[iPai]

Thank you all for all the route options!

Sringeri - SK Border - Karkala: Is it the direct road to Karkala passing close to Mala(rather SH 66)? I guess it is some 51 kms(Remember seeing a board in my native Karkala)

And by route you can avoid Agumbe ghats(If you wish to avoid the ghat section)

Correct me if i am wrong guys. I may need this route in future.

(MapMyIndia Beta maps shows this route better)

[roamingrao]

Originally Posted by kaushik_s

which place is SKBorder? I'm not able to find that place in the map?

SK border junction is where the road from Sringeri ( so called NH 13 ! ) joins Kalasa - Kudremukha - Karkala road. The road descents from here towards bajagoli check post ( near karkala ). The 30 km Sringeri - SK border road was asphalted recently and is pure bliss to drive on ! Have been on this road in May and suggest you try this ! There is a prominent board at this junction.

[kaushik_s]

Thanks RoamingRao for the directions. Will probably make some on the spot decision to take which route ;-)

[kaushik_s]

One question, from Sringeri to Agumbe I need to go via Koppa, right? Or is there a direct route? If so how is it?
We will be driving a Swift most probably, giving the Baleno some rest for this trip.

[Samurai]

The direct route from Sringeri to Agumbe is never shown on maps for some silly reason. it is exactly 23kms, doesn't go through Koppa.

Mapmyindia shows the correct route: http://maps.mapmyindia.com/?where=fr...hebri&q=search

[StarVegabond]

Originally Posted by kaushik_s

One question, from Sringeri to Agumbe I need to go via Koppa, right? Or is there a direct route? If so how is it?
We will be driving a Swift most probably, giving the Baleno some rest for this trip.

one has to go through a small village called Bidargodu which is some 6-8 KM from Agumbe.

[kala]

Originally Posted by Samurai

The direct route from Sringeri to Agumbe is never shown on maps for some silly reason. it is exactly 23kms, doesn't go through Koppa.

Mapmyindia shows the correct route: MapmyIndia - maps, directions, and local search across India - just search, print and go!

Interesting that MapmyIndia doesn't show the route from Chikmagalur to Sringeri without passing through Koppa

[lohithrao]

Ok folks just back from Bangalore,

Shiradi is still motorable though many stretches have got rough and i guess in a months time will be bad.

Kunigal onwards till Nelmangala is bad, rough in many places.

Kunigal till Belur cross gets a bit irritating with the good roa gets over abruptly but is manageable.

Belur cross till Sakleshpura is lovely, can be above 100 easily... but watch out for the idiots in omni/autos/bikes. came across many morons who were in the suicidal mode!

nelyadi till mani is good, leaving few bad patches, BC road is ok this stretch is much better then what it was...just before pumpwell it gets bad.

[dkamath]

Originally Posted by lohithrao

BC road is ok this stretch is much better then what it was...just before pumpwell it gets bad.

Got to see parts of the road leading to M'lore, in the BC Road-M'lore stretch to have eroded and collapsed. Our bus decided to drive on the opposite lane until Parangipet or a little further. Sad to see the road sink before being fully operational. Anybody driving towards M'lore is suggested not to park their vehicle along this stretch, just to avoid that "Titanic" effect .

OT: Guessing that the Airavat's are turning out to be white elephants for the M'lore KSRTC division. Happened to overhear the driver and conductor converse during the trip back, when they were talking about 3 Airavat's being down with engine seizure. It's sad to see most of them being repainted and reconditioned, but the lower metal portions curled up already.

[lohithrao]

Kamathavre yes while coming back i took that lane and it was raining hard for a moment it looked risky hehe

[adi99]

Back to Bangalore after one day visit to Udupi. This time I took this route:

Bangalore - NICE Rd - Magadi Rd - Kunigal - Hassan - Belur - Gendehalli - Mudigere - Kottigehara - Charmadi - Belthangady - Karkala - Udupi.

For the first time I am taking Belur - Gendehalli - Mudigere route. The road is narrow but traffic free and very very beautiful road/ scenery/ greenery. The charmadi ghat is good too except for half a km after you see the "Welcome to Mangalore district" board . Its covered with fog but easily manageable. Overall, excellent and trouble free and traffic free driving.

[kaushik_s]

Just finished my 3 day trip to Udupi from Bangalore and THANKS a ton to TBHP for making life much easier for me for this drive and suggesting so many beautiful roads. Let me update on the road status before I forget ;-)

Onwards journey :
1. Bangalore-NICE road -Magadi exit- Magadi- Kunigal : Amazing roads and that Magadi road saved us loads of time. Scenic.
2. Kunigal - Belur Cross (before CR Patna) - Lots of diversions but roads are good but one needs to take caution. Nothing Scenic about it.
3. Belur Cross - CR Patna - Hassan : Good roads again. Hassan bypass has been relaid and now it's smooth. Nothing scenic about it.
4. Hassan - Belur : Amazing roads and probably one of the best roads in Karnataka.
5. Belur - Chikmagalur : Good roads. Very scenic road.
6. Chikmagalur - Vastara - Aldur : Good roads but seems like if they don't repair it then after the monsoon it might go bad. Road at Aldur is not very good. Scenic in places.
7. Aldur- Balehennur - Jayapura - Sringeri : Road is in good condition but look out for a few sudden potholes near Balehennur (not bad ones but might go bad if not repaired.)
8. Sringeri - Agumbe : Mostly good roads. Single lane. Scenic but it was raining so couldn't take any pictures.
9. Agumbey - Hebri : This road is deteriorating and had bit of problem navigating. Can't say about the scenery as it was dark and raining.
10. Hebri - Udupi : Not very good but roads are better as it gets closer to Udupi. Can't say about the scenery as it was dark.

Udupi - Maravanthe : Good roads all the way. Few uneven surfaces are there in some places(near Udupi and Kundapur) and they might get bad. Heavy Traffic. Maravanthe is an amazingly beautiful place. I just wish that those beach shacks were not there :(
Udupi - Malpe : Narrow but good road. Nice beach.

Return Journey:
1. Udupi - Karkala : Good roads most of the time. Kind of good scenery.
2. Karkala - SK Border - Kudremukh : Good roads mostly. There was a landslide at Kudremukh National Park, somewhere near Gangamoola but a temporary measure is taken and it's open. Moderate traffic. Road is narrow inside the National Park and need to drive carefully. Few uneven sections are there but not bad. Road is very very scenic specially near Kudremukh.
3. Kudremukh - Kalasa : Good roads, single lane. moderate traffic. Note: Just after crossing Kudremukh towards Kalasa there are 2-3 hairpin bands and they are very steep. There are two speedbreakers for oncoming traffic and one should really take good care while coming from Kalasa to Kudremukh as the decline would be fast and one might loose control at the hairpin if not careful. Scenery is ok to good in places.
4. Kalasa - Kotigehera - Mudigere : Very long and tiring stretch. It's 41 Km from Kalasa to Kotigehera but it's very very tiring. There is a uneven section from Kalasa till Hiribele (I might be wrong with the name) which will be around 8-9km. Another bad section is near Balur if I remember correctly but it was probably around 1km only. Otherwise the road is good and seems to be have newly laid. Has quite a few scenic streches though.
5. Mudigere - Gendehalli -Belur : Surprise of the day. When we first took the turn (near the Mudigere Bust Station) towards this road we were welcomed with a pothole ridden section. Very disappointed initially thinking there might be a wrong reporting at TBHP but just after a kilometer the road turned out to be newly laid and smooth road. Single lane road but good road. And it was scenic too.
Will soon post a travelogue with photographs. A rain drenched trip from the most rainy region of Karnataka.
Regards,

[lohithrao]

Folks a bit OT, hows the road condition from Mangalore to Sringeri?

[roamingrao]

Originally Posted by lohithrao

Folks a bit OT, hows the road condition from Mangalore to Sringeri?

No information of latest condition of road from Mangalore to Karkala via moodbidre, but karkala - bajagoli - SK border - Sringeri is holding good - last week info.

[shamanth]

Originally Posted by kaushik_s

Hassan - Belur : Amazing roads and probably one of the best roads in Karnataka.

Yes its one of the best road. But i have seen lot of accidents on the curves where road divider has been put. If you are in 80-100 on these curves, you are sure to go out of the road easily, curves are very sharp and road dividers has made road smaller, so if you are not regular on this road and dont know where these deadly curves are, better not to drive in high speed.