[mobike008]

As is our normal plan, we plan for a long ride approximately around every quarter and this time it was decided that we go to a place that I never heard of before called "Kodachadri" which is a quaint hill station in the western ghats of Karnataka and supposed to be a beautiful, calm, and totally blissful location which is yet to be spoilt by ever increasing tourist population

This plan was originally supposed to happen a month ago and I had even booked the resort and paid for it in advance but, due to some of fellow riders personal reasons we had to call off the ride and it went on back-burner for more than a month. Then there was a discussion of Hyderabad and Bangalore midway motorcycle meet that fizzled out due to personal reasons besides most of us dropped out as we were not interested in a mix of car and bike meet

Then it suddenly struck us; why not make this meet happen at Kodachadri which is a much more beautiful location than the original plan of Kurnool. Then we all went swiftly into bringing this plan of Hyderabad and Bangy BHPians meet into motion and final rider count was as follows

Hyderabad Riders

Mobike008
IDPSharma
Haseeb Khan
Sahil
Ashish H
Ishaan
Arpan Bose

Bangalore Riders

Crazy_Driver
Redliner
KK_Hakunamata
Dreamseller

Plan was the Bangalore BHPian riders would ride for nearly 22 hours to meet us Hydeez folks. Crazy...Huh? Well, most motorcycle riders usually wear a different hat that is undoubtedly crazier than the car folks

Below is the ride plan for Hyderabad riders (Route may not be entirely correct but, to give a general sense of direction & distance)





And, this was for the Bangalore riders (Route may not be entirely correct but, to give a general sense of distance)



I will keep this travelogue short with as little content as possible and share more of pictures which I feel anyways will tell a better story

Below are some statistics of our ride

Total Days (Friday-Sunday) : 3
Total Riders from Hyderabad : 7
Total Distance to Kodachadri : ~800kms
Total Time Taken Each Way : ~ 15 Hours
Approximate Fuel Average for Versys : 21kmpl

[mobike008]

Hyderabad to Kodachadri Ride

Like most week days I was working pretty late into the night with back to back calls even though I planned to get some decent sleep prior to ride. But, sometimes its due to excitement you dont get a good night sleep but, this time around it was due to work calling. Besides, I was not 100% fit with a little bit of feverish feeling and a throat infection and slight running nose. I ought have cancelled the ride but, heck I thought let's go with it and see how much your body can also take it

We all met exactly at 5:00am at airport and even though everyone wanted to stop for breakfast at Food Pyramid, I recommended it would come too early as it was just 140kms away and restaurants open at 7:00am so we rode until Kurnool which was around 220kms and stopped for breakfast around little after 7:00am for our breakfast

As we entered this place which is right after the toll and parking our bikes, I took a right tight turn inside the parking space and voila, i just lost control and due to my slight weakness, I just dropped the bike on the ground. I didn't even have strength to pick up the bike and with help of couple of buddies we pulled it back into its horsely stance

We enjoyed a liesurely and sumptous breakfast of crispy dosas and hot coffee and embarked on our journey again. And, next stop was at 390kms mark where the famous chariot temple was located. We all made swift progress until then and stopped at this location which is just on outskirts of Anantpur. It was around 10:30am and we enjoyed the cloudy weather and chilly breeze for a little while before resuming our ride

We had to now leave the 4-lane highway and start our 2-lane journey until Kodachadri which was another 400kms away. The roads from here on until the last 50kms were quite terrible and we went through every possible tarmac including potholed roads, no roads and roads with construction where the diversion took us through some3-4kms of total sand and all of us rode through it squirming and skidding

In motorcycle journeys, the simple mantra is if the tarmac is good, you can cover great distances without feeling tired but, if its 2-lane with bad tarmac it really takes a toll on your ride time, energy and overall enthusiasm

We made plenty of stops during the rest of the day. Sometime for getting some nice drone shots or were stopped by a bunch of policemen who were super nice to us and wanted to click group pictures with us or Haseeb wanted to stop in a quaint village for his Friday prayers or relaxed 1 hour lunch at some quaint dhaba by the roadside and that is when we got to know a shocking news

IDPSharma was frantically searching for his expensive mobile phone and realized little later that it just flew of his ram-mount...Woahhhh !!!

And, you can guess what happened next. We all removed our phones from the mount and straight it went into the tank-bag or jacket pockets...LOL!

As evening came by, I was feeling super tired and chilly so I pulled out every possible t-shirt that I had and was wearing atleast 3 of them underneath my jacket and continued with ride. Last 50kms of the ride was best of the day as it was hair-pin bends and we all were riding them in tandem and finally reached our destination around 8:00pm

Whew! That was one grueling 15-hour ride to end an exciting Day 1....

Thankfully, everyone reached on-time at the meeting location just outside the airport



Short break to catch the sun-rise while we wait for the laggers





Breakfast stop where I dropped the bike. This parking lot will not be forgotten easily



Crispy Dosas



Next stop was at this famous chariot temple on outskirts of Anantpur





Little later on the day, another short break to enjoy some cool breeze and drone photography











We were stopped by a posse of cops who instead of asking for our documentation started asking us about price, fuel average and also commented how lucky we are to be enjoying our lives like the way we are doing. They wanted pictures of themselves on our bikes. They wasted lot of our time here...LOL!





A stop we all were eagerly waiting---Dhaba lunch





Actually prior to lunch, we made a quick stop in a small village for a fellow rider's (Haseeb) friday prayers with all villagers gawking at our bikes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiBCAHbXBwE

IDPSharma and Haseeb decided to take a short nap in late evening in a Tata ACE parked on roadside while rest of us sipped on our teas

[mobike008]

Friday night after reaching our farm resort was spent talking and enjoying our trip over a nice dinner that was served to us despite we opting to have it late in the night around 11:30pm (their cut off time is 10:30pm)

Thereafter, all of us hit the sack only to get up 8 hours later after the much needed sleep and after a quick homely breakfast we decided to explore the nearby trails and we rode out in search of trails,river streams and waterfalls

Our plan was to be back at the resort by 1:30pm as the Bangalore BHPians were arriving around that time and they were scheduled to have lunch with us and return back within 2-hours which was non-negotiable as they had a 9-hour ride back home

We lazy guys (Self, Haseeb and IDPSharma) got up later than other folks who had already left the resort for their little exploration and we quickly dressed up and left together to explore a different trail than others and we enjoyed the off-beaten path and discovered a beautiful river stream where we spent nearly a couple of hours enjoying some peace and tranquility

We returned back to resort little late (~2:00pm) and found that the Bangy boys were already there and rest of Hydeez gang was giving them company and we had a wonderful time having lunch together and exchanging notes about our respective rides. They left around 4:00pm as we had our Jeep waiting to ride to the top of Kodachadri hill which was a treacherous 32kms (Both ways) ridiculously no-roads trail

After saying bye-bye's to visitors, we headed off in the jeep with Ashish H (Versys), Saahil (FZ250, He owns a Z800 and came for this ride only with purpose of doing this off-road trail) and Ishaan (Duke 390) on their respective bikes and rest of us in the Jeep Commander

We started the trail a little after a couple of kms from the resort and within few minutes all of us in the jeep were patting our own backs that it was a good thing we didn't get our bike as the trail consisted of loose rocks, sand, thick slush and very narrow turns and even smooth boulders in some sections and imagine all of this for ~13-14kms one-way...Shudder!

Jeep was following the riders and as we kept going forward the trail become even worse and it was almost nightmarish for a biker and as soon as we took a turn we saw the Versys was down on the ground and we all jumped off the jeep to help Ashish out of his situation and then they made a wise decision of parking their bikes there (Even the Duke 390) and only Saahil on his FZ-250 rode up smoothly and with almost an ease that was surreal.

P.S : I understand one of the Bangalore Versys rider went up the Kodachadri hill on his Versys. It would be safe to assume 2% of the riding population can conquer that trail (especially on heavier super-bikes). Lighter the bike, easier it is to conquer that trail. But, one this is for sure. Be prepared to fall of the bike at-least once

We totally enjoyed the views from the Kodachadri hill top that also required a couple of kms of trekking through some rocky terrain and finally when it was time to head back it was nearly 6:30pm and it became pitch dark. We all were worried how these bikes will make it back. There were no other bikers except us that made it worse

We were showing the lights to Fz-250 to help him guide the way back as his lights were not that great. He made decent progress back during the downhill climb and suddenly all hell broke loose, his front tyre slipped on a stone and the bike toppled throwing him away at quite a distance on top of those jagged rocks, loose stones and slush. We all jumped out and helped him out and Ashish took over the Fz-250 and rode it back until the point where the 2 other bikes were parked. Then we all slowly resumed the ride back towards the resort

Whew! Hats off to those guys and anybody else who has conquered that trail

We reached back to resort around 8pm and decided to have an early dinner as we had all the excitement we could catch in one day. All folks in the jeep too had a bad time as each and every bone in our body was creaking and it took us nearly 30-minutes for our jammed legs to function properly

That marked an end to an exciting, adventurous and physically challenging day at Kodachadri

A few pictures of the property that we stayed in Kodachadri











Our breakfast/lunch/dinner was always laid out in this style at this location. Lovely homely food and very delicious as well



Only this can shake me awake and help me tackle the hardships of the day...LOL!



Our precious machines were parked here



IDPsharma cleaning and lubing his bike's chain (We all indulged in this unenviable exercise next day morning)





Your's truly on the grounds of resort



We found this trail around 15kms away from the resort and we did some trail riding



Drone fun at the river stream that we discovered in the middle of the trail riding path





Enjoyed some peace and blissfully quiet time



A picture meant to be sent to casting directors of John Abraham to cast us instead the next version of Dhoom series...LOL!



3 Musketeers at the river stream

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n41E3zO5PFw

I enjoyed riding this trail. The road behind me keeps going deeper and deeper till the time you wish to ride....

[mobike008]

Here are a few pictures of the lunch meet with the Bangalore BHPians who rode all the way to meet us for a couple of hours. And, immediately after lunch the breathtaking spot we visited which was on the top of the Kodachadri hill-range

Hydeez and Bangy bikes parked at the resort





DBHP'ian Crazy_Driver





BHPians : KK_Hakunamata, Crazy_Driver, Redliner and Dreamseller



BHPians : KK_Hakunamata, Crazy_Driver, Redliner and Dreamseller with our Jeep in the background



Ashish disappointed after falling off the Versys. But, he is one cheerful fella and rode back the FZ-250 and Versys flawlessly



Breathtaking views at the top of Kodachadri Hill-top











Only the Yamaha FZ-250 could conquer the hill-top



Beautiful scenery around



In search of trails.....

[mobike008]

A small sample of the off-road track to top of the hill. This is most gentle or easiest part of the whole trail

https://youtu.be/FOLdNhQsQXc

Some breathtaking views at the top of the Kodachadri hill-top where we spent time till it got pitch dark

https://youtu.be/k4UBvla9XT4

[mobike008]

Sunday we got up leisurely around 7:30am after sleeping rather early (around 11'sh) as we all badly needed to catch up on our sleep. We had packed our bags the night before and were ready to hit the road within 30-45 minutes of getting up and having a quick shower

For breakfast, we enjoyed a local delicacy Hittu/Khotte (Please correct me if this is wrong name of this dish) which is nothing but Idli made in banana leaf. I understand the process is laborious and takes minimum 1-1.30 hours to make it. Owner of the resort was insistent that we enjoy this delicacy before we leave. Previous night, we mentioned that we have a hard stop to leave the hotel at sharp 8:00am as we had a super long ride ahead of us. He tried his best to make it available by then. But, we all eventually left the resort at 9:00am sharp after that sumptuous and delicious breakfast for our return journey towards home.

We decided to take a different route and branch off towards Davengere and Raichur instead of the route we took while coming to Kodachadri

Most of the route after Shimoga (until then was beautiful hills and curves) was terrible with some stretches as long as 30kms-40kms of roads almost ripped off and as usual we Versys guys love to stand up and ride without slowing down and I became a victim of my aux lights becoming loose and almost falling off

My fellow Versys rider (Ashish H) immediately pulled out some industrial tape from his tail bag and fixed the aux lights back promptly and proudly announced :

"Ab tu Ladhak bhi le ja; yeh aux lights will not fall off" (Take the bike now to Ladhak and these lights won't fall off)

And, guess what that's what happened, they didn't budge an inch throughout our return ride

We made stops for fuel, for lunch (An excellent lunch at Hampi's famous Hotel Malliga) and rode through terrain that was nothing to write home about especially due to speed breakers that is KA's pride...LOL

Around Raichur, we all decided to split and ride our own way back as some wanted more breaks than others. Myself and Haseeb decided to stick together till the end and we rode back swiftly back and when I finally reached home it was exactly midnight

So it was a full 15-hours ride back home and I understand rest of the folks reached home around 2:00am

P.S : I was quite unwell throughout the trip and felt rather weak but, still completed this grueling ride makes me feel like accomplishing the Mount Everest..Haha! But, yeah will not ride in such health conditions in future. It is better to cancel and take angst of fellow riders than play around with the only wealth we all have--HEALTH!!!

This marks the end of our riding calendar for 2017 and we all look forward to ringing in the new year with more adventures on our beloved motorcycles

Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed and lived the tale through my eyes !!!

Hittu/Khotte



All pics with this frontal view are taken from my GoPro 5 during the return ride



Your's truly enjoying some trail riding





One of the breaks during the return ride





Dark Knight scarred in the battle of Kodachadri



A few more random pictures from the entire trip

[mobike008]

Note : This thread is moved from Assembly Line to Travelogues Section.

Hope you guys enjoy reading this one

[vnabhi]

Nice TL and pics, Avi! But some of the pictures in your last post are not visible until we click on the link for each.

By the way, how did your bike get those battle scars in the front?

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Nice TL and pics, Avi! But some of the pictures in your last post are not visible until we click on the link for each.

Thanks Venu. I dont see any problem. I can view all the pictures on the post

Originally Posted by vnabhi

By the way, how did your bike get those battle scars in the front?

This means you have not read the whole TL and just skimmed through and saw the pictures. Well, those are just tapes to hold the auxiliary lights as they had become loose due to riding on a rough stretch of about 30+ kms

I had shared the same video twice in Post # 2 instead of this one, so my bad

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIbQYdcHt0E

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by mobike008

This means you have not read the whole TL and just skimmed through and saw the pictures. Well, those are just tapes to hold the auxiliary lights as they had become loose due to riding on a rough stretch of about 30+ kms
E[/url]

LOL! I did read it fully and thought it was the aux lights, but there are too many straps, hence the confusion.