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Bangalore to Tenkasi on my Royal Enfield Meteor 350: A photologue

7th May 2025, 10:30 by Ananth Iyer

I had a great time taking pictures and just hanging around in the festive atmosphere.

BHPian tasty911 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

A trip log long overdue. This trip was done from Nov 19th, 2024 to Nov 22nd, 2024.

Day 1 - Bangalore to Tenkasi

Having cancelled my North East ride in Oct for a multitude of reasons, I was eager to go in another trip in Nov.

For long I had been thinking of making another trip to Valparai. Actually I was more interested in riding down the road from Valparai to Athirapally falls. Last I traveled on that road, it was raining and lush green. I wanted to relive that ride.

However, few weeks before the ride I had come to know of Ponamudi in Kerala which was somewhat south of Valparai. Being a place new to me, it was of interest.

So on Nov 19th, as I started riding south towards Hosur from Bangalore, I was in two minds whether to go head to Valparai or towards Ponamudi.

I was packing light - just a small tank bag. I had skipped my rain gear and instead choose a camera with bigger lens. Skipping the rain gear was something I would regret later.

As the sun rose, I had crossed Hosur, and was approaching Krishnagiri. Took a break next to a seasonal pond to stretch my legs.

And of the Meteor which always looks good in the morning light.

Another stop at perennial lake few flyovers after Krishnagiri.

I have stopped here multiple times on my rides down south. The rising sun and the coconut trees always make for lovely silhouettes.

A little later, stopped for tea and a bun. The tea in Tamil Nadu is way better than the thermos stored tea they serve in Bangalore.

By now the need to choose between Valparai and Ponamudi was playing on my mind. Soon I would be at Salem and I will either have to turn towards Coimbatore for Valparai or continue towards Madurai for Ponamudi. I was also aware that I would not be able to reach Ponamudi by the end of the day.

In the end, I decided to head towards Valparai, primarily because I knew I would not reach Ponamudi by end of day and Madurai was too close. I would reach there quite early.

But, things don't often go as planned.

As I was navigating through the construction and traffic of Salem, at the last minute when I was supposed to turn towards Erode, I changed my mind and headed straight towards Madurai.

The lure of the unknown was too strong to resist.

Around 0930, I stopped for breakfast. A roadside kart under a tree serving piping hot dosa.

A full breakfast made me sleepy and spying a few benches on the side, I could not resist the temptation of a nap. Sprawled on the benches, I opened google maps and searched for a place to halt the night.

I could hurry, stretch and try to get to Ponamudi. That would almost be 650+Km of riding for the day. Not that I haven't done it before, but its not fun especially when the last several Km will be in the mountains. So that option was out. That was a good choice as later I would find out that close the entry to Ponamudi by 1600.

Next option was Madurai which was a few hours away. It would have been a great opportunity to do some street photography and enjoy the delicious street food.

I was almost settled on Madurai, when I saw Tankasi, It was on the side from the route google maps was showing to Ponamudi. I had crossed Tenkasi several years ago while riding to Courtallam. The temple was impressive and I had told myself that I would stop here one day.

Seeing the opportunity, I decided to make that my night stop.

Now Tenkasi wasn't very far from where I was. That means going slow, lots of stops and ample opportunity to take pictures.

Found a peacock on one of the side roads.

Also stopped to photograph my ride.

After Madurai, at Tirumangalam I turned off NH44 and onto NH744. Now NH744 Was undergoing massive construction. Riding was painful and full of dust. In addition, long diversion showed up every time I though I have crossed the construction zone.

Riding on a bad roads makes me hungrier than usual. Stopped for a tea and snack break a little before Rajapalayam. The shop had several types of snacks. So sample many of those.

By 1600, I was in Tenkasi. Finding a hotel was easy. I choose one at a walking distance from the temple. Having checked in, I got tea and pakoras delivered to my room.

After resting a while, I walked to the temple. It was quite busy around the temple and there were a number of devotees visiting on the way back from Sabrimala.