Chikmagalur …..Journey Begins ! Bhroooommmmmmm March 2, 2011

This is the trip which gave us the 1st insight into the bikes and photography.

Author – Abinash

If Bangalore-Mysore highway is bikers paradise I need to rethink abt my choice…..I would say this is a must for all the road lovers…..700kms -2days….. fabulous roads, sexy curves, dangerous dead ends, Silent jungles, scenic viewpoints, off road Mountain biking along wth this a good camera wth lots of pose & 6 not so gentlemen ….. Chikmagalur offers lot more……OOOmphians escapade Dare 2 dream stretch to excel………

As I vaguely remember, it was towards the end of march 2009 we planned 4 a mega trip….. Tapu took the initiative googled it and we zeroed it down for Chikmagalur. He even went 1 step ahead and arranged the much needed bike. Thanks 2 Jitu Bhai for lending his black beauty 2 us. So now we are 6 people and 3 bikes . Did the much needed bike checkup(a regular practice we follow before any trip) the previous day, fed it till the nose and at 3 AM Asit & me started from Egipura to Rammurthynagar signal(set 2 be the meeting point then).

Took the ring road, passing Yeshwantpur soon we were racing among the big goods truck on NH-4 heading towards Nelamangala. Each of us had a route map (shown above)to avoid any confusion . We turned left at Nelamangala reconfirmed the direction from a teal stall & raced ahead . Roads were newly constructed & were at very fine condition, only thing pulling us back was the chilly wind (quite unexpected at that time of the year).We were almost 100km away from Bangalore when we took our first break followed by poses for a few snaps under a big banyan tree.

Had tea and its time to switch the riders. Almost after a 30 minute drive it was time for Sun rise. We halted on the highway captured some wonderful pictures & marched ahead.

All 3 bikes were racing @> 100Km/hr. Mika & Abhishek(Bagha Chua) were leading the lot followed by Tapu & me then followed by Kiran & Asit. It was a perfect synchronization, the 1^st one giving indication of the speed breakers, pot holes ,turnings ahead & the later passing the same to the follower until a group of puppies along with their mother chose Karizma to attempt a suicide(somebody plz teach dogs the gnd rules 2 cross the road) . We were hardly 25-50mts away when Tapu applied break…shifted gears down…the bike skidded left & right refusing to halt……both the tires trapped in between the powerful brakes…..& finally to make matter worse the mother & co decided to fall back……to our luck the bike stopped couple of feet before the group……all happened in fraction of seconds & all I could remember was the smoke generated by the rear tire……I would say we got saved due to Tapu Babu’s presence of mind and the synchronization rule we followed in all our trips. Kiran and Asit were atleast 100mts away from us which allowed them enough time 2 react and halt else anything could have happened, they could have collided with us, our trip would have ended on a sad note .

We took a small break, reassured ourselves & changed the ground rules to drive in between 70-80 Km/hr and avoid such instances. Soon the bikes started cruising on the black beauty, admiring the amazing landscapes on both sides of the road. There were numerous halts & we posed again & again. Reached Chikmagalur in the noon, had lunch and set out for Mullayyanagiri (the 3^rd highest peak of south India). The road to the hill top is amazingly beautiful, one curve unfolding to another and narrowing down as we moved up. The scent of fresh air reenergizing us. The visibility got thinner and thinner as we moved to the top. The far mountains were covered with fog, But with whatever little I could see through the fog once in a while, it did seem like a beautiful place. Occasional holes in the blanket of moving fog revealed me a hill covered with thick tropical vegetation at its base and a silver-oak plantation near its grassy ridge. It seemed like there was a valley far below hidden in the fog. Not to forget the Shiva temple(jay Bhole Baba) on our way up.

We had an eventful day and retired 2 bed with dreams in eyes of another beautiful day.

Day2

The Road 2 Kemangundi was in the same direction as Mullayyanagiri. Just that we have 2 travel 58 kms more through dense forest, beautiful landscapes, with lush green carpets on both sides of the road. The place 1^st in our list was Habbey Falls. The road to Habbey falls is almost non-motarable & dangerous. People park there personal vehicles at the hill top and use the Commercial terrain vehicles like commander jeeps & Scorpios available for hiring. 1 or 2 trips a day is handy for the drivers for the rest of the day as they charge heavily for 1 trip(may be Rs 1200 per trip) But we had our own plans & we decided to reach there on our own. The drive through the terrain is extremely hostile . Visibility is hardly 100mtrs and the vehicle goes thru almost non-motarable places. Most of the stretch is rocky with slippery stones. We could see the Scorpios struggling.

Finally when you reach Habbey falls, you would realize why people take all this trouble. Its just magnificent, huge and worth all the pain. Water rolls down from a height of 168mts offering a spectacular view .We yelled in joy …..Every bit of the trip was fun & much beyond our expectation…..Chikmagalur had so much to offer………

Due 2 time constraints we skipped the Kalahati falls(122mts)& stepped our for the final frontier Kemangundi peaks. Kemangundi has some breath taking views of the Western Ghats. Valleys full of coffee plantation, orange, jackfruit, it really feels as if you are at a place where the nature is at its best. It was almost dusk when we reached our destination. Full of hunger, we managed to gallop some bread omelets & cold-drinks. We were satisfied and full but Chikmagalur hasn’t finished yet. The view from the Z point was breath taking.

We changed our plan to return back to Chikmagalur town but it was too late. The few cottages available for rent was all full. Dense jungle, no shelter and cold breeze made things worse for us. We decide to return to Chikmagalur through the Jungle. It was a Tiger Sanctuary(Bhadra wildlife sanctuary) & only thing we didn’t want was to meet one of them.

We were happy to reach the town safe and sound around 10:30 PM had our food at a restaurant (thank god for the only good meal of the day) and decided to return back to Bangalore so that we can reach before sunrise and take rest for the whole of Sunday. Had 1 stop in a CCD on our way and by 6 AM we were at Bangalore sleeping cozily at our beds.

Now that 2 years have passed Chikmagalur leaves me nostalgic about the good time we had……..

Please enjoy all the pics below!

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