We had a terrific weekend. The road trip to Coorg had been eluding us for 3 years now. So we decided to "just do it" this weekend. Vivek, Pravin and I drove in our BB (Black Baleno) to Coorg. This trip required meticulous planning. It is difficult to decide when you have too many choices and the freedom to choose. Coorg and the surrounding areas on the banks of Cauvery offer myriads of picnic spots/weekend getaways such as Kabini, Nagarhole, Nisargadhama, Bylakuppe, Bandipur, Madikeri. But they were all booked 2 months in advance. After numerous calls to resorts in these places, all we could manage was 2 rooms in a shady hotel (well not literally) in Kushalnagar. Outlook Traveller came to my rescue. This book priced at Rs.250 is a steal and provides all the information one needs to plan the trip like where to say, when to go, how to go and what to do!
We started at 9:00 a.m. Saturday morning to beat the traffic as we were warned that Bangalore-Mysore road is a disaster. And it proved to be. To get directions, we stopped frequently on the Mysore Road stretch enquiring to make sure we were on the highway to hell (sorry Mysore). It is very risky for the first 60 Kms from Bangalore. A 6 lane highway is under construction so only 2 lanes are functional for ongoing and returning traffic. Watch out for the drunk truck drivers, overtaking tempos. It was funny how cars sneak out of their lanes like a mouse (as pravin said) to see if there was space to overtake. Amazed by the number of speedbreakers on the Bangalore-Mysore-Coorg highway, we counted them on our way back. There were actually 93 of them in the 240 Km stretch.
Now time to crack some puzzle. What is it that links these pictures..the train, the rail tracks, a station and rocks!
Well well that was a no brainer. I took these series of pictures at Ramangaram (or Ramgarh), a small town located 40 Kms from Bangalore. The Hindi Classic Film Sholay (1975), famous for its dialogues such as "Kitne aadmi the re", and that made Gabbar Singh a household terror was shot in this hilly neighbourhood in 1975.
Our first stop was at a Coffee Day 60 Kms from Bangalore. It was such a relief to gulp down cold coffee and stretch our legs after 2 hours. A funny thing happened here. V wanted to have cold coffee and Pravin misinterpreted my "cappachillo" order for V as "Cappuccino" and presented V with a steaming hot coffee. The heat of the coffee combined with the temperature outside was evident on bull headed V's face that we dared not to talk to him for the next few minutes!
The driver from Maddur through Mandya and Srirangapatna was scenic. The road is flanked by pkush green fields on either sides. Our destination was Kushalnagar. To goto Coorg you nee dto take a diversion on the right after Srirangpatna. There is a "Orange County Resorts" board indicating the direction. Just follow that. Our next stop was at 2:00 p.m. for lunch. I had prepared a light lunch with the idea of having a mini picnic - food under a banyan tree by the side of a stream. There was no stream so we settled for a handpump under a banyan tree (This is what living in concrete jungles does to one). The feeling was heavenly and for whatever reasons Pravin and Vivek enjoyed my food. With 80 more Kms to go and an empty road ahead, we continued on our journey.
Part 2 and Part 3 of this journey to follow....