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Route update: Bangalore to Dharmasthala and back via different routes

24th December 2024, 16:44 by Utkarsh Chaudhary

On the way back from Kukke Subramanya in the Renault Duster, I made the mistake of taking the Bisle Ghat road over the Subramanya - Gundya - Hassan road.

BHPian Tharle Subba recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Travelled to Dharmasthala and Kukke Subramanya a couple of weeks ago in my Duster with family.

Departure - 6:30 a.m.
Arrival - 12:15 p.m.
Route taken - Bangalore - Kunigal - Hassan - Sakleshpur - Gundya - Dharmasthala
Journey time 5:45 hours including an hour for breakfast

Route conditions

A lot has been said about the roads on this stretch, so sharing my 2 cents as well. The Bangalore - Hassan has excellent roads, only problem area being the entry to Hassan, which is currently under works. From Hassan to Sakleshpur, the roads are decent. Post Sakleshpur, the horrendous roads accompany you for a few kilometers. From there on till Gundya, the journey is a breeze. The roads further up from Gundya till Dharmasthala are good too.

Toll:

NICE Road - INR 215
Nelamangala - INR 55
Bellur - INR 55
Kadabhalli (Kirisave) - INR 55
Shantigrama - INR 45

After the darshan of Manjunatha Swamy, halted for the night to explore some other temples close by.

We resumed our return leg the next morning with the itinerary covering visits to Southadka and Kukke Subramanya before heading home.

Departure - 7 a.m.
Arrival - 7:30 p.m.
Route taken - Dharmasthala - Southadka - Kukke Subramanya - Bisle View Point - Hassan - Kunigal - Bangalore
Journey time - 12:30 hours, including multiple stops

Route conditions

On the way back from Kukke Subramanya, made the mistake of taking the Bisle Ghat road over the Subramanya - Gundya - Hassan road. The Bisle route is terrible, with lots of potholes and surface laced with sharp stones. While the route does allow for scenic views, the bad roads are not worth the effort. I would recommend skipping this road if you are traveling from Subramanya to Bangalore. Once we reached the Hassan leg of NH 75, we were greeted by the chaotic Sunday traffic headed towards Bangalore. After jostling and crawling through tens of kilometers of traffic, reached home exhausted.

Toll