Thursday, April 29, 2010

The lone traveller

The lone traveler is all set to his conquer his long standing dream

Close to 600 Kms of pure biking
The highways, the patches, The ghats

No distance too long,
The conquest to conquer, too strong

To feel the wind is serene, biking alone is a dream

To branch out from the usual is hard, hope to reach far, far

To make it back home in safe and sound is a dream, hope to make it in sheen

Monday, April 12, 2010

Post4 . . . (Shimoga and Chikamagalur)

We Resume journey , Skip the lunch for the second day, yet no complaints , everyone seems to have got well on with the trip and as we cover places one by one, the tempo seems to just go higher and higher.

Bhadra Dam (lakvalli Dam)

The dam is huge, although the main walls stretches just over 200 M unlike KRS. This is primarily because the hills that surround the dam sort of create a natural wall and the dam. I must say u can only see water until u can see!!!

Kemmangundi. . . by 7 PM

We did manage to reach kemmangundi by the evening. The road that goes right from turuvekere is enjoyable although gets deteriorated by the time your around 8 kms to the top. The guest houses maintained by the horticultural department are decently maintained and economically priced. one wouldn't ask for an AC suite here primarily because you wouldn't want an AC on a hill Station
Soon The night gets very cold and we wrap up the day . Thick blankets are a must

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Post3. . . . (Chimoga and Chikamagalur)

Day 2 (Starts as early as 6 AM)

This has been my second visit to shringeri in the last one year, the previous one in October 09 was more to do with pilgrimage trip exclusively with grandparents.

The morning was beautiful with lot of mist all around adding to no visibility. The temple Campus is a serene place, The main deity sharadamba often in full splendor beautifully adorned in jewels is a treat to watch. The Vidyashankara temple next to the sharada temple is more simplistic but has beautiful carvings and is over 500 years old The zodiac pillars are an add on to its beauty. The tunga flows silently in true elegance on the banks of sringeri. One can see huge fishes here often well fed by devotees who visit the place. I would strongly Recommend Sringeri for people who are wanting to take a break and are looking more towards a spiritual treat.

Resume the journey..

Sirimane Falls . . ( Kigga Falls)

Need to take the road that leads to kudremukh, and deviate right towards Kigga. The vehicle density on roads here are <5 Vehicles every 10 mins.We spot some migratory birds with huge wings in the fields. Tried some stunts with capturing them on camera only to end up in vain as they flew immediately they see me.
The falls is less crowded, well maintained . Need to park the car at a place and walk down the stairs to reach the waters. mind you there is entry fees everywhere.
like a great man once said " There is no free meal"

Head Back to sringeri, Car needs break pads changed, get it done( I still haven come in terms with how lucky we were that the small workshop we went into had the original spares and the mechanic was a nice sweet guy, who just made sure he'd fix back the car in the right condition and double check it )

Head on towards Koppa

The best road and the most memorable one. Not a single pathole. taking on the every curves was totally effortless, thanks to the wide roads that were so well banked, i was really delighted to be driving on this stretch. I Felt like i was riding some cooper in NFS except that it was real this time , and i didn't have to race just sail.


kavishyla( Kuppalli)

The birth place of Rastrakavi Kuvempu , a true legend, someone whom every kannadiga who'd look upto with respect, or identify oneself with. Here a monument is erected by the govt. kuvempu would once sit hours together to go on write such beautiful works inspired by nature that surrounds this place. The house of Kuvempu has been converted into a museum. the house is huge, has a sloping roof made of mangalore tiles and has a pond in the center like all old houses do for rain water collection.
The furnitures and the other items used by kuvempu have been carefully preserved. The different awards and honours to the great poet are also on display, Some of the very old B/W pictures here leave you spellbounded.