you do not miss this road while coming back down. It's simply too good to miss despite the Salem traffic after you've gotten down. Happy to help if you have any more queries. :-)

[Ddrive]

Nice travelogue Cruze'ader, thanks for sharing this. The route you took upwards is commonly known as the Kuppannur route. We took this route sometime during November 2012, and thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact the the best part of the whole trip was the drive through this Kuppanur route.

Originally Posted by narayan

Is the route you too for going up good enough for a Safari Storme given the narrow road width ?

Mr.Narayan, any car can effortlessly do this route, and certainly your strome can. Large Government buses are connecting Kuppanur, to Kottachedu, and Yercaud. If you had to be behind a government bus, you sure will have to follow it for a mile atleast , such narrow are the roads in many places. Coffee estates, and wood transportations, results in many big lorries plying. Absolute fun driving this route... Please dont miss it.

Originally Posted by cruze'ader

Happy to help if you have any more queries. :-)

Cruse'ader, if you permit i will upload here a link to one of my youtube videos taken while we drove this Kuppanur route.

[cruze'ader]

Originally Posted by Ddrive

Nice travelogue Cruze'ader, thanks for sharing this. The route you took upwards is commonly known as the Kuppannur route. We took this route sometime during November 2012, and thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact the the best part of the whole trip was the drive through this Kuppanur route.



Mr.Narayan, any car can effortlessly do this route, and certainly your strome can. Large Government buses are connecting Kuppanur, to Kottachedu, and Yercaud. If you had to be behind a government bus, you sure will have to follow it for a mile atleast , such narrow are the roads in many places. Coffee estates, and wood transportations, results in many big lorries plying. Absolute fun driving this route... Please dont miss it.


Cruse'ader, if you permit i will upload here a link to one of my Youtube videos taken while we drove this Kuppanur route.

Hi Ddrive.

You can go right ahead and post the videos. I'm more than happy that you chose to put it on this thread.

On the other hand, I totally agree with you that this route is a nature lover's haven. It might not have the pure driving road as the Salem route, but this is the best road to admire nature! I'm just glad that there is atleast one more person who shares similar thoughts about the road. Also, have you ever taken the Salem road while coming downhill? If you are a driving enthusiast, you definitely would have.

[narayan]

Ok guys - thanks - Will take the Kuppanur route for going up and the regular route that comes via Salem town for coming down.

[cruze'ader]

Originally Posted by narayan

Ok guys - thanks - Will take the Kuppanur route for going up and the regular route that comes via Salem town for coming down.

Good decision :-). Happy to help. Let us know how the trip was once you are back.

[Ddrive]

Originally Posted by cruze'ader

You can go right ahead and post the videos. I'm more than happy that you chose to put it on this thread.

Also, have you ever taken the Salem road while coming downhill? If you are a driving enthusiast, you definitely would have.

Yes, Cruze'ader, We drove up through the Kuppanur route and down through the regular Salem route. Both are way too different.

And thanks for allowing me to post the link to my video.. heres it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFIXVM0aNFE

Disclaimer: This video was shot by my daughter using my small cellphone and I converted it into to a smallest possible format to enable quick upload/download on internet. This was edited way before I joined Tbhp and may lack the standards for posting on a Tbhp-travelogue. However I post this here, and request you to bear with me. Thanks.

[cruze'ader]

Originally Posted by Ddrive

Yes, Cruze'ader, We drove up through the Kuppanur route and down through the regular Salem route. Both are way too different.

That's an interesting video there Ddrive. Watched it all the way till the end. I was laughing when your wife was praying to God to save your lives when the truck came in front of you! Had many moments like that myself! Very scary when that happens. Although, it was very decent of the lorry driver to reverse his vehicle. They generally don't. Also, I'm glad that I wasn't stuck behind a bus like you were.
Hope the same luck favours me the next time I go there the next month. Want to join in?

[Ddrive]

Originally Posted by cruze'ader

That's an interesting video there Ddrive. Watched it all the way till the end.

Thanks for the patience watching the video fully.

Originally Posted by cruze'ader

... next time I go there the next month. Want to join in?

Sure I wish to join Cruze'ader, feels good about your invite... please poke me when you plan one. Thanks.

[cruze'ader]

Originally Posted by Ddrive

Thanks for the patience watching the video fully.

Sure I wish to join Cruze'ader, feels good about your invite... please poke me when you plan one. Thanks.

Will be more than happy if you could join in. Also, if any other bhpians are free, we could turn this into a meet. I'm going on 10 th Feb and wil be back on 11 th Feb. Do let me know your availability Ddrive. :-).