[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by livyodream

Can you/someone please provide a link to best route that can be taken?

Do not take google suggested route here. Reach all the way till Gooty, enter the town, continue towards Pattikonda, take bypass, Aspari, Adoni, Adoni bypass, Yemmiganur, Mantralaya. I visited on last Sunday by starting at 4.45AM, reached at 10.45AM. Return journey the same day by starting at 1PM from Mantralaya and reached home by 7.30PM at Marathahalli. Roads are perfect except a few rough patches of a few 100 meters around small villages on the way.
Please remember to take Pattikonda and Adoni bypass else you will endup in narrow roads in these towns. For refreshments I stopped at Bluemoon just before Gooty on the highway. Ok for tea, coffee and breakfast sort of things.

[prasad14]

Hi,

Just an update. Took the route suggested here (Bangalore-Gooty-Aspari-Adoni(bypass)-Yemmiganur-Mantralyam).

Onwards: Left Jayanagar (4th block) at 6:45AM and reached Mantralaya by 12:50PM, just intimate for Darshana and lunch at the mutt (Monday)
Return: Left Mantralaya at 11AM. After a lunch break, reached Nandi Upachar at 5PM (about 360kms). Next 40kms took, 2hrs and 15mins to reach Jayanagar 4th block! (Tuesday)

Stayed at the newly constructed Bunny's (named after the old bunny tree in the compound). Nice A/c rooms, lift, 24hrs hot water, about 200m to mutt. Mami mess next door, took care of breakfast etc., Recommend both.

Road conditions remain great on the highway. Once off of the highway, the roads are still good, but have lot of unmarked humps (almost a pair for every village) that is difficult to spot from a distance. My Honda City bottom scrapped a few times. If there are no humps, there'd be police naakabandi zigzag.... way too many of them. Road repairs are going on in Gooty town. Adoni-Mantralayam road is fantastic, though 2-lane. Tolls came close to 500 one-way.

Visited Bichchale. Good roads all the way. Do not take the turn that Google suggests at Gillesugur (Panchamukhi road), instead continue for a km or so towards Raichur and come back (SH61 to Manvi). On the return visited Appavara Katte at Ibharamapura (last one km is not asphalted, but easy to drive).

Petrol is about Rs.10 higher in AP.

Prasad

[TURBO28]

Originally Posted by prasad14

Hi,

Just an update. Took the route suggested here (Bangalore-Gooty-Aspari-Adoni(bypass)-Yemmiganur-Mantralyam).

Onwards: Left Jayanagar (4th block) at 6:45AM and reached Mantralaya by 12:50PM, just intimate for Darshana and lunch at the mutt (Monday)

Hello Sir,
Planning to travel to Mantralayam on the 8th which is a Sunday. What are the things to look out for on the highway. (In this case which is the speed, are there any speed cams along the route?)
I am planning to leave Bengaluru by 5:00AM max so that I can reach there by 11:30AM max. Also, how much time did it take for the Darshana?
After that I will be travelling to Hospet from Mantralayam which is a travel of 4-5 hours depending on the traffic conditions.
I am attaching a google maps link, it would be great if any one can confirm if this is the best route to take.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/qBgzfS8QL4kRipkW7?g_st=ic

Thank you in advance.

[prasad14]

Originally Posted by TURBO28

Hello Sir,
Planning to travel to Mantralayam on the 8th which is a Sunday. What are the things to look out for on the highway. (In this case which is the speed, are there any speed cams along the route?)
I am planning to leave Bengaluru by 5:00AM max so that I can reach there by 11:30AM max. Also, how much time did it take for the Darshana?
After that I will be travelling to Hospet from Mantralayam which is a travel of 4-5 hours depending on the traffic conditions.
I am attaching a google maps link, it would be great if any one can confirm if this is the best route to take.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/qBgzfS8QL4kRipkW7?g_st=ic

Thank you in advance.

Here are a few answers:
0. Google route attached is by and large correct, but I was guided by the forum members to NOT take the right turn after Pattikonda, but continue all the way to Adoni, and take Adoni-Yemmiganur bypass (about 5kms before Adoni). The Adoni-Yemmiganeur route is butter smooth and I strongly recommend to take this route.

1. I didn't see any speed cams anywhere along the way, but was stopped near Devanahalli on my return. I maintained a consistent 110-120kmph till Gooty very comfortably (I'm not an aggressive driver, but the roads were empty and straight). If you start even by 5, I'm fairly certain you can reach by 11:30.

2. I was there on Tue and Wed, so Darshana was a breeze and I entered and exited countless times. Given its a Sunday, it might take 10-15mins max perhaps (based on what I heard from a relative who was there on a Sunday a few weeks ago). They have streamlined the whole process and the Darshana doesn't stop for anything (Abhisheka etc.,), so it keeps moving all the time. Also, there are two special queues (one for sevas less than Rs. 1000 and another one greater than Rs.1000) and they move fast and separated by just a few feet from each other. But the general Darshana takes you more closer to Anjaneya.

3. Few months ago, I had queried the route for Hosapete, and I was told to take Mantralaya-Manvi-Gangavathi-Hosapete. I was also told to look into Hyderabad-Hospet thread for recent updates and you may want to look at that.

Have a great Darshana and pleasant drive.

Prasad14

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by TURBO28

Hello Sir,
Planning to travel to Mantralayam on the 8th which is a Sunday. What are the things to look out for on the highway. (In this case which is the speed, are there any speed cams along the route?)
I am planning to leave Bengaluru by 5:00AM max so that I can reach there by 11:30AM max. Also, how much time did it take for the Darshana?
After that I will be travelling to Hospet from Mantralayam which is a travel of 4-5 hours depending on the traffic conditions.
I am attaching a google maps link, it would be great if any one can confirm if this is the best route to take.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/qBgzfS8QL4kRipkW7?g_st=ic

Thank you in advance.

Visited Mantralayam over last Tuesday and took the same old school route of Gooty, Pattikonda bypass, Aspari, Adoni bypass, Yemmiganur, Mantralaya. Started at 5AM from Marathahalli and reached by 11.30AM. Started back at 2PM and reached home by 9PM. It was a nice trip and being a week day, very less crowd. However I feel the crowd was a little more than usual week day being a week of school holidays.
I did not see any speed guns and was cruising at 100-110 kmph most of the time. Starting early has its benefits. Roads are excellent but just be careful with speed humps that are newly added at random places in Andhra on NH44. I don't remember the exact locations but there are newly added strips of humps and are very annoying. It caused sudden braking a multiple times since the hump road signs are also very irregular.
Overall the roads are good except a few spots around Thuggali, Aspari villages but they were and will always remain there. Gooty town is another place with a lot of humps, ruthless two wheelers and autos coming from wrong side.
Exact distance from my house to Mantralaya is 406KM with the route mentioned above.
I could see many more eating places on NH around Anantapur, there are some hopes to get some food if needed en route. Earlier one had to enter Anantapur or have food around Devanahalli. One more eating place has come near Chikkaballapur where Kamat Upachar used to be there. So that part seems to be resolved to good extent.

[TURBO28]

Originally Posted by prasad14

Here are a few answers:
0. Google route attached is by and large correct, but I was guided by the forum members to NOT take the right turn after Pattikonda, but continue all the way to Adoni, and take Adoni-Yemmiganur bypass (about 5kms before Adoni). The Adoni-Yemmiganeur route is butter smooth and I strongly recommend to take this route.

1. I didn't see any speed cams anywhere along the way, but was stopped near Devanahalli on my return. I maintained a consistent 110-120kmph till Gooty very comfortably (I'm not an aggressive driver, but the roads were empty and straight). If you start even by 5, I'm fairly certain you can reach by 11:30.

2. I was there on Tue and Wed, so Darshana was a breeze and I entered and exited countless times. Given its a Sunday, it might take 10-15mins max perhaps (based on what I heard from a relative who was there on a Sunday a few weeks ago). They have streamlined the whole process and the Darshana doesn't stop for anything (Abhisheka etc.,), so it keeps moving all the time. Also, there are two special queues (one for sevas less than Rs. 1000 and another one greater than Rs.1000) and they move fast and separated by just a few feet from each other. But the general Darshana takes you more closer to Anjaneya.

3. Few months ago, I had queried the route for Hosapete, and I was told to take Mantralaya-Manvi-Gangavathi-Hosapete. I was also told to look into Hyderabad-Hospet thread for recent updates and you may want to look at that.

Have a great Darshana and pleasant drive.

Prasad14

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

Visited Mantralayam over last Tuesday and took the same old school route of Gooty, Pattikonda bypass, Aspari, Adoni bypass, Yemmiganur, Mantralaya. Started at 5AM from Marathahalli and reached by 11.30AM.
I could see many more eating places on NH around Anantapur, there are some hopes to get some food if needed en route. Earlier one had to enter Anantapur or have food around Devanahalli. One more eating place has come near Chikkaballapur where Kamat Upachar used to be there. So that part seems to be resolved to good extent.

Thank you so much for the great information, guys. It will definitely help me to plan my trip in a better way.
From the two posts I can see that the speed can be easily maintained between 100-110Kmph and then I will have to watch out for speed breakers.
Then I will have to continue straight to Adoni and before Adoni city there is a bypass which I will have to take and continue the journey.

Thank you guys once again for the information

[vsathyap]

Just completed a trip to Mantralaya. It was a 2 day trip with Day 1 for the onward trip and Day 2 for the return drive. Drove the Honda City and the route was the standard BLR-Gooty-Pattikonda-Aspari-Adoni-Yemmiganur-Mantralaya.

Route updates:

• BLR to Gooty: Excellent 4 Lane NH44; Watch for thick rumbler strips and sometimes unmarked speed breakers before and after each town/crossing.
  
• Gooty - Pattikonda : Probably the worst satretch of the entire length of the trip. Lousy Railway overpass (which is almost like 1 km long) with weak and unaligned joints make the tyres hit the joints hard. Take it easy here. The next bad strtetch is the railway underpass at Tuggalli which has nothing that resembles a road on either side. Since we were in a low GC sedan, took it real slow here and thankfully didnt hit the bottom.
  
• Pattikonda - Aspari - Adoni : The Pattikonda Aspari stretch is just okayish Pot holes seem infrequent but ones that come up will really take you by surprise as they are quiter deep and stretch across the entire road. The road has a LOT of undulations. A sedan like the City was being tossed around a lot and I can only imagine how a bigger (ladder on frame) vehicle which has a lot of body roll would behave on this stretch! The Pattikonda bypass is horrible - looks like the surface tar has all but melted away, leaving behind just the hard sharp pebbles on the paved surface. Overinflated tyres will definitely make their presence felt on this stretch. The road gets better as we approach Adoni.
  
• Adoni Bypass - Yemmiganuru - Mantralayam : Great 2 landed undivided highway with lots of traffic. Easy to maintain 80kmph on this stretch but watch for rumbler strips again just before and after tight turns or tiny villages on this stretch.
  

Some common observations across these towns:

1) There are road barricades that pop up specially on the latter half of the trip. These are metallic drums filled with dirt/soil and painted white, kept very haphazardly on the road. Highly unscientific placements with no warnings.

2) There are signs of erstwhile Orange Safety bollards on the roads, and almost all of these have been run over by vehicles multiple times. Hence the above white drums. However, the bolts that were used to fix these bollards to the road remain exposed and if you're thinking of driving over them, God save your tires.

3) All towns and villages en-route have a pair of speedbreakers around them. Sometimes, more. All of these are unmarked. Many have a combination of these speedbreakers and the bollards / drums mentioned above.

4) Lot of new restaurants and eating options have come up near Ananthapur town, but mostly mixed cuisine. Few are 100% pure veg (considering the destination) and they may not have clean restrooms/hygenic food options. Your best best is still Nandi Upachar for breakfast and get something packed from there for a lunch stop enroute. Hotel Blue Moon Hampi just before the Kasepalli Toll and CCD immediately after the Kasepalli Toll (just before the turn into Gooty) are your restroom options. A good chunk of tea/coffee options have opened up - mostly shacks - but easily maneable for a quick caffiene break.

5) Plan your return trip so that you reach BIAL before 5pm or after 11pm. Else, you will spend 2 hours in mindless traffic jams that start just before Hebbal flyover.

[Payaniga]

Last weekend drove to Mantralaya from Bengaluru. Onward journey on Saturday and return on Sunday.

Onward journey took as per Google map. As suggested in this forum, after Pattikonda the road was not good and in one stretch it goes through villages with very narrow and bad road.

On return, took Mantralaya - Yammiganur - Adoni Bypass road at Adoni - Aspari - Pattikonda - Gooty - NH44. This is a much better route. Only downside is unmarked speed breakers.

I was looking for a pure veg restaurant on return. One restaurant suggested in this forum near Anatapur was closed (some renovation was happening). I had to go to Anantapur city and went to "Petals Veg Restaurant". We had buffet for lunch and it was good. Parking is available at the entrance as well as basement.

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by Payaniga

Last weekend drove to Mantralaya from Bengaluru. Onward journey on Saturday and return on Sunday.

Onward journey took as per Google map. As suggested in this forum, after Pattikonda the road was not good and in one stretch it goes through villages with very narrow and bad road.

On return, took Mantralaya - Yammiganur - Adoni Bypass road at Adoni - Aspari - Pattikonda - Gooty - NH44. This is a much better route. Only downside is unmarked speed breakers.

I was looking for a pure veg restaurant on return. One restaurant suggested in this forum near Anatapur was closed (some renovation was happening). I had to go to Anantapur city and went to "Petals Veg Restaurant". We had buffet for lunch and it was good. Parking is available at the entrance as well as basement.

As I said in earlier posts, the route you took to return is the widest one even in villages. I have been driving to Mantralaya since 2010 and tried various possible routes to conclude this as the widest. Google looks for optimum one and perhaps does not care about the other factors.

[Payaniga]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

As I said in earlier posts, the route you took to return is the widest one even in villages. I have been driving to Mantralaya since 2010 and tried various possible routes to conclude this as the widest. Google looks for optimum one and perhaps does not care about the other factors.

True. I'm surprised that govt has not built a proper highway till Mantralaya considering the fact that many people visit this place. Google should have an option to choose a "wide" road instead of "fastest" route.

[theleapyes]

We did a 3 day trip to Mantralaya from Bangalore last weekend. Took the Bangalore >> Gooty >> Pattikonda >> Aspari >> Adoni >> Yemiganur >> Mantralaya route during onward journey. As already mentioned, road condition is mostly good, with many unmarked speed breakers which seem to appear out of nowhere.

A word of caution - Somewhere near Nagaruru, there is a huge crater, not a pothole, that has developed. Luckily, the rains had subsided a few days back and I was able to judge the depth of the crater and drive over it.

There is a 41 feet statue of Lord Hanuman after Adoni on this route (link). We set this as the destination in order Google Maps to take the above route.

Post Adoni, till Mantralaya, the road condition is very good. Lots of windmills have come up on the way.

As part of our trip, we also visited Bichale, Panchamukhi temple and Kallur lakshmi temple.

Bichale and Panchamukhi - Mostly good roads, except the last few stretches, where it's a muddy road, some repair works ongoing. If it rains, not sure how the roads would turn out. When we visited, the weather was dry and the roads were motorable without major issues

Kallur Lakshmi temple - This is a small temple located outside Raichur. Again, we did not take the Google maps suggested "fastest" route, but rather took the Mantralaya -- Raichur highway route and the roads were better till you reach Kallur. Once you enter Kallur village, it's very narrow roads up until the temple. Not much has changed over the years here.

During return journey, we visited Vijaya Dasara Katte at Chippagiri. The route from Mantralaya to Chippagiri has improved drastically, and this route also is dotted with lots of windmills. After darshan and lunch at Chippagiri, we started back to Bangalore via Guntakal >> Uravakonda >> Anantpur.

There is a new Veg restaurant that's come up near the Bagepalli Toll Plaza called Samara's Veg (link). This place is very good, hygienic rest rooms and service is very quick, with lots of parking space. Much needed on this highway, especially for the return journey.

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by theleapyes

We did a 3 day trip to Mantralaya from Bangalore last weekend. Took the Bangalore >> Gooty >> Pattikonda >> Aspari >> Adoni >> Yemiganur >> Mantralaya route during onward journey. As already mentioned, road condition is mostly good, with many unmarked speed breakers which seem to appear out of nowhere.

Visiting Mantralayam over weekend and will be taking above route as usual. Would appreciate if someone could provide updates if available.

[narayans80]

Aspari to Mantralayam continues to remain good. We just returned yesterday. Just 1-2 bad sections inside towns between Aspari and Adoni, can easily spot and manage.

Some of the speed breakers on Kurnool-Aspari have been flattened, but that shouldn't affected the Bangalore bound travellers.

[Rev2Serenity]

Hi All,

Planning to Visit Mantralaya on Sunday, 22nd. Will leave by 4 am from bangalore, visit Mantalaya and head to Hampi. Next day at Hampi and return to Bangalore. May extend one day at Hampi. Doable?

Anybody visited recently? How's the road? Kindly suggest must visit places in Mantralaya and Hampi (other than Sri Virupaksha and Sri Vithala temples) please.

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

Visiting Mantralayam over weekend and will be taking above route as usual. Would appreciate if someone could provide updates if available.

Completed one day visit on Saturday as planned and took the old route of Gooty, Pattikonda bypass, Aspari, Adoni bypass, Yemmiganur, Mantralayam. Time taken was 6.5 hours both sides with 30 min break for refreshment of all members.
One interesting point observed. Saw a couple of visitors following google recommended route after Pattikonda but there seemed to be some confusion there. They went ahead towards Aspari but turned back hunting for the right turn. I would still recommend our usual old route. Other than very few rough patches between Thuggali and Adoni bypass, everything is good.