An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty

ampere · 13th May 2010, 13:22

Hey Hey ! Look the Phoenix is back from the ashes.
I was beginning to wonder, where have you been?

Bring it on!

ElantraGT · 13th May 2010, 13:53

Bring it ON buddy. I have been waiting for this moment for some time.

Wow now coming to office is going to have a different meaning all together.

CL, I cant wait, can you post some teaser pictures please.

Chevy_lover · 13th May 2010, 15:24

Thank you Ampere and Hari. So nice to hear words of encouragement from you guys, who have been my best critics for so long!

I will start my new travelogue shortly. We reached home today early morning at 1.30 am after a marathon, high speed, 580 km night drive. I feel as though my foot is still on my Chevy's accelerator!

Let me switch to the story-telling mode from the super-express drive mode ! And yes, teaser pics will be revealed shortly.

SmartCat · 13th May 2010, 17:22

Oh, you again visited the same places? But why?

Chevy_lover · 13th May 2010, 17:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by smartcat

Oh, you again visited the same places? But why?

The same town, but entirely unexplored territory! More on that soon!

KRRaj · 13th May 2010, 17:38

Ah!! You are back. Wondering where you disappeared off to. Looking forward to your travelogue.

Chevy_lover · 13th May 2010, 18:55

The prologue:-

It had been almost four months since we visited the incredibly gorgeous and spectacular city of Udaipur. We spent some of the best days of our lives there! That experience was truly out of this world!

Here is the link:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...ml#post1689856

We were again craving to go on a long drive, as soon as we returned from Udaipur. The fact that the mercury was soaring and the incessant heat wave made us think about taking a short break and drive to the hills down south. We also thought of combining our annual pilgrimage to Velankanni Church along with this trip. It doesn’t take long for us to decide on a road trip and we were totally in agreement with the first draft plan and soon it became our final plan.

We decided to leave Pune on the 4th of May. But would we be able to really make it happen? We had serious doubts when the weather changed all of a sudden in Pune on the 3rd of May. The sky was spitting thunderbolts and we witnessed some awesome scenes!

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-2-lightning.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-3-lightning.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-4-lightning.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-5-lightning.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-6-lightning.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-7-lightning.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-1-lightning_strike_pune.jpg

Thankfully the wrath of the Thunder God did not last long and we were able to stick to our plans!

Let’s bring the temperature down with some cool pics!

An appetizer!

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-8-nh4_as_beautiful_as_a_bride_to_be.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-9-what_a_cutie-marching_forward.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-10-beautiful-sky.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-11-beautiful-mountain.jpg

An incredible road trip to Velankanni, Kodaikanal and Ooty-12-velankanni_church_at_night.jpg

ampere · 13th May 2010, 19:04

Do you end up in Velankanni once again?
Wow ! Look like you took a different route. By any chance did you go via Hyderabad?

ElantraGT · 13th May 2010, 19:07

boy oh boy.. the photos of the thunder bolt is just awesome.

SmartCat · 13th May 2010, 19:09

"Technical" question again, how does one take photos of lightning?

Wasn't it raining at that time? How did you know where the lightning bolt would strike next? Now I have grown up hearing the phrase "The lightning never strikes the same place twice!"

LongDrive lover · 13th May 2010, 19:16

Hi C_L,

So refreshing to see you back. Was wondering you must have gone some where. To be frank, you really have developed a serious fan-following on this forum due to the dedication with which you take your journeys and the way you write your travelogues! Oh, do I need to mention about how far you have progressed in your photography skills! Its no good to repeat the obvious!

No wonder then the moment you announced you are going to start another travelogue (doesn't matter if it is in the same thread), 'virtual touring flies' like us have started to flock around this thread in good numbers! And appetizers have done their job so seriously that its not possible to give you more then this one day to have a breather. Tomorrow onwards, you have got to unfold the story in the same gear in which you drive the Chevy.

LongDrive lover · 13th May 2010, 19:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElantraGT

boy oh boy.. the photos of the thunder bolt is just awesome.

Sir ji, finding out which pic is awesome among the ones this man is going to post is no skill, we got to find the odd one which is not awesome!

Their-in lies the challenge! hehe..No offenses taken plz.

Chevy_lover · 13th May 2010, 20:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by ampere

Do you end up in Velankanni once again?
Wow ! Look like you took a different route. By any chance did you go via Hyderabad?

Yes, Velankanni is our favourite pilgrimage.
We went via Erode and Trichy. I will reveal more as the story starts.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElantraGT

boy oh boy.. the photos of the thunder bolt is just awesome.

Thank you Elantra! Just wait till you see the rest of the pics! It may sound like a cliche', but 'The Best Is Yet To Come'!

Quote:

Originally Posted by smartcat

"Technical" question again, how does one take photos of lightning?

Wasn't it raining at that time? How did you know where the lightning bolt would strike next? Now I have grown up hearing the phrase "The lightning never strikes the same place twice!"

Smartcat, it was drizzling at that time. Photographing lightning is really a painstaking work. I spent three hours in my balcony to get these shots. It is a lottery, guessing where the next lightning strike is going to be. You will need luck on your side. And yes, a camera in which you can control the shutter speed and a tripod. You will find it extremely difficult to take these kind of shots with a P & S camera.

Quote:

Originally Posted by LongDrive lover

Hi C_L,

So refreshing to see you back. Was wondering you must have gone some where. To be frank, you really have developed a serious fan-following on this forum due to the dedication with which you take your journeys and the way you write your travelogues! Oh, do I need to mention about how far you have progressed in your photography skills! Its no good to repeat the obvious!

No wonder then the moment you announced you are going to start another travelogue (doesn't matter if it is in the same thread), 'virtual touring flies' like us have started to flock around this thread in good numbers! And appetizers have done their job so seriously that its not possible to give you more then this one day to have a breather. Tomorrow onwards, you have got to unfold the story in the same gear in which you drive the Chevy.

Thank you for the appreciation, my friend. I was away for a long time from Team BHP. It feels so good to be welcomed back.

I will be posting my travelogue as when I get time. I hope that I'll be able to finish it soon. I have some stunning pics coming up. I spend hours trying to get the perfect shot. I hope my effort pays off here! There will be absolutely NO repeats here!

VLOCT · 13th May 2010, 23:01

Its been a great read so far. You and your wife are really good photographers. The travel diary is also excellent. Its great to see your passion for travel and then share it with other. Please keep up the excellent work.

Cheers.

MX6 · 13th May 2010, 23:04

Excellent photos of the lightning there. And welcome back CL

@smartcat. Here's a trick. When you see the first lightning, set your tripod and camera immediately. Focus at infinity, or the furthest object you can on the sky. Use the widest angle lens as possible to cover everything. Either use b-mode exposure on a timed shot or simply keep your shutter open for long time like 10 - 15 seconds. If you are lucky, there's be one bolt in that time. Just keep shooting for 2 - 3 hours with long shutters, shots one after other. You may end up with a prized catch! Tripod is a must. Remote operated shutter is a bonus. Ofcourse, you get the desired results, only when there's lightning.

13th May 2010, 13:22	#511
ampere Team-BHP Support Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 18,106 Thanked: 13,231 Times View My Garage	Hey Hey ! Look the Phoenix is back from the ashes. I was beginning to wonder, where have you been? Bring it on! Last edited by ampere : 13th May 2010 at 13:36.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 13:53	#512
ElantraGT BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 441 Thanked: 12 Times	Bring it ON buddy. I have been waiting for this moment for some time. Wow now coming to office is going to have a different meaning all together. CL, I cant wait, can you post some teaser pictures please.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 15:24	#513
Chevy_lover Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Köln Posts: 1,209 Thanked: 130 Times View My Garage	Thank you Ampere and Hari. So nice to hear words of encouragement from you guys, who have been my best critics for so long! I will start my new travelogue shortly. We reached home today early morning at 1.30 am after a marathon, high speed, 580 km night drive. I feel as though my foot is still on my Chevy's accelerator! Let me switch to the story-telling mode from the super-express drive mode ! And yes, teaser pics will be revealed shortly.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 17:22	#514
SmartCat Team-BHP Support Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,666 Thanked: 45,919 Times View My Garage	Oh, you again visited the same places? But why?
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 17:38	#516
KRRaj BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 514 Thanked: 35 Times View My Garage	Ah!! You are back. Wondering where you disappeared off to. Looking forward to your travelogue.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 18:55	#517
Chevy_lover Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Köln Posts: 1,209 Thanked: 130 Times View My Garage	An appetizer..... The prologue:- It had been almost four months since we visited the incredibly gorgeous and spectacular city of Udaipur. We spent some of the best days of our lives there! That experience was truly out of this world! Here is the link: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...ml#post1689856 We were again craving to go on a long drive, as soon as we returned from Udaipur. The fact that the mercury was soaring and the incessant heat wave made us think about taking a short break and drive to the hills down south. We also thought of combining our annual pilgrimage to Velankanni Church along with this trip. It doesn’t take long for us to decide on a road trip and we were totally in agreement with the first draft plan and soon it became our final plan. We decided to leave Pune on the 4th of May. But would we be able to really make it happen? We had serious doubts when the weather changed all of a sudden in Pune on the 3rd of May. The sky was spitting thunderbolts and we witnessed some awesome scenes! Thankfully the wrath of the Thunder God did not last long and we were able to stick to our plans! Let’s bring the temperature down with some cool pics! An appetizer!
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 19:04	#518
ampere Team-BHP Support Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 18,106 Thanked: 13,231 Times View My Garage	Do you end up in Velankanni once again? Wow ! Look like you took a different route. By any chance did you go via Hyderabad?
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 19:07	#519
ElantraGT BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 441 Thanked: 12 Times	boy oh boy.. the photos of the thunder bolt is just awesome.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 19:09	#520
SmartCat Team-BHP Support Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,666 Thanked: 45,919 Times View My Garage	"Technical" question again, how does one take photos of lightning? Wasn't it raining at that time? How did you know where the lightning bolt would strike next? Now I have grown up hearing the phrase "The lightning never strikes the same place twice!" Last edited by SmartCat : 13th May 2010 at 19:12.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 19:16	#521
LongDrive lover BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Lucknow Posts: 783 Thanked: 114 Times	Hi C_L, So refreshing to see you back. Was wondering you must have gone some where. To be frank, you really have developed a serious fan-following on this forum due to the dedication with which you take your journeys and the way you write your travelogues! Oh, do I need to mention about how far you have progressed in your photography skills! Its no good to repeat the obvious! No wonder then the moment you announced you are going to start another travelogue (doesn't matter if it is in the same thread), 'virtual touring flies' like us have started to flock around this thread in good numbers! And appetizers have done their job so seriously that its not possible to give you more then this one day to have a breather. Tomorrow onwards, you have got to unfold the story in the same gear in which you drive the Chevy. Last edited by LongDrive lover : 13th May 2010 at 19:17.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 23:01	#524
VLOCT BHPian Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Las Vegas, USA Posts: 558 Thanked: 633 Times View My Garage	Its been a great read so far. You and your wife are really good photographers. The travel diary is also excellent. Its great to see your passion for travel and then share it with other. Please keep up the excellent work. Cheers.
	() Thanks

13th May 2010, 23:04	#525
MX6 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: City of seven islands. Posts: 2,878 Thanked: 232 Times	Excellent photos of the lightning there. And welcome back CL @smartcat. Here's a trick. When you see the first lightning, set your tripod and camera immediately. Focus at infinity, or the furthest object you can on the sky. Use the widest angle lens as possible to cover everything. Either use b-mode exposure on a timed shot or simply keep your shutter open for long time like 10 - 15 seconds. If you are lucky, there's be one bolt in that time. Just keep shooting for 2 - 3 hours with long shutters, shots one after other. You may end up with a prized catch! Tripod is a must. Remote operated shutter is a bonus. Ofcourse, you get the desired results, only when there's lightning.
	() Thanks