[nandita_bayan21]

Prologue

Three years ago, Atul and I almost planned our four days ride to Rameshwaram and Kanyakumari but because of some unavoidable circumstances that trip couldn’t happen and these two places remained to be ticked from our ‘must go places’ list. A casual discussion over tea with our friend, Amruthesh re-ignited the plan few weeks earlier and thus the trip towards the southern tip of India surfaced once again. With not much leaves available, we decided to crunch the ride for three days, first day would be Rameshwaram, second Dhanushkodi to Kanyakumari, and third day from Kanyakumari to Bangalore. On a weekend, all three of us got together, searched for hotels in Rameshwaram and Kanyakumari, booked them and waited for the ride day. In between Atul did the 2nd servicing of Hulk as well.

I personally liked Dhanushkodi a lot, Rameshwaram and Kanyakumari being profoundly crowded with devotional and religious tourists. I was amazed by the fact that this place is an epitome of peace and tranquility which was once destroyed by the fury of Mother Nature. Here reality co-exists with myths, mysteries and miracles.

Some quick bytes from the ride:

Bikes: Kawasaki Versys 650 and Duke 390
Rider: Atul, Amruthesh and I (pillion)
Dates: 28th, 29th and 30th Oct 2017
Route Taken: BTM > Salem > Dindigul > Madurai > Paramakudi > Mandapam > Rameshwaram > Dhanushkodi > Rameshwaram > Ervadi > Vaippar > Tirunelveli > Kanyakumari > Tirunelveli > Madurai > Dindigul > Salem > BTM
Distance covered: 1644kms
Total expenditure (for two people): Rs 5846 for petrol, Rs 2900 for hotel rooms and Rs 3175 for food and other expenses = Rs 11921 in total.

[nandita_bayan21]

Day 1

As usual we did all our packing the previous night and made everything ready. Atul even got a full tank the previous night. Amruthesh works in shift and returns home only around 10-11pm hence we agreed on starting the ride a bit late. By 3:30am Atul and I got up, got ready, did the last minute packing and waited for the bike to be loaded up. Amruthesh reached our parking area, both of them loaded our bike with the bags. Sharp 4:45am we started our ride towards the Hosur Road. Since it was early morning and roads being fairly empty, we didn’t take the elevated expressway and rather took the highway below. Temperature at this point of time was pretty low and we could feel the chilly weather. All of us agreed on covering as much distance possible before daylight breaks in and the traffic starts getting in.

7am we were in Salem city and took diversion towards Dindigul highway. Roads were considerably empty and we could cover distance faster, apart from the biting cold and wind. By 7:30am we almost covered more than 250kms from home and decided to have our breakfast somewhere near Namakkal. Stopped at a nearby local restaurant for our food, ordered ghee masala dosa, puri and sabji, idly vada and tea. Had a relaxed breakfast, took rest for about 45mins and started the ride again. Having traveled through this highway for many a times and nothing new to see, the ride was getting quite boring and all we had to do was keep riding whilst enjoying the open highway, talk to each other over Sena and cover distance. Our plan was to catch the train crossing Pamban Bridge at sharp 3:45pm.




Our first petrol break happened when Amruthesh’s bike started showing low fuel level. Even Atul tanked up and with a short 15 mins break we started again. By 10:45am we were in Madurai town and all of a sudden we three of us found ourselves surrounded by total city chaos. Vehicles coming from all directions, lanes full of potholes, bumps, people casually crossing roads, dogs, cows, buffaloes, goats all over and the stupid Google Maps navigating us through the narrowest city lanes ever. With Hulk fully loaded it was no less than maneuvering a car. And just when we were about to exit the town, these two policemen saw us geared up our bikes with full luggage and asked us to pull over and show bike papers. I personally think it was their trick to mint some money by unnecessarily harassing people with random stuff. The junior level guy asked Atul and Amruthesh to take all the bike papers and walk towards the SI who was sitting on an ancient Splendor chewing ghutka. He checked DLs, RCs and other papers, and started questioning Atul that why his DL is from Bihar and bike is registered under Karnataka. Well which rule book says that you need to have DL and bike RC from the same state? Atul and Amruthesh had to literally explain the penny sized brain of that policeman that he is originally from Bihar, works in Bangalore, bought the bike in Bangalore and hence his RC says Bangalore registered bike. Knowing that these guys have all papers in place and demanding money unnecessarily wouldn’t be apt, he let us go - waste of solid one hour in all this nonsense.

Somehow we managed to touch the Kochi-Madurai-Dhanushkodi road or commonly known as the Rameshwaram-Madurai road. From here on the highway started into single lane with construction and deviations in most sections and the cross winds were too strong. Even the sky started to fill-in from blue to black rain clouds. Amruthesh bike once again started showing low fuel level and we did our second petrol pit stop for the day at about 12:30pm. A sunny day suddenly turned into a gloomy cloudy one, however, the weather was still sultry and humid. We took a break for 15 mins and decided to start. We reached a place called Paramakudi and it started to rain heavily from here. All three of us stopped by a bus-stop shelter and agreed to put on our rain gears. The dark rain clouds ahead, arrow straight highway, lush green trees on both sides of the road and the amazing view, I clicked some pictures using my phone. Roads from here were well laid and after a distance, the heavy rain stopped as well, clearing the sky.







After a while of riding, we entered the Ramanathapuram district and the small towns before reaching Pamban. The road was already crowded because of the weekend and vehicles taking tourists to Rameshwaram. One could see beautiful small churches, temples along the town and a faintly visible sea line at a distance. Around 3pm we reached the famous Pamban Road Bridge and the scene was just mesmerizing and chaotic at the same time. Though stopping all along the bridge is prohibited for vehicles and a fine of Rs 500 imposed for violators yet everyone parked their cars and enjoyed the view. Even huge buses and tempo travelers parked their vehicles and let the tourists take a glimpse of this beautiful landmark of India. With such heavily loaded bikes, getting a good spot for parking was too difficult and at the same time we didn’t want to create a blockage for the traffic. We asked a policeman who was on duty if we could park our bikes and click some pictures without causing a trouble and would leave soon. He told he has no problems with bikes, we can park them provided we don’t block the way. Atul and Amruthesh carefully parked the bikes and made sure we are not causing problem to the already chaotic traffic on the bridge.

Pamban Railway Bridge connects the town of Rameshwaram to the mainland India. It is the 2nd longest sea bridge in India, first one being the Bandra-Worli Sea link and I was amazed by the fact that it is a 103 years old bridge (commissioned in 1914). Apparently till 1988, this rail bridge was the only surface transport that connected Tamil Nadu with Rameshwaram. Later, Pamban Road Bridge was constructed parallel to the rail bridge, which is now also known as Annai Indira Gandhi Road Bridge. Rail Bridge also has a central opening part which opens up for ferry movements. In 1964 the bridge survived the famous cyclone which destroyed the town of Dhanushkodi.








The view from the bridge is just breathtaking, the open blue sea and sky, the endless horizon, numerous colorful fishing boats, the town of Rameshwaram and a lighthouse at a distance. The wind flow across the bridge is too strong and it just splashes around your face giving a chilly feeling. Everyday a train crosses the rail bridge and enters Rameshwaram at three different time stamps – 11:30am, 2:30pm and 3:45pm. We were just in time to view the last train of the day entering the town through the bridge. Until the train arrives, we decided to enjoy the surroundings, click pictures and have some light snacks (too many hawkers selling pineapples, peanuts, raw mangoes, boiled corns, etc.). Finally, around 3:50pm a train slowly crawled its way towards the bridge and trust me it was one of the amazing sights I have ever seen in my life. The train takes almost 5-7mins to slowly cross the bridge and enter Rameshwaram. I tried to capture as many shots possible but the strong wind was just making it too difficult for me.
















By 4:15pm we started the ride towards out hotel in Rameshwaram. Crossing through small narrow lanes, we finally reached our hotel, Hotel Ashoka. It is a fairly new property with in-house restaurant and ample space for parking. We paid Rs 1713 per night for an AC Deluxe room. After finishing the hotel formalities, we got inside our room, settled our bags and quickly got fresh. Luckily the restaurant of the hotel was still open, though not serving the full menu, and all three of us were hungry we decided to grab on some food. Ordered some veg spring rolls, paneer fried rice, veg hakka noodles and tea (most places in Rameshwaram serves veg food since the town is considered to be a holy place for devotees). After the food, we agreed on going for a walk towards Ramanathaswamy temple, Agni Tirtham beach and explore a bit of the town.




Ramanathaswamy temple is a major tourist site in the whole of Rameshwaram, people from across the country comes here for offering prayers to Lord Shiva. The temple has four gates and considered to have the longest corridor among all the Hindu temples in India. Even at 7pm in the evening, the temple was full of devotees. I badly wanted to take a picture of the beautiful colorful temple corridor but apparently any sorts of photography are prohibited within the temple premises. From here we walked towards the Agni Tirtham beach and as expected here also it was overly crowded with people taking holy dip in the sea water.



We continued walking through the town, exploring all the street shops selling different items, be it sea shell decorative, white shankhas, clothes or edible items. By 9pm we decided to have our dinner in a Sharavana Bhavan outlet, ordered masala dosa, puri sabji and some sort of veg fried rice. I wasn’t happy with the quality of food but to kill hunger just ate. This was followed by a cup of tea from a roadside shop.

Started the walk back towards our hotel and reached room by 10pm. For a while we spoke and planned our next day. 10:30pm and three of us retired for the day.

[nandita_bayan21]

Day 2

By 7am all three of us were up. The weather outside was too pleasant and looked like it rained the whole night. Boys decided to quickly do chain lubing before having our breakfast so we all got freshened up, took the required stuff and went downstairs. On checking about the breakfast availability, the hotel folks told it would be ready in some 30 mins. During this time, we lubed our bikes and cleaned it for the ride today. Our plan today was to check out from this hotel, go see Dhanushkodi and then head out for Kanyakumari. Around 8am, breakfast was ready, we ate idly, vada, puri, sabji, set dosa with chutney and sambar, followed by tea. After this we went upstairs for getting ready, packing up and heading out.

Finishing all the final hotel formalities and loading the bikes with bags, by 9:30am we were out and headed towards Dhanushkodi. Our destination was some 21kms away from the hotel and the plan was to stay for a while and explore, click pictures and move towards Kanyakumari. To a point the Rameshwaram-Dhanushkodi road ran into a town and after that the frame of Mother Nature just changed. The view was splendid, an arrow straight road and both side filled with deep blue water, one side being the Bay of Bengal and the other being Indian Ocean. The water of Indian Ocean was way much blue than the Bay of Bengal but then each side had their own picturesque charm – the endless horizon!

Dhanushkodi, as it is rightly called, the Ghost City, is an abandoned town which was destroyed during 1964 Rameshwaram cyclone and remains uninhabited in the aftermath. However, a small sect of fishermen have started living in here for their daily means of survival by catching fishes in the sea. Apart from this one can only find small huts selling bare minimum edible things for tourists, some hawkers selling ornaments, shankhas, etc., ruins from the cyclone and a 300-years old Portuguese church destroyed during the calamity. Locals says that Tamil Nadu government is trying hard to restore this town and engaged eminent conservations to preserve the remnants. Until 2016, Dhanushkodi was accessible either by foot along the seashore or in jeeps/vans. In 2016, a well-laid tarmac road was completed till the southern tip which ends at a U Turn and an Ashoka Pillar, marking as the last accessible point from mainland India.




As mentioned earlier, the road leading towards the last point of Dhanushkodi was mesmerizingly beautiful. Fishing boats and men doing their daily job, at some sections tall trees out-seeing the ocean and soft seashore sands. We reached the Ashoka Pillar point and tried to park our bikes but then as soon as we got down from the bikes, people started gathering around the bikes, click pictures, touch it and this created unnecessary attention and problems. In order to avoid any useless commotion, we decided to quickly click some pictures and move ahead and park our bikes in some secluded and free space along the road. On our way back we stopped by near the old church as well and clicked some pictures.












We got a great spot somewhere on our way back and parked the bikes, got off with our gears and decided to enjoy this precious moment for a while. The scenery was breathtaking and reminds us the fact that India is so beautiful and has so much to offer for a true traveler, only if we know how to enjoy it truly. We spent an hour talking, enjoying the view, clicking pictures of the landscapes and bikes. We didn’t at all realize the time and it was already 12:30pm. Geared up, captured the beautiful scenery with our eyes once again and bid goodbye to Dhanushkodi, to head towards Rameshwaram and then Kanyakumari. The exit from Rameshwaram and Pamban Bridge took us a hell lot of time as being a Sunday the place was extensively flocked by tourists. I clicked some last few pictures of the Pamban Bridge and also of the APJ Abdul Kalam Azad Memorial, which is on the way out from Rameshwaram. 1:15pm and we were on our way towards Kanyakumari, some 330kms away.

















Until Ramanathapuram we rode on the Kochi-Madurai-Dhanushkodi road and from there we took diversion for the East Coast Road. Though the highway is single lane, but the traffic is comparatively less, better tarmac and scenic surroundings, even the weather wasn’t so sultry like the usual Tamil Nadu weather. We covered as much distance possible and around 3pm we did a pit stop for petrol as well as lunch. Lunch was done in a road side local dhaba near Mudukulattur town, where we ate chicken fried rice, kerala paratha, chicken curry, omelet, veg meals and tea. Food and a rest for 45mins, we started our ride once again.



We rode constantly for the next couple of hours in order to cover more distance during the daylight. On our way we crossed many salt cultivation fields, huge plots of cement factories, small towns and amazing scenery. After a while we had to let go off ECR and join the NH38 and then followed by Thoothukudi-Tirunelveli highway to reach the town of Tirunelveli around 5pm. From here we touched the four lane NH44 for Kanyakumari. I was astonished by seeing the number of windmills this highway has, may be hundreds and thousands of them till your eyes can gaze. Also, the mountain ranges formed layers after layers just added on to the beauty. But a major drawback was the numerous number of flying dragonflies which would come hit our helmets and the bike windshield making them graveyard full of their dead-bodies. Wonder how people with no helmets ride on these roads. Nonetheless, the four lane highway helped us cover distance quickly and by 7pm we reached Kanyakumari.



We had previously booked our room at Hotel Sebaa Palace (charging Rs 1550 per room per night) but then when we reached here, there was no parking space. The bikes had to be parked on the main road itself with no security or gates. On top of it he hotel guy was not able to provide us our room as someone who already occupied it didn’t return and he didn’t have all the keys for the room. By now all three of us got highly frustrated and started looking for some other hotel with better parking space. Luckily, we got Hotel Rajam using Goibibo app, just 2 mins away from Sebaa. A room was costing us Rs 1100 approx. with decent space for parking two bikes – without much delay we booked the hotel. Finishing all check in formalities, we settled inside our room and got fresh.



It was almost 8pm and we headed out for a walk around the streets. Same as Rameshwaram, even Kanyakumari was crowded with tourists from all parts of India and the streets were hustling bustling with people all around. After taking a stroll around the corners, we finally got inside Sharavana Bhavan to have our dinner, ordered some rotis, aloo matar, masala dosa and tea. By 10pm we were done with our food and started walking back to the room.

A quick check on the parked bikes, a bit of chit catting and then finally retiring for the day. 11pm all three of us went to sleep. Next day we need to explore a bit of Kanyakumari and then head home.

[nandita_bayan21]

Day 3

Another new day in a new place, all of us got up around 7:30am. Our check-out was around 12noon so we thought to utilize this time to explore around Kanyakumari before heading out for home. We got ready and came out, the weather was pleasant and the first thing we had to do was have tea. There was a small tea stall selling piping hot tea. The cold weather, misty morning and sipping hot tea, all these are perfect bliss in life. From here we walked towards the Kanyakumari Pier, just some 500-600 meters away. The pier here is a long extended structure of land running into the sea, made of stones, large rocks and sand. View of the Kanyakumari town is extremely beautiful while walking on this pier. The endless horizon, the vast ocean and its waves, fishermen and their colorful boats, birds chirping around, hustling wind and the greatness of Mother Nature – it was just like a picture perfect scene. Walked towards the last point of rock, clicked pictures and enjoyed this beautiful moment together. One could oversee the Vivekananda Rock Memorial, Thiruvalluvar statue, Our Lady of Ransom Church and the skyline of the town from the pier.















Around 8:45am we started our walk towards the city in search of some food, it was already breakfast time. Got inside a restaurant and ordered our food, puri sabji, aloo paratha and tea. Once the food was done, we decided to head towards the ferry point to go to the Vivekananda Rock Memorial. It wasn’t much crowded today considering it was a Monday, every 10 mins a ferry takes some hundreds of people from the mainland towards the memorial rock. The ferry cost was somewhere around Rs 34 per person for both to and fro journey. Once you get the ferry tickets, there is a queue to get inside the ferry, it happens in batches and one has to put on a life jacket as well before entering the ferry (the jackets were so dirty I doubt if they were washed in the recent ages). Nonetheless, our turn came and we boarded the ferry. It takes approximately 10 mins for the boat to reach the memorial and it maneuvers in such a way that all through this 10 mins one can view the memorial place and the Thiruvalluvar statue.

There is an Rs 20 entry fee per person to enter the rock memorial. This memorial was built in 1970 to honor Swami Vivekananda who is said to have attained enlightenment on this rock. A meditation hall known as Dhyana Mandapam is also attached to the memorial for visitors to meditate. The design of the Mandapam incorporates different styles of temple architecture from all over India. A library is also there inside with books on Swami Vivekananda and Thiruvalluvar. As obvious, the entire place is surrounded by water on all sides and from a distance one can see the Kanyakumari town and the pier. The Thiruvalluvar statue is a tall sculpture of the Tamil poet and philosopher, Thiruvalluvar. Apparently, the design symbolizes that wealth and love be earned and enjoyed on the foundation of solid virtue. As of now, the statue is undergoing some reconstruction and restoration process, hence it is completely surrounded by metal bars and rods.












A complete tour of this place would definitely take some 2-3 hours but due to lack of time we decided to cut short the trip and head towards the ferry pick up point to return to our hotel, it was already 12 noon. We called up the hotel folks to extend our check-out time by one hour and we assured them that we will vacate by 1pm. Queued up, got back inside the ferry quickly and came back to the mainland. From here, it was just a 10 mins walk to our hotel and on our way we had some fresh lime juice.

As soon as we reached the hotel room, we started packing our bags, took bath and finally at sharp 1pm we vacated the room. Finished all the hotel final formalities, loaded our bikes with bags and then around 1:15pm we started for our ride back home and before exiting the town, we did a quick first petrol break for the day. Once again the run through the boring highway started and all we had on our mind was to reach Bangalore as soon as possible. In between we stopped near the windmills section to click some quick pictures but just when we did click few of the snaps, a local passerby told us to avoid clicking pictures as there were satellites installed in the distance mountains and it is a prohibited area. We obliged and started our ride. Quick highway run and we reached Tirunelveli around 3pm, stopped by at a road-side sugarcane juice hut to have some of the juice as all three of us were fully dehydrated. Though the weather was normal, but guess the never ending highway ride was making us dizzy and dehydrated. Juice break followed by some quick snaps, we resumed our ride.







Just when we were about to reach Madurai, we experienced slight drizzle but they were mostly passing clouds. By 4:15pm we reached Virudhunagar town and stopped for our second petrol break for the day. By now, we were totally famished and wanted to eat something but at this odd point of time when we would get lunch anywhere we decided to stop for some snacks and tea. A few kilometers more and we halted at a highway restaurant for some quick snacks and ordered aloo bhajjis, onion bhajjis, chips, tea and coffee. This was a much needed break to relax and get some energy before starting the ride again. Our plan was to reach Salem as soon as possible, stop at Selvi Mess for dinner and then head home at a continuous stretch.

After the snacks break, we rode almost non-stop and reached Salem by 9pm. The last petrol break of the day before we entered Selvi Mess for a quick dinner. Parked our bikes in front of the restaurant and ordered our food – chicken biriyani, mutton brain fry, dosa, gobi manchurian and some veg curry. We finished the food in a jiffy as Atul and Amruthesh were most of the time paranoid of someone fiddling around with the bikes. A small tea break and then we started our ride again. With lesser breaks, we reached Attibele toll gate around 11:45pm. Decided to take the Hosur road (not the expressway as we though traffic once again won’t be heavy at this point of time). And, finally by 12:30am we were home with an ODO reading of 1644kms.




Three more places are now ticked from our ‘must-go places’. The joy of returning home after exploring new unseen places is always immense. For many more drives and rides to come…

[theMAG]

Mod's note: Thread moved from Assembly Line to Travelogues. Thanks for sharing!

[Red Liner]

Darn you guys ride a lot! Good season to be heading that side. Will try and do a same same ride in 2 weeks. Lovely pictures.

[Thermodynamics]

Amazing trip, engaging write up, beautiful pictures, Thanks for sharing. Great to read the adventures of duo. You have picked a right time of the year, weather is pleasant.
Your holidays were limited though managed to cover a lot of places. Rameswaram, generally known for religious reasons also provides adventure activities such as Snorkeling over shallow reef. The clear blue sea and serene sands of Dhanushkodi call for a perfect shooting location.
This is a must go place in Tamil nadu, maybe we can also add a visit to Dr. Abdul Kalam's memorial.

[srikanthns]

Nice travelogue! Amazing pictures and very lively way of writing! Kudos to you guys!

[headers]

Amazing road trip and that too on some nice bikes!! Glad you guys wore the riding gear required. Often see many kids on high end bikes on the highways without proper riding gear!

Will do the same sometime, though on a 4 wheeler

[aabhimanyu04]

Amazing travelogue!! som real nice pictures buddy. I am doing this trip in Jan, planning to stay at Kathadi North

[androdev]

Great drive and photos. Dhanushkodi is such a fabulous place, I drove there recently. Unfortunately this region is hijacked by religious tourists, so not many good vibes. There is a Hyatt place in Rameshwaram town (it is not a beach front property and it is veg-only place)

It would be amazing if they build a road to Sri Lanka!

[sandeepmdas]

Great snaps and write-up!

Originally Posted by androdev

...Unfortunately this region is hijacked by religious tourists, so not many good vibes. There is a Hyatt place in Rameshwaram town (it is not a beach front property and it is veg-only place)

It would be amazing if they build a road to Sri Lanka!

Err...actually Rameswaram is one of the four must-visit places in Hinduism, being one of the Char Dham temples. I found the place full with positive vibes, and I am not that spiritual at all. Dhanushkodi is a part of this circuit, correct me if I am wrong.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Char_Dham

The hotel that we stayed is Jiwan Residency. Excellent, brand-new beachfront property with central AC, pool and a great veg restaurant, buffet breakfast included. Walkable distance from the temple. Ample parking space behind the hotel, so your car would get a slight reprieve from the salty sea breeze.

[gururajrv]

I don’t know if it’s coincidental as I was thinking if there were any female following in TBHP who’s an auto-enthusiast and here I see one hell of an avid automobile follower and travelogue writer. Just bowled over the way you’ve interpreted and the enthusiasm you have carried for traveling on a 2 wheeler!

I should now take this travelogue to my wife and show her how 2 wheels can be enjoyed as she’s dead-set against taking 2 wheels on long rides.

Way to go ma’am! Keep riding and keep writing

[androdev]

Originally Posted by sandeepmdas

Err...actually Rameswaram is one of the four must-visit places in Hinduism, being one of the Char Dham temples. I found the place full with positive vibes, and I am not that spiritual at all...

Wow, had no clue. Thanks for the info. I was just curious about Dhanushkodi so drove to that place without any idea about Rameswaram.

[jeganatu]

Originally Posted by nandita_bayan21

Day 3
passerby told us to avoid clicking pictures as there were satellites installed in the distance mountains and it is a prohibited area

U mean camera? If so it can be true, coz there is an ISRO's jet propulsion laboratory nearby that place.