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Day 2: To the Wilder side of Ootacamund!
Ootacamund or Ooty as they fondly call it, has always been a special place for me. My first long solo ride on a motorcycle started with a ride to Ooty in 2009. Today was one another special ride. I camped out last night after wrapping myself with layers of clothes and blankets. Not a comfortable way to relax, but eery sounds from the wild made the night more interesting. I would peek out to see if there are animals or anything producing those strage sounds. I slept for a good duration and the early mornings were very cold. I was out of the tent only by 6 30 AM and it was still foggy. I quickly began packing up the tent and used up the servant's guest house to freshen up. Had a nice cup of Tea and breakfast sitting and admiring the lake view from their room.
I was getting ready and I got the news that access to Salem city has been blocked and a hartal had been called due to the death of a Political Leader. I began checking for different routes but eventually all routes had to go via outskirts of Salem, atleast the salem bypass. Reports in TV / News were not encouraging, but braving it up i started off towards Salem and find out the way somehow.
The weather was pleasant after the sun came out, foggy at times but beautiful conditions to ride. With an open highway, hardly any traffic - I was having a ball of a time zipping through the corners joyfully! The only hurdles on the road were the monkeys which were present, almost everywhere! The ghat sections ended and i slowly proceeded towards Salem. Lots of policemen have been stationed on the road, in all major junctions. Most of them were kind enough to guide me through. I crossed through Salem by pass and joined the beautiful state highway connecting Omalur, Thoppur and Mettur.
The roads were a bliss to ride on. I have cherished riding in smaller roads like these which make you feel the road and enjoy the ride. The traffic was on the higher side since there were loads of vans and busses carrying party members to attend the funeral of the politician. I stopped in a couple of places to replenish some cool drinks, tender conconut and as always our hot chaai to freshen up.
Crossing Mettur, the traffic became worse with more and more truck traffic along the chemplast / mettur power plant. The roads to Gobi - Sathyamangalam - Sirumugai once again came in as a visual treat. It may look all the same, but those green fields on either side of the road some what makes me get goosebumps all the time. These are those little moment that you seem to relish for a long time. The good thing about these state highways are that they are well tarred, stunningly scenic and makes a rider enjoy his ride.
I took some detours to check out places to relax. These would be places like an agriculture field or the bank of a stream or even sometimes under a big banyan tree. Little powernaps in those bring you peace, concentration and lets you focus on the ride and the destination. I reached Mettupalayam, and immediately the ghat sections begin. Welcome to Nilgris, the board says and that is where the traffic starts too. I lost considerable amount of time tailing trucks and buses on the climb up the hill.
Seeing that there is so much traffic on the ghat sections would directly mean more tourists in Ooty, So i decided to ride the unexplored places around Ooty instead - The usual True Wanderer Way!! I reached Katteri village, (Means Ghost town in tamil) and took the diversion to Kundah. This again is a hardly traversed route as 99.99% of the people would prefer to use the Conoor - Ooty road. The vistas changed just after i entered the road to kundah. It was like a new slide in a presentation, total contrast to what i saw few hundred metres before. I chose the Kundah route for another reason too, since my grandad started his career with Tamil Nadu Electricity Board, Kundah several decades back. Its the same place my dad had worked too (in EB). So its always good to visit a place that reminds of some thing special for your parents.
My heart melts, riding along the green tea estates. The plantations were all crafted to perfection. I lost a lot of time stopping by these places and admiring them, than to take pictures or just ride on. Sometimes the inner self feels content on just visually enjoying the landscapes. In the middle of nowhere, I stop by a Big and beautiful Krishna temple. Magnificently constructed and maintained in a remote location, hardly known to many. Prayed for a better ride for the day and days to come and I headed towards Manjoor.
The route from Kundah to Manjoor is more like a model track in the forest. Hairpin bends, tight corners, super smooth roads and no oncoming traffic! I was getting fond of riding in this place, only thing missing was the wild life spotting. Just before Manjoor, I took the deviation towards Emerald. The next 20 kilometers were through very narrow roads and lanes inside villages. Kids waving at you, dogs chasing you, women starting at you - It is all part of the riding experience. Most of the valleys around are filled with Tea estates. But when the water is realeased from reservoirs of Avalanche, Emerald - These valleys would be filled with water completely making the reservoir one of the biggest in south india.
Upon reaching Emerald, The locals advised me that the entry to Avalanche has been restricted after 4 PM and asked me to go to ooty instead. Shattered, i started riding towards Ooty when i saw a signboard for Emerald Dam. I took the road and it leads into a forest area - with no tourists! There are a few locals who work in the tea estates and the dam around. I ventured into the path and found one of the amazing sights one could ever see down south. The Emerald Reservoir.
Shining in its true glory, The Emerald Reservoir had some tracks leading to the water. I grabbed the opportunity to get off the road and ride along the lake. I parked my bike and strolled along. Decided to pitch a tent and stay overnight or if not as long as possible in this beautiful place. In no time, the tent was set up. By then few people from a near by settlement walked up to check on what am upto. They helped me get some tea, even invited me home for dinner. What a sweet bunch of people in this remote place!
Inside the tent - Sipping Tea, I was enjoying the vista's around, and relaxing off my sore butt and aching shoulders. More than a hour went by, time really fly fast in places like these! It was getting dark and temperatures going into single digits. I used up the torch and emergency lights to set up lighting inside the tent - making it visually appealable from outside. But then god had other plans. A forest officer dropped by and in kind words asked me to take off my tents and go stay in a hotel. Reason was that there are many wild animals that come by the Emerald Lake to drink water and one cannot predict how they would behave on seeing a tent. Good atleast i was told about it in kind words. I relaxed for a few more minutes, packed up my luggage and started riding towards Ooty.
The Sun had already gone down, it was misty and the roads are wet! Slipping and skidding in corner with hardly any visibility, i purposefully slowed down in corners and in most cases i start following a local car which would help me safely reach the next town / village. Though Ooty was about 30 kilometers away, It was all through forest and covered with dense trees making it pitch dark. It was cold, It was drizzling and still a Biker would always have fun riding around the corners. I sure did. I reached Ooty by 7 30 PM, checked in to a hotel and crashed for the day.
GPS Track Log : Day 2
Yercaud - Ooty at EveryTrail
Ootacamund or Ooty as they fondly call it, has always been a special place for me. My first long solo ride on a motorcycle started with a ride to Ooty in 2009. Today was one another special ride. I camped out last night after wrapping myself with layers of clothes and blankets. Not a comfortable way to relax, but eery sounds from the wild made the night more interesting. I would peek out to see if there are animals or anything producing those strage sounds. I slept for a good duration and the early mornings were very cold. I was out of the tent only by 6 30 AM and it was still foggy. I quickly began packing up the tent and used up the servant's guest house to freshen up. Had a nice cup of Tea and breakfast sitting and admiring the lake view from their room.
I was getting ready and I got the news that access to Salem city has been blocked and a hartal had been called due to the death of a Political Leader. I began checking for different routes but eventually all routes had to go via outskirts of Salem, atleast the salem bypass. Reports in TV / News were not encouraging, but braving it up i started off towards Salem and find out the way somehow.
The weather was pleasant after the sun came out, foggy at times but beautiful conditions to ride. With an open highway, hardly any traffic - I was having a ball of a time zipping through the corners joyfully! The only hurdles on the road were the monkeys which were present, almost everywhere! The ghat sections ended and i slowly proceeded towards Salem. Lots of policemen have been stationed on the road, in all major junctions. Most of them were kind enough to guide me through. I crossed through Salem by pass and joined the beautiful state highway connecting Omalur, Thoppur and Mettur.
The roads were a bliss to ride on. I have cherished riding in smaller roads like these which make you feel the road and enjoy the ride. The traffic was on the higher side since there were loads of vans and busses carrying party members to attend the funeral of the politician. I stopped in a couple of places to replenish some cool drinks, tender conconut and as always our hot chaai to freshen up.
Crossing Mettur, the traffic became worse with more and more truck traffic along the chemplast / mettur power plant. The roads to Gobi - Sathyamangalam - Sirumugai once again came in as a visual treat. It may look all the same, but those green fields on either side of the road some what makes me get goosebumps all the time. These are those little moment that you seem to relish for a long time. The good thing about these state highways are that they are well tarred, stunningly scenic and makes a rider enjoy his ride.
I took some detours to check out places to relax. These would be places like an agriculture field or the bank of a stream or even sometimes under a big banyan tree. Little powernaps in those bring you peace, concentration and lets you focus on the ride and the destination. I reached Mettupalayam, and immediately the ghat sections begin. Welcome to Nilgris, the board says and that is where the traffic starts too. I lost considerable amount of time tailing trucks and buses on the climb up the hill.
Seeing that there is so much traffic on the ghat sections would directly mean more tourists in Ooty, So i decided to ride the unexplored places around Ooty instead - The usual True Wanderer Way!! I reached Katteri village, (Means Ghost town in tamil) and took the diversion to Kundah. This again is a hardly traversed route as 99.99% of the people would prefer to use the Conoor - Ooty road. The vistas changed just after i entered the road to kundah. It was like a new slide in a presentation, total contrast to what i saw few hundred metres before. I chose the Kundah route for another reason too, since my grandad started his career with Tamil Nadu Electricity Board, Kundah several decades back. Its the same place my dad had worked too (in EB). So its always good to visit a place that reminds of some thing special for your parents.
My heart melts, riding along the green tea estates. The plantations were all crafted to perfection. I lost a lot of time stopping by these places and admiring them, than to take pictures or just ride on. Sometimes the inner self feels content on just visually enjoying the landscapes. In the middle of nowhere, I stop by a Big and beautiful Krishna temple. Magnificently constructed and maintained in a remote location, hardly known to many. Prayed for a better ride for the day and days to come and I headed towards Manjoor.
The route from Kundah to Manjoor is more like a model track in the forest. Hairpin bends, tight corners, super smooth roads and no oncoming traffic! I was getting fond of riding in this place, only thing missing was the wild life spotting. Just before Manjoor, I took the deviation towards Emerald. The next 20 kilometers were through very narrow roads and lanes inside villages. Kids waving at you, dogs chasing you, women starting at you - It is all part of the riding experience. Most of the valleys around are filled with Tea estates. But when the water is realeased from reservoirs of Avalanche, Emerald - These valleys would be filled with water completely making the reservoir one of the biggest in south india.
Upon reaching Emerald, The locals advised me that the entry to Avalanche has been restricted after 4 PM and asked me to go to ooty instead. Shattered, i started riding towards Ooty when i saw a signboard for Emerald Dam. I took the road and it leads into a forest area - with no tourists! There are a few locals who work in the tea estates and the dam around. I ventured into the path and found one of the amazing sights one could ever see down south. The Emerald Reservoir.
Shining in its true glory, The Emerald Reservoir had some tracks leading to the water. I grabbed the opportunity to get off the road and ride along the lake. I parked my bike and strolled along. Decided to pitch a tent and stay overnight or if not as long as possible in this beautiful place. In no time, the tent was set up. By then few people from a near by settlement walked up to check on what am upto. They helped me get some tea, even invited me home for dinner. What a sweet bunch of people in this remote place!
Inside the tent - Sipping Tea, I was enjoying the vista's around, and relaxing off my sore butt and aching shoulders. More than a hour went by, time really fly fast in places like these! It was getting dark and temperatures going into single digits. I used up the torch and emergency lights to set up lighting inside the tent - making it visually appealable from outside. But then god had other plans. A forest officer dropped by and in kind words asked me to take off my tents and go stay in a hotel. Reason was that there are many wild animals that come by the Emerald Lake to drink water and one cannot predict how they would behave on seeing a tent. Good atleast i was told about it in kind words. I relaxed for a few more minutes, packed up my luggage and started riding towards Ooty.
The Sun had already gone down, it was misty and the roads are wet! Slipping and skidding in corner with hardly any visibility, i purposefully slowed down in corners and in most cases i start following a local car which would help me safely reach the next town / village. Though Ooty was about 30 kilometers away, It was all through forest and covered with dense trees making it pitch dark. It was cold, It was drizzling and still a Biker would always have fun riding around the corners. I sure did. I reached Ooty by 7 30 PM, checked in to a hotel and crashed for the day.
GPS Track Log : Day 2
Yercaud - Ooty at EveryTrail
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