[mpksuhas]

While taking delivery of XUV, as part of Purple club we received a three day complimentary Club Mahindra voucher. We did not want to travel to any new destination as it may require to spend more days to see around and getting leaves being the big issue.

Also, I am no fan of time share memberships or fancy resorts. Hence we decided to go to any place near to Bangalore. The idea was to spend a lazy weekend and hence after a long discussion, we shortlisted on Coorg. Since we have been to Coorg multiple times earlier, idea was to cover tourist destinations left off during previous trips.


20- Sep -14

We start from Bangalore around 05.00 AM, we take NICE road and proceed on Tumkur road. After taking Mangalore road traffic thins out and we are able to maintain steady speed.



New numbering schemes for NH, as per earlier numbering it was NH 48



We stop at hotel Mayura near Belur cross for breakfast, the place has clean restrooms and ample parking. However food is not worth mentioning. Guess should stop at Athithi soon after Channarayapatana bye-pass from next time.

After an one hour stop, we start towards Hassan.

4- laning work near Channarayapatana seems to be in a standstill, we come across this heavily modified Hyundai Accent.



We reach Hassan bye-pass and take left towards Gorur on SH-21. Road condition is very bad and it takes around one hour to cover the next 20 odd KM's.




Rosary Church Shettihalli

Build in 1860 for British estate owners near Shakleshpur, this magnificent church got submerged when Hemavathy reservoir was constructed near Gorur. The church located on river banks gets submerged during rainy season when reservoir gets filled.

Having seen few pics of the church both submerged and otherwise online, we thought of taking a deviation from the Channapattana - Arakalagud route.

On Hassan - Gorur road soon after a village called Kattaya, you need to take right when road forks. There are no signage's here, there is a petrol bunk at the junction which can be used a landmark.

The road though narrow, surprisingly becomes better once you take the turn.



There is another road from Hassan which takes you directly to Shettihalli, we had decided not to take it since it is not a SH. However based on comments on few blogs online, the road condition is good. From the condition of Gorur road we guess the other road is a better option.

We proceed towards the bridge across Hemavati river, partially submerged church is visible from the bridge.



We enjoy the view for a while and then proceed towards the church. There are no proper roads to go near the church, a submerged river bank does not help either.

Church as visible from the road



We take a dirt road towards the church



We walk towards the river bank



After spending some time we start towards Coorg.

It takes us around 3 hours to reach Madikeri taking Gorur - Arakalagud - Shanivarasanthe - Somwarpet - Madikeri route.

En-route we cross Hemavati reservoir



Road condition improves once crossing Shanivarasanthe

[mpksuhas]

Madikeri

Before going to resort we wanted to visit couple of places in Coorg which we had not visited during earlier trips.

It is around 01.00 PM, we decide to visit East End hotel about which we had heard a lot earlier.

Located on Mysore - Madikeri road this is one of the oldest hotels in Madikeri.

We tried both veg and non-veg options available, however we felt food was bit too bland. Lunch done around 1.45 PM we start towards Madikeri fort.

Madikeri fort

This 17th century fort located in town center houses police and panchayat offices now. There is a old church in the compound which is Coorg Museum now, photography is not allowed inside museum.

Fort wall



Few old buildings around the fort



Old palace building which now houses government offices, the yellow building on the left is the old church which houses museum now



After spending sometime in fort we start towards Raja Tomb.

Raja tomb

Raja tomb or Gaddige is located near start of road towards Abbey falls from Madikeri. It has started raining now, we get a view of the tomb while driving from Madikeri.



The place is almost empty when we reached, also there are no signage's anywhere. There is a KA tourism sign board near to the tomb, however it mentions only Abbey falls which is around 7 KM's from here.



There are two tombs where King, Queen and their son is laid to rest.





Club Mahindra

There are two Club Mahindra properties in Coorg. The one we stayed is near Mercara Golf club, the other property is on Madikeri - Virajpet road.



Main building



Reception






Recreation area



Car park



Hotel blocks












The property is spread across a huge area, vehicles are not allowed inside the resort.

Spa

[mpksuhas]

21- Sep - 14

After a lazy morning, we decide to drive to Mandalpatti. We had checked different online forums for route conditions before starting from Bangalore.

From what we made out, roads are almost nonexistent for the last 4 Kms or so, this is pure 4x4 territory. You can rent jeep for going to the peak. Rates mentioned in different posts range from Rs 600 / person to Rs 2000/ Jeep.

We thought of driving till the last possible point, enjoy the view and return back.

For Mandalpatti, you need to drive towards Abbey falls and few KM's before falls when road forks in two you need to take the right arm.

Right at this junction takes you to Mandalpatti, left takes to Abbey falls.



The road starts good



But soon becomes bad



Worse



And non-existent



We decide to turn back, enjoy the view for a while and drive towards Abbey falls




Around Abbey falls we saw few banners of a home stay advertising about Mandalpatti.

The broken roads which we saw earlier are non-existent in the advertisement.




Do note the flying jeep in this pic






Abbey falls

We proceed towards Abbey falls, parking area is near falls is now expanded from what we saw last time.

However thanks to weekend, the place is crowded

[mpksuhas]

23 - SEP -14

We check out of resort in morning and start back. For return we take Kushalnagar - Mysore route.

Roads between Kushalnagar and Madikeri is in good condition, a welcome change compared to few years back.




Enroute we plan to stop at Tibetan settlement near Bylakuppe.

We take the deviation towards Tibetan settlement and are greeted by this signboard.



View en route



Way to parking lot



Parking lot




Namdroling monastery (Golden Temple)








Since it is a weekday, temple complex is almost empty



Inside main temple complex



Prayer books




Golden temple





There are few smaller temples also nearby











It takes us around one hour to see the complex and return to parking. We start towards Mysore.

Road condition remain good, however as we near Mysore, frequency of barricades too increase.



Instead of taking Mysore ring road or going via city we take the KRS - Ranganathittu road. Road condition is bad till Ranganathittu turn off, in between for around half KM there is ongoing road work.




Around Mandya we come across this TBHP stickered car.




We stop for lunch at newly opened A2B near Maddur. Taking NICE road, we are able to reach Silkboard junction around 06.00 PM.


Now the question, where is the next holiday ?

[mpksuhas]

Epilogue

• Since we wanted to visit Shettihalli, we deviated from the recommended route to Coorg. Else it is best to follow Channarayapatana - Holenarispur - Arakalagud - Somwarpet - Madikeri.
• Coorg route thread.
• Rosary church can be a great photo location in summer. Thread by TBHPian Rjstlyes69 with some great pics..
• In summer Rosary church is reportedly used as a watering hole by alcoholics. Though I have not come across any untoward incident there are many posts online about tourists who felt unsafe due to same.
• Another place worth visiting taking Somwarpet route is Mallalli water falls.
• As with many valets, saw Club Mahindra valets flooring the vehicles. Always better to park yourself.

[Aditya]

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

[Haque]

Very nice travelogue Suhas. Brought back memories of our trip to coorg couple of years ago. Did you like the Club Mahindra property you stayed in? What is the price for non-members with bed and breakfast?

[mpksuhas]

Originally Posted by Haque

Did you like the Club Mahindra property you stayed in? What is the price for non-members with bed and breakfast?

Thanks Haque.

Yes the property is great. However as with any high end resort I guess it is worth only if you plan to spend more time relaxing at the resort (instead of spending time outside).

For non-members they quoted 8K / day. This is excluding meals. They have 3 restaurants inside the property, I felt the meals priced reasonably for a resort of this size.

However I don't think 8K / day for rooms are justifiable, one reason I felt was that rooms were fully booked by members. Hence they are not concerned about the non-guest customers.

Also while discussing with their sales person about membership he was mentioning 'You get rooms quoted 8k/day free for 7 days'. So I guess it works out as a good marketing ploy too.

[benbsb29]

Thanks for the travelogue mpksuhas. We had been to Coorg sometime in 2007 as a family outing, and i had also later stayed in the Club Mahindra resort you visited as part of a team outing from my company. Felt nice seeing the same places again, although via pics.