[nandita_bayan21]

It was New Year time and we were getting a holiday for 3 days – 1st, 2nd and 3rd Jan. No way could we afford to not plan a trip during these days. After much deliberation, we decided on Mahabaleshwar. Yes, we did a google map search for the distance to be covered and it was showing a whopping 800+kms on way!

Atul and I thought it would be a bit hectic but definitely doable since we would be in our car, Skiddy. Two weeks prior to our travel, we booked our hotel rooms – thanks to our travel accommodation partner, Goibibo, we got a discount of 60%. So 31st Dec, came home early from office, anyways nothing much to do and kill time at work, we did our packing and arranged stuffs for the drive.

On New Year eves, our plan was to meet few close friends and have some awesome dinner, invite the brand new year and go off home as early as possible. By the time we reached home it was already 1am – 1st of January 2016. Our initial plan was to leave home for the Maha drive by 4am and cover much distance in the early morning time, this way we would avoid much of the outgoing traffic. With just some 2/3 hours of sleep in mind, we slept. Damn! When we actually woke up it was already 9am – didn’t hear a single alarm ringing, kept alarm in almost 3 clocks. Panic attack as now what to do? No way we would start now and reach Maha before 12 /1 am midnight. So Maha plan dropped, to our much dismay. Hotel booking money gone too – some INR 4000 for two days. We did call the hotel guys for a refund, not sure if he will ever return. Nonetheless, what’s next? As said earlier, we were in no mood to miss these three days and not go anywhere.

Again some googling, we finally decided on heading towards Kasargod/Bekal fort. This was a destination from a long time in our ‘go-to’ list and 400kms looked like we could do it reaching Bekal by 8/9pm max. Destination decided, hotel rooms booked for two nights instantly. And yes, we are good to go.

Date of travel: 1st, 2nd and 3rd January 2016
Traveler: Atul and me
Car: Chevy Beat
Route taken: BTM > Nelamangala > Sakleshpur (via NH48) > Subrahmanya > Jalsoor > Cherkala > Bekal > Sullia > Kodagu (pit-stop at Coorg) > Kushalnagar > Channarayapattana > Kunigal > Nelamangala > BTM
Distance covered: 853kms round trip

Day 1

At around 10:30am we started from home. Quick petrol break at the Bannerghatta Shell petrol pump for some fuel and air, headed towards NICE Road towards Tumkur road exit (paid toll of Rs 120). By now the traffic got piled up and the sun started shinning too harshly. Without much breaks we crossed all the four toll-gates (1st Rs 20 for NH 4 entry, 2nd Rs 41 from Nelamangala to Kunigal, 3rd Rs 41 from Kunigal to Devihalli, 4th Rs 40 from Devihalli to Hassan). Afternoon time driving along the highway can be quite boring, however, Atul and I constantly kept talking to one another in order to avoid boredom and falling asleep. Around 2pm we reached a hotel on NH48 called ‘Jaladhi’ and decided to break for lunch.

Us being super hungry. Ordered mutton pepper fry, dal fry, ghee rice, tandoori roti, chicken curry and some cold drinks. The food was really good and we gobbled down everything in no time. After some 45 mins we started our journey ahead. Reached Sakleshpur, which isn’t in a very green and lush state now. The feeling of dryness can be visible in the trees and their leaves, temperature was decent enough – neither too hot nor too cold. We continued straight on Mangalore – Bangalore Highway / Bandadka – Bangalore Road reached Gundya and then Subrahmanya. The roads are in amazing condition but a bit narrow. Driving through the thick dense forest was amazing however, we were losing on light very soon. Sun already set and the roads started to become pitch dark with only car headlights to look ahead and absolutely no sight of human beings. We didn’t take any breaks in between and continued driving until we reached Jalsoor at around 7pm (by now we even crossed Karnataka border).

From Jalsoor we took left deviation towards Cherkala and continued straight on the Cherkala-Jalsoor road. Distance to our hotel was just 60kms but due to low visibility of the road condition, super narrow road and reserved forests on both sides made our driving a bit slower. Google maps and checking out with some of the local human GPSs we reached our hotel around 8:45pm. Hotel Bekal Palace is one of the few good budget hotel available in Bekal, ample parking space, in-house restaurant and coffee shops, well-furnished rooms, clean and hygienic. I was impressed by the maintenance of this place.



After our check-in formalities, we got our room key – a nice, well-arranged double deluxe AC room. Settled down with luggage, we went straight to the restaurant for our dinner. Malabari style biriyani and some lassi was all that we had for dinner. With all the driving done whole day the only thing that came into our mind was to have a peaceful sleep. 10:45pm and we retired for the day.

Day 2

Rise and shine – we were up by 9am after a tiring previous day. Breakfast was complimentary in the hotel and so we freshened up and came down for food. Lavish spread of dosa, idly, vada, puri, bread toast, butter, jam, omelet, pongal, upma, and fresh pineapple juice along with tea coffee. After this sumptuous breakfast we discussed on the places to visit. Not many though – we boiled down to two places – Bekal Fort and Kappil Beach. Got ready and headed towards Bekal Fort which was 4kms from our hotel. To reach there we took the famous Edapally-Panvel Highway, butter smooth road and the magnificent view of the backwaters.

Around 11:15am we reached Bekal Fort. There is enough parking space for cars and two wheelers. Entry for the fort is Rs 5 per adults and Rs 25 for each camera. Coming to some of its history – Bekal Fort is the largest fort in Kerala spread across 40 acres of land and sea on one side. It is supposed to be 300 years old offering a superb view of the Arabian Sea from its tall observation towers along the land. However, entry to the beach is restricted due to harsh sea tidal waves. A beautiful walkway has been laid down for visitors to explore the beauty of the fine coastline and the panoramic view of the fort. We spent some two hours exploring the fort and its beauty, around 1:15pm we headed towards the parking lot. Paid some Rs 30 as parking fee we headed towards some place to have lunch. On our way back we stopped by at a backwater place and clicked few snaps as well. The view was outstanding and the reflection of the clear water was mesmerizing.

















Saw some non-veggie place on our way back and we stopped for lunch. Didn’t want to take any chance on the quality of food, to be on safer side we once again ordered two Malabari chicken biriyani and some cold drinks. I didn’t like the food and ate it just to fill the stomach. Around 2:30pm we reached our hotel and took some rest before heading out for Kappil beach.

Our rest became quick power-nap for an hour, not that we complain. Nonetheless, around 4pm we started for Kappil beach, was just 2kms away from our hotel. Took the car and parked it in a lane near the shores. One of the beautiful beaches that I have visited, Kappil beach is secluded and relatively unexplored, providing a close to nature touch. It is one of the cleanest and unpolluted beaches of Kerala. I could spend many hours looking into the crystal clear water and the reflection of sun in the ripples. We nearly spent some three hours in the beach, playing with the tides, sand, walking, and clicking pictures, staring at the far off fishing boats. With absolutely no crowd at all, I could get some amazing sunset pictures. The sunset view was so picturesque that one can easily get lost in its beauty. The setting sun engulfed a golden color blanket all over the sea water and instantly it looked like the water turned golden. Such a marvelous view is to die for.










Around 7pm, when it started getting too dark, we bid goodbye to this beautiful beach and headed towards the hotel. After some chit chatting and watching TV, Atul decided to go for an early dinner at 8:30pm. Today’s dinner was the best of all, simple veg food – dal fry, plain rice, shahi paneer, tandoori rotis, papad, curd and some delicious fried ice cream. Good food and now time for good night, around 10:30pm we were off to sleep.

Day 3

Wakey wakey! The day to drive back home. Got up around 8:30am and straight headed to have breakfast. Same menu as previous day, only difference was the pineapple juice was replaced by water melon juice. After breakfast we got ready, packed all the bags, loaded the car and Atul went to settle the pending bills. Once done, at 11am we left the hotel. This time we were taking an alternate route via Madikeri. Until Jalsoor the return route was same, only after Jalsoor we took diversion towards Sullia and touched NH275. Road condition was pretty decent all across the journey with very few patches of bumpy road. We stopped by at CCD Sullia for some quick coffee and bio break at some time around 12:45pm.




The route to reach Madikeri was heavenly, twisty roads amidst forest and mountains, cool breeze, small towns, but the surroundings were not so green due to the fall season. 2:30pm and we reached Coorg. No way am I going home without eating the famous pandhi curry from “Coorg Cuisine”. We parked the car near the hotel and stepped up to have our lunch. Ordered plain rice, mutton curry, pandhi dry fry and sweet lassi. Ate to my heart’s content and delighted to have these amazing Kodava cuisines after a really long time. Done with the lunch, clicked few snaps and we are ready to head home. Kushalnagar was our next destination from where we would go towards Arakalagud and then to Channarayapattana to touch NH 48 around 6:30pm.






Once we touched the highway, we increased our speed as it was clear that the traffic would pile up more towards the city due to in-coming traffic. Once again crossed all the four toll booths for the fare. In between, we stopped at Kunigal to have some light dinner and tea. Around 10:30pm we reached home sweet home. Skiddy clocked a total of 853kms.
Another fun trip came to an end but the New Year just began. Wishing you all a very happy and fun filled 2016.

[Amit_breakfree]

Amazing pics and an equally amazing place.

Sometimes it's like how much our country has to offer as you get a new place to visit in every few hundred kilometers and the list keeps on getting big.

It's a beautiful place and the beach is looking so serene and beautiful, much better than the more commercialized ones. The pic with the fort extending to the water is beautifully shot.

Thanks for sharing. Have already added this place in my to be visited list.

[nandita_bayan21]

Originally Posted by Amit_breakfree

Amazing pics and an equally amazing place ---
Thanks for sharing. Have already added this place in my to be visited list.

Thanks Amit. Please do visit Bekal, you will love it.

[BUXX]

Crazy pics !! Too good !!

[sathya.bhat]

This post is so colorful with all these fabulous pics. I have been to this place few times and fall for it again every time.

I just read another post from you here; http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...ore-udupi.html.
I think that trip is from last year.

[Tushar]

Quite a chaotic start to what was evidently a fantastic trip. What a way to bring in the new year, good thing you grabbed the opportunity to get out onto the highway. The pictures are unreal and wallpaper worthy! Thanks for a great write up and thanks for not taking pictures of the food. The culinary description was enough to get my stomach growling; god help me if I saw the pictures .

[nandita_bayan21]

Originally Posted by BUXX

Crazy pics !! Too good !!

Thanks!

Originally Posted by sathya.bhat

This post is so colorful with all these fabulous pics. I have been to this place few times and fall for it again every time.

I just read another post from you here; http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...ore-udupi.html.
I think that trip is from last year.

Thanks Sathya. Yeah! Mangalore was where we visited last year for New Year.

Originally Posted by Tushar

Quite a chaotic start to what was evidently a fantastic trip. What a way to bring in the new year, good thing you grabbed the opportunity to get out onto the highway. The pictures are unreal and wallpaper worthy! Thanks for a great write up and thanks for not taking pictures of the food. The culinary description was enough to get my stomach growling; god help me if I saw the pictures .

Thanks Tushar. I am a foodie as well, but refrained myself from posting food pics here (didn't want to make people hungry )

[Divya Sharan]

Wow, great narration and lovely pics. I've ridden to the place and I feel now is the right time to take 4 wheels there as well.

[nandita_bayan21]

Originally Posted by Divya Sharan

Wow, great narration and lovely pics. I've ridden to the place and I feel now is the right time to take 4 wheels there as well.

Thanks Divya Please do visit.

[nandita_bayan21]

Here are some more pics from the trip:

[swiftnfurious]

That's some seriosuly beautiful pics. Your t-logs have a very simple style of writing too. May I suggest you use the "Assembly line" feature? That'll help you have all the details & pics added in one shot and then publish the thread LIVE. The reason for suggestion is, it's always nice to have all the pics in a continuous fashion.

Rating this a 5*.

[nandita_bayan21]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

That's some seriosuly beautiful pics. Your t-logs have a very simple style of writing too. May I suggest you use the "Assembly line" feature? That'll help you have all the details & pics added in one shot and then publish the thread LIVE. The reason for suggestion is, it's always nice to have all the pics in a continuous fashion.

Rating this a 5*.

Thank you so much! Can I post more than 30 pics in a single post? The only reason, I used another post to upload the remaining pics as I thought I can only upload 30 pics at a time. Please correct me if I am wrong. :( :(

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by nandita_bayan21

Thank you so much! Can I post more than 30 pics in a single post? The only reason, I used another post to upload the remaining pics as I thought I can only upload 30 pics at a time. Please correct me if I am wrong. :( :(

You are right, you can upload a max of 30 pics in a post. But then, you can add pics in the continuous posts as the thread wouldn't be available for users to comment in between. That's the advantage with Assembly line feature.