[Dr.AD]

Prologue to the Coffee Country Drive:

Like all of you on this forum, I do a lot of weekend drives. However, not every drive is memorable. In fact, many of these "routine" trips are forgotten soon. However, sometime, somehow, a few ingredients come together to make that drive all of a sudden very special, very memorable.

I experienced one such special drive a couple of weekends ago. It was somewhere in the hills surrounding Chikmagalur - the area well-known for coffee plantations! A little Coffee Country within Karnataka!

Now I have been to this area many times before. In fact, we (I and my wife) did our own drive to Chikmagalur just the weekend prior to this particular drive. But the beauty of this drive was that it offered such a refreshingly new experience that it felt like we saw something totally new. It just managed to create an amazingly fresh experience from otherwise well known ingredients. It added a small twist somewhere to convert the regular recipe into a magical experience!

OK, so coming to the point now, this was a drive organized by 'WindowsDownMotoring' (https://windowsdownmotoring.com/). Few of my friends participated in their previous event, and came back with a lot of positive feedback. That made me explore their website, and falling in love with the photos and videos there, I had to join the next drive. And this is how this story began.

One of the key people behind this WindowsDownMotoring (WDM) is a member of this forum - @megazoid. So this was also a great opportunity for me to meet megazoid and talk about his cars and his previous drives. He has driven extensively all over India, and it was amazing to talk to him on the common passion of cars and driving.

What made this drive so special was the detailed research done by the WDM team on the roads and the locations. They took us in a convoy through some of the most scenic yet lesser known roads. The entire organization and planning was fantastic, and they really went out of their way to ensure everyone had a great experience.

(Important Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with WDM whatsoever. I have no commercial interest or any other ties with them in any which way. I was merely a paying participant in this drive. In fact, I did not even know the organizers before and met them for the first time in this drive. Thus, this is merely my experience as a paying participant in an organized drive that I would like to share here with all of you.)

Along us (I and my wife), were our usual friends, bhpians @RSUDARSANAN, @robimahanta, @tilt, @Graaja, and then a couple of more friends. The great company made the drive even more fun.

Now unfortunately, I have a unique problem in composing this travelogue. We were a group of cars, doing two days of awesome driving, through the hills, through rain (varying from drizzle to heavy downpour), mist, fog (sometimes close to zero visibility), lush green landscapes, and absolutely scenic roads. But I have no pictures to show for any of that.

I was so busy enjoying the driving experience most of the times that I did not take any pictures en route. It was also raining most of the times on the first day which added to my reluctance to take my camera out. Thus, I have no pictures, no evidence, to show for most of the stuff I said above. You would just have to take my word for it. I also missed photographing the beautiful cars my friends were driving.

In fact, at the end of the first day I was worried that I would come back without any pictures at all. However, just like in a T20 cricket match, your fortunes can change at any instant when it comes to travel experiences. We woke up the next morning to some very pleasant weather and a blue sky! We instantly stepped out for a morning walk through the coffee plantations. Further, two cars stepped out for what turned out to be a very special morning drive where we got some great photo ops too! I got more than what I hoped for pictures in those two hours of the morning.

Thus, almost all my photos in this travelogue are about that two-hour morning session. I apologize to my friends for missing out on shooting their cars and making this travelogue a more representative of a group drive.

However, like in a T20 cricket match where a great player can change the game in one over, our expert photographer and videographer robimahanta came to our rescue by capturing everything in one video! He captured the drive and the cars in his GoPro, and compiled a beautiful video that summarizes the whole weekend.

Let's watch the below video by robimahanta that summarizes the whole drive more accurately, before proceeding to read my travelogue which is unfortunately a bit narrow in focus.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqQh...ature=youtu.be

[Dr.AD]

The Resort and the Surroundings:

One of the unique "features" of the WDM drives is that they keep the locations and the places secret till you actually arrive there. This made it a great experience because we enjoyed the day's drive with anticipation of discovering a new place, rather than already being biased by the detailed knowledge of the destination. This format took us back to the purest of joys of traveling - the feeling of adventure and exploring the unknown, the and joy of discovery!

After a long circuitous scenic drive through the hills, without knowing where we would end up, and at some point wondering if we were actually just lost in the forests, we arrived at an incredibly picturesque resort.

The cottages on the backdrop of the hills:



The resort had just five cottages, which made it an ideal place for a small private group:



Each cottage had a balcony facing the forest. Views from our balcony:



We could just sit there enjoying views like this:







My car parked in the parking lot:



My other favorite car, the "famous" BMW 3GT 330i M Sports, of Graaja, parked next to mine:



I like his car so much that I spent some time photographing it in the parking lot. One photo to show for the effort:

[Dr.AD]

An Idyllic Morning Walk:

As I mentioned before, we woke up the next morning to a very nice weather. After a cup of hot coffee, we stepped out for a walk through coffee plantations.

The ladies led the way and set the pace:



That pace made the WDM team (Baiju and megazoid) hurry up to catch up:




Scenic trails for walking through the plantation:



Graaja and megazoid discussing benefits of morning walk during the morning walk (now this is called "walking the talk"):



Coffee beans in plenty! Some evidence to show that we were indeed in Coffee Country:



Our cottages as seen from the road outside:



Our fitness guru, Graaja, showing us how it is done, by running uphill without breaking sweat (for those who do not know, please check out his invaluable inputs in the "weight loss" thread):




The rest of us chose to stroll instead:




The benefits of slow walk. We had time to look around and spotted this peacock:



Not just the wildlife, but we also saw some really pretty houses nestled in the hills, hidden behind trees:



And finally, a picture of that tiny and twisty road that is etched in my mind:

[Dr.AD]

A Surreal Morning Drive:

While a few of the group members chose to relax in the resort and enjoy the surrounding with hot coffee, two cars stepped out for a drive to a nearby viewpoint, and to attempt a photoshoot on the scenic roads.

The two cars that stepped out, like two opening batsmen in a high stakes T20 match, were the two red members of the convoy: The sizzling hot VW GTI of megazoid and the BMW 320d driven by yours truly.

What followed was a truly special drive. The drive that made the whole weekend memorable for me. The morning air was crisp, clean and cold. The sky looked pretty with a few clouds and few blue spots. The fog and the mist was still lingering around. The landscapes were lush green. The roads were turning left and right with no straight patches anywhere and with hills on all sides. The distant valley views were mesmerizing. The light was perfect for a photoshoot. And we had two red subjects with natural contrast on the green background. What more could we ask for?


The two early risers arrived at a view point:



We started climbing a small hill to a view point, which was completely engulfed by fog:



Our cars barely visible in the distance while the cows were grazing in the most peaceful surroundings:



A couple of other cars (not from our group) appeared there by now:



"Morning Stars" :-)



Scenic roads in the distance:



And scenic roads right in front of us:



Mesmerizing valley views:



A front shot of my car (you can see the GTI behind if you look closely):



Another angle that shows both the cars:



Valley views continue to lure me away from the cars:



Then we arrived here, with rolling hills in the background:



Could not resist taking many photos here, even at the cost of repetition :-)



The Red Hot GTI:



The hills all around provided beautiful backdrops from any angle:



The two cars posing together:



My favorite shot of the weekend:



The two cars quickly became close friends. They both loved the roads and of course the corners :-)



Rolling hills in the backdrop:



The roads! I will always remember the roads from this drive. Small, narrow with no frills, but incredibly charming, inviting you to drive on all the time:



Baiju of WDM, taking a group photo using self-timer. "A tripod with four wheels" :-)



Wheels and Hills! What more can we ask for?



And finally, the wonderful couple behind WDM, megazoid and Shivali, next to their beautiful GTI:

[Dr.AD]

Epilogue:

For me the above photo session was the defining moment of the drive. Sadly, I missed capturing rest of the drive and the rest of the cars, due to reasons mentioned above. Luckily, I had a few photos taken from my mobile phone during the pit-stops, and let me wrap this travelogue by sharing those.


During an "open-air" breakfast on the side of the road. The blue 320d belongs to RSUDARSANAN, and the Laura belongs to Baiju of WDM:



The lovely GTI parked outside the coffee shop:



The two 320ds giving each other company:



While on the return leg, the BMWs giving each other company (the 328i belongs to robimahanta - the real hottest car in the group!)



And a parting shot of four of the cars parked together on a coffee break (the silver Jetta belongs to tilt)



With that, let me wrap this up. It was a really memorable weekend and I hope the photos above are able to convey my excitement about the locations and the scenery.

And finally, many thanks to the WDM family and all my friends and bhpians on this drive. They all made this drive really special!

Thank you very much for reading. Until next time!

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[PearlJam]

Excellent writeup, AD! Mist and fog creates an amazing and surreal driving experience every single time. From the video though, it looks like monsoons are mostly over and may be, a week or two earlier might have been the best time?

Could you please share the name of the resort, as well as of the morning viewpoint. Thanks!

[graaja]

Nice write up and awesome pictures AD! It was a fun trip indeed and I had a great time driving down to Bangalore and joining you all for the drive. Sharing some pictures I took with my cell phone.

A short coffee break on the way to Bangalore on Friday.


First pit stop for coffee on Saturday morning.


Cars lined up at the breakfast stop.


Another tea break.


A picture of my 3GT.


Cars lined up under storm clouds.




Driving through some bad roads in heavy rain. That is Dr_AD's car.


The resort.


The morning hike path.


AD, Megozoid and Baiju having some serious discussion!


I also took the chance to steal a nice run in the hills as AD was busy shooting the 320D and the GTi. A few pictures of the road I ran on.






Overall, a fantastic experience. What a way to spend the weekend. Looking forward to the next drive already.

[GrandTourer]

Wow! Amazing pictures and writeup. I'm sure the experience was much much more thrilling, especially the drive up the narrow hills.
QQ to @megazoid: Are there any upcoming events? The calendar on the website is empty. Would love to experience this for myself.

[nerd1200]

Lovely pics and writeup, as always, AD. I had to miss this due to work commitments, and looks like I missed a lot of good driving roads and windows down fun.

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

What made this drive so special was the detailed research done by the WDM team on the roads and the locations. They took us in a convoy through some of the most scenic yet lesser known roads. The entire organization and planning was fantastic, and they really went out of their way to ensure everyone had a great experience.

Hari and Baiju are excellent hosts and do make you feel at home. And their research on the route is just spot-on. Would recommend them as well.

Here are couple pics from two of our earlier drives.


My snowman leading a pack in the middle of a grassland/wildlife reserve near Madhugiri


The Batmobile trying to blend-in at SRPatna

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by PearlJam

Excellent writeup, AD! Mist and fog creates an amazing and surreal driving experience every single time. From the video though, it looks like monsoons are mostly over and may be, a week or two earlier might have been the best time?

Thank you PearlJam! Maybe the video is a bit misleading about the weather because it mostly covers our drive towards the hills. That time it was dry. However, once we reached the hills, it was raining heavily, and at several places, we had thick fog with close to zero visibility. The pictures added by Graaja above show some of this. And then on the second day it cleared up a lot and we got to see blue sky. I think we timed it well to get a mix of heavy rain, fog, mist and then some clear skies.

Could you please share the name of the resort, as well as of the morning viewpoint. Thanks!

The resort was "Sunset Valley Homestay". Looks like they do not even have a website (but if you Google the above words you will find this place). This is a tiny little homestay that WDM found for us. This is one example of what I meant that they had done a lot of research and recce to make this a great experience for all of us.

By the way, although I missed taking pictures of the full convoy, Shivali of WDM took some really great photos of the convoy. I am taking the liberty to share those below. All photos below courtesy Shivali of WDM:

[jkrishnakj]

Beautiful pictures and excellent narrations. Thanks for sharing.

I have a quick question - Does Windowndown team organize only for a group of cars or will they do for one family/one car also ? Quite tempting to give it a go, honestly. And to think that its a fellow BHPian run initiative, all the more reason to give it a go as quickly as possible. Thanks.

[bhansali_hardik]

Hi!

Well world really is a small place. I think you were our neighbours! We were at the beautiful house that you'd mentioned. This particular stretch and the weather is always good. Also, if you are into birding you might have caught/missed hornbills, woodpeckers, buzzards, eagles and a ton of passerine.

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by nerd1200

Lovely pics and writeup, as always, AD. I had to miss this due to work commitments, and looks like I missed a lot of good driving roads and windows down fun.

Here are couple pics from two of our earlier drives.

Thanks Nerd1200. Nice pictures! Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by GrandTourer

Wow! Amazing pictures and writeup. I'm sure the experience was much much more thrilling, especially the drive up the narrow hills. .

Thank you! Yes, the pictures do not do full justice to the experience we had. Driving in those hills is always a very lovely experience which is hard to express in photos or videos.

Originally Posted by jkrishnakj

Beautiful pictures and excellent narrations. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you!

Originally Posted by bhansali_hardik

Well world really is a small place. I think you were our neighbours! We were at the beautiful house that you'd mentioned. This particular stretch and the weather is always good.

Oh wow! That is a great coincidence. That house looked very beautiful. Is that your house? Or is it a villa that you rented on the weekend? Or is that also a homestay? It would be great if you could please share some information. Thanks!

[bhansali_hardik]

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

....that you rented on the weekend? Or is that also a homestay? It would be great if you could please share some information. Thanks!

Well that's owned by my uncle. We're lucky that he let's us use it