[Gypsian]

What was supposed to be a single day off road excursion on a moderate trail, turned out to be an hardcore off road drive which put us through some inhospitable, hostile terrain of the betta (hill) which tested us and our machines to the core. Before I pen down this adventure anecdote, I am putting forth a poem composed by me which is a reflection of the below narrated averments.

Jeeps and Gypsies on a trail,
With a pace less than a snail.

Over the top lies the temple,
Whether we reach? Its a gamble.

Through the slush and boulders we go,
Over the rocky montago,

No matter stock or custom rig,
Crawling the rocks however big.

Ditches and boulders were no less,
But we ready for the mess.

Tires are large, Low gears incharge,
Which is why we barge.

Inching over rocks looking at the sky,
Hostile terrain hard to pass by.

Tires and ground no interaction,
Because we lost traction.

When impossible we winch,
Though not easy as a munch.

One or two wheels in the air,
Nevertheless we dropped gear.

This the story of our climb to Achalu Betta,
Don't attempt without much data.

Glad to be at Kanakpura,
Where adventures are plethora.

- Gypsian (Ranganath Reddy R)

Well,9 of us decided to head to Achalu Betta situated at Kanakapura Taluk, Karnataka on 9/7/22. The surroundings of Kanakpura were numerous tourist places and getaways are existent, hosts great off road trails and is an absolute paradise for adventure seekers. The sanctity of most of the off road trails that are carved out of rocky mountains around Kanakpura is that they lead to respective ancient temples.

Achalu Betta ( Betta means small mountain or hills in kannada ) which is also called Achalu Muneshwara Betta is located in Achalu Village, Kanakapura Taluk, on the top lies Lord Muneshwara temple. Going by the version of the locals, this temple attains significance once every year where the village fair (Jathre) takes place. Consequently the pathway leading to the top is set right every year by earth movers every year before the village fair to make it walkable and approachable by tractors.

The local villager's tale was that after pandemic since the fair did not take place, the local administration has forgotten the aforesaid hills and its pilgrimage site and will remain doing so until next year's village fair which has made the path way leading to the top absolutely undriveable and that even taking on the path by walk is arduous.

Be that as it may, we reached Achalu Village from Bangalore which was about 2 hours drive (80kms), by about 11am and approached the trail leading to the top of Achalu Betta. The terrain lookes like its made of ditches, trenches, boulders, rock formations, loose mud and what not. For a moment we doubted if this was the pathway or dry riverbed. The continuous downpour of rains had dilapidated and disintegrated the pathway making it analogous to a river bed.

At the outset the MM 540 driven by Rajavardhan led the convoy with it's MT tires and crazy articulation dived into the trenches and crawled out of it with all that torque put in by the mighty DI Turbo engine. Followed by my gypsy which is completely armored under body i.e. custom rock sliders, front and rear diff guards, t-case guard, engine sump and radiator guard, petrol tank guard, off road winch bumper, gas shock absorbers and added leaf spring blades for height increase and articulation, provided some peace of mind as the guard plates took a couple of hits over the boulders. Raj's MM 540 and my Gypsy were equipped with winch. The other two Gypsys belonging to Rohit ( Hard Top) and Kalyan were heightened and affixed with MT and AT tires respectively, the former being an hard top Gypsy. The Thar Crde was overall well equipped and modded for creature comforts owned by Ramachandra who is veteran off roader and knows the in and out of trails around Kanakpura. The entire team are Bhpians at heart and are avid readers of this beloved forum.

The Gypsys as usual surpassed the obstacles with their momentum and the Mahindras with their signature slow and study style were inching the trail. Now comes a ditch long and deep enough to swallow half the rig. This huge ditch seemed like a show stopper. With no other way out, we decided to fill the ditch with rocks so that we can traverse over them. After bringing in some small rocks fallen around and dumping it in the ditch, it felt we may consume half a day of labour only to fill that particular ditch. Then we contemplated on dragging huge boulders with the winch and directing it to the ditch. We then put the snatch block to use for double line winching of boulder stones which helped us quickly fill 3/4th of the ditch and finally with great difficulty we surpassed that obstacle. Here is the link of the video as to how those ditches were filled.

https://youtu.be/v7eoSgJy6Mk

The next obstacle was a ditch with sharp edged boulders and the MM540 had to winch out itself after sweating it out with all its torque and articulation but to no vain. Once the MM 540 winched itself out, it was driven to elevation and reversed to winch out other rigs. As expected my Gypsy struggled over the rocks in the ditch and the 540 which was parked horizontally to the Gypsy started winching out the Gypsy, which is when we observed that the 540 had also started sliding down even after brakes were rammed. The 540 was then tied to a tree with a nylon sling on its rear tow hook, after which the 540 held steadily through out the winching process and pulled out rest of the convey to clear the aforesaid obstacle. The absence of diff lockers haunted us frequently during the course of escalating the trail. Thereafter the terrain eased on itself with small rocks and we could surpass this portion without getting marooned. Kalyan and Rohit after some strenuous attempts met with the same fate and were winched out, though Rohit’s Gypsy almost cleared,with those MT tires jumping all around the rocks. Here is the video link of the MM540 winching out my Gypsy.

https://youtu.be/HoEfGI_rWMY

The Thar Crde tackilng the rocks -

https://youtu.be/b3jS15SF2Yo

While the 540 had to winch out itself, we could not find a suitable tree to anchor the winch rope and then came this weird idea to tie the winch extension rope over a huge rock which was inturn connected with the D shackle to nylon sling followed by winch metal rope. Luckily this worked. By close perusal of the following video, one can understand how this happened.

https://youtu.be/8Ordz59cfcc

Another video of the 540 attempting to surpass the ditch -

https://youtu.be/Sy5AJhtAyk0

As we scaled further we came across a huge rock formation on which the 'Nandhi' statute lies abutting the temple. Although we did not venture to get the rigs closer to the temple, ( as we are not supposed to after turning dark ) we ascended over the adjacent steep rock formation which was slippery and required continuous throttle to reach the peak. The view from the peak is mesmerizing one, surrounded by lush green hills kindred to the Western Ghats.

Gypsies squeezing through the boulders -

https://youtu.be/i8_841X5RTM

Thar Crde struggles but the 540 does it with style -

https://youtu.be/AfxYTKVeUMg

Some rock crawling leading to the peak point -

https://youtu.be/olbMRt44oEg

Thereafter we decided to descend as the day light showed symptoms of vanishing soon, as such this trail would be a misery to traverse through in the dark. Although gravity favoured us, the descend was an experience in itself, which saw wheels being lifted in the air quite often and felt like the terrain that we never ascended. This was an unforgettable escapade which was an unanticipated endeavor.

https://youtu.be/jCHQ5wbYEvA

My favourite under-chassis shot captured on a GoPro during descend -

https://youtu.be/ts6SnoFB8DY

All of us returned home reminiscing the fantastic adventurous day and I contemplating on installing the diff - lockers before the next OTR.

Compilation of some joy moments -

https://youtu.be/SHRURFC56IY

Last but not the least, I would want to thank Ramanji ( the short man in blue shirt and an hat ) who was instrumental in taming the terrain by helping us fill rocks into ditches, attaching winch ropes and snatch blocks etc without whom this excursion wouldn’t have been this joyful.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the 4x4 section. Thanks for sharing!

Going to our homepage this weekend

[Gypsian]

Originally Posted by GTO

Going to our homepage this weekend

Thanks GTO Thats indeed a stimulation to pen down more such posts. Certainly this and my other excursions are the culmination of what I have learnt on this forum as a binge reader before becoming a member

[shankar.balan]

Very cool. Some serious looking obstacles there Ranga!
And lovely poetic effort by you too in the post. Was so happy to read that.
I know this event is the one we connected on and the one to which I couldn’t turn up. But looking at your pictures I m not at all sure my dear old stock Gypsy would have made it through all those obstacles without serious help!

[Kosfactor]

The sort of off-road driving I like. Trying to get somewhere but not alone and not in a hurry either.

Sort of like Poetry, well done man!

With to join you folks sometime.

The off-road scene down south apart from the addition of Thar, has remained more of less the same. Talks a lot about the terrain.

[Gypsian]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

I know this event is the one we connected on and the one to which I couldn’t turn up. But looking at your pictures I m not at all sure my dear old stock Gypsy would have made it through all those obstacles without serious help!

Exactly! This was the event. The trail has turned treacherous due to heavy down pour and lack of maintenance by the concerned authorities. We would have pulled your Gypsy along with us "Where there is a will there is a way, where there is no way there is a winch" . Do catch up for the next OTR excursion.

Originally Posted by Kosfactor

The sort of off-road driving I like. Trying to get somewhere but not alone and not in a hurry either.

With to join you folks sometime.

The off-road scene down south apart from the addition of Thar, has remained more of less the same. Talks a lot about the terrain.

OTRs are fun and safe when done as a group activity. Do join next time, will keep you posted.
As you rightly said off-roading will remain old school for some more years to come.

[ajayc123]

The poem was very pleasant and relaxing, and brought a smile on my face. But then the scare started.

Seeing the man and machine being stressed was quite tough for me. Nevertheless, hats off to your guts and definition of adventure.

Sadly, the risk reward equation is beyond my comprehension, not my cup of tea.

[khan_sultan]

Originally Posted by Gypsian

What was supposed to be a single day off road excursion on a moderate trail, turned out to be an hardcore off road drive which put us through some inhospitable, hostile terrain of the betta (hill) which tested us and our machines to the core.

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Last but not the least, I would want to thank Ramanji ( the short man in blue shirt and an hat ) who was instrumental in taming the terrain by helping us fill rocks into ditches, attaching winch ropes and snatch blocks etc without whom this excursion wouldn’t have been this joyful.

Thoroughly enjoyed reading this report!

This brought memories of weekend off-road with friends and the non-competitive off-road scene almost more than a decade back.

Very nice rigs there and 4-6 vehicles is an optimum size to do weekend outings also.

Keep these weekend outings going and keep sharing.

[Gypsian]

Originally Posted by ajayc123

The poem was very pleasant and relaxing, and brought a smile on my face. But then the scare started.

Seeing the man and machine being stressed was quite tough for me. Nevertheless, hats off to your guts and definition of adventure.

Thank you, that poem was composed instantly when i sat to pen down the post. OTRs are infact the best stress busters. Albeit being a slow activity the level of involvement is what makes it a joyful experience.

Originally Posted by khan_sultan

Thoroughly enjoyed reading this report!

This brought memories of weekend off-road with friends and the non-competitive off-road scene almost more than a decade back.

Very nice rigs there and 4-6 vehicles is an optimum size to do weekend outings also.

Keep these weekend outings going and keep sharing.

Glad to hear from the veteran Back then I was a binge reader of your OTR threads. Infact i was glued to your posts on lockers and crawlers and ofcourse the great Spidey.
Most certainly 4 - 6 vehicles are practicable to plan and execute off road maneuvers as this provides us with sufficient time. More vehicles will put us into coercion. Will surely continue OTRs and share my experiences on this beloved forum.

[Gypsian]

In my above post I had missed two relevant videos, leading to the Achalu rock point -

https://youtu.be/fA5OG3EuD5U

https://youtu.be/viCcvKdp0Wo

The rock point in Achalu Betta is kind of unexplored and one has to divert from the sixth U curve to the left, a rocky path leads to the rock formation. Infact there are a lot of such unexplored view points around hills of Kanakpura.

[megazoid]

Made fantastic reading. Perfect recipe for outdoor joy and in the right numbers too. You guys surely know what you are doing and do it well too.

[bullitt1]

Thats some serious offroading with great videos. Congratulations on completing this adventure. Kanakapura and surroundings is a great landscape for exploration.

[Tanmay K]

Wow, the rains seem to have totally made this trail a doozy!

I drove through this trail all the way up to the top of Achalu in my GV.

Always I'm very risk-averse when in a single vehicle and in spite of that, the trail while not totally easy (I was in 2L), was doable without much risk at that time.

I went in Jan 2021 -