approved.

Waiting eagerly for full travelogue..

Thank you SunilG for the approval.

Well here goes with more pics and writeup. It was decided that my friend and I would ride to Munnar and then do Munnar - Cochin and meet with another friend there and ride back to Coimbatore. My friend was on a borrowed FZ16 and I was on my 2004 Bullet 500. I had tried some mods on the Bullet and it now had the standard handlebar, a modified single seat without the springs from a classic 500 with just the Cramster Turtle magnetic tank bag which I had recently purchased along with a canvas rucksack secure with bungees for luggage. The 500 was now riding low and it was handling superbly although it was like riding a rigid frame bike with all the shocks from the bumpy road being transferred to the rider. The bike looked like a million bucks but I knew within a few hours into the ride that the single seat would have to go when we got back. We always ride with our helmets, I did not own a riding jacket at this point. I subsequently picked up the DSG Nero.

We were not riding against the clock and it was a totally relaxed ride. We set out early on Saturday and headed out via Pollachi - Udumalpet - Chinnar and rode through the forest checkpost, it was quite dry and there was hardly any shade, the ride was through a deserted stretch barring the occasional jeep. We stopped a couple of times to click some pictures and once for chai at a remote roadside tea shop. The road was almost like a single track and at points we had to go on to the shoulder to allow the oncoming jeeps to pass. The climate seemed to change drastically as soon as we neared Munnar with it becoming cloudy and drizzly while we we left blazing sunshine behind us. This gave me a chance to test out the raincover on the tankbag. I must say it worked well and kept all my stuff dry. We rode in to Munnar around noon accompanied by sporadic cloudbursts and landed up a friends place and left our stuff there. Our Munnar friend was at Canada and had kindly allowed us to shack up at his place having let the caretaker know we would be coming.

The town was filled with pilgrims out on procession and we moved at snails pace to find a place to grab some lunch. Finally we found a place that was not crowded and tanked up. I left the 500 behind to give my back some much needed respite and after lunch we headed out to Top Station as we heard there was viewpoint there. Now the roads in this part of Munnar were a biker's paradise with twisties, tea gardens on either side and picture postcard scenery all around. By now the rains had eased off and my friend was having a ball on the FZ throwing it around corners at seemingly breakneck speeds with full control. We have been riding together for over a decade now and I was fully comfortable with his style of riding and although it seemed terrifyingly fast he probably didn't do more than 80kph. Anyway we landed up at this picturesque lake and stopped to click some pictures and the ride put us in the mood for some bread and steaming hot masala omlettes that were available there. While eating we observed a lady trying her luck at target shooting with a seemingly out of focus air gun and hitting the mark everytime. It was quite obvious she had not held a gun before but she had freakishly good aim as no one else was able to hit the target. The guy running the stall grudgingly handed over stuffed toys to her when she was done. I joked with my friend that I wouldn't want to meet her when she was angry and had a gun in hand. We then headed out to Top station.

The rest of the ride was enjoyable and we reached Top Station and found out we had to park the bike and walk for a bit, this we did and reached a point where the trail just seemed to end. We then found that we had to climb down nearly a kilometer to the view point and this was by way of steps cut out of a dirt trail. We reached without any mishaps and took some pictures and the sheer grandeur of God's creation was so humbling and the silence and beauty of the setting brought a strange peace and thankfulness in our hearts. Truly grateful that we could be at that place and experience this beauty. We observered smoke on the mountain in the range opposite ours and when viewed through the view finder on my friends dslr we realized that it was a tea factory surrounded by small dwellings, we wondered if it even had a motorable access as it seemed so remote perched among the lofty heights. It was around 6:15 pm and the light was fading fast and we wanted to hike back to the bike when we could see where we were putting our foot. Now this bit was totally uphill and I found out much to my dismay my lack of fitness when I tried going up the hill. Now I am a fairly active person physically but that stretch taught me that my perception about my fitness was not justified. I gasped my way back to the top much to my friends amusement.

We started back to Munnar and by now it was almost totally dark, to top it off it started raining and my friend seemed unfazed on the FZ16 and it was business as usual for him. I was very impressed with the FZs handling as it was firm and hardly bounced around, the corners were taken with confidence at decent speeds with both of us being fairly heavy blokes. We reached Munnar and headed home to get out of the wet clothes and realized we would have to head out again for dinner. Dinner was sizzling hot parottas and chilly beef at a roadside shop near the bus stand. The service was absolutely amazing, picture this we are seated in a row of metal tables, sheltered from pouring rain by tarpaulin sheets with the rain spraying on us and giving us a chill and the server would be there with parottas, omlettes the moment our plates appeared to be clean. It turned out to be one of the most memorable meals I have had on the road and we washed it down with steaming black coffee. We crashed pretty much minutes after we reached home given the ride and our exertions at Top Station.

We woke up to more drizzle on Sunday morning and headed out to Cochin, now the rains kept company almost all the way to Cochin and the roads were not the best with some tree falls and highly insensitive road users. The roads did not have protective barricades at places and we rode aware that any mistakes would allow no comebacks and rode well within ourselves and quite cautiously. We passed by quite a few waterfalls and stopped to click pictures. We were taken aback by the sheer force and savagery of the water. It looks beatiful in the pictures but you cannot make out the force that we experienced. We did not stop much on this stretch on account of the rains. We reached Cochin around noon and hooked up with our friend, had lunch together and then went to his place to meet his newborn baby and click some pics. We headed back for Coimbatore around 4pm. We knew this 215km stretch quite well and we were not looking forward to the potholed roads and traffic. Well it had to be done and we gritted our teeth and set out. Myself more because of my back and my friend because he had to match my slower pace. It was all that we had imagined and we were happy to reach by around 8pm. We said our goodbyes near his place and I rode back to my family. I always do this bit with extreme caution as I would hate to have a fall in the city after having done an enjoyable ride. It would totally ruin the experience.

Anyhow, I enjoyed the ride immensely and think back on the sights we were fortunate to have seen and experienced. I know words and pictures can never replicate the experience but I hope you had fun reading this as much as I did putting it down.

Cheers!

Sorry for the double post, forgot to post the pictures, I use a point and shoot to capture my rides.



This was shot as we were headed in to the storm as we were approaching Munnar.



This was again just outside Munnar, this stretch was deserted and it appeared as though we were riding into the clouds, it was misty, drizzling and almost seemed like we were in another time and space. Totally surreal.



I think the picture speaks for itself, biker's paradise. Munnar - Top Station.



One of the many amazing settings we experienced on the ride.



End of the road?



More of the same from Top Station, Munnar.

Awesome power.

Timeless classic.



Homeward bound.

I hope this write up would have been a nice experience-digging around a past ride done 2 years back.
I am also planning to explore munnar atleast within a month, Thanks for sharing the experience.

Awesome write up !

Time to bring on the remaining travelogues

We guys from Ahmedabad are planning a Munnar trip, will contact you if needed

When? Pls don't come between April to Oct; Reason? Apr-Jul is crowded & Jul-Oct is rainy. If you plan to do, do it now.

@Jerrin: Thank you, I have done quite a few rides but never posted any of them till now. I was surprised I was able to remember so many details from the ride.

@Shelton_jh: Thanks, yes more travelogues coming soon.

@Mansuryayas: Sure send me a PM and will be happy to help. I am based out of Coimbatore.

@aargee: Agree with you about the crowded bit, but personally most of my rides have been in the rainy seasons as that is when I could get away from work and have come to enjoy riding in the rain.

Aargee actually NOW is not an option as leaves and all are an issue, we are planning something in 2nd week of April, dates are yet to be finalized, will keep you posted

Reading your travelogue ..makes me salivating , but I request you to post pics, with some photosharing link ( I mean bigger pics...will add pep!!)
What say Shely??

Nice trip! The pics are just thumbnails. Thumbnails don't do justice to God's Own Country.

Had missed a step in the process and ended up pointing to the thumbnails instead of the pics, here goes, enjoy!

RE STD Cast Iron 500 (2004) with single seat

Riding into the storm

Surreal

Biker's Paradise

Postcard from Munnar

End of the road

Cloud cover

Top Station, Munnar

View from Top Station

Awesome power (truly Xbhp)

Timeless classic

Munnar - Cochin

Homeward bound

Wonderful log and great pictures too. Im also planning a munnar trip for next month. Hope itll be a good one.
Do post more pics, itll really be a treat to the eyes.

Krish, glad you enjoyed the log. Wishing you an enjoyable ride. Its possibly the hottest time of year to ride up though. Looking forward to hear your ride story.