It was quite some time , me & my friend were planning for a ride to the A.P's highest waterfalls , the Kuntala falls. The distance was 260 kms one way. The road leading to that place was NH7 , a superb 4 lane road. The bike to be used was Yamaha Gladiator & for cost cutting , we were on the same bike(rider & pillion).

On the morning of 26th June , we started our journey at 7:00 am. It was a pleasant morning , lightly cloudy , but no signs of rain , which was the greatest fear. We had a bag containing water bottles , some food , rider's rain coat , camera & few other essentials. As always , my bike was serviced by me the previous day & was all set to fly on the highways. We starter our journey from my place...after covering about 25 kms , i realized that the cross winds are just too strong reducing our pace badly & at the same time did not want to crack open the throttle to compensate the wind drag. Soon i found a mini van & started tail gating it ...and that help us a lot...it van was doing a constant 80 - 90 kmph..so were we. The first 100kms came within 1 hour 25 mins.


We took a small break of 5 mins to drink water & click a few pics & we left to move on. The next 100 kms were pretty smooth too. The road near Armur was now properly finished. The sceneic beauty around was awsome...lush green every where due to the monsoons.





After the first 200 kms , we changed our positions , i was the pillion now & my friend took on the rider's seat. .. the next 50 kms were ridden by my friend ..till then i did some photography



After riding 250 kms , we crossed a Toll booth & a village named "Neredgonda" , we were desperately waiting for the right turn that would lead to the water falls ... And finally that turn came...it was a bridge kind of thing...and we took the right turn.





The ride through the narrow roads was slow but enjoyable.



We took another short break of 5 mins to click few pics & check the GPS to ensure we took the correct way... And i started riding again to the falls. Those few kilometers were full of anticipation of how the falls will be... will it be really dangerously high??...etc etc. On the way , we found many cars passing by..the road was not that good & i kept a check on my speed & let every car pass by. And finally we could feel something like it was raining...but it was not raining , it was the droplets formed by the water dropping at that speed from that height.

We rode through a dense forest region. It was fun riding ... and very beautiful to so so much greenery.






We were at Kuntala now...and in sharp 4 hours 30 mins. 20+ mins was wasted in covering the last 10kms of roads after taking a right turn from the NH7. We parked the bike , payed parking ticket & headed for the falls with great excitement & enthusiasm.

The falls was MASSIVE... we were shocked to see & hear that amount of water gushing at that speed at that height.
The Pictures say the story better -


The Sharp 148 feets drop

That's me at the 1st level of the falls



My friend at the 1st level of the falls

The falls was basically divided into 3 levels...the fury of water was just too much...it was actually pretty scary. Still some over-brave hearted people tried to get down to the falls water , though there were strict instructions everywhere to keep distance from the water with photos of dead bodies of the people who lost their lives there.


Level 2 of the falls

After we had a nice time clicking photos & watching the water gushing at a furious speed , we decided to go down to the place where the falls touch the ground which was a 148 feet decline. It took us about 20 -25 mins to get down the stairs down to the place where all the water was falling. That was another breath taking scene. the pictures say it better.


The Kuntala falls ... it was falling in 3 parts...all in all ... just too beautiful.





We found a shady place under a tree & had some food which we were carrying with us. We made sure we don't litter anything anywhere but was annoyed & sad to see people did not even bother to keep such a naturally beautiful spot clean.



After sitting there , spending some time watching the falls flow at full glory & listening to the deafening sound of the gushing water , we left the place. It took use around 40 mins to climb back 148 feets. We both were dead tired.

We reached our bike totally drenched in sweat...rode back the 10 kms , stopped at a dhabba to have some fluid to cope up with the energy loss. our next destination was Sriram Sagar Dam. We left for it. The road was again super cool. Sriram Sagar dam was towards my place.. So we were actually going back.



After riding 50 kms , we saw the canal of Sriram Sagar dam. Took a snap of it -



Then we had to take a right turn to reach the dam.. It was a huge project. The water was still ... and strong cool wind kept blowing. The only thing i was scared of was the black clouds that i could see approaching.

The lake reservoir was truly beautiful...full upto the brim.



the dam was very crowded that particular day..so we could not make our way to the dam or click any pics of it. After an hour , we finally started for home. 35 kms down the line .... it started raining....and the sky became completely dark...it started raining like crazy. Visibilty was completely gone , but the awsome NH7 kept us moving... I kept my headlamps on to maintain my visibilty to others. It rained for around 20 - 30 mins...and we kept riding at a speed of 60 kmph. Finally the rain stopped & we took a break at Armur for some fooding & taking off the rain gears & wet clothes. That was the last break we took.



After having a heavy & late lunch , we kept flying through the NH7 to reach home as fast as possible. Still it was 9:30 pm , when i finally reached home.


Riding back home...

Overall , it was a great trip. Saw the beauty & fury of Nature. The bike returned a decent 50 kmpl mileage. We did a total of 525kms during the trip. And i felt Kuntala falls is a must visit place for everyone during the monsoons.