[R-Six]

Somewhere along with Madurai-Rameswaram stretch. Taking a pause to enjoy the roads, the machine and the company!



A glimpse of the historic Pamban bridge. The color of the water is unbelievably green for someone coming from the north west



View of the other side of the Pamban bridge! Boats neatly docked at the end of the day! Waiting for their next trip into the see looking for their master's lively hood



Roads drawn like an straight line as far as your eyes can see



Perks of doing cross-country road trips. You can make impromptu plans and detours to explore interesting places



Never imagined the twilight shades at the southern tip of the country could be so mesmerizing. That's my steed parked right in front of the beach hut we were staying in.



Somewhere on the highway after exiting Coimbatore. The petrol head in you would never miss a chance to take pictures of your ride. Falling in love with this mile muncher all over again



Everytime I take this boy out on a drive, it brings that wide grin on my face that is difficult to hide



After completing the trip up north last year, I had been joking around with my friends and family that my next trip is going to be Southernmost part of India.

While Kashmir to Kanyakumari in a single drive is still a distant dream for mere mortals like me who are stuck to the 9-5 drill, why not do these in installments? And why not, most of our lives revolves around installments one way or the other anyway. So that’s how my itch to drive down to the Land’s End, aka Dhanushkodi started.

Since my parents still live in Kerala, decided to club it along with one of my visits to the hometown.

The place I call home!



The only catch was, convincing the better half to agree again for yet another cross-country drive. From Gujarat to Kerala and then to Rameswaram and Dhanushkodi. Easier said than done.

[R-Six]

While I want this blog to focus on Dhanushkodi trip, I will still go ahead and break my journey up to my hometown as well just for the reader’s benefit. If someone is looking at driving down form this part of the county, this can be a handy reference.

I generally split my drive to Kerala in 3 parts.

Day 1: Ahmedabad – Pune
Day 2: Pune – Bangalore
Day 3: Bangalore – Chavakkad (Thrissur)

My drive to Rameswaram and Dhanushkodi happened a couple of weeks after my arrival at my native.

Day 1 was BAU: Ahmedabad-Pune

An early start ensured that we were in Pune before sunset. We could have easily pushed till Satara or Karad considering that we were in Pune by 6.



But I had already promised my better half that our first halt is Pune and I won’t make her sit for more than 12 hours today.

Being the Makar Sankranti weekend, most of the restaurants nearby was celebrating. We were hoping to catch up on some Maharashtrian Thali and started scouting for a good place nearby. Since we had already been driving all day, decided to walk around and found a restaurant close to our place of stay.

We managed to get one veg and one fish thali so that we could try both.





Day 2.


Since we had retired early the previous day, we were up and on the road by 6:15am.



The drive was easy, and we made it to Tumkur around sunset.



Since we had not done any bookings, decided to drive till Hosur before calling it a day. But after wrapping up dinner at Attibele A2B, we couldn’t find a suitable place for night halt until Krishnagiri. Either the rates were exorbitant, or the rooms were not satisfactory.

What took me and my partner by surprise was the distance we covered that day. We had ended up clocking around 950KMs, making our last leg of the journey on Day 3 quite relaxed.

[R-Six]

Day 3: Krishnagiri – Isha Foundation / Adi Yogi Statue, Coimbatore – Chavakkad

Woke up leisurely since I knew the last leg is going to be comparatively shorter since we had covered some good distance the previous day. And that’s when the detour to visit the Adi Yogi statue in Coimbatore was suggested by the home minister. She is an ardent Yoga practitioner, and she didn’t want to miss a chance to go and experience what Isha Foundation had to offer.

I had no issues taking the detour anyway. Being lived in Coimbatore for 3 years during my graduation, I was quite familiar with the city as well as it gave me a chance to drive through some of those stretches that we used to frequent during the college days. With that, we started around 8:30 am.

The landscape and the vegetation changing to coconut trees instead of random dry shrubs which is a common sight on the highways where I live



Given that its just 300 odd kms away from Krishnagiri, decided to finish lunch enroute and reach Isha Foundation accordingly. Its roughly 5-6 hours drive depending on the traffic you might encounter once you enter the city.

Simple yet delicious thali we had just before entering Coimbatore. The tender coconut pudding was to die for.



Even with 2 breaks (a quick coffee break as well as a lunch break just before entering the city), we reached the Isha Foundation around 2:30 PM.

The statue as seen from the parking lot.



Since it was a Tuesday, I was expecting it to be less crowded. But I was shocked seeing the amount of visitors they had. I had started getting the feel of it right from the approach road, looking at the number of cars plying to and fro. They have ample amount of parking space which is a boon.

The Adi Yogi statue with the visitors in the foreground to give you a perspective of its size!



A quick tip to those who are planning to visit, make sure that you are wearing comfortable footwear since you have to walk a lot and mostly under the blazing sun.

The size of the statue is huge. The pictures have always been deceiving.



Photography is prohibited beyond a point. You are expected to submit all the electronic devices, including your keys and other belongings in the lockers available. The architecture and the way everything is designed is something to be experienced. There are guides / volunteers explaining the history, and relevance of each area. Do take out some time to hear them out. It will make your visit to such places even more worthwhile.

We spent around 3 hours exploring the statue, the meditation center, and the surroundings. It was around 6 when we got back to the highway again. With all the walking around, and early lunch, we were already hungry. And I needed another round of coffee to top up my energy for the remainder of the drive.

Who doesn’t like to click wonderful pictures of your rides? So as we wrapped up our break and merged into the highway, I was taken aback by the shades of the sky. Quickly pulled over, yet again, to take a couple of shots of the car in those twilight shade.



I was skeptical about the speed limit on the Walayar-Palakkad-Trichur stretch after reading about the speed cams online. But a quick call to my folks back home had given me peace of mind since the mixed speed limit signs ranging from 40KMPH to 100KMPH had made me all concerned about the number of tickers I’d be getting at the end of the drive. Rest of the drive as uneventful.

Reached home around 9:30 pm. First leg of the trip is complete. And as usual, with every drive, I’m convinced that the decision to pick up the Ecosport over Nexon is proving to be a good one. It is such a happy mile muncher.

[R-Six]

The next couple of weeks was just a lot of local runs, family events, and festivals. The excitement of your parents to take you along and showcase their priced possession (yours truly in this case) wherever they go is commendable. So, socializing was high on the cards most of the days.

Some of the interesting pictures that I captured during the stay.

My home and the surroundings



Flavors of local festival.

Thira Kali - a folk dance mainly performed around central Kerela



Poothan and Thira



Kavadi Aattam



Late night procession to the nearby temple as a part of the festival



Panchavadyam - an orchestra typical of Kerala. It consists of five instruments: kombu, edakka, thimila, ilathalam and maddalam



Temple and the surrounding lit up to celebrate the special day





Oh yes, in between all this jazz, my brother picked up a new car, A white Honda City VX AT, Loved the paddle shifters. More reason to celebrate!

Even in between all this, I had thought about sneaking out for a couple of days to fulfill my itch to drive up to Dhanushkodi. And luck would have it, one of the functions that we were supposed to attend got cancelled. I did not wait a moment before pitching the idea to my better half about the drive. While we were hoping about completing this drive, I was not sure until that time whether the plan would materialize.

The next couple of hours and the day after that was spent trying to chalk out the best route as well as a decent place to stay in Rameswaram. In one of the travelogues here, I had read that it is wise to stay either in Pamban or the near vicinity than trying to find a place to stay in the Rameswaram town itself. While travel portals were of no big help, google maps came to my rescue here. Shortlisted couple of stay options near the beach and also called up a couple of them who had good reviews to check the availability. The plan was to walk in and pay if we find the property and the facilities nice.

With that, my itch to drive to the southern most point of the country was going to materialize!

[R-Six]

Day 18th: Chavakkad to Rameswaram


As with any road trips, the day starts early. This was no different either. We were all ready and on the road by the day break!



Its always amusing to see how the country side wakes up to their daily chores minding their business as we zip past the lovely landscape. Often put me in deep thoughts about how their life is compared to what we does in between these concrete jungles and tall buildings.

The Thrissur-Palakkad stretch was a breeze to drive in the morning. We got some mundane routine traffic as we crossed Palakkad town, thanks to all the traffic signals. But apart from that, we were near Palani around breakfast time. Stopped to refill ourselves before continuing our rest of the trip.

That's Palani in the background.





So, when I had mentioned Rameswaram to my parents, they thought I have gotten the much-needed enlightenment they all had been hoping for (so that we stop this craze for cars, bikes, and road trips) and I was on a pilgrimage trip visiting all the temples that were enroute. Palani, Madurai, and Rameswaram to be precise.

They would have tagged along if temple visit was the major focus, but it was not supposed to be. While they were still okay with the idea of sitting for 10-12 hours, they decided to skip after I explained my plan.





While I wouldn’t call myself an atheist, I’m not one of those who would be seen vising temples and completing all possible rituals from the word go. I still managed to visit Rameswaram temple and a quick stop over to adore the beautiful architecture of Madurai Meenakshi temple on our return journey though.

Getting through Madurai town was a pain. Add to that, one of the flyover construction work made sure that we had to take a detour and navigate through by-lanes until we hit the highway again after crossing the town.
Once we were on the Madurai-Mandapam highway, it was pure bliss. All the frustration of dealing with the city traffic went in the air. Lovely roads with negligible traffic ensure that we were cruising in decent speeds without much effort.





We were welcomed with a gentle breeze and a light drizzle to make the drive more pleasant. A quick reminder to those who are venturing on this trip, post Madurai, we found the food options / restaurants limited. May be, in all the excitement, we missed some of the good options, but we had to scout a lot to find a decent place for lunch.





By the time we finished our lunch and crossed Ramanathapuram, it was almost evening. As you approach Pamban bride, you notice the landscape changing and start spotting water bodies on either side of the highway. It is quite a view. I was just wondering if this view can excite me, how it will feel when we actually drive to Dhanushkodi next day! Lets wait and see.

Pamban Bride:



So, before we enter the bridge, you will see warnings asking us not to stop on the bridge. I was wondering how people take all these pics you see on internet. That thought was quickly solved when we saw that people park their vehicles and were enjoying the view. We could see a police outpost somewhere close to the center of the bride. And there is frequent patrolling too. The cops were friendly and did not actually restrict anyone from stopping or taking pictures. So that was some respite to the otherwise confused me weather it was okay to stop or not.









We might have spent 15-20 minutes clicking pictures, enjoying the view, all this while trying to stay on the ground against the crazy wind. Any side of the bridge you look, the visuals are postcard worthy.

Paranomic view from the Pamban bridge







We stopped one last time after crossing the bridge to take a few more photos. I was not sure if I will have enough time to stop by during my return. We were close to our place of stay anyway. And as such, we had nothing else planned for the evening to begin with. Let us enjoy the Pamban bridge and the scenery we said.











First place we had shortlisted had access right through the beach. You drive down the road laid with pebbles and drive beside the beach to reach the homestay.



While the location was right on the beach, we were not happy with some of the arrangements. Decided to check out the next. The next one was better. The approach road and the overall set up was much better. Decided that we don’t need to scout any more.



Location was spot on. So was the food they managed for us. Right on the end, beach hut facing the sea, with non-stop wind and the sound of the ocean as music throughout the night. If there was one thing that kept us company throughout the stay was wind. And I’m not even sure in what speed they were blowing. But something to experience.



Who doesn’t love such a stay. Where you can park your car right in-front of your room.



Dinner was simple. We didn’t want to venture out looking for places to eat. The owner of the property obliged to arrange dinner as per our order. When you are so close to the sea, how can we say no to sea food. Asked for some fish fry and rice to treat our taste buds. And boy, did he surprise us with the quality and quantity!! While we did not ask for anything extra, they were kind enough to send some home cooked rasam to go along with fish and rice! It was heaven on a plate. And a view to die for. What a meal it was!



Loitered around the property, soaking in the view for some more time and the decided to call it a day!

[R-Six]

D Day – Rameswaram-Dhanushkodi-Rameswaram

I never thought I’d say this. Ever since we checked in yesterday, one thing that has constantly ringing in our ears was the sound of the waves. Add to that the crazy wind! The feeling is beyond comprehension.

View from the room!



I was hoping to get up early and witness the sunrise since we were in the east coast. But overcast sky ensured that the sun hid behind the clouds until it was hot and sunny! And the charm of capturing the sunrise was no longer an option.











That is me torn between two important things in my life, the car and the black coffee.



Calmly resting by the sea side! And waiting to head to the land's end



As I had mentioned earlier, my only agenda driving down until here was to go to Dhanushkodi. After taking to the caretaker and the homestay owner, it was decided to keep that for the evening. Again, hoping to get the glimpse of sunset from the Land’s End.

Since our morning was open with nothing much planned, so decided to complete visiting the temple and check out the Abdul Kalam memorial / museum.

For those who might be planning to visit Rameswaram, please note that the dedicated parking spaces available in the vicinity of the temple is quite far. You might have to walk quite a bit from the parking space. So plan accordingly. If you are accompanied by anyone who cannot walk much, it would be better to drop them near one of the entrance gates and then go ahead to park your car.

Few pictures of the Rameswaram temple from the outside







Just in case if someone is interested in knowing the charges for doing the rituals near the shore



Also, please note that you are not allowed to take any electronic devices inside. So either leave them within your car itself or use locker facilities available near the temple. We used the locket facility.

Photography was prohibited in the museum as well. Here are a couple of pictures we took near the entrance:





We wrapped up the temple visit and the museum tour by lunch time. Lunch was simple. Nothing to write home about, especially after the delicious dinner we were served. That is one thing that was quite evident, decent food stops seems to be quite limited. Either we missed those or there aren’t much anyway.

Post lunch, we decided to head back to our stay and rest up before the evening jaunt to Dhanushkodi.

[R-Six]

D Day - Drive to Dhanushkodi

I have been hyping about the drive to the Land’s End so much that now even my partner is curious. Tried pulling up the location on google so that she gets an idea what’s in store and where exactly we will be heading to.

Driving into the sea, anyone?



We were staying around 30KMs from Dhanushkodi and google suggested a travelling time of 40 which included the initial traffic while crossing the main town.





There is a forest check post where they check your car for any plastic bottles and all.



Once you are through that, the road is almost straight as an arrow for the next 20KMs approximately. And what a drive it was. There was some time limitation to enter and exit this strip, now I do not recollect the specifics though.



You will cross the Dhanushkodi settlement area where there are a lot of sea food stalls catering to the tourists. Arichal Munai, the actual tip of the land, is still another 5 km drive.

A continuous reminder that you are in the land of our Rocket Man



The view was so beautiful that we had to stop for photos. But until we were inside the car, enjoying the scenery, we were clueless of how crazy and strong the crosswind there was! Reality hit the moment we stepped out. The wind was so strong that you will notice stretches where the sand had creeped into the highway. It reminded me of my drive to Jaisalmer and Munabao.











Post the photo session and the drive towards the end point, I was wondering how bikers were riding up to that end. I’m an ardent rider myself, but then, the crosswind that we were experiencing while standing on the highway was so strong that riding in that condition need another level of courage and confidence.

So, Arichal Munai, the actual tip of the land was cordoned off with barricades. While you could cross that by foot, vehicles were not allowed beyond a point. We did see two wheelers taking it towards the end, but we parked our car along with the rest of the vehicles parked on both the sides of the road.









Land's End. Two wheelers could ride up to this point



We might have spent an hour or so there. You can climb down the stones to access the beach. The feeling again is surreal. Nothing like something you might have experienced before. Sea on all 3 sides. This is where the Bay of Bengal meets the mighty Indian Ocean. I read online that Sri Lanka is merely 15 or so odd kilometers away from that point.










When we were back to the parking spot, I noticed that the windshield was damp from the combination of wind and waves that was hitting the stones.













Happy me after ticking off one more item from the bucket list



Happy to munch miles for breakfast lunch and dinner and more!





We wrapped up and drove back to our base by 6:30. Rest of the day was uneventful. Picked up dinner on our way back since we were not in a mood to step out again after reaching the resort. Also, in all the excitement to get to Dhanushkodi, we had forgotten to tell the homestay guys to prepare dinner for us. Food had to be ordered in advance.

[R-Six]

Return: Rameswaram - Madurai - Chavakkad- and eventually Ahmedabad

This is the last day of our stay in Rameswaram. I was hoping to do snorkeling and scuba diving during my stay here. But weather gods had other plans. The wind was so mad and with the frequent drizzling, our home stay owner who also arranges water sport activities for the guests suggested against in. It was certainly a downer. But then, better to be safe than being foolish. These guys know the ocean and the climate in and out.







So, I did mention about the property we had checked out before staying here. It was such an interesting spot. So decided to go there just for the location before we start our return drive. And when we reached there, we realized that it was such an important religious post. And a place that held so much relevance in Ramayana.



The place is called Villoondi Theeraam.

According to the Epic, Lord Rama dipped his bow into the seawater to quench Goddess Sita's thirst (His consort). For this reason, the place came to be known as Villoondi Theertham, where the word 'Villoondi' means 'buried bow'

The priest who was present there, helping tourists to fetch water from the well, explained the history and the relevance of the place.



He offered to fetch us the water from the well so that we could carry it back home. But we did not have any empty bottles so thanked him for the offer and started our return journey!

Walking into the sea!





Watching the sea shore from the sea! Its easily a 50 meter walk above the sea to the end of the bridge







During the return, we planned to club our lunch stop at Madurai. While we might not have enough time to do the darshan, we could still visit the temple surroundings and experience the glorious architecture and the entrance towers.













It was around half past 3 by the time we finished our lunch and visiting the temple. My home was still a good 300kms away. So decided to get going ASAP. We crossed Dindigul around sunset. My wife managed to click a couple of pictures of the twilight sky on the move.











During my onward journey, I had taken come via Palakkad. But during the return, I decided to take the Pollachi-Nenmara-Vadakkenchery route bypassing Palakkad. This turned out to be a good plan.

Rest of the drive was uneventful. Merged with the Palakkad – Thrissur highway at Vadakkenchery and then it was home run. We reached home around 11pm after yet another road trip that I could sneak out within my vacation.

The 2000km return drive to Ahmedabad was going to be a solo drive. Again, broken into three legs, with stopovers in Bangalore and Pune. That happened a week later. I do not have any pics or details from that section as I did not take any pics. It was mostly me and the car enjoying some good music and trying to talk to each other as we munched miles day after day.

May be, I will sit down and write about these solo cross-country drives and the thoughts that crosses your mind. It is an interesting experience as you are hardly talking to anyone else during the major part of your day. A great topic for yet another thread. But some other day!

I was back “home” in Ahmedabad on the 12th of Feb. Almost a month since I started the drive. I had clocked 6300km during the entire trip. What a trip it had been. And I can’t stress enough of how good this car is. Happy to munch miles day and night without skipping a beat.

Signing off with yet another pic!


Thanks for taking the time out to read this blog! Until I get a chance to hit the road again, drive safe bhipans!

Cheers,
R-Six

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[samm]

Fabulous travelogue!! Superb pictures! Dhaushkodi is always mesmerising.
With the new road till the end, now there is no more drive on the beaches, which was a different experience altogether!

[ADI_77]

lovely travelogue with amazing pictures, capturing the essence. Dhanushkodi & Kanyakumari are two enchanting destinations down south for any road tripper.

[SJM1214]

Amazing t"log and excellent pics ! After reading this i started checking to and from distances and I am sure my wife won't be ready for this long trip by road. Will have to work something out.

Thanks for sharing, Binoy

[Raghu M]

Sir, that is a very cool travelogue/photologue. Feels really good to see people travelling great distances and sharing their experience. The change of landscape was thrilling to see. I also like the food pics you shared. Very well written and I guess the pics did a great deal of talking too. Thank you!

[abhikb]

Wonderfully penned Tlog Binoy,

Cheers

[MyLife_MyCar]

What a captivating read it was!!
Just a look at the fish fry and rice makes me want to visit this place even more.

Mind sharing the details of your homestay at Rameswaram?