The intent was to wander about aimlessly during the weekend. As none of my friends had planned anything for the weekend I decided to kill the early morning’s somnolence by a long ride. I decided to start my ride at daybreak without any particular destination in mind.
It was 6.30 in the morning. I packed my knapsack with a pair of clothing and the book that actually inspired me for this ride, “Motorcycle Diaries” by Che Guevara. Che’s riding memorabilia not only inspired me for this ride but also gave me a purpose for all my rides since. A must read for all long distance riders.
Riding Solo for a long distance and that too without a definite destination in mind was something I had never done before. When I was finally out of Bangalore’s maddening traffic and on to the highway, I felt like an insect coming out of a cocoon successfully after a long wait. The countryside was amazingly calm or probably I felt so, when compared to the busy Bangalore suburbs.
I passed the tollgate on the highway towards Tumkur. NH4 was now almost complete after years of construction. It was a pleasure to ride on these roads. I stopped at a roadside hotel in Tumkur for breakfast. It was then I started to take out my map and plan out the day’s destination. There were two places that I short-listed, Sagar and Jog. Sagar was a town I had visited earlier and was pretty familiar with the township. But I had never stayed at Jog. I thought I would reach Sagar and then decide whether to continue to Jog or not.
With this in mind, I continued my ride towards Gubbi and Tiptur. I had been on this road during my earlier ride to Hosdurga and Kemmangundi. The locales are rusty and scenic. Roads here are good I must say compared to village roads elsewhere in Karnataka. I reached Sagar via Shimoga by 5.30 in the evening. My stomach was growling. I settled at a local restaurant and fed myself with dosas and vadas. A cup of coffee rejuvenated me. I decided to ride on to Jog as it was only about 30kms from Sagar but the catch was accommodation. I had to either return to Sagar or go to Kargal in case of non-availability of accommodation at Jog. It was dark by the time I covered half the distance to Jog and to add to the misery the battery was almost dead due to which the light was hardly sufficient. I had to execute the steep turns in the ghats very carefully. By the time I reached Jog it was 7PM. Then I started my hunt for accommodation. The care taker of Mayura Guest House was immediately ready to allot a booked room for me as the guys had not turned up for the day, but I was told that I to check out before noon the next day. A night’s walk by the Jog Falls was a ‘breezy’ experience. The falls at night looked like a strip of cloud at a distance. After spending some time by the falls, it was time for dinner.
The next day I was up quite early as I had planned to go down to the falls. It took me about 1 hour to go down the Jog. There was hardly any “Water Falls” at the time. But it was nice to trek down and up the huge trench. I was back in the room by 10 in the morning. I decided to check out and continue my ride.
It was time for some map work. There were several routes for me to take from Jog. I decided to ride to Agumbe Ghats and witness the famous sunset. The ride from Jog to Agumbe took me through the interiors of the rusty villages of Shimoga. The road from Hosnagara to Agumbe is an awesome experience. Forests accompany you for the better part of the distance. Thirtahalli is a town on the way to Agumbe. I was lucky to be there on the last day of Dashami as I was a spectator to an impressive Dussehra procession of Thirtahalli. It was a perfect showcase of the folklore of Karnataka. Tableaus, folk dances, street plays, local music, etc were all showcased.
Agumbe is equally famous for sunset and rainfall. Agumbe receives one of the highest rainfalls in a year in India. It was the right time when I reached Agumbe sunset point. There were scores of tourists already lined up to witness the sunset. I had to find a place to park my bike! It was like a huge congregation of people witnessing the coronation of a King. I could hear “oohs” and “ahs” from the crowd below. My exclamation at the sunset was no different though! It was dark by the time I decided to leave. The nearest place for accommodation was Shringeri.
Shringeri is a temple town and learning center for the Vedas. Shringeri is one of the four Maths in India consecrated by Sri Shankaracharya. The town is situated on the banks of river Tunga. I reached Shringeri by 7PM and checked into a hotel near the temple. It was time to go around the temple and the town. The Adi Shankar temple here is an ASI monument. The temple was embellished like a bride on the occasion of Navaratri. I was really lucky to be here on this day. A local fair near the temple was Malgudi’s fair personified. Crackling Giant Wheels, Girl with two heads, a donkey that’s a Soothsayer, variety of balloons, hawkers selling bangles, peppermints, etc, all these were as if the characters from Malgudi had taken refuge at this fair.
Amused by the day’s events I returned to my lodge to log my experiences of the day. I had to return to Bangalore the next day, but had no concrete plans on the route I had to take.
It was a Sunday, and Shringeri bustled with early morning activities owing to the influx of the devotees to the temple. My last day started with paying obeisance to Goddess Sharadambe and a photo at the temple premises.
There are two routes towards Bangalore from Shringeri. The shorter one is through Balehonnur and Chickmagalur. The longer one takes us through the Kudremukh, Kalasa, Mudigere, Sakleshpur and then Bangalore through NH48. I decided to take the longer route and I realised it wasn’t a wrong decision as the road was simply superb. The road winds through the Kudremukh reserve forest and you get to see really breathtaking views of the Kudremukh Range. A token with my vehicle number is given at the point of entry to the Kudremukh Range near Shringeri. One is supposed to present the same at the point of exit at the other end of the Range. Green mountains accompanied me throughout the ride inside the Kudremukh Range. But it was when I reached the Kudremukh iron ore extraction area that my heart sank. It was saddening and disgusting to see Mother Nature being ravaged to the extreme for the sake of satisfying man’s greed. Mountains were stripped and bludgeoned to extract Iron. The harm done to nature is irreparable. The view of Kudremukh iron extraction areas had a lasting effect on me. I decided to be proactive in trying to save the Kudremukh Range from being completely wiped out.
With a heavy heart I exited the Kudremukh Range and reached Kalasa. The Shiva temple here attracts devotees from all over the country. I met a family from Bangalore who had difficulty in believing that I had come all the way from Bangalore on a bike! I left them gaping at me when I kick-started my Bullet and started on my way to Sakleshpur.
When I reached the Highway at Sakleshpur I was in two minds to take the highway to Bangalore. As I had enough time to ride to other places I decided to cut across the Highway and ride to Arkalgud in Hassan district. I had memories of visiting this place when I was in school. But when I reached Arkalgud I was in for a surprise. Locals informed me that the Hemavathi Dam was just about 5kms from there. A teacher in a local high school accompanied me till Gorur where the dam is situated. Gorur is also the hometown of the famous Kannada writer Gorur Ramaswamy Iyengar. Incidentally, I had recently completed reading a collection of short stories written by him. Hemavathi Reservoir is one of the major dams in Karnataka. After my visit to the dam it was time to return to Bangalore.
It was around 4 in the evening when I quenched my hunger at a dhaba near Channarayapatna. Bangalore was 135Kms away. I reached home at around 7 in the evening.
My journey for three days that started as an aimless ride had taken me to numerous places around Karnataka, Something that I decided will be repeated. Nature is such an intoxicant that the more you experience it the more you want. A lifetime wouldn’t be sufficient to even glimpse the treasure called “India”. But I hope that some day I will be satisfied with whatever I have witnessed on this great land.
It was 6.30 in the morning. I packed my knapsack with a pair of clothing and the book that actually inspired me for this ride, “Motorcycle Diaries” by Che Guevara. Che’s riding memorabilia not only inspired me for this ride but also gave me a purpose for all my rides since. A must read for all long distance riders.
Riding Solo for a long distance and that too without a definite destination in mind was something I had never done before. When I was finally out of Bangalore’s maddening traffic and on to the highway, I felt like an insect coming out of a cocoon successfully after a long wait. The countryside was amazingly calm or probably I felt so, when compared to the busy Bangalore suburbs.
I passed the tollgate on the highway towards Tumkur. NH4 was now almost complete after years of construction. It was a pleasure to ride on these roads. I stopped at a roadside hotel in Tumkur for breakfast. It was then I started to take out my map and plan out the day’s destination. There were two places that I short-listed, Sagar and Jog. Sagar was a town I had visited earlier and was pretty familiar with the township. But I had never stayed at Jog. I thought I would reach Sagar and then decide whether to continue to Jog or not.
With this in mind, I continued my ride towards Gubbi and Tiptur. I had been on this road during my earlier ride to Hosdurga and Kemmangundi. The locales are rusty and scenic. Roads here are good I must say compared to village roads elsewhere in Karnataka. I reached Sagar via Shimoga by 5.30 in the evening. My stomach was growling. I settled at a local restaurant and fed myself with dosas and vadas. A cup of coffee rejuvenated me. I decided to ride on to Jog as it was only about 30kms from Sagar but the catch was accommodation. I had to either return to Sagar or go to Kargal in case of non-availability of accommodation at Jog. It was dark by the time I covered half the distance to Jog and to add to the misery the battery was almost dead due to which the light was hardly sufficient. I had to execute the steep turns in the ghats very carefully. By the time I reached Jog it was 7PM. Then I started my hunt for accommodation. The care taker of Mayura Guest House was immediately ready to allot a booked room for me as the guys had not turned up for the day, but I was told that I to check out before noon the next day. A night’s walk by the Jog Falls was a ‘breezy’ experience. The falls at night looked like a strip of cloud at a distance. After spending some time by the falls, it was time for dinner.
The next day I was up quite early as I had planned to go down to the falls. It took me about 1 hour to go down the Jog. There was hardly any “Water Falls” at the time. But it was nice to trek down and up the huge trench. I was back in the room by 10 in the morning. I decided to check out and continue my ride.
It was time for some map work. There were several routes for me to take from Jog. I decided to ride to Agumbe Ghats and witness the famous sunset. The ride from Jog to Agumbe took me through the interiors of the rusty villages of Shimoga. The road from Hosnagara to Agumbe is an awesome experience. Forests accompany you for the better part of the distance. Thirtahalli is a town on the way to Agumbe. I was lucky to be there on the last day of Dashami as I was a spectator to an impressive Dussehra procession of Thirtahalli. It was a perfect showcase of the folklore of Karnataka. Tableaus, folk dances, street plays, local music, etc were all showcased.
Agumbe is equally famous for sunset and rainfall. Agumbe receives one of the highest rainfalls in a year in India. It was the right time when I reached Agumbe sunset point. There were scores of tourists already lined up to witness the sunset. I had to find a place to park my bike! It was like a huge congregation of people witnessing the coronation of a King. I could hear “oohs” and “ahs” from the crowd below. My exclamation at the sunset was no different though! It was dark by the time I decided to leave. The nearest place for accommodation was Shringeri.
Shringeri is a temple town and learning center for the Vedas. Shringeri is one of the four Maths in India consecrated by Sri Shankaracharya. The town is situated on the banks of river Tunga. I reached Shringeri by 7PM and checked into a hotel near the temple. It was time to go around the temple and the town. The Adi Shankar temple here is an ASI monument. The temple was embellished like a bride on the occasion of Navaratri. I was really lucky to be here on this day. A local fair near the temple was Malgudi’s fair personified. Crackling Giant Wheels, Girl with two heads, a donkey that’s a Soothsayer, variety of balloons, hawkers selling bangles, peppermints, etc, all these were as if the characters from Malgudi had taken refuge at this fair.
Amused by the day’s events I returned to my lodge to log my experiences of the day. I had to return to Bangalore the next day, but had no concrete plans on the route I had to take.
It was a Sunday, and Shringeri bustled with early morning activities owing to the influx of the devotees to the temple. My last day started with paying obeisance to Goddess Sharadambe and a photo at the temple premises.
There are two routes towards Bangalore from Shringeri. The shorter one is through Balehonnur and Chickmagalur. The longer one takes us through the Kudremukh, Kalasa, Mudigere, Sakleshpur and then Bangalore through NH48. I decided to take the longer route and I realised it wasn’t a wrong decision as the road was simply superb. The road winds through the Kudremukh reserve forest and you get to see really breathtaking views of the Kudremukh Range. A token with my vehicle number is given at the point of entry to the Kudremukh Range near Shringeri. One is supposed to present the same at the point of exit at the other end of the Range. Green mountains accompanied me throughout the ride inside the Kudremukh Range. But it was when I reached the Kudremukh iron ore extraction area that my heart sank. It was saddening and disgusting to see Mother Nature being ravaged to the extreme for the sake of satisfying man’s greed. Mountains were stripped and bludgeoned to extract Iron. The harm done to nature is irreparable. The view of Kudremukh iron extraction areas had a lasting effect on me. I decided to be proactive in trying to save the Kudremukh Range from being completely wiped out.
With a heavy heart I exited the Kudremukh Range and reached Kalasa. The Shiva temple here attracts devotees from all over the country. I met a family from Bangalore who had difficulty in believing that I had come all the way from Bangalore on a bike! I left them gaping at me when I kick-started my Bullet and started on my way to Sakleshpur.
When I reached the Highway at Sakleshpur I was in two minds to take the highway to Bangalore. As I had enough time to ride to other places I decided to cut across the Highway and ride to Arkalgud in Hassan district. I had memories of visiting this place when I was in school. But when I reached Arkalgud I was in for a surprise. Locals informed me that the Hemavathi Dam was just about 5kms from there. A teacher in a local high school accompanied me till Gorur where the dam is situated. Gorur is also the hometown of the famous Kannada writer Gorur Ramaswamy Iyengar. Incidentally, I had recently completed reading a collection of short stories written by him. Hemavathi Reservoir is one of the major dams in Karnataka. After my visit to the dam it was time to return to Bangalore.
It was around 4 in the evening when I quenched my hunger at a dhaba near Channarayapatna. Bangalore was 135Kms away. I reached home at around 7 in the evening.
My journey for three days that started as an aimless ride had taken me to numerous places around Karnataka, Something that I decided will be repeated. Nature is such an intoxicant that the more you experience it the more you want. A lifetime wouldn’t be sufficient to even glimpse the treasure called “India”. But I hope that some day I will be satisfied with whatever I have witnessed on this great land.
Hey, I am checking this blog using the phone and this appears to be kind of odd. Thought you'd wish to know. This is a great write-up nevertheless, did not mess that up.
ReplyDelete- David