A Guide to the Tourist Places in India

The Ladakh road trip on bikes - Part 2 : Marhi - Rohtang - Keylong

2011-08-08T01:53:00.000-07:00

The Journey :

Day 3 :

After a night spent inside the tent amidst heavy rains, we packed our tents in the morning and ate Maggi. Little did we know about the road lying ahead. All that we knew was that there was a huge traffic jam in the ghat section after Marhi(Rani Nallah), which was visible from the place we stayed. Vehicles were just standing in a long queue from the beginning of the ghat section till the end. Only one way traffic was allowed every hour and then the traffic was allowed from the other direction, because of the heavy rains and landslides. There was no road only. It was all just mud slush everywhere.

We had never seen such a bad road before in our lives, as it was just knee deep mud slush everywhere, where only 4x4 vehicles could pass with ease. Every other 4 wheeler and bikes were suffering to cross this stretch of 6-8 kms. We had to push bikes at so many places, especially since it was heavily loaded. However, we ended up burning the clutch plates of Machismo. We weren't carrying a spare clutch plate also. We were helpless there, struck amongst hundreds of vehicles parked there due to the traffic jam which had started 30 hours ago. We couldn't believe when we learned that the 4 wheelers were struck in the jam from the previous day. They had to sleep inside their vehicles only without any food.

We luckily came across a truck which was carrying some 12 Royal Enfields to Leh, which was also struck there. There was also a mechanic sitting inside the truck. We pleaded him to remove clutch plate from a bike in his truck and put it into ours. We can never forget that guy, Viru, who helped us a lot by doing so. Finally we had working clutch plates in the machismo again, but it wasn't a new one, since it was removed from some other bike. By that time, the 2 pillions had trekked all the way to the top, where the jam ended. There was a glacier right next to us, and it was the first time I touched snow! But we couldn't enjoy there, since we were waiting for the other bikers.

The two of us were waiting for the bikers to reach the top for over two hours, and then the two pulsars managed to ascend all the mud slush and reached the top safely. We were now waiting for the bullets to arrive. Then, after waiting for another two hours, we came to know that the clutch plates of machismo got damaged again, after almost reaching the top. We asked so many riders whether they had spare clutch plates. But we weren't lucky this time. We went all the way back to Viru again, who was still struck some 4-5 loops below, but he also couldn't be of any help since we didn't have a spare clutch plate. We talked to Viru that we'd be putting the bike inside his truck once the jam clears and take it all the way to Keylong, where the next Mechanic and spares would be available. Keylong was further 70 kms away from there. We hadn't yet reached Rohtang. Since we had decided that we'd be putting the bike in the truck and reach Keylong, the 4 others left in 3 bikes to reach Keylong as early as possible, leaving me and one more of us along with the Machismo. We had thought it'd be a perfect plan and we'd be reaching Keylong by night. But, somewhere deep inside, we were feeling nothing goes according to our plans....

The 4 others had left from there and passed Rohtang La, reached Tandi and stayed at an army camp there. According to what I heard from them, they were very hospitable and served quality food, providing fully furnished rooms, for a very nominal price.

In the meantime, near Rohtang, where we were stuck, It was 8 in the night and it started to rain heavily. We had no option but to sit below a truck. We came to know that the truck to which we had talked wouldn't be arriving anytime soon, since it started to rain and there were landslides again. A Qualis got damaged right in front of our eyes due to a landslide and luckily none were injured. The truck driver asked us to get into the truck since it was raining. Along with us, some 5-6 more bikes had got damaged and were waiting with us thinking about the further options we had. All of us decided to talk to a truck going in the opposite direction to take a u turn and drop us till Keylong, where we could get the bikes repaired. After talking to some 3-4 trucks, a guy agreed to drop us for 9k. We immediately put the 5 bikes in the truck and left there by 9pm.

It was the first time we were travelling inside a truck with bikes and we had no idea how tough it would be. Once the truck started to move, we had to control the bikes from falling, using all our energy, since the entire road stretch was bad. Our legs, hands and everything started to pain a lot since there was nothing to hold onto in the truck. It was one hell of a ride, where we had to spend all the energy even while sitting, for around 3 hours.After 3 hours, we thought we had covered 70 kms and about to reach Keylong. But were shocked when we realized we had covered only 28 kms and reached a little village called Koksar. All of us decided that we can't take it anymore and decided to get down at Koksar only. It was almost 12 by that time and we got some space in a dhaba to stay. Luckily we had our sleeping bags with us. So, we had a sound sleep till 8, blaming our fate and unable to reach others. We had no idea where the others would be, since we didn't have network over there. We thought they'd be waiting at Keylong for us, which was a further 45-50 kms away. It was a long long day.

Day 4 :

We woke up and luckily found a small pick up jeep standing right in front of our dhaba and asked him to take the bike with us to Keylong and he agreed. We had our breakfast, used the pay and use toilet at Koksar and left for Keylong, hoping this journey would be better atleast, since it was a jeep and only our bike would be there in it. But we were wrong again. It was also one hell of a journey and we had to struggle a lot to hold the bike and stop it from falling. It was a crazy ride for around 2 hours and finally we reached Keylong, and were more than happy when we found the other 4 waiting for us right there in a garage. We went to a lodge to take bath for the first time since 4 days! We ate like some nomads who didn't eat from years and were feeling so fresh after taking the bath. Finally a sigh of relief, after getting the bikes repaired, taking more petrol in jerry cans and finally packing the bags for one more long ride to cover more distance... And again hoping that we wouldn't face any problems from now onwards.... God only knew what we were about to face....

The Ladakh road trip on bikes - Part 1 : Delhi - Chandigarh - Kullu - Manali

2011-08-01T01:09:00.000-07:00

The Journey :

Day 1 :

So, after planning for more than an year, our dream was finally about to come true! Ladakh trip on bikes! After a month we took for preparations, when we were about to leave and packed the bags, we realized how much luggage we were carrying. Our trip was of 10 days and we had bought too many Maggi packs, MTR Ready to Eats, Chocolates, Biscuits, etc etc. Along with that, we were carrying our own tents, sleeping bags, a small cylinder and utensils as well to cook when required. You can imagine how bulky it would be, and we had to pack them all on bikes later.

Just after Sunrise.

Our trip actually started when we gave our bikes to Blue Dart, 2 weeks before the date of our departure. After confirming that the bikes had reached Chandigarh, we left Bangalore on July 8th, 2011. We reached the airport by around 5 and then reached Delhi by 9.30. We had booked a taxi from Delhi to Chandigarh before only. In case you want to book taxis from Delhi to Chandigarh, you can find many contacts on Google only. So we tied all our bags and the road trip started from Delhi.

The Blue Dart godown.

Delhi - Chandigarh highway is of 6 lanes and is neatly maintained. It started to rain on the first day only, and we were sure it'd be one hell of a trip! We reached Chandigarh by around 4 and were glad to see the bikes after two weeks, totally packed. We were 6 of us, and were about to go in 4 bikes ( Thunderbird 350, Machismo 500, 2 Pulsar 180s). Due to some loose contact, no matter how much we tried, we were not able to start the Thunderbird. So we had to search for an Enfield showroom in Chandigarh and brought a mechanic along with us, who took half an hour to fix it. So it was around 6 by the time we left Chandigarh in bikes. The bikes were heavily loaded with the luggage and had to carry 2 pillions as well.

The place where we stayed!

We crossed Mohali, Rupar and it was around 9.30 when we reached Rupar, where we had our dinner. We were confused regarding our further plans. Our initial plan was to ride till Mandi and stay there. But from Rupar, we learnt that Mandi was further 150 km away and we were very tired already. So we decided to ride as far as we can and stay anywhere where we felt like.

We weren't even searching for lodges, as we had sleeping bags and tents with us. We rode a further 60-80 kms and slept in front of some random general stores shop, since it was midnight and there was nobody who'd ask us not to sleep over there. It was the end of the first day of our trip, which constituted of getting the bike repaired and we went to a sound sleep, hoping our trip would be smooth from the next day.

But.. did it really go smooth?

Day 2 :

We woke up and started to ride immediately, and our target was to cross Manali and stay somewhere near Rohtang on that day. After riding for around 10-20 kms, we got a Bilaspur Lake view point. It was a pretty decent landscape. We stopped there for 5 minutes and left again towards Mandi. We came across a dam as well. We were hoping to reach Mandi asap and have breakfast there. But god had other plans....

When we were nearing Mandi, the Machismo met with an accident. Some crazy fellow started to cross the road all of a sudden, and the machismo guys had no other option but to apply brakes and fall. The bike got damaged and even they had minor injuries, thanks to the helmet and the jackets. So we it was already afternoon by the time we got the bike repaired and reached Mandi. We purchased jerry cans to fill petrol at Mandi and did some other shopping as well. Mandi is a small town where you can stay as well.

Then we started towards Manali, passing Kullu. If only those two weren't injured, we'd have gone for rafting here as well. Kullu is very famous for white water rafting in the majestic Beas river. I had never seen such rivers flowing with such a force in south India ever. The road from Mandi to Manali is very scenic and you'll have to pass through a 2km long tunnel as well. We were enjoying the ride to the fullest, with so many huge mountains and waterfalls all the way.

Finally, it was evening by the time we reached Manali. To go in the Manali - Leh road, you'd be requiring permits for vehicles which are not from Himachal Pradesh. We had called up a guy from Bangalore and he had taken the permits on our behalf. We met that guy and collected permits from him and had our lunch. There was nothing to roam around in Manali. So we thought about covering some more distance by the nightfall, and decided to ride till Marhi, which is 35 kms from Manali. The roads were pretty normal with some mud slush on the way to Marhi. On reaching Marhi by around 7.30-8 pm, we set up our tents in front of a dhaba and could easily see the huge traffic jam right in front of the ghat section to Rohtang La. We knew it'd be a long day and were trying to get mentally prepared for the next day. And also, it was the first time we saw beautiful snow capped mountains right in front of us. It even started to rain heavily that night and we fell asleep amidst all these. More the rain, more bad the conditions of the road. Sigh..

Guidelines :

Always carry a first aid kit with you.
Always wear a helmet if going on bikes. Even the pillion must wear helmets. Without the helmets, we don't know what would have happened.
Better stay at Marhi than Manali, since you'd be knowing the condition of the road once you reach Marhi.

Some more snaps from the trip can be seen below..

Magod Falls , Sathodi Falls and Jenukallu Gudda

2011-06-28T07:49:00.000-07:00

About The Places :

Magod Falls is a group of waterfalls in Uttar Kannada district of Karnataka, India, where the river Bedti falls from a height of nearly 200m in two steps. It is around 70 kms from Sirsi, 17 kms from Yellapur, 215 kms from Shimoga and around 450 kms from Bangalore.

Satoddi Falls or Sathodi Falls is a waterfall in India that is formed by several unnamed streams near Kallaramarane Ghat, Uttara Kannada District, near Sirsi, and 32 km from Yellapur. It is about 15 meters (49.2 feet) tall. The stream then flows into the backwaters of the Kodasalli Dam, into the Kali River.

Jenukallu - Jenu means Honey, Kallu means stone and Gudda means hill. This place is a viewpoint in the Western Ghat, which offers a panoramic view of the hills packed one behind the other. Jenukallu Gudda is situated 17 Kms from Yellapur. The Bedti River from Magod falls cuts across the green hills and bounces all the way to join the Arabian Sea beyond the hills.

The Journey :

This was the day 4 of our week long bike trip. After visiting Kodachadri, Yana, Sigandur, Unchalli falls and Banavasi, we left for Magod falls on the day 4 morning. 4 of us left in 2 bikes(a thunderbird and a pulsar 180) from Banavasi after having breakfast. It took us around 2 hours from Banavasi to reach Magod falls, via Sirsi, Yellapur. We had our lunch at yellapur on the way.

Magod Falls

After buying the entry tickets, we had to walk for 5 minutes to reach the first viewpoint. Magod falls was different from others, since it flowed through two steps. It was a magnificent view of the falls, falling from the opposite hilltop. We walked for another 5 minutes to reach one more view point. There was a path to trek down till the base of the falls, but we thought it wasn't worth it, since we could see only one of the two steps from the base. So, we rested there for a while and took off towards Sathodi falls.

Sathodi Falls

Sathodi is a very famous waterfalls among the local people around Yellapur and Sirsi. Many people come there to visit, especially during weekends. It is just around 25 kms from Magod falls. Water falls from just around 15m height and is the best and safest place to play around. We went till the base of the falls and were standing right under the falls. You can swim there easily as well. These days, people are spoiling its beauty by throwing beer bottles and many other plastic bottles. The width of this falls makes it unique and very scenic. As far as I remember, it is one of our favorite waterfalls since we enjoyed a lot there.

After Magod and before Sathodi, we had also been to a viewpoint called Jenukallu. The breathtaking view of the valley is worth a visit and during sunset the change in the scene is truly magical. There are three hills here, which are at a very high altitude. They are Jenukallu Gudda, Kodekallu Gudda and Balekallu Gudda. The highest hill is the Balekallu Gudda. The roads are manageable but at certain points they do offer a challenge for small cars. It is famous for snakes, bisons and bears.

Guidelines :

- Be careful while trekking down in Magod place. It is known to be very steep and dangerous.

- Best time to visit would be just after the rainy season, around October.

Routes :

Bangalore - Shimoga - Sirsi - Yellapur - Magod - Jenukallu - Sathodi

Final Review :

In a land full of waterfalls(Uttar Kannada), these are the two famous ones, and is worth going all the way from Bangalore. Jenukallu is also worth a visit, on the way.

Madhugiri Night Trek

2011-06-17T04:03:00.000-07:00

About The Place :

Madhugiri is a town in Tumkur district in the Indian state of Karnataka.

At 3930 feet elevation, Madhugiri is a single hill. It is the largest in Asia and second largest in the world. Nestled in its steep slopes is a fort, once credited to Hyder Ali. Antaralada Bagilu, Diddibagilu, and Mysore Gate are the three gateways of the fort. A series of doorways leads to the hillock. The ruined temple of Gopalakrishna is located at the top.

The Journey :

After a get together on a Saturday night, all of a sudden, we, the ten bored souls, planned to go to a night out to have some fun. When you say night out, the first options that spring into your mind are Maddur Coffee Day and Skandagiri. We had already visited those places many times. So we decided to go trek some hill at night, since you won't get much tired during night usually.

From many days, me and my roommate had planned to go to Madhugiri once, since we hadn't yet trekked it. So we thought of going to Madhugiri only, for a night trek. So, the ten of us ended up riding in Tumkur road within an hour after deciding.

The route to Madhugiri is simple. From Bangalore, go in Tumkur Road and take a right in Dabaspet. Madhugiri is just around 50 kms from Dabaspet, which is around 50-60 kms from Bangalore. There is a road from Tumkur as well.

Madhugiri is a small village mainly known for the Madhugiri fort. We had reached the base of the hill at around 2 and parked our bikes, collecting some dried up leaves and branches, so as to prepare a camp fire later.

When we had told some friends that we'd be going to Madhugiri, they warned us about the Bears over there. Even in the village, when we asked some villagers regarding trekking at night, they warned us that there are too many bears in the hill, which is very very dangerous for night trek and people never do night trek over there. We, who just wanted to spend a night trekking, so as to view a beautiful sunrise from the peak, got scared since whomever we asked, they were warning us about the bears.

We started our trek cautiously and even the slightest of noises around us made us to turn all our attention towards it. After trekking for half an hour, we decide to prepare a camp fire there only, instead of taking risk, climbing at night. So we lighted the fire, which used to go off in every five minutes. One of us stood guard for us, constantly watching the surroundings, and others had a brief but sound sleep.

At around 5 in the morning, we decided to continue our trek, since the sky was getting lightened up by the approaching sun.Since we were all afresh from a sleep, we started to trek at a faster pace.

The initial phase of the trekking has steps constructed properly, till an old pool, which contained nothing but muddy water now. From there, we started to climb the huge monolith. It was similar to Kabbaldurga, which we had trekked an year ago. proper railings have been constructed to make the trek easier. Railings have been put up till almost 75% of the peak, which we covered in 30-40 minutes. There, we had actually thought the trek ended and rested for a while. But once we trekked ahead, we realized there was much more land to cover and took us some 20 more minutes to reach the top.

We ate some cakes, chocolates and snacks which we had brought with us finished off all the remaining water and sprite. We couldn't see the sunrise properly because of the clouds and the clouds were creating amazing hues and it was windy throughout, which made us to enjoy the landscape more. The view from the peak of the Madhugiri village is amazing, since the entire village would be lit up always.

We then entered the old temple at the top, which is almost ruined now. Spent more time trying to take photos of every possible poses and once we were done, we started to climb down. Our legs started to pain during the descent, since you have to make sure about your shoe's grip while trekking down. It took us around 30 minutes to reach the base of the peak again. We had reached down by around 9.30-10am. Then we had breakfast at a hotel over there and rode continuously till Bangalore, and we were home by 1pm. A proper night out worth the fuel.

Guidelines :

- The road from Dabaspet to Madhugiri has some potholes and speedbreakers. Be careful while driving in the night.

-Devarayana durga and Siddarabetta are two other nearest hills, famous for trekking.

-If trekking during the day, be sure to carry ample amount of water and food.

-There are two routes to trek. One goes straight, which is rumored not to be safe for night treks because of the bears, and the other route is towards the left, which seemed to be safer.

-Night trek might be dangerous. Beware of the much rumored bears.

Final Review :

Madhugiri is again, one of the easiest treks, especially if you trek during the night or early morning. The best option would be to start the trek at 5 am or so. You can view the sunrise on the way ascent and reach the peak in 2 hours as well. During afternoon, or after 10 am, it might be very tiring since there are no trees or shades anywhere.

Routes :

Bangalore - Dabaspet - Madhugiri

Skandagiri Trek

2011-05-25T01:59:00.000-07:00

About the Place :

Skandagiri is a hill in Chikballapur near Bangalore. It has become a household name among trekkers and the easiest trek one can ever come across. From 3-4 years, it has become very famous for night treks. It is also known as Kalwar betta, and is a prominent hill visible from Nandi hills.

The Journey :

I have been to this place some 3-4 times and so I am writing in general about this trek this time.

Skandagiri is around 75-90 km far from Bangalore. From Bangalore, you have to go in the new airport road and reach Chikballapur in Hyderabad road. After reaching Chikballapur, there's a Sir M Visveswaraiah circle in the main road, which can be identified by his statue. You have to take a left there, go till dead end, take a right and then take a left at the next dead end. It leads to a small temple accompanied with 4-5 houses. that is the parking lot. you have to park your vehicles there. And on Friday nights and Saturday nights, no wonder if you can't find a place there to park your vehicle also. It is that crowded now during weekend nights.

On the way, usually you will be stopped by cops telling that you can't trek at nights and it is closed. If you give them 100-200 bucks, they will only guide you to the parking lot. Unwillingly also, you will end up bribing them, since nobody wants to go back to Bangalore after riding till there. After walking in a road for half a kilometer, you will have to take a left where the trek actually starts. There're very less chances of you getting lost since the path is full of arrows and inscriptions. It is an easy trek and takes around 1 hour to reach the top if you trek properly, especially in the night since you won't be getting tired. If you are going with girls as well, it might take around 2 hours. There's a small temple at the peak. usually it will be always covered with clouds in the early mornings before sunrise.

Skandagiri is more famous for its sunrise. Hundreds of people gather there on Saturday and Sunday mornings to watch the sunrise. It is famous for a view where you will be above the clouds and can't see anything other than the clouds below. It is like a once in lifetime experience if you are lucky enough to be above the clouds. It is usually worth visiting from May to December, when it will be cloudy.

If you want to trek during day time, its not at all worth it to trek in the sunlight and get drained. The view from the top is not that great. You can only see Nandi hills properly and Chikballapur village. otherwise, the view consists of dry landscapes and nothing else. It takes around 40 mins for the descent usually.

Guidelines :

- Optimum time to start the trek would be 3 a.m since its worth spending time atop and view the hues of a pleasant sunrise, with mist and chilling breeze.

- Optimum time to leave from Bangalore would be 12 in the midnight. There is a 24 hours Cafe Coffee Day on the way as well to spend some time.

- These days, Maggi, coffee, tea and many eatables are available at the peak during early morning. All you need to carry is water.

- Due to the upsurge in the number of trekkers, the peak and the entire trek path has become polluted now. Please avoid throwing plastics. Carry it back along with you.

Final Review :

For those who are new to the Bangalore city, and for those who haven't trekked much before, this one is a must visit place. And not many would have experienced how it feels in a night trek. The trek route is totally safe for girls as well and the best time to go with girls would be on a friday night or a saturday night. When we went here for the first time, 4 years ago, many didn't know about the place only. It was much more pleasant and we had the peak for ourselves at that time. Don't expect any privacy at the peak these days.

Routes :

Bangalore - Yelahanka - Chikballapur - Skandagiri

Tadiyandamol Trek and Mugilpete(Mandalpet)

2011-05-10T04:42:00.000-07:00

About the places :

Tadiandamol or Tadiyandamol is the highest mountain of Kodagu district, India. It is located on the Western Ghats range, and reaches an elevation of 1,748 m. It is a place of interest for trekkers and naturalists. The mountain has patches of shola forests in the valleys.

Mugilpete a.k.a Mandalpet a.k.a Mandalpatti is another place in the coorg, least known to many from other parts of Karnataka. It became famous from the movie, Gaalipata. Many think the place was fictitious. But the place actually exists, and I have visited it twice!

The Journey :

Yet another weekend. Had to plan yet another trip to get rid of the boredom faced during weekends. I came up with a weak plan of going to B.R. hills and returning on Saturday night only. The 5 of us(Me, Sharat, Santhosh, Sandeep and Ajay) were all set to go to B.R hills. It was 12.30 in the night on Friday already. When we were about to leave on bikes, one of us mentioned it would be a very peaceful trip if we had gone in a car. All of a sudden, my friend told he can get the car from his home. Two of them left immediately to get the car, and it was 1 already! Then all of a sudden, we were confused with options regarding where to go. Options like Kerala, Pune, etc etc springed up in our minds, and finally we decided to go to Tadiyandamol, Coorg and Kudremukh and left by 1.30! Whoa! This was the most random and spontaneous planned trip ever for us.

So it all began.Yet another journey. We went in the Mysore road, took a left towards madikeri after Sri Rangapattana, and then went to Virajpet. It was around 7 in the morning by the time we reached Virajpet. On the way to Virajpet, we came across a beautiful lake full of cranes, and it was such a pleasant morning. We were more than pleased by seeing the sunrise at that lake. The reflections were too good, with no people around us. After enjoying the scene there, we had a light breakfast at Virajpet. Hotels open there by around 8 always. We had idlys at a very small hotel which was open at 7.15. Then we took a room in a lodge for an hour to get freshed up. After getting freshed up, we went to Tadiyandamol finally, without sleeping from the past 24 hours. Little did we know that we would end up sleepless for 45 hours!

From Virajpet, you need to take the road towards Napoklu and Bhagamandala. There, after some 8 kms, you need to take a left after a bridge. You can ask anyone for directions. At the base of the peak, you will get the Nalaknad palace. We decided to skip it since it wasn't of that much importance. We parked our car where some other bikes were parked and started to trek.

Like any other trek, we had a nice trekking path, where we had to trek for around 20 mins to get the first sight of Tadiyandamol. From there we started to climb. Gradually it became steeper and steeper. We had started the trek at 10 in the morning. So it was hot and sunny as well. And the mistake we did was, we carried just a half bottle of water with us, assuming it would be very easy. We were totally drained out by the time we completed half the trek. But we didn't carry any luggage with us other than the cameras. So it was pretty easy for us and we managed to reached the top of the peak within 1 hour 45 mins.

And it was like a heaven when we reached atop. The clouds started to chase us and caught us as well! It was a memorable time we spent atop. We spent around an hour there and started the descent immediately. We never stopped anywhere on our way down and it took us around 40-45 mins to reach the base again, where there is a source of flowing water, which might be a small waterfall during rainy season. We drank the water as much as we can and left to Madikeri, where we had our lunch, around 3.30. Post lunch, we left to Mugilpet a.k.a Mandalpet. To go to Mandalpet, from madikeri, first you need to go towards abbi falls. Anyone in madikeri would show you the road to Abbi falls. After going in that road for 1 or 2 kms, you need to take a right. The left road would be leading to abbi falls and the right one leads to mandalpet. There is a board as well. The roads are very very bad, I'm warning now only. That too if you go in the rainy season, it will be very difficult unless you have a SUV. It is around 25 kms from madikeri. It was around 5 in the evening by the time we reached there, and gradually visibility was getting reduced due to the huge clouds covering us all the way! Visibility was 10m in the end and it was such a beautiful place, worth travelling in that very bad road.

From here, we went back to Madikeri, had dinner and left to Bangalore directly, since we thought about having a peaceful sunday. And we managed to reach Bangalore by 3 a.m.

Guidelines :
- You can camp on Tadiyandamol, but there is no water source throughout, other than at the base of the peak. So carry as much water as you can.

-The road to Mandalpet is very very bad. Be warned.

- May - December would be the best time to visit these places.

Final Review :
Tadiyandamol is a nice place to trek and camp on for an average trekker, since for an average trekker with luggage, it might take around 3 hours to 4 to reach the top. And it is a pleasant view from there.

Routes :
Bangalore - Sri Rangapatna - Virajpet - Tadiyandamol - Madikeri - Mandalpet

yash.canon's photostream

2011-05-05T03:59:00.001-07:00

yash.canon's photostream on Flickr.

A look at some snaps from these trips.

Bangalore to Madurai, Rameswaram, Dhanushkodi and Kanyakumari in Bikes

2011-04-29T04:17:00.000-07:00

About the places:

Madurai is an ancient city in Tamilnadu, very famous for the Meenakshi temple. It is known as the Temple city and is often also referred to as City of four junctions (Koodal Maanagar), Cultural center of Tamil Nadu (Kalaachaara thalainagar), City of Jasmine (Malligai Maanagar), Sleepless city (Thoonga Nagaram), Athens of the East and The City of Festivals (Thiruvizha nagaram).It is the third largest (was second largest from its origin till 2001) city by population in Tamil Nadu and second largest by area. The city is pretty big and the roads connecting to Madurai are good as well.

Rameswaram or Rameshwaram is a town in Ramanathapuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on Pamban Island separated from mainland India by the Pamban channel and is about 50 kilometres from Mannar Island, Sri Lanka. Pamban Island, also known as Rameswaram Island, is connected to mainland India by the Pamban Bridge. Rameswaram is the terminus of the railway line from Chennai and Madurai. Together with Kashi, it is considered to be one of the holiest places in India to Hindus, and part of the Char Dham pilgrimages. Hence, it is a bustling pilgrim centre.

Dhanushkodi or Danushkodi is a town/village at the southern tip of the Rameswaram island, at the eastern coast of the Tamil Nadu state of India.Dhanushkodi is situated in the South-East of Pamban. Danushkodi is about 18 miles (29 km) West of Talaimannar in Sri Lanka. The Dhanushkodi railway line running from Pamban Station was destroyed in the 1964 cyclone and a passenger train with over 100 passengers drowned in the sea.

Kanyakumari is a town in the state of Tamilnadu in India. It is also sometimes referred to as Cape Comorin. Located at the southernmost tip of the Indian Peninsula, it is the geographical end of the Indian mainland. The district in Tamilnadu where the town is located is called Kanyakumari District. The closest major cities are Nagercoil, the administrative headquarters of Kanyakumari District, (22 km) and Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of Kerala (85 km).

The Journey :

Once February started, we were all getting bored, since its the worst weather to go to trips. The break of summer had prevented us from visiting any waterfalls or mountains, since it would be hot and dry always. So after wasting two months without any trips, finally, in April, we had a crazy brainstorm of going to Kanyakumari in bikes! Kanyakumari was our dream destination since an year, since we always wanted to be at the southernmost tip of the Indian peninsula. And thanks to Good Friday, we got a 3-day weekend. We immediately decided to leave to Kanyakumari without much of a plan.

Our plan was simple. Since Bangalore to Kanyakumari via Rameshwaram would be around 1800 kms, we had decided to ride one way till Kanyakumari, and to put the bikes in a train while returning. But since we planned the trip 2 days in advance, we couldn't get the train or bus tickets. So our plan was to go to the railway station at Madurai, exactly 2 days before our departure and book the tatkal tickets(since the tatkal quota ticket booking opens only 2 days before, at 8 am).

Day 1 :

And finally, the 6 of us(me, Anoop, Sandeep, Santhosh, Sharat, Shrinath) left in 4 bikes. One bullet classic 500, one Thunderbird, and two Pulsar 180s.

We left Bangalore by around 4 pm and decided to ride till Madurai at a stretch and stay there. The distance to Madurai from Bangalore was around 430 kms. After initial hiccups due to heavy rain, our ride was pretty smooth, in NH7, till Salem, where we had our dinner.

Post dinner, we left Salem at around 10, and we had to ride for another 212 kms. Thankfully it didn't rain heavily again till we reached Madurai at around 1. We all were so tired that we didn't know what happened, 5 mins after we went to bed.

Our first day consisted of only the long ride of 450 kms at a stretch, where we managed to reach the top speed of 140 kmph!

Day 2 :

We were too lazy to start the day. Two of us went to the railway station at 7.30 to book the train tickets. But they were surprised by the huge queue of people waiting to book tickets there. In the end, we couldn't get the train tickets. We were in total confusion as we didn't know how we would be returning back.

We then visited the famous Madurai Meenakshi temple, after having bath. The temple is a really huge one and if you stand in the general queue, it will take you atleast 2-3 hours to complete the rounds there. We paid 100 bucks for a special darshan and managed to complete everything in an hour.And it was really huge. It was full of people everywhere. We finally left Madurai at around 11.

Rameshwaram was around 220 kms from Madurai. We had to deviate from the smooth NH7. So it was a two lane road from there. It was a hot day, contrary to the heavy rains the previous day. After riding for 50 kms from Madurai, we reached a place called Rajakambiram. There, our Bullet Classic 500's red light started to blink, and it wasn't getting started at all. We tried everything in vain for over an hour. And after making a few calls, we decided to tow the bike back to Madurai to get it repaired. We found a goods carrier and towed the bike back to Madurai.

Two of us had gone to get it repaired, while the other four of us were getting bored at that small village. After eating and drinking everything that a small provision store in the village had to offer us, we asked some people about a river nearby. He leaded us to the banks of a dried up river and thankfully, it was a pleasing sight for us. We had the entire place to ourselves and 2 peacocks which were making distant noise. It was a very calm place, where we spent most of the time capturing images and enjoying the scenery.

At around 4, the other 2 arrived after getting the bike repaired. Then we left to Rameswaram. On the way, we came across Ramnathpur or Ramnad, which is the district center. We decided to have some chats there, and ended up having dinner since none of us had lunch that day. Then we reached Rameswaram by around 9, got rooms in a lodge next to the temple. Went for a walk around the temple and the beach next to the temple, and slept off. Madurai to Rameswaram road is again, very nice, even if its a 2 lane road.

Day 3 :

We had to get up very early since we knew how crowded the temple would be after 7. So we got up at 4.30, took bath and were in temple by around 5.30. The temple is well known for its 22 wells. The water in these wells is considered to be sacred and everyone goes through all the wells and get drenched in the water from all the 22 wells, in a queue. We did all that, got the darshan, and were back to lodge by 8. This temple was also, remarkably huge and is considered to be a very sacred place by the Hindus.

After having breakfast, we left to Dhanushkodi, and it was constantly raining again on that day. Without having much of an option, we got drenched and reached Dhanushkodi. And, wait! It was the first time we went in a road, which had beaches on both the sides! It was an unforgettable experience.

After reaching Dhanushkodi, you can't take your bikes further. We had to park it there and hire a tempo, which carried 20 people at a time, taking 100 bucks from each. It was a breathtaking journey, since it took us on the beach, which was covered by ocean on both the sides. How often do you get to experience that!?

After reaching the end point, there were ruins of an old church and an old railway station. It was a very calm place and we had loads of fun by taking some crazy snaps there. Saddest part is, the tempo guys keep on calling us back, telling its time already. We barely got 20 mins to spend there, since there hurried us into leaving back. And we also got a dead star fish there! It was full of red and scary!

It was still constantly drizzling, and we left back to Rameswaram, checked out from lodge after packing the bags and tying it to the bikes. Our next destination was our dream, finally. And we were all set to leave to Kanyakumari. As I said before, Rameswaram lies in an island and it is connected by the famous Pamban bridge. It was such a memorable experience to be at that bridge, since, again, it was the first time for us to stand on a bridge which was constructed across an ocean. We could see the railway track also, where no trains run these days.

To go to Kanyakumari from Rameswaram, we had to go all the way back to Ramnathpur from Rameswaram(70 km). We had lunch there and left. It was a pleasant day again. Kanyakumari was around 250 kms from Rameswaram, and we managed to reach it comfortably, once we got connected to NH7 again. We got Toothkuni, Tuticorin, on the way to NH7. And the western ghats and numerous windmills alongside the highway made us forget all the tiredness. We reached kanyakumari at around 7.30 and spent the evening peacefully, having a heavy punjabi dinner.

By that time, we had realized there were no bus or train tickets available, and we had to ride all the way back to Bangalore the next day only, and were getting prepared for the big day.

Day 4 :

The day started for us as early as 6 for us. We were all waiting for the sunrise at the tip of the Indian peninsula, accompanied by hundreds of others, but in vain, since it was cloudy. We captured some snaps there, where we had a beautiful view of the Vivekananda Memorial and the Thiruvallavar Statue.

Then we had to stand in the queue for the ferry to reach the memorial hall, and the queue was pretty long by 6.30 only. They start giving the tickets at 7.45. But by 7.45, the queue had increased 5 folds. So it was worth standing in the queue for an hour. A ferry took us to the Vivekananda memorial, where there is a small statue of Vivekananda and a meditation hall inside. We enjoyed our time there, then left after an hour, back to the other side. We did some shopping, packed our bags for one last time and left Kanyakumari at precisely 1 in the afternoon.

It was the ride of a lifetime, since we had to ride 650 kms at a stretch. NH7 was such a beauty, without a single speedbreaker(except near toll gates) till Bangalore from Kanyakumari. WE had our dinner at Salem at around 10, after riding for 450 kms. It was heavily raining again and we were totally wet. We waited for around 45 mins then again left in the rain to Bangalore. After stopping a few times, we managed to reach Bangalore by 3am. We couldn't believe we weren't too tired after such a hectic schedule!
Guidelines :

- If you are planning to put the bikes on the way back and ride one way, better plan the trip atleast 3 weeks early, so that u can get train tickets.
- Carry jackets along with you during rainy seasons, since it rains frequently near the Tamilnadu coastal area.

- Fill as much petrol as you can always, since you will require ample amount of petrol.

Final Review :

Do I need to say more? Just go for it! Takes 3-4 days in bikes to cover all these places. The other option to reach Kanyakumari would be through Ooty, Alleppay, Trichy, which isn't a bad option either.

Sigandur, Yana, Unchalli Falls in Bikes

2011-04-20T02:01:00.000-07:00

About the Places :

Sigandur is a sacred place known for the Chowdeshwari temple situated over there. People also go there to travel in the launch, which takes the passengers and vehicles from one bank to another in the Sharavati backwaters.

Yana or Yaana is a village in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka, India that is known for the unusual rock formations in its vicinity. It is located in the Sahyadri mountain range of the Western Ghats, about 60 kilometres (37 mi) from Karwar port, 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Sirsi, and 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Kumta. The two unique rock outcrops near the village are a tourist attraction and a place for trekking, easily approachable by a small trek through 0.5 kilometres (0.31 mi) of thick forests from the nearest road head.

Banavasi is a small village known for the very famous and old Madhukeshwara temple. It is also in Uttara Kannada District.

Lushington Falls, also called Unchalli Falls, is a waterfall created by a 116 metres (381 ft) drop in the Aghanashini river. The falls are located 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Sirsi, a town in the Uttara Kannada District of Karnataka, India. The falls are named for J. D. Lushington, a District Collector for the British Government, who discovered the falls in 1845.

The Journey:

After experiencing the Kodachadri sunrise in our week long bike trip, we went to Sigandur. Sigandur has a small Chowdeshwari temple, but very famous and powerful. This place is nearer to Jog falls as well, near Sagar. Sigandur is just around 25 kms from Sagar. We reach one bank of the Sharavati backwaters. The place is very picturesque and scenic. You wont get tired of capturing photos here. And travelling to the other bank, where the temple is located is much more fun, since we need to go in the launch here. And they charge just 2 Rs per head and 5 Rs per vehicle. There are two launches. They leave every 15 minutes or so. And it is worth it. If you want to go through road only to Sigandur, you need to take a much more longer trip. The last trip of these launches is around 6 pm. So if you need to go after 6, you need to take a different route towards Nittur from Sagar.Sagar is around 70 kms from Shimoga.

From Sigandur, we reached Sagar, which is the nearest town. After having lunch at Sagar, we went to Jog falls, even if it wasn't the rainy season. Jog falls was like a huge mountain with very less water. It was totally not worth going during that time. But we still went to the famous Mungaru Male spot, bent down from there to see the 'Jogad Gundi'. Anyone will get scared of that view! And it was all the fun we had at Jog, and then left to Banavasi, which is around 40-50 kms from Jog falls, where we had planned to stay that night.

Banavasi was my roommate's native. So we didn't search for any lodges. Stayed at his home only, and were too pleased with the hospitality there. It felt like our own home.

The next day(the 3rd day of our bike trip), in the morning, we rode to the famous 'Yana' or 'Yaana' from Banavasi. Yana is around 50 kms from banavasi.For those who don't know much about Uttara Kannada districts, Yana is 187 kms from Shimoga and 450 kms from Bangalore. Yana is famous for its odd shaped huge rocks, which was made famous from the movie, "Nammura Mandara Hoove". It has a small temple as well. You need to walk half a kilometer from the parking area. You can go inside the huge cave and get amazed my the sun rays entering inside. At the temple, you can know about the history of the temple and how these rocks were formed. We were amazed by this place, since it is so different compared to other normal tourist places.

From Yana, we went to the Unchalli falls, which is very famous among the localites, but unknown to many from other parts of Karnataka. You need to take a right at SH 48 from siddapur, to go to the Unchalli village. Keep on asking the localites for the routes and they will guide you properly. there are many signboards as well. You need to walk half a kilometer from the parking area to reach Unchalli view point. The waterfalls look magnificent from the view point. You can see the falls in the opposite mountain. It starts like a small stream and gets widened as it reaches the foot of the falls. It is also known as 'Keppajoga', since you can't hear each others words when it is in full force, during rainy season. The falls makes such a roaring sound, which is rare. We got excited and decided to go till the base of the falls. There is a small trekking route, around 2 - 3 kms to reach the base of the falls, and it is very steep. It took us around 20-25 mins to reach the base. We spent too much time playing in the water there since many people doesn't come till there and we had the whole place for ourselves there. And the water was chilling, which made it more memorable.

Guidelines :

- There will be leeches on the way down to Unchalli falls. So better take precautions as I have mentioned in the previous posts.

- In Yana, you can also go till the top of the caves, but it is dangerous.

- The nearest places where you can stay, to visit all these places are, Sirsi, Siddapur, Sagar, Banavasi, and if you want a much more comfortable stay, stay in Shimoga.

Routes :

Sigandur :
Bangalore - Tumkur - Shimoga - Sagar - Sigandur

Yana :

Bangalore - Tumkur - Shimoga - Sagar - Siddapur - Yana

Unchalli Falls :

Bangalore - Tumkur - Shimoga - Sagar - Siddapur - Unchalli

Final Review :

Sigandur makes it a worthy weekend trip, since you can also cover many more nearby places like Keladi, Ikkeri, Jog falls, etc in a day.

Yana is a unique place, which has to be visited to see those unique rocks and caves, which can't be found anywhere else.

Uttar Kannada has many remote water falls, unknown to many, and Unchalli falls is a good example. Definitely worth going.

Kodachadri in Bikes and Trek info

2011-03-23T08:41:00.000-07:00

About the place:

Kodachadri is a mountain peak with dense forests(altitude - 1343 meters above sea level) in the Western Ghats in South India (Karnataka State). The name comes from native word "Kodacha" or "Kodashi" which means hill and "Adri" a Sanskrit word, both combined together coined the word Kodachadri. It is also called "Kutachadri" and "Kodashi Parvatha". Kodachadri forms a background to the famous temple of Mookambika in Kollur. Situated in the middle of the Mookambika National Park, it is home to several endemic and endangered species of flora and fauna. The peak is barren due to strong winds and as such, the forest covered nature is visible all around and also several smaller peaks and hills exist.

Kodachadri is around 90 kms from Shimoga and 380 kms from Bangalore.There are too many buses and trains from Bangalore to Shimoga. And from Shimoga, one needs to catch a bus to either thirtahalli -> nagara or directly to hosanagara. Then take a bus towards Kollur and get down at Nittur.

There are couple of starting points for the trek,

» Sampekette :-It’s around 1.15 hrs before Kollur,may be this route somewhere connects the route from Gowrikerre or may go via Gowrikerre itself.

» Gowrikerre:- This is the place were there is a left deviation to Kodachadri , its approximately 3 kms before Nittur also called as Kodachadri cross, this is the only motor-able road up to the kodachadri temple it’s 15 odd kms from the main road half of the road is tar road & the other half is a mud road. Also one can go to Hidlumanne falls from here, for this one has to walk approx for 1.5 kms from the main road to get a school @ your left ,here take a mud road to your right this road leads u to Yemmehonda junction(here this road meets the approach road from Marakuttaka).

» Marakuttaka:- Get down at Sigundur cross 3.5 kms after Nittur again trek back towards Nittur for 1 kms, just before the bridge, at your right u get Marakuttaka bus stop follow the mud road to reach Kodachadri via Hidlumanne falls.

» Karrakette: - This is approx 1.5 kms after Sigundur cross towards Kollur. Take left from karrakette which goes via Valur it’s roughly 9-10 kms to the temple, up to Valur it’s motor-able road from there a narrow trail uphill, Valur to temple it’s 1hr ascend. One can even go to Arshinagundi falls from Valur but only with an local guide because there is no pakka trail.

The Journey:

People usually take any of the above trekking routes. But we were crazy, since we decided to reach the top in bikes itself!

We had planned a week long trip on bikes, covering all the places in Karnataka and ending up in Goa! This was the first place we covered. We left Bangalore at around 4 in the morning. The 4 of us(Me, Sharat, Shrinath, Sandeep) left in a Pulsar 180 and a Thunderbird. After riding continuously, we reached Shimoga by around 10, after having breakfast, coffee. My parents stay at Shimoga. So we went there, ate again, had rest for a while after riding for around 300 kms, then had lunch. We left Shimoga by around 1 and took the thirtahalli-nagara route. It was almost 4 by the time we reached Sampekatte, Nagodi village. There'll be many jeeps waiting there to take you to the hill top. There is a jeep route till the IB. They charge 1000 bucks for one way journey, no matter how many of you are there.

We then decided that if a jeep can go in that road, bikes can definitely go, and then started our race against time to reach the top before the sunset.

It was the worst motorable road one can ever imagine. We were regretting our decision to take the bikes, within 10 mins. Many sharp rocks were pointing out from the ground and there were too many potholes, big rocks, etc, all in the middle of the road. The pillion rider always had to get down and trek. So it was like a trekking experience to me. It took us around 2 hours to reach the hill top. As soon as we reached the IB, we had to run towards sarvagna peeta, the topmost point in Kodachadri, to see the sunset. And we had won the race against time!

We spent some time there relaxing and taking snaps. After 7, we started to trek down. It was totally dark and we couldnt see anything around us properly. We had to walk using our mobile lights only, and as you would've guessed, we lost our way! We were lost somewhere and it took us around half an hour to somehow find the right way and trek down. We hadn't booked a room in IB. So we went to Parameshwara Bhat's house, which was situated next to IB. He served us with a normal dinner, which we felt was highly delicious, since we were tired. The next day morning, we caught a glimpse of sunrise and left to sigandur. It was just the 2nd day of our week long trip!

Guidelines:

-This post is about going to Kodachadri in bikes, and I have also given the details of the starting places for the trek.

- The trek is supposed to be enjoyable if you come in the right season. You will be seeing 2-3 water falls in the trek route.

- Bikes get damaged usually inn the jeep road.Better have a tool kit and contact numbers before starting the ride.

- Tyres usually get punctured on the way, coz of too many rocks and sharp stones.

- Important contact numbers

Accomodation: IB - Mr. Rajendra - 092428 92299; 08185 290368
KK Parameshwara Bhat - 08185 295934

Routes :

Bangalore-Shimoga-Kodachadri-Sampekatte-Kodachadri

Final review :

Kodachadri is a must visit place for everyone from Karnataka atleast. Such a beautiful peak is worth visiting once atleast. This peak shot into fame after the movie GAALIPATA since the movie was shot here. The place is unforgettable if you give a visit just after the rainy season.

Amedikallu Trek and Anadka Falls

2010-12-27T04:02:00.000-08:00

About the place:

Amedikallu derives its name from two words, Aame(Tortoise in Kannada) and Dikkel(Tripod or Stove in Tulu).

Amedikallu is one of the prominent peaks in the Charmadi range of the western ghats. This peak is considered to be one of the toughest climb in Karnataka. The steep grasslands and paucity of water makes the trek ardrous. Amedikallu is around 350 kms from Bangalore. It is near the famous Dharmastala. To reach Amedikallu, one has to get down at Kokkada village, if traveling in a bus and then take one more bus to Shishila village. Shishila village is the place from where the trek starts. After reaching Kokkada, you can get autos or jeeps also to reach shishila. This is one of the best treks in Karnataka and takes around 6 hours to reach the peak, for a normal trekker.

Those who plan to go trek Amedikallu, usually call up a guy called Gopu Gokhale of Shishila village. You can get freshed up at his place and he packs lunch, arranges for guides, serve breakfast at a very nominal price. There are many bathrooms at his house just to serve the trekkers. He even arranges for vehicles to take you to the foothill, from where the climb starts.

The Journey:

The 7 of us (Me, Shrinath, Sandeep, Anoop, Satya, Ajay and Pramod) rented a Innova and left Bangalore on Friday night at around 12. By around 7 in the morning, we had reached Gopu Gokhale's house. There we had a nice breakfast. He had packed the lunch for us. Then by around 9.30, we had reached the starting point of the trek.

The Trek:

Day 1:

Just like most of the treks, initially we had to walk in a forest. It was getting steeper and flat also. We had to trek for around 3-4 kms in this forest. We learned that the water source is actually halfway up the hill. So we carried plenty of water with us. Each of us carried atleast 3-4 ltrs of water. We also had to carry the tent and sleeping bags with us. So we had a pretty heavy luggage also to carry with us. We found the trek pretty easy initially.

After trekking for around 2 hours, the forest trail ended and we could see the huge Amedikallu finally!

It was breathtaking and really inspiring. The thought that we will be at its peak by evening, thrilled us! Here we rested for a while, around 15 mins, chatting. Then started to climb Amedikallu finally! As you can see in the snap, there were no clouds at all and it was too sunny. We were getting drained out and wanted to have lunch badly. We came to know that the nearest water source is halfway up the hill and so started to climb. Our pace at this time was very slow. Even if we decided to rest under every tree we find, we couldn't spot any trees, since it was a grassland.

At around 12.30, we reached the water source. It was very difficult to collect water from there since it was already December and the streams were getting drained out. We started to climb up the stream searching for proper water and there, we had our lunch. We were so hungry that we finished off everything in 5 mins. There were other trekkers resting over there.

Post lunch, we were totally energetic all of a sudden ans started to climb at a very fast pace, overtaking other trekkers. After resting once after lunch, we almost never stopped till we reached the peak. It was getting cloudy at times and occasionally we could feel the cold breeze, which again inspired us to trek faster. Before reaching the peak, we had to enter one more forest. This stretch extended for 1-2 kms. After the forest, we had to trek for another 15-20 mins to finally reach the peak by around 3.15, and it was beautiful!

By the time we reached the top most point of the peak, it was getting dark because of the clouds. And this was one of the few places where we could enjoy a 360 degree view! It was breathtaking!

After spending some time at the top, we then decided to assemble the tents before it gets dark. In 10 minutes, we had managed to assemble them and the tents were up! It was the first ever time we were camping on the peak!

Then we started to play cards and chatting. The clouds started to cover the peak by then and it was getting cold and dark.

We then put up a camp fire, ate the chapatis with jam and some snacks and slept off. We were all tired and I could here the snores within minutes. A day well spent!

Day 2:

At around 4.30 in the morning, the strong winds made us to wake up immediately. Our tent was almost flying like a flag. The cover of the tent had fallen off already. When we came out, nobody could say it was a tent in which we slept!

I then went to the peak again, captured some snaps of the sunrise. We then packed the tents and the bags and started our trek downhill at 7.30 am. Ettina bhuja was the dominant of all the peaks that could be seen from the peak, along with ombattu gudda.

Ettina bhuja

We trekked down at a very fast pace, resting only twice throughout. It took us less than 3 hours to reach the starting point of the trek and we were there by 10.15 am.

We went to Gopu Gokhale's house again, had lunch, took bath and left in the afternoon. We then went to a temple at the same village. It was worth a visit.

From there, post-lunch, we went to Anadka Falls. It is a beautiful falls nearer to Kudremukh. From shishila, you need to go to Ujire, Kajur and there in the road, you can see the board. Its also called as Kudumagundi Falls. We had to trek for 4-5 kms one way to reach the falls. It was worth it in the end.

Guidelines:

- Carry sufficient water with you. There is only one water source throughout the trek.

- There is no need for a guide if you want to trek. Route can be easily found.

- There will be loads of leeches if you go in August, September, October or November.

- November, December and January is the best time to trek, post monsoon.

- Gopu Gokhale's contact numbers: Home- 08251269426 Mobile- 9483211246.

- Better call Gopu Gokhale before going, since he will arrange for jeeps also from Kokkada to Shishila.

Routes:

Bangalore - Sakleshpur - Shiradi Ghat - Kokkada - Shishila. (Can also take the Charmadi Ghat Route).

Final Review:

Amedikallu is not so popular but it is a paradise for trekkers. It may feel tough at times, but once you reach the peak, It's worth it.

Kumara Parvatha a.k.a Pushpagiri Trek

2010-12-08T03:19:00.000-08:00

The Journey:

So, which is the toughest mountain to climb in Karnataka? If you ask any regular trekkers, the answer would be Kumaraparvatha. And we planned a trek finally to go there.

Kumara Parvatha is a mountain located in Subramanya village of Sullia taluk, Karnataka. It is 290 kms away from Bangalore. The village is known for the Hindu Kukke Subramanya Temple. In spite of being a small village, it is a well-known shrine, and draws large number of devotees throughout the year. The peak is at a height of about 1712m, and is about 13-14 km from the temple. This mountain is on the border between Dakshina Kannada and Kodagu districts, so the lights of Somwarpet town in Kodagu can be seen from the peak.

Kukke-Subramanya, a small town on the Bangalore - Mangalore national highway about 230 km from Bangalore is the starting point for this trek. This place is well known for a huge temple dedicated to the Snake God. Snakes, especially King Cobras, are abundant in the dense forests covering this region of western ghats.

There is one more route from which you can start the trek. Its from Somwarpet. It is the easiest route to reach the peak directly.

October - January would be the best season to trek KP.

The 7 of us (Me, Shashank, Rohith, Ranjit, Karthik, Karthikeya and Divya) left Bangalore on Friday night in a KSRTC Rajahamsa bus. There are many buses to Kukke Subramanya. But if you want to go there, better book the tickets atleast 3 days before itself since many trekkers go from Bangalore every weekend and it will be hard to get seats.

Day 1:

We reached Kukke Subramanya at around 5 in the morning and took 2 rooms to get freshed up. At around 6.30 we went to the famous temple over there and then had breakfast at the Neo Mysore Cafe situated at the temple street. And with our luggage and a mattress, we started the trek at around 8.30.

In the first stage of this trek, you need to go in a flat road for half a kilometer. Then there is a board and you need to take a left over there to go to KP. So we entered this dense forest at around 8.30, which always looks inclined at 40-50 degrees. Its pretty hard to climb the entire peak in a day. So our plan was to trek till BHATRU MANE, which is 6km from Kukke Subramanya, stay there overnight and then trek to the peak the next day.

Accordingly, we trekked in the forest meeting many fellow trekkers. Some of them gave us Glucose and also Pineapples! The first water source we got was a stream after 2-3 kms. Here you can rest for sometime, play in water (only in rainy season). Since we went in December, water was getting dried up.

From this stream, we continued our trek again. Carrying the luggage and checking for leeches at the same time was tiring. But after trekking continuously, taking breaks every 15 mins, we could finally see the mountains we were about to trek!

The twin peaks, Marigundi and Shesha Parvatha were looking beautiful. We came to know that after crossing these two peaks, we can reach the Kumara Parvatha. And from this point, Bhatru mane was just 5-10 mins away. It took us around 3-4 hours to reach Bhatru mane, since we rested much and chatted more during the trekking, enjoying it and taking too many snaps. It was around 12.30 by the time we reached Bhatru mane. We had called up before, so the lunch was ready. After lunch we realized the importance of Bhatru mane in the middle of nowhere. If it wasn't there, we'd have to carry our luggage all the time and also we'd have to carry more food and water with us.

Finally we rested there, taking a well deserved nap after lunch till 5. Then we left to the sunset point to see the beautiful sunset. Clicked numerous snaps and sat there itself till 7.30 or so, enjoying the weekend getaway.

By the time we went back to Bhatru mane, the dinner was almost ready. We ate like predators and slept off, planning for the next day. Even if you plan to stay at Bhatru mane, you need to carry mattress, blankets by yourself, since he doesn't provide any of it.

Day 2:

Breakfast will be ready exactly at 7.30 in Bhatru mane. So, we woke up at 6 itself and went again to sunset point once before the breakfast just to see the scenery over there. We could see the clouds below us and knew it was going to be a great day.

. After breakfast, we now had to trek for 7-8 more kms to reach the peak. But we didn't have to carry the luggage this time, thanks to Mr.Bhat! We then came across a forest office, where we had to pay Rs.115 per head as a trekking fee to the Pushpagiri Wild Life Sanctuary. But since it is India, we paid Rs.400 overall for 7 of us, and went on, without the receipt. We then entered the breezy grasslands. Wind was blowing continuously, which made it a pleasant trekking experience.

After trekking for 2 more kms, we reached the Kallu Mantapa. This is the place where many trekkers camp overnight since it also has a water source nearby.

From here, the route got steeper and steeper. Just follow the arrow marks everywhere in this grassland and you will never get lost.

After trekking for another hour, we reached the twin peaks, Marigundi and Shesha Parvatha. The view from there was breathtaking. We even felt like sitting there itself enjoying the view forever.

From Shesha Parvatha, we had to enter one more forest and trek downhill for sometime. We were enjoying every moment of the trek taking photos of every blade of grass we came across. Then we had to go uphill once again to reach Kumara Parvatha. The best part being there were no leeches in this forest. We came across a very small stream which was all dried up since it was already December.

People usually camp overnight in this forest also since it has a water source. But people. if you plan to camp over there, please throw the plastic bottles and all other wastes only in the dustbins. Else carry it back with you. Don't spoil the beauty of the nature.

Finally, after 3.5 hours of trekking and resting, we reached the peak at around 11.45. Make sure to carry enough water and food with you, since nothing will be available after Bhatru mane. We spent some time at the peak exploring it, taking snaps and finishing off the biscuit packets.

We then started the downhill trek at around 12.15, at a faster pace and rarely resting. It took us around 2- 2.5 hours to go back till Bhatru mane and had a timely lunch, again thanks to Mr.Bhat! We finally packed up all our bags and started to trek towards Kukke Subramanya. We trekked down the 6 kms from Bhatru mane to Kukke Subramanya in 2 hours.

Our bus was at 8.45. So we then went to the Kumara Krupa hotel and had dinner. What we felt was, Kumara Krupa was the best hotel in Kukke Subramanya. We then got into the bus and reached Bangalore at 4.30 in the morning, all tired!

Some more snaps from the trip :

Guidelines :

- If you want to go trekking to Kumara Parvatha and camp on the peak, trekking from Somwarpet would be the nearer and easier route. The distance is only 6-7 kms from there to the peak.

- However, if you want to trek in the toughest route and want to cherish it, trek from Kukke Subramanya.

- There're frequent buses to Kukke Subramanya from the major cities. So transportation is not a problem.

- There will be leeches, snakes and mosquitos in the forests. So come prepared.

- Carry a 2 ltr water bottle with you, per head since water sources are pretty less and all gets dried up after November.

- If you want to have food or to stay at Bhatru mane, you can do so by calling him in advance. His phone numbers are +919448647947 and +919480230191.

- The major camping sites are, The Kallu Mantapa, The forest after Shesha Parvatha and The Kumara Parvatha Peak.

- Follow the arrow marks everywhere not to get lost.

Routes :

Bangalore - Kukke Subramanya - Bhatru Mane - Sunset Point - Forest Office - Kallu Mantapa - Shesha Parvatha - Kumara Parvatha.

Final Review :

Kumara Parvatha is also known as Pushpagiri, is a home for snakes and scenic beauty. This is supposed to be the toughest trek in Karnataka. Those who don't like to trek also will get transformed, once they successfully trek this one. And this peak must be trekked atleast once in your life, which is far from pollution and full of greenery.

Agumbe Trek- Barkana falls, Koodlutheertha falls, Onake Abbi falls, Kundadri

2010-11-16T02:11:00.000-08:00

The Journey:

After exploring many places in south India, we realized that we have been to many distant places but yet to explore the nearer one - Agumbe, the home for wild animals and snakes. So we planned for this trip. This time also we went in bikes itself.

From Bangalore, we left to Shimoga at 1 in the midnight. After having coffee at the 24 hours Cafe Coffee Day in Tumkur, we reached Shimoga in the morning. We went straight to my home, which is in Shimoga itself. Since it was diwali, I couldn't join my friends on the first day of the trip. I had to stay at home to celebrate the festival.

Day 1:
So my friends carried on without me on the first day. They went to Agumbe first. Agumbe is a small village which is known as the "Chirapunji of the South". It is one of the places which receives the heaviest rainfall in south India. It is also famous for the serial "Malgudi Days". Those who have seen that will never forget this village.
After reaching Agumbe and inquiring about the places to visit, my friends Anoop and Sandeep decided to go to a place called Jogigundi Falls.

Jogigundi falls is not very huge. From Agumbe, you need to take a right in the Sringeri road and then walk for 2-3 kms to reach this place. The place was full of leeches. Even though it is very small, it is a very nice place to swim. You will enjoy here for sure. After playing in water for sometime, they went to Hotel Ganesh in Agumbe, had lunch and then went to Kundadri on the way back to Shimoga. I will give more description about Kundadri later.

Day 2:
On the 2nd day of the trip, four of us again went to Agumbe from Shimoga in two 180cc Pulsars. On the way to Agumbe, we visited Mandagadde bird sanctuary, which was haunted except for a very few bird species. One more friend, Sharat joined us in Agumbe in his Thunderbird. We then decided to go to Barkana falls first. After inquiring about the place, we parked our bikes at a small house at malandur village and started our trek. The villagers warned us that there is no proper path leading to the falls due to the rains and the path is almost closed. We still decided to go there, thinking that we will reach the falls whatever it takes.
And the villagers were right! We had to jump over some trees, cross streams, bend over and walk, fight leeches, etc etc to finally reach the Barkana viewpoint.

Barkana viewpoint is a place from where you can see the Barkana falls from a distance covered with dense rain forests of Agumbe. It is such a calm place to relax, enjoying a tremendous view and the beauty of the nature. We came to know that to reach the falls, we had to trek for 6-7 more kms. We had already trekked 2-3 kms and there was a huge probability of us getting lost in the forest without a guide, if we decided to carry on. So we had to drop the idea of trekking till the falls and decided to go back for now and cover it the next time we come to Agumbe.

On the way back to Agumbe, we were lucky to spot a green snake and took numerous snaps of it.

We then returned to the Agumbe village and had lunch, talking and inquiring about the next place, Koodlu Theertha falls (or Koodlu Falls). We spent some time at the sunset point in Agumbe and then went down the ghat section to Someshwar. We had to take a left turn from the main road and go for 9-10 kms to reach the parking lot. If you go in a 4 - wheeler, you have to park your vehicle there itself. Since we went in bikes, we could go in a very small mud road full of rocks and potholes for 3 more kms and we had to trek for 3 kms in a deep forest to reach the falls. Again this route was full of leeches and every single minute we had to stop and check for leeches. All the way we could hear the sound of the stream flowing parallel to us. Once we reached the falls, our mouths were left open for atleast 4-5 minutes. Such was the beauty of the falls.

It was one of the best water falls I had ever been to, undoubtedly. We could go till the base of the falls easily. We spent nearly 1-2 hours playing in the water here. It was getting dark. So we decided to leave. And wew again lucky to spot a huge scorpion!

We were going to stay at Sharat's place, which was nearer to Someshwara. It started to rain heavily on our way to his home. All of us got totally wet, but couldn't help it.

Day 3:
After having breakfast, we left to Onake Abbi falls, after washing the bikes. Sadly, I couldn't trek to this place. I had applied strong limestone to my foot to avoid leeches. Since it was very concentrated, my foot got burnt and i got many cuts in my legs because of the sandals. So I could barely walk on the third day. I had to stay back at a hotel, while others went to the falls.

To go to Onake Abbi falls, they had to trek for 3-4 kms from Agumbe in a forest again, and full of leeches again. After trekking, they reached the tip of the falls. From what they told me, it was an amazing place. You can go till the tip of the falls and then bend down to see the falls and the long stream created by it. The whole place was full of greenery and medicinal plants and there are steps till the tip of the falls.

This was also one of the beautiful waterfalls which many people don't know about. Post lunch, we then went to Kundadri.

Kundadri is a huge hill which has a Jain temple at its peak. We could go in bikes itself till the top. After asking about the history of the place, We stayed there for sometime to enjoy the tremendous view from the top.

From here, we went to Shimoga back and stayed at my place.

Day 4:
On the 4th and the final day, we rode back to Bangalore from Shimoga and it was the end of our trip.

Routes :
Bangalore - Tumkur - Shimoga - Thirtahalli - Agumbe.

Final Review :
Agumbe is a must visit place for those who love to trek in forests. Many say the area is Naxal affected. But it is worth the risk and we found no signs of naxals throughout the trip. It is home to many wild animals and snakes. For those who love photography also, it is a must visit place and it is not at all expensive. There is a direct bus from Bangalore to Agumbe everyday for those who want to come in a bus. Home stays are available in Agumbe if you ask there properly. The people of the village are also very friendly. There are some more places like Narasimha Parvatha, base of onake abbi falls and barkana falls, which we plan to cover the next time.

Ooty, Coonoor, Gopalswami Betta

2010-07-25T09:23:00.000-07:00

The Journey :
Ooty aka Udagaai aka Udakamandalam aka Ootachamund is a very well known place in South India. It is a very famous hill station which is always covered in clouds. Coonoor is another famous location very near to ooty. Also famous for mindblowing viewpoints.

Our journey started from Bangalore in June at 3 am in the morning. 4 of us started to travel in 2 bikes. One pulsar 200 and one pulsar 220. We had to travel in the Mysore road towards Mysore. By 4.30 in the morning, we had reached a Barista lavazza cafe near Channapatna which is around 60 kms from Bangalore. We were so hungry and ate and drank very well there itself and left at around 5.15 to Mysore. We rode continuously till Mysore and reached there by 6.50. There is a small hotel called Hotel Mylari in nazarbad in Mysore. If you are a Masala Dosa lover, you cant get a dosa better than in Mylari hotel anywhere in Karnataka!

From Mysore, we then left to Bandipur. Bandipur national park is a dense forest area where vehicles are not allowed after evening and before sunrise. We spotted some deers on the way and crossed the Karnataka border and entered Tamilnadu's Madumalai national park. Tigers can be spotted in these areas if you are lucky enough. We could only spot some wild elephants as we neared Masinagudi. Masinagudi needs to be mentioned once. It is a home to many wild animals. You can always spot wild elephants and people always spot tigers in this area. You can go to a trekking or a jungle safari also from the forest office here.

For two wheelers and cars there's a short cut to ooty after crossing madumalai in which you can save 40-50 kms. the buses go in the long route. We then crossed the ghat section and entered Ooty finally. It was all covered in clouds throughout the day. The feeling of staying inside the clouds and fully covered by them are unexplainable!

The main season in ooty is from April to June. When we went, it was heavily raining in the morning and in the night. We stayed at the Maneck lodge near bus stand. Prices aren't very cheap. if you want a cheaper option then dormitories will also be available. After resting for a while in the lodge and getting freshed up, it was almost evening.

The first place we went to in Ooty was the famous Botanical Garden. It is a very huge garden with too many trees, flowers, lanes, etc and girls will mostly enjoy it. It is a rather nice and calm place to have a long walk and sit on the grass.It is a place which can't be missed at Ooty. There is a tibetian market right outside the botanical garden where you can purchase nice winter clothing and accessories. Hot corn, groundnuts, etc etc will also be available.

The street in front of the garden is a main road in Ooty which comprises of Cafe Coffee Day, Arun Ice creams, A pub, a shopping street, good chocolate shops, etc. Then we went to the lodge again and watched the inaugural match of the FIFA world cup 2010.

The next morning, we had planned to start early and go to coonoor. But our plans got spoiled by the early rain in the morning itself. SO we started late and went to Coonoor even though it was drizzling.

The road to coonoor from ooty comprises of many tea and coffee estates throughout. Its a biker's paradise one can say, to ride inside the clouds and the beauty of the nature.

After drinking a superb masala tea, we entered coonoor. Coonoor is famous for the toy train between Ooty and Coonoor where you can get to enjoy the beauty of western ghats. The famous song "Chaiyya Chaiyya" from Shah Rukh Khan's movie Dil Se, was shot here. The first place we went to, in Coonoor was the Lamb's rock. Lamb's rock is a place where you get to see a beautiful valley view from a rock. But when we went there, we could see nothing but clouds and the tip of a mountain!

From lamb's rock, we went to dolphin's nose, which is one more view point. Disappointingly, it was also completely covered in clouds and we couldn't see a thing there also. But dolphin's nose is supposed to be too good i heard. Since the whole Coonoor was covered in clouds, we left coonoor and came back to Ooty to have lunch.

In the afternoon, we went to the Doddabetta in Ooty, which is the tallest peak in Tamil Nadu. And as we knew before, this was also totally covered in clouds. But I had gone to Ooty once two years ago during summer. So i had seen the beautiful telescopic view before only. We just couldn't see it this time though. Doddabetta is a very enjoyable place. It has two view points. Because of the weather again, we went back to the lodge directly, planning to cover some more places the next day.

And the next day also started with a rain. We had planned to go to the Pykara falls and Kalhatty falls on the way back to Mysore. But it was raining and very cold. So we decided to skip them both. I had been to Pykara falls also 2 years ago and if it isn't raining, then don't miss this place. There is also a good boat house in Ooty worth going.

So we left Ooty finally and came to the Gopalswami Betta(hills), which is near Bannerghatta. It has a beautiful temple and is known for getting covered in clouds all the time. And again, it was so totally covered in clouds that we couldn't even see the person standing 10m from us. Visibility was definitely restricted to 10m. If you go in proper seasons and in the early morning, you can definitely spot elephants here. You can go for a trek in the hills here and cross around 8-9 small hills. It is an awesome experience only if you go in the proper season. You can see yourself covered in the green grass and clouds everywhere.

Finally from the gopalswami betta, we went to Bangalore, witnessing an accident involving a bike on the way!

Routes:
Bangalore - Mysore - Bannerghatta - Masinagudi - Ooty - Coonoor - Ooty - Masinagudi - Bannerghatta - Gopalswami hills - Mysore - Bangalore

Final Review:
Ooty, very well known for its beauty, coffee, tea, chocolates, hills is a must visit place. Don't forget to carry jackets and sweaters while going. Lodges are pretty expensive unless you search for a cheaper one. The place is mostly filled by tourist couples everywhere. Coonoor is also a must visit place once you go till Ooty. Its a very good weekend getaway for those who are in Bangalore or Mysore.

Mahabalipuram / Mamallapuram, Vandalur, Kalpakkam, Kovalam, Vellore

2010-05-09T04:20:00.000-07:00

The Journey :
Mahabalipuram is situated in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is a place with great historic significance. It has many monuments and a beautiful Shore temple. It has been renamed as Mamallapuram.
We went to Mahabalipuram from Pondicherry on bikes. As mentioned in my previous post, we had come to Pondicherry from Bangalore on bikes. Mahabalipuram is around 100 kms far from Pondicherry but it seems just 50 kms or so coz of the East Coast Road (ECR). ECR is one of the best roads in India and it runs parallel to many beaches. You can get beautiful views of the Bay of Bengal from the road itself.

On the way to Mahabalipuram from Pondicherry, comes a small village called Kalpakkam, 4 kms away from ECR to the right. The beach at Kalpakkam is too good and it is also famous. There won't be too many people which makes it more awesome! We played there for an hour or so and then left to Mamallapuram.

Once we entered Mahabalipuram, we started searching for a lodge. But all neat lodges were very costly. Finally we found a lodge in the ECR fr just 600 bucks. We then got freshed up, and went to the beach in the night. There were hardly any people in the beach. Sat there for sometime watching the moon and went to have dinner. Our day ended then. The next day morning, we went to the beach again to see the sunrise early morning. But coz of our bad luck, it was cloudy. But still we managed to get some mindblowing snaps there and then went to the Shore temple located next to the beach. It is an old and famous temple which is seen in many videos.

From there we went to the Five Rathas, a place where Five Chariots are made of stone. All the five chariots are pretty huge and it is a wonderful work of art.

The most important place in Mahabalipuram is a park situated in the city itself near the bus stand which contains too many monuments to name here. Arjuna's Penance, A light house, Krishna's Big Butter Rock to name a few. It takes around 2-3 hours to watch everything in that park in detail. A good long walk in the end, worth it.

There is nothing else in Mahabalipuram other than the beach and these monuments and temples. Then we continued our journey in the ECR towards Chennai. After traveling around 5-6 kms from Mamallapuram, you can visit Tiger Cave. A big rock on which some tigers have been carved, and it is not somewhere in the forest, as we had expected.

Then we went to the Kovalam beach, which is worth watching for around 30 minutes, maximum. We couldn't figure out why it was famous. But still waves hitting the big rocks in the beach was worth watching.

From there, we went to the Arignar Anna Zoological Park, at Vandalur. You have to take a left from the ECR to go there. Better keep on asking people the routes regularly before missing out on it, if you plan to go there.

The Vandalur Zoo is the Largest Zoo in South Asia. It takes atleast 3 hours if you walk everywhere in the Zoo to see all the animals. There is also a Lion Safari if you want to see Lions. If you cant walk 4-5 kms, then better take the electric vehicles in the beginning itself. Cycles are also available for rent there. Almost all the animals you can think of, are there in the Zoo. You will be definitely tired in the end after walking in the entire Zoo.

Since we had to head back to Bangalore, we went to Vellore on the way, after having luch at ChangalPet. I don't know how many of you know this, but there is a golden temple at Vellore. Its an amazing sight to see the temple. You can't stop praising it till you come out. Its a wonderful temple and one of the best. A must see place. If you plan to go in the general queue in the temple, it takes nearly 2-3 hours at least since people come from all over India just to see that place. So better take a 100 Rs. ticket, as we did. You can skip the general queue and go the special queue. But still it takes at least an hour in the special queue also. You will walk the entire perimeter of the temple and watch it from all the angles.

The 4-lane Chennai - Bangalore Highway helped us travel at more than 80 kmph avg. speed and reach Bangalore at around midnight safely!

Routes :
Bangalore - Pondicherry - Mamallapuram - Vandalur - ChangalPet - Vellore - Krishnagiri _ Bangalore.

Final Review :
Mamallapuram is a good place to visit. If you plan to go to a 2-3 day trip from Bangalore, better go to a Pondicherry, Mamallapuram trip covering all the places I said. It took us 3 days to cover all the interesting places in Pondicherry, Mahabalipuram, Vellore, Vandalur, Kalpakkam, Kovalam. Vellore temple is near to Bangalore and you can go there for a day out also. You must go to Mahabalipuram at least once to see the brilliance of the sculptures and the art there. Cheers!

Ratings :
Mahabalipuram Beach - 4/5
Shore Temple - 3.5/5
The park containing all the monuments - 4/5
Kovalam Beach - 3/5
Kalpakkam Beach - 4/5
Vandalur Zoo - 4/5
Vellore Golden Temple - 5/5!

Pondicherry , Gingee Fort, Tiruvannamalai.

2010-05-07T21:49:00.000-07:00

The Journey :

Pondicherry, which is around 300 kms from Bangalore, is the nearest beach to Bangalore. We were getting bored coz of the weekend and wanted to go somewhere on bikes . We decided to go to Pondicherry for the first time. 4 of us started our journey in a Thunderbird and Pulsar 180. We left at 4.30 in the morning, which proved to be a perfect time to start the trip. Better to eat some biscuits or bread before leaving, since the nearest clean hotel you get will be at Uttangarai, which is nearly 150-180 kms from Bangalore. After having a good breakfast, we went to Tiruvannamalai. The temple at Tiruvannamalai is huge and wonderful. Its a must visit place on the way to Pondicherry.

From Tiruvannamalai, you need to go in the Tindivanam road. In the Tiruvannamalai-Tindivanam road, somewhere around 40-50 kms from Tiruvannamalai, comes a place called Gingee fort. Many haven't heard of the Gingee fort. But it was called as the "Troy of India". It is an amazing fort, which covers 4-5 hills. The wall of the fort covers the 3 mountains which you can see from the road itself. To go on top of the fort, you need to climb some steps. Takes around 20 mins to go to the top. We got a very good feeling after going to the top that it was worth it. Spent some time there resting and chatting.

From Gingee fort, we went to Pondicherry riding continuously, only stopping once to drink coconut water. Especially in summer, you need to carry water bottles with you since nothing is available at Gingee fort. So better buy whatever you want to, at Tiruvannamalai itself, or wait till Tindivanam.

Right after entering Pondicherry, we started our hunt for the lodge. Of course there were too many lodges in Pondicherry. But many of them were too costly, which we couldn't afford being students. If you're going with your family, then you can afford it. We found a cheaper lodge with 5 beds in the room which cost us Rs.750/- per day.

After getting freshed up, we had our lunch at Hotel Karthik, which is pretty clean. Then we left off to Chunnambar boat house. You can go speedboating, pedal boating, etc etc in that boat house but the Island trip is the best one. They charge 75 bucks per head to take us to an island trip on a boat, which is worth every penny. They'll take us to a beach called Paradise Beach in the trip and leave us there. It is a beautiful small island in which the chunnambar river meets the Bay of Bengal. Its one of the cleanest beaches in India and the best. Its very clean coz not too many people come there. Only means to come there is by a boat.

There is also a volleyball court in the beach. So carry a volleyball to play the beach volleyball for fun. Cool drinks are available at the island itself. The island closes at 5pm. So better go in the morning itself to have more fun. The water is also very clean in this beach. Its so blue!

From the Paradise beach, we went back to Pondicherry. Took a bath again and took off to the Beach Road. The Pondicherry Beach Road is one of its kind. It is closed to vehicles from evening 5 to 10. Many people come here just to walk on the road parallel to the sea shore, with the wind blowing smoothly and pleasantly, listening to the sound of the waves. It was an unforgettable walk. We spent as much of the time as we could, there. From there, we roamed in the city till midnight. It isn't as happening as Goa. Everything closes around 11-11.30 itself.

We enjoyed our time sitting at the beautiful moonlit beach and had a very pleasant time.

The next day morning, we woke up at 5, excited to see the sunrise in the beach. But surprisingly, the weather changed drastically and it was raining right from the early morning.! The previous day, temperature was around 40 degrees and now all of a sudden it started to rain, spoiling our chance to see a sunrise. At around 9 am, we went to the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. It is a very quiet place. Nobody speaks loudly in the entire ashram. If you want to meditate for hours or days, go there. You will definitely forget all your worldly tensions once you go to the ashram and spend some time there. You can also visit Sri Aurobindo's grave in the ashram.

Next we went to the Auroville, which was a famous spot. We didn't know why it was famous and why so many people go there. In the Auroville, they made us to watch a 10 min video regarding the details of a structure called Matrimandir. The video was so inspiring. It took them 35 years to construct this Matrimandir, which is a place to meditate. You can watch it just from outside. To go inside the Matrimandir, you need to register two days before itself. So we just watched it from outside and got amazed!

From Auroville, we went to the last destination in Pondicherry, The Auro Beach. It is a famous beach in Pondicherry and will be quite crowded always. It is a very good beach to have fun for sometime, but the beach is not clean since too many people come there to visit.

That was the last place in Pondicherry we visited and from there we took off to Mahabalipuram/Mamallapuram, in the famed East Coast Road(ECR).

Routes :

Bangalore - Krishnagiri - Uttangarai - Tiruvannamalai - Gingee Fort - Tindivanam - Villupuram - Pondicherry

Final Review :

Pondicherry is a very good place to go out on a weekend. Away from our day to day life.

Beaches are also very good. Don't miss Gingee fort and Tiruvannamalai on the way.

There are also some temples, churches, museums, parks in Pondicherry if you want to spend more time there. Also don't miss a walk in the beach road in the night.

Rating :

Gingee Fort - 3.5/5

Tiruvannamalai Temple - 3.5/5

Chunnambar Boat House - Paradise Beach - 4.5/5

Auroville - 4/5

Sri Aurobindo Ashram - 3/5

Beach Road aka Pondicherry Sea Shore- 4/5

Auro Beach - 3/5