You would be thinking by now - what does mi amor mean ?
Now - it was just another 65 kms to Chickmaglur. With lovely sign boards on the roads - says - " Karnataka - One State, Many Worlds " - we were eager to reach our destination. We got a beautiful stretch were we spotted a lake with windmills. Quick snaps & quick break.
I was pretty surprised to see that almost every village was connected to the main highway. And the NH206 simply rocked - i was belting on the highway. We did not spot many trucks on this route - but there was lot of tourist buses. Pretty hot by 2pm - Arsikere had a small stretch touching a lake. Reached Tumkur by 5:30 pm to halt for some chai n snacks. I was even faster once we got the NH4 to Bangalore - we took the Nice road to Banerghatta road. But the time we reached home - it was dark - 7PM.
It's from Spanish "mi love"
I have been to Chickmaglur a couple years back with some of my friends but i always wanted to do a bike ride and enjoy the beautiful scenery in the Coffee Plantations.
Initially, we had planned for Valparai - a small tiny Hill Station off Coimbatore. But due to non-availability of holidays, we decided to ride down on a weekend to Chickmaglur.
Plan
Our plan was to ride on the weekend - i.e. Saturday early morning. Reach Chickmaglur by 1PM. Take rest and see the nearby places.
Sunday - was more on leisure and have a easy ride to Bangalore.
Saturday (05th March.2011)
Bangalore>Magadi>Kunigal>Hassan>Chickmaglur : 260 Kms.
Places visited: Chickmaglur, Mullayanagiri, Maharaja's restaurant
We started at 7:20 AM, oh yes - since i had not touched my bike past 1 month. I initially had problems starting at the Shell petrol bunk. With a few 50 odd kicks - i finally had the engine running to start off.
Yeah - once again on the highway. Home to Magadi is one amazing route and thanks to Nice Road - one hell of a highway.No more Bangalore Traffic,,,Once we touched the main Highway (NH 48) - it was an easy ride.
I had done this route last year on the Ride to Rappa - so it was easy. Now, the roads were much better and it was one straight highway.
We stopped at Kunigal for Breakfast. Some cars caught my eyes on the roadside and i knew - it must be some famous Sukh/Shanthi Sagar (Dhaba) around. We belted with fresh Idli's n crispy Vada's and maseladaar chai. Wow - whatta a meal. Mind you - the breakfast was pretty costly here.
As we road further down - we could only spot a few cars on the highway. Once we reached Hassan - it was crazy traffic and wanted to get out of the city.
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| Enroute to Chickmaglur |
We were in Chickmaglur at 1PM. Gave a call to Ansar - owner of Nature Craft Homestay - he advised to have lunch at the Maharaja's.
I guess that was a good advice - the Mutton Biryani, Ghee rice with Mutton fry was simply awesome. My mouth still water's when i write this blog,,,,if you make a visit - dont miss the Maharaja's - the cuisine on Mughlai food rocks.
We soon headed for the Homestay which is 8kms off the main town.
Nature Craft Homestay - few words to describe this place. Amidst Coffee plantations n thick green vegetation, away from the City noise - tucked is a small Homestay. It was the place we imagined- Ansar's family, Soxy and the ambeince was simply superb.
Took a short nap post lunch and headed straight for Mullayanagiri. The ride to the top was one kick ass. It's one of the tallest peaks in Karnataka - so you can imagine !!!!. And you have to climb 450 steps to the temple. We had to reach base by 6 - as it gets dark, so we trekked fast to get a view. A 360 view of the entire landscape - this left us baffled. You could see far off - the Chickmaglur town and the Baba Budan Giri ranges. We got a few shots of the sunset and head back to base.
A few drinks, chicken biryani - it was worth a memorable day.
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| At Mullangiri ranges |
Sunday (06th March.2011)
Chickmaglur>Kemmangundi>Lingadahalli>Birur>Arsikere>Gubbi>Tumkur>Bangalore: 270 Kms.
Places visited: Kemmangundi,Kalhatti Falls
After breakfast, we soon left for Kemmengundi. Thanks to Ansar's advise and route map - The 40 Kms ride from Chickmaglur to Lingadahalli was one of the best scenic rides i would have done.
There was not a single place that was left empty - only Coffee Plantations - lush green. I had taken off my sun glasses to enjoy the ride,,,
Riding to Kemmengundi Top was fun. Here, it was slightly warmer. As we reached Kemmengundi Top - the view was spectacular. We spotted a few trekkers ,,,
Spent some valuable moments at the top. We soon headed down hill as we wanted to reach Bangalore before Sunset.
From Lingadahalli to Birur was an off beat road - dusty with pot holes. Once we got to the NH206 - roads were much better.
I was pretty surprised to see that almost every village was connected to the main highway. And the NH206 simply rocked - i was belting on the highway. We did not spot many trucks on this route - but there was lot of tourist buses. Pretty hot by 2pm - Arsikere had a small stretch touching a lake. Reached Tumkur by 5:30 pm to halt for some chai n snacks. I was even faster once we got the NH4 to Bangalore - we took the Nice road to Banerghatta road. But the time we reached home - it was dark - 7PM. We really enjoyed this trip and covered so many places. Thanks to "the Blue" my Bike - Electra. After an odometer count of 93K - it still rocks without any trouble.
Catch you soon on the highway >>>>
Cheers
Rajiv Jispa
(Member of Royal Beasts & RTMC)
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| Jispa-enroute to Chickmaglur |
