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Nov 26th , Office , EGL, Bangalore -
Me : Sir, I needed a week's leave from 10th December.
Manager : What for?
Me : I dont know! If you give me the leaves, I can plan
***Click Click Click***
Manager : See this, many people are on leave.
Me : Sir, I notice that the next week is available :weg:
Manager : But you said you need leave from 10th!
Me : When did I say that? I asked for 18th Dec :b:
***Click Click Click***
---Leaves applied---
*******Tiding********
***One Email Arrived ***
---Leaves approved---
Thus the wait and planning for my annual 4-day ride begins. The last one back in September 2011, the Western Ghats ride, was just perfect thanks to @Phanikar's planning. I did not want this one to be any lesser!
Gokarna? Dandeli? Murdeshwar? Chikmagalur? Agumbe?
Beach Shacks? Homestay? Lodge?
What do I do there for 4 days? Which places do I cover?
Ufff.. The confusion!
I finally fix it for Gokarna. I got my friend/colleague Chandra Shekar to tag along, who was embarking on his first ever long ride!
What a ride it turned out to be! It had it all - The calmness of the sea shore, the chillness of the hills, the curves on the roads and the curves on the beach... It couldnt get any better than this...
The First Looonnnngggg Day :
Me and Chandra leave Mekhri circle by about 5 AM. We were joined by a colleague of mine, Sunil (FZ), who was on his way to Siddapura near Sagar. Bangalore was crowded, even at such an early hour of the day! I felt as if everyone was off to a vacation just like me! After a few much-needed hot cups of chai just before the Nelamangala flyover and then completely not noticing Phanikar, Bharath, Jai and Arnab who happened to be near the flyover, on their way In Seach Of Mallali Falls, we three zip off. The morning wasnt that cold. But I forgot that we were now leaving Bangalore and that's when the blanket of fog started.
.
.
After the running noses, frozen hands and wet visors, I notice the sun peeping out and search for a location to stop... and what a view it was...
.
.
.
.
Our next stop was Bhadra Reservoir after we bid goodbye to my Sunil who was in a hurry to reach his home. It was a 15 km detour and well worth it! It was beautiful. I had never seen a reservoir filled with so much water!
.
.
.
.
.
I had my doubts before we reached Bhadra, due to he lack of rains, but I was pleasantly surprised. I wanted to sit there whole day and just stare out but time was running out and we had a lot more to cover for the day. We then pass through Shimoga and Sagar. Beautiful roads within the forests...
.
.
.
.
Chandra hadnt been to Jog and it was just a 2 km detour. We went for it even though we knew there would be no "falls" as such.
.
.
.
Once we were done with lunch, the race began. The race to reach Gokarna before sun-down and catch a glimpse of sunset. I was unable to recollect any of roads after Jog. All I was concentrating on was the position of the sun in the sky!
Gokarna was an elusive destination, It seemed as if it was farther every time I took a turn. Even Google maps are deceptive. Gokarna is about 10 kms away once you take the turn from the NH. It doesnt seem so on GMaps :bh2: The town is a very small one with hardly two streets and even those are narrow. Its not hard to notice the abundance of tourists, both national and international, in such a small town! The road to the main beach goes right beside the Mahabaleshwar temple with small shops lined up both sides.
Now back to the Race. I knew the Sun had won and I lost. The only relief was that I had another evening to spend at Gokarna during which I can obviously view the sunset (or so I thought!). Since the sun was down, we did not waste time. Reached our stay - Nimmus House. A decent place with ultra soft bed. The bed was HEAVEN! More on the stay and its pics later.
We had a quick snack and it was time for the tripod. Thanks to my inexpsrience with the DSLR and all failed attempts to capture the stars, all I manage is one good snap of the new moon.
.
.
Day Two - The peaceful beaches and The Backbreaking Yana :
Day Two (Continued) - The best Sunset ever! & Day Three - Back on saddle
Day Four : The fun before the home stretch
Me : Sir, I needed a week's leave from 10th December.
Manager : What for?
Me : I dont know! If you give me the leaves, I can plan
***Click Click Click***
Manager : See this, many people are on leave.
Me : Sir, I notice that the next week is available :weg:
Manager : But you said you need leave from 10th!
Me : When did I say that? I asked for 18th Dec :b:
***Click Click Click***
---Leaves applied---
*******Tiding********
***One Email Arrived ***
---Leaves approved---
Thus the wait and planning for my annual 4-day ride begins. The last one back in September 2011, the Western Ghats ride, was just perfect thanks to @Phanikar's planning. I did not want this one to be any lesser!
Gokarna? Dandeli? Murdeshwar? Chikmagalur? Agumbe?
Beach Shacks? Homestay? Lodge?
What do I do there for 4 days? Which places do I cover?
Ufff.. The confusion!
I finally fix it for Gokarna. I got my friend/colleague Chandra Shekar to tag along, who was embarking on his first ever long ride!
What a ride it turned out to be! It had it all - The calmness of the sea shore, the chillness of the hills, the curves on the roads and the curves on the beach... It couldnt get any better than this...
The First Looonnnngggg Day :
Me and Chandra leave Mekhri circle by about 5 AM. We were joined by a colleague of mine, Sunil (FZ), who was on his way to Siddapura near Sagar. Bangalore was crowded, even at such an early hour of the day! I felt as if everyone was off to a vacation just like me!
After a few much-needed hot cups of chai just before the Nelamangala flyover and then completely not noticing Phanikar, Bharath, Jai and Arnab who happened to be near the flyover, on their way In Seach Of Mallali Falls, we three zip off. The morning wasnt that cold. But I forgot that we were now leaving Bangalore and that's when the blanket of fog started. .
.
After the running noses, frozen hands and wet visors, I notice the sun peeping out and search for a location to stop... and what a view it was...
.
.
.
.
Our next stop was Bhadra Reservoir after we bid goodbye to my Sunil who was in a hurry to reach his home. It was a 15 km detour and well worth it! It was beautiful. I had never seen a reservoir filled with so much water!
.
.
.
.
.
I had my doubts before we reached Bhadra, due to he lack of rains, but I was pleasantly surprised. I wanted to sit there whole day and just stare out but time was running out and we had a lot more to cover for the day. We then pass through Shimoga and Sagar. Beautiful roads within the forests...
.
.
.
.
Chandra hadnt been to Jog and it was just a 2 km detour. We went for it even though we knew there would be no "falls" as such.
.
.
.
Once we were done with lunch, the race began. The race to reach Gokarna before sun-down and catch a glimpse of sunset. I was unable to recollect any of roads after Jog. All I was concentrating on was the position of the sun in the sky!
Gokarna was an elusive destination, It seemed as if it was farther every time I took a turn. Even Google maps are deceptive. Gokarna is about 10 kms away once you take the turn from the NH. It doesnt seem so on GMaps :bh2: The town is a very small one with hardly two streets and even those are narrow. Its not hard to notice the abundance of tourists, both national and international, in such a small town! The road to the main beach goes right beside the Mahabaleshwar temple with small shops lined up both sides.
Now back to the Race. I knew the Sun had won and I lost. The only relief was that I had another evening to spend at Gokarna during which I can obviously view the sunset (or so I thought!). Since the sun was down, we did not waste time. Reached our stay - Nimmus House. A decent place with ultra soft bed. The bed was HEAVEN! More on the stay and its pics later.
We had a quick snack and it was time for the tripod. Thanks to my inexpsrience with the DSLR and all failed attempts to capture the stars, all I manage is one good snap of the new moon.
.
.
Day Two - The peaceful beaches and The Backbreaking Yana :
Day Two (Continued) - The best Sunset ever! & Day Three - Back on saddle
Day Four : The fun before the home stretch
.
From here, the road to Yana gets progressively worse. We heave a sign of relief after we reach Yana. The rock formation is something like a miracle.
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