[AmazeGuru]

Originally Posted by GKMahajan

Wow!
I have been to Goa and driven through Belgaum. Now I have to add Shimoga to my to-do list.
I have been to Bangalore many times - but never drove down! That would be an interesting project!

Once more - GREAT!

Thanks. My initial plan was to drive through NH4 only, but as I said in my travelogue, I do not enjoy driving on 4/6-lane roads as much as I enjoy the 2-lane and winding roads. Hence the stay over at Shimoga.

Originally Posted by deepv

Nice travelogue .. AmazeGuru!
An offbeat itinerary and very well planned, highlighting some lesser known places.
Cheers!!

Thanks. It sure is offbeat and we realized this only when we came back

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

Fluidly written TL there. Excellent pics too.

The highlight is about all the places you visited in between. I didn't know there were so many places en-route to Goa.

We did Blr-Goa-Blr this may, but took GQ till Hubli. Doable in 10.5 hours driving time.

Thanks. There are actually many more interesting places on this route, but due to limited time we had, we could not cover all of them.

Regarding the GQ drive, I typically do not drive more than 400 kms or 7 hrs of drive in a day. We tend to stop at lot of places for multiple reasons and also avoid travelling in the night on unknown roads. Having said that I'll surely try driving to Goa in 1 day via NH4 maybe during our next trip.

Originally Posted by satrikon_454

Sounds like a nice, relaxed trip.

When driving from Bangalore, there's this detour 25 kms after Dharwad that goes through a forest. It's generally called the Ramnagar route. Although the roads are pretty bad, (the governments of Goa and Karnataka fight as to who's going to repair the roads! ) it does save a lot of time.

Yes. It was intended to be relaxed as we didnt want to spend too much time driving and also did not pack our itinerary with lots of places. Most of the stops/visit to places were decided at the last minute

Originally Posted by VKM

AmazeGuru, very well written travelogue. it is very lucky for you not to have done the mangalore to goa route. did this route last month & was the worst road trip i have ever done till date. Horrible roads, lots of slow moving traffic. you get to see the sea to your left for about 5 minutes and for this you have to endure a lo...ng tiresome drive. anyone who imagines he is going on a scenic beach drive would be thoroughly disappointed. this is no Highway 1.

Thanks and what a relief really. I was initially very disappointed that we could not make it to Mangalore and Goa from there via NH17. Reading your post, it looks like we did the right thing. As they say, everything happens for good.

[deemash]

Very good write-up!

How was the test drive of TUV300 ? Did you like it ?

[AmazeGuru]

Originally Posted by deemash

Very good write-up!

How was the test drive of TUV300 ? Did you like it ?

Thanks. TUV300 test drive was good. Overall, I liked the style. It did 'look' bigger than the Bolero standing next to it. Quick summary of my likes and dislikes:

Likes:
- Big-looking from front. Surely is intimidating on the highway
- Spacious interiors
- Acceptable level of fit and finish for a <10L SUV
- Great road visibility and airy cabin
- Highway ride quality is good

Dislikes:
- Engine!! Why did Mahindra plonk a puny 80bhp engine on this sub 4m monster?
- Seats are stiff and one can feel the body roll easily
- Looks like the designers ran out of ideas as the design progressed to the rear of the car. This could be attributed to keeping the length to <4m.

Overall, it's a very VFM for someone looking for a SUV-ish experience on this side of 10L.

[RedDevil_KP]

Originally Posted by AmazeGuru

Day 6: Goa - Gokarna - Shimoga (325 kms)

Stopped at one such place and picked up few Pineapples. Though I do not like the Pineapple, they were so sweet that I finished almost an entire fruit.
Attachment 1435857

Going through the TL & the pictures, seems like it was a fantastic getaway with the family. I believe the route which you took & vice versa, are the most common ones which folks do from Bengaluru - Goa. You don't want to miss out on all the places on the way. I myself have done the same route couple of times

Also I second you on the pineapples you get on-route Jog. They are absolutely DELICIOUS. The best I've had anywhere

[AmazeGuru]

Originally Posted by RedDevil_KP

Going through the TL & the pictures, seems like it was a fantastic getaway with the family. I believe the route which you took & vice versa, are the most common ones which folks do from Bengaluru - Goa. You don't want to miss out on all the places on the way. I myself have done the same route couple of times

Also I second you on the pineapples you get on-route Jog. They are absolutely DELICIOUS. The best I've had anywhere

Thanks and yes, it was an amazing drive with family.

Regarding the route, I was of the opinion that this was not-so-common as people usually prefer the 4/6 laned NH4 all the way to Hubli/Belgaum.

And yes, the pineapples were super delicious. It kind of changed my opinion about this fruit

[FORTified]

Got some new info that elephant trunk can hold 9 ltrs of water at a time.

Just thinking of a time when it will have cold.....and sneezes

[Karthik Gullu]

Nice and detailed travelogue with excellent pics Amazeguru

I took Bangalore - Chitradurga - Hubli - Dharwad - Ponda - Panjim route while going to GOA and I could cover in single day though it was quite tiresome journey but while returning, Goa - Karwar - Kollur (Halt) - Shimoga - Chitradurga - Bangalore.

[Sam.k]

Originally Posted by VKM

AmazeGuru, very well written travelogue. it is very lucky for you not to have done the mangalore to goa route. did this route last month & was the worst road trip i have ever done till date. Horrible roads, lots of slow moving traffic. you get to see the sea to your left for about 5 minutes and for this you have to endure a lo...ng tiresome drive. anyone who imagines he is going on a scenic beach drive would be thoroughly disappointed. this is no Highway 1.

Hi VKM-I will be doing this road day after tomorrow.How long did it take for you to do Mangalore -Goa and how's the traffic between these places? Are the rods good enough to do an average of 60-70kmph?Thanks in advance

[VKM]

Originally Posted by Sam.k

Hi VKM-I will be doing this road day after tomorrow.How long did it take for you to do Mangalore -Goa and how's the traffic between these places? Are the rods good enough to do an average of 60-70kmph?Thanks in advance

Sorry was away for a while. i guess you must have done the trip by now. how was it? the widening works been completed?

[Sam.k]

Originally Posted by VKM

Sorry was away for a while. i guess you must have done the trip by now. how was it? the widening works been completed?

Yes did the Mangalore Panjim route on the third week of Feb.The road surface is actually good with most of the four laning works in full swing from Kundapur all the way to Karwar. There isn't much lane changing to do,but the traffic is a nightmare.its like everyone is on the road just to slow you down.It never ends.But this route is very much doable at night with decent timings.