3rd January 2021, 16:09
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| Newbie Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Chennai
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Thanked: 50 Times
| A year-end road-trip to Yercaud in my new Hyundai Creta IVT! The year 2020 was no different to us! We didn't travel anywhere the entire year and was not planning to do so during the year-end break as well. But, I saw few of my colleagues starting to making plans and it triggered me to think as well. After lots of discussions, we decided to take a break but also wanted to play it relatively safe by visiting a place that's less "popular". We chose Yercaud! We have never visited Yercaud as a family and it's certainly an underdog when it comes to hill stations in TN. You have Coonoor, Ooty, Kodai, Meghamalai, Munnar, so Yercaud was definitely not a default destination for a hill station. We still went ahead with our plans, because we just wanted to get out and have a break from the monotony. We booked a nice resort (supposed to be the most clean and hygienic in Yercaud) and planned for a 2-days/3-nights visit. That should give us plenty time to go around this quaint hill station. Moreover, I had recently purchased the new Creta IVT SX and this could be a perfect chance to stretch its legs and have a change from the mundane city traffic. On the eve of the departure, when I was about to take the car to top the tank, check the tyre pressure et al I saw a scratch on my 2-month old Creta. Guess it was the kids riding their cycles like BMX bikes along the car park and their brake levers kissed the surface of the car!  I tried everything - colgate, nail polish, rubbing polish. Nothing worked! So, I decided to do the typical fix you do anywhere - bandaid it. Am a "Drive Tribe" fan anyway, so it all fits in! So, we were all set and took this route: CHENNAI-MELMARUVATHUR-TINDIVANAM-VILUPURAM-ULUNDURPET-KALLAKURUCHI-ATTUR-YERCAUD The roads were sublime. Since, we started early at 5:30am, we beat the Chennai outskirts traffic and reached Melmaruvathur in no time. Had breakfast at 99km restaurant where you get organic pongal, dosais and pretty good coffee! The Ulundurpet-Salem route roads were very good too. We then stopped near Attur A2B for lunch before the climb to Yercaud. Enjoyed the drive in my Creta IVT SX. Used cruise control and Eco mode on open highway and the ride was a pleasure. Was wondering how it will perform on the ghat roads, since this was my first automatic (at least in India) and to my surprise it performed with great aplomb. The ghat roads were like a carpet and I had to use the paddle shifters only couple of times. When the gradients were steep, I switched from Comfort to Sport and it pulled effortlessly. I was not aggressive too, so not much body roll and the kids were just fine in the back seat (no puking). We reached Yercaud and took it easy that afternoon/evening and had a light stroll, nice buffet dinner at the resort before we hit the bed! The resort was in an excellent location, closer to the town but also slightly away on a hill top and was at this time of the year filled with mist!   and some monkeys for company too!  Next day, first stop Karadiyur View Point. It's a brilliant location with very scenic views. There were hardly any tourists at around 10am, the views were tremendous.  From there we made it to Kiliyur Falls. By that time, the mist had lifted too and it was awesome - full of water and an amazing location. We had to climb down almost 200 steps (some very steep), but it was worth it! We spent a good 2 hours there and had nice lemon soda and corn.  The route cuts across pretty dense green forests with very less traffic and it was like we had the hill station for ourselves!   We then came back to the the town and had a nice late lunch at the resort. Had a brief break and headed to the Yercaud lake. The lake is very small and not very well maintained with lots of weeds. This was a sore point in the trip, but hey you can't get it all! We could only take the boat upto the half way point, the rest were blocked because of weeds.  We did some window shopping around the lake and found Saravana Bhavan. We got some parcels and had a sumptuous meal at the Hotel lazing around the bonfire. It was very relaxing!  Next day, I wanted to do the famed 32-km loop road. This road loops through dense forests and scenic spots. Riding the Creta (on Sport Model) was a dream! Not once the car struggled to climb or take a bend. It was well planted even in some muddy stretches and I was only too happy I made this purchase   Beautiful roads snaking through the route littered with very tall oaks. There was hardly any traffic and in some places we stopped to take snaps for ever - admiring the new Creta!!!   My favourite shot!  Kids enjoyed the experience with the sun roof open and riding along with gentle healthy breeze from the mountain filling the cabin.  We stopped at the Cauvery Peak for a hot chai.  We never wanted the loop road to end - want to be in that endless loop like the Inception movie!!! But anyways, we rolled back to the town had some hot dosas and coffee at Saravana Bhavan. Next, treat for the kids. They were very accommodating - us adults enjoying the scenic beauty, while all they want to do is to play! So, we decided to go for an adventure park (Poppy Hills Adventure Park)- rope climbing, zip lining et al.  Did a ATV ride too!  Finally, it was time for us to head back to the Hotel and have a nice dinner. We had a good rest and headed back next morning to "Home Sweet Home" - Chennai. We took the exciting 20 hairpin bend road while heading down the hills and I was driving all along in Comfort Model - again not aggressive at all. The mileage (30km/l) clocked while heading down the hill and right up to Attur was stupendous! Although I understand it was down the hill.  We stopped at Ulundurpet Vasantha Bhavan for Lunch and then did a non-stop ride back home to Chennai. The overall mileage for the return journey (almost 20km/l) was pretty good too for Petrol IVT. If I remember right, the onward journey mileage was around 13km/l, considering the up hill climb (forgot to capture the photo!).  The next day I took my Creta for a nice car wash for a refreshing start to the New Year!!!  I must say we were pleasantly surprised with the beauty of Yercaud Hills. I think the timing is key and the best time to visit is Dec and Jan when the weather is chill & misty and of course a wonderful ride like Creta makes the difference too. I have been to many hill stations and I certainly would consider this as one of the most relaxing trips. And most importantly my better half thinks the same!  Until next time. |
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6th January 2021, 12:14
| #2 |
| BHPian  | |
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6th January 2021, 15:40
| #3 |
| BHPian Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Chennai
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| Re: A year-end road-trip to Yercaud in my new Hyundai Creta IVT! Crisp t'logue with cool photos. The lake was prestine even last year, hope they maintain it once visitors start pouring in. Can you share the name of the resort, is it Great Trails (GRT)? Ah, the Drive tribe bandaid fits in nicely  |
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6th January 2021, 16:12
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6th January 2021, 21:02
| #5 |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2019 Location: Pune
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7th January 2021, 13:28
| #6 | |||
| Newbie Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Chennai
Posts: 16
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| Quote:
The resort name is Grand Palace http://www.grandpalaceyercaud.com/ Quote:
Quote:
True, the 3 modes (Eco, Comfort, Sport) really helps and is vastly different. This is my first automatic and I was not so sure about the Ghat drive. But, it handled very well. Sport mode is brilliant. On highways I used the Eco mode to get some mileage. Mod Note: Please use the EDIT or QUOTE+ (multi-quote) button instead of typing one post after another on the SAME THREAD! To know how to multi-quote, click here. Last edited by Rudra Sen : 7th January 2021 at 13:50. | |||
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