[M35]

February 2015

Mysore has always been very special to me. My four years of stay/ education @ Mysore, I rate as one of the very best and memorable periods in my life. That should be the reason why I felt at home, the moment we hit Mysore.


Entrance to Mysore Palace

I was back in India for a month. Had couple of days of personal work in Mysore, hence thought of taking my family along. It was more of a pleasure drive with family rather than exploring places at destination/s.

Squeezed in a couple of hours to re-visit Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary for a much needed break. An early morning or evening would have been ideal for capturing birds digitally, but by the time I got there the Sun was blazing down at it’s very best right above my head.


A builder Cormorant in action @ Ranganthittu

[M35]

How we got there ?

The ride : ‘Scorp’
The route : Palakkad- CBE - Ooty- Gudalur - Bandipur – Mysore.

• Why via Ooty ?
• The answer is very simple. Never did that stretch before.

Started off late from Palakkad at around 11.00 am. Beautifully newly laid 4-Lane stretch up to Walayar ! Had vegetarian Tamilnadu special meals right after navigating through the CBE city traffic at a restaurant on the Mettupalayam road.

The Ooty ghat road was good but narrow. Though there was moderate truck traffic, the relaxed drive got us somewhere very close to Ooty town by 4.00 pm.

Soon we got stuck on the road just a few kilometers to Ooty for about an hour, thanks to some unplanned and inefficient road repair exercise = traffic jam.Never understood why on earth they decided to do that minor road work at the rush school hour which lead to such huge traffic mess. We were put off by that and decided against staying in Ooty that night. Took a short tea break near Botanical garden and headed to Gudalur for the night halt.



Botanical Garden @Ooty

The Ooty-Gudalur stretch was beautiful but then it was getting dark. I was expecting some wildlife crossing at that time of the day but didn’t find any. Drove into Holiday Inn @ Gudalur. Went for a short evening walk and got back to hotel after having a light dinner from outside.

[M35]

The next day, took off to Mysore via Bandipur after having breakfast at a restaurant right after Gudalur town. It was a very refreshing experience driving through Bandipur forest that morning. Saw few wildlife on the way but didn’t stop or click. Rolled down the windows, and switched off the AC. It was an exceptional driving experience which can’t be expressed in words . Note that even after having seen many animal and birds at very close distances, I didn’t bother taking out my camera at all. Just enjoyed every single moment being with family behind the wheel driving along such a beautiful forest stretch.

The Gundalpet –Mysore stretch looked so different, thanks to the ongoing road works. The surface wasn’t bad though. Soon we stopped for a drinks-break and by then I knew I had almost reached my another home. I looked up and saw the majestic Chamundi hills to my right.

Drove straight into Hotel Roopa at the center of Mysore city. Had booked a couple of deluxe suits beforehand. Had stayed in there earlier and I liked the location, their service and parking. Took a very well deserved rest after having lunch there.

Went to the majestic Mysore Palace that evening. Parked my ‘Scorp’ in that huge open space in front of the Palace. Had a great time walking around the Palace that evening.


Lights on ! @ Mysore palace

Had a great time walking around the palace that evening. Back to bed and time for some serious rest .


The next day, wifey took charge of taking everybody around Mysore city as I was out with my work. She was very familiar with the city; after all, she was my classmate @ our Manasagangothri campus, back in late 1990s.

Back on to the road again for a short spin, the next day morning. Thought of visiting Brindavan Gardens. I always liked that small stretch to KRS from Mysore for some reason. But by the time we got there, the sun started beating down heavily. Thanks to the heat, none looked interested to explore the gardens. I had a couple of more hours of free time, hence decided to visit Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary which wasn’t that far from there.

Scorp @KRS dam/ Brindavan Gardens

[M35]

Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary:


Painted Storks at the sanctuary quenching their thirst.


Ranganthittu is about 20 kms from Mysore city. Back in my college days, I used to ride to these locations in small groups with my friends.
By the time we got there, the Sun was blazing down at it’s very best right above my head. Bought the entry ticket [ Rs 50 per head as I recollect], parked the Scorp under shade and started our stroll. Didn’t waste any time to book a private but guided boat. I paid Rs. 1000 for 70 minutes as I recollect now. Thanks to the heat we opted for a boat with canopy. Put on the Life jackets and there we go. Kids loved the ride all along the waters. Was fun witnessing such a large flock of birds of different varieties on tress and islets.

[M35]

A River tern @ the Sanctuary.


The oarsman was a veteran and he made sure we knew the number of years of expertise under his belt working in the sanctuary. With over 20 years of experience, he proved himself to be an excellent guide, sharing with us loads of information about various birds we encountered during our ride.

Lots of Cormorants were seen on trees. The blue eyes looked very sharp yet beautiful. This one looked like a very busy builder.
I was sighting a River tern for the first time. Beautiful bird.

[M35]

Pelicans were in plenty as well.





Looks like a stone curlew !



A Spoonbill ?


We also saw the likes of Asian Openbills, egrets, Herons, Kingfishers etc.


The ride ended in about an hour or so and we enjoyed every bit of it. Drove back to the hotel for a late lunch.

Some more random bird shots for viewing pleasure, of which a few not exactly from the sanctuary though !










We returned home the next day taking the Sathyamangalam –Annur –CBE route, which I thought was great too. ‘Scorp’ stood tall throughout the journey with absolutely no signs of fatigue. Over all, a good break and some great time behind the wheel. Will look forward to coming back here again to this wonderful another home of ours soon.

[GTO]

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

[S2!!!]

A short and crisp write up you got there with some brilliant pictures. Out of all, the last picture of your Scorpio actually seems to be wallpaper material.

[LoneRidder]

@M35: Very short and crisp travelogue! I too love my visits to Mysore. Though I have never lived there, every time I pass through the Mysore place, I make sure a stop and take couple of pictures.

Hotel Siddharta is another good place to stay at the heart of the city.

Your pictures are absolute clean and superb. Which camera do you use and what about the lens?

[ampere]

I can very well see the wide angle and the bazooka have been put to good use along with the new FF body! Very nice shots there!

[M35]

Originally Posted by S2!!!

Out of all, the last picture of your Scorpio actually seems to be wallpaper material.

Thanks S2!!!
Glad that you liked the picture my 'Scorp' the most

Originally Posted by LoneRidder

Hotel Siddharta is another good place to stay at the heart of the city.

Will try out the hotel next time around. Thanks.

Originally Posted by LoneRidder

Your pictures are absolute clean and superb. Which camera do you use and what about the lens?

Thanks again.
Nikon D610 + Sigma 150-500

Originally Posted by ampere

I can very well see the wide angle and the bazooka have been put to good use along with the new FF body! Very nice shots there!

Thanks Amp.
Bazooka is fine in good light / for stationary subjects, so is my D610. Definitely not a great combo for action shots.

[M35]

Another night shot taken @ Mysore Palace. The illumination lasted for about half an hour, if I recollect correctly. Only on Sundays and public holidays the Palace gets illuminated.

[srgntpepper]

Originally Posted by M35

Nikon D610 + Sigma 150-500

What about the wide angle? Isn't this wider than 24mm?

Thanks

[M35]

Originally Posted by srgntpepper

What about the wide angle? Isn't this wider than 24mm? Thanks

• The Palace pictures were shot @ 14mm with D610 + Samyang 14mm f/2.8 prime.
• The Scorpio picture was shot @ 10mm with D7000 + Sigma 10-20

[ampere]

Originally Posted by M35

Another night shot taken @ Mysore Palace. The illumination lasted for about half an hour, if I recollect correctly. Only on Sundays and public holidays the Palace gets illuminated.

Beautiful shot. Need to head out to Mysore for the palace visit. And yes its one of the best towns to spend the weekend. It really re-defines laid-back!
My camera has been gathering dust for some time now.