50) Panchapalli Dam: (6/3/2012)

Place: Panchapalli Dam.

Distance: 100 x 2 = 200kms.

Directions: Bengaluru – Hosur – Denkankottai – Panchapalli Dam.

Particiapants: Chethan(Zethu) > Karthik (Sp).

Bikes: Avenger > Pulsar.

Previous visit: Yercaud.

IN LESS THAN 50 WORDS:

This was another excellent run to this unheard off, but a wonderful reservoir in Tamil Nadu. The hot sun drained our energies & made it a very tiring ride, but we pulled it off. This run also meant the successful completion of our 50^th chapter!!:)

INTRO & PLAN:

As far as the planning goes, we had heard of this place a few months back. Very few people have visited this place, so it was an extra joy to get out & search for this place. Zethu was the only one on the confirmed list.

TIME: 23:00 hrs (5/3/2012)

ASSEMBLE:

I was up at 05:00, had a sip of coffee, did a few push-ups & was all set to go out & complete the 50^th run. Zethu arrived at my place at my place & we left Bengaluru.

TIME: 06:30 hrs

 

RIDE 1: (Benguluru-Hosur-Saints bunk stop)

This was a 40-50kms stretch.  We started off early hoping to get out of the city when the traffic was lean. But unfortunately the traffic was a little heavy, drifting past the busses & cars we managed to get out of the city and enter NH-7.

After reaching NH-7 it was pure cruising mode. We cruised along the 6-lane butter-smooth highway to reach Karnataka – TN border. We rode further to reach Hosur outskirts & stopped at our regular bunk.

TIME: 08:00 hrs

 

RIDE 2: (Hosur-Dennikotte-Panchapalli Dam)

After filling up petrol, we stopped for tea & we started speaking about any noteworthy incidents that had occurred since our last ride. We entered Sh-17a and it was pure bliss to ride on this baby, we cruised along at a decent pace for the next 30kms to reach Dennaikotte.

At Dennaikotte we asked the locals for directions, and took a left deviation (at an Arch on the left side) in the town & continued further towards Panchapalli Dam.

 

This last stretch was for about 20kms, and it was a totally isolated ride. We stopped at many places as the sun was draining out our energies; one of the important stops was Bettarayaswamy temple. After covering about 15kms, we got the first glimpse of the wonderful reservoir. Next 5kms we descended along the reservoir and finally arrived at PP dam.

TIME: 09:30 hrs

PANCHAPALLI DAM:

Alright… to be honest I was expecting a small water body, but this one turned out be freaking huge. But yeah the atmosphere was calm & damn peaceful.

‘Tranquillity’ was the word at the place, & we both were the only ones at the place at it was a weekday plus not many know about this place. The water levels were totally down.

When asked about getting into water it was a “no-no” so we walked & fooled around the bund to reach the other end. We took out biscuits and started munching away.

 

We sat for about 30+mins discussing about the best of 50 chapters, and as we left we spotted the canal to this reservoir. We went near the canal, the water was a little dirty but a great place for water games. But we decided to skip it and head back.

TIME: 10:45 hrs

 

RIDE 3: (Panchapalli Dam-Dennaikotte-Hosur-Bengaluru)

This was a tiring stretch under the scorching sun. The first 20kms was the stretch back to Dennaikotte, & by the time we had completed this we were totally thirsty and stopped for some coconuts in the town.

TIME: 11:15 hrs

From Dennaikotte, Hosur is about 30kms we rode at a decent pace on the wonderful SH-17a which offered a little shade to reach Hosur.

After reaching Hosur we continued further to reached back Karnataka, and as we did we pulled over at a hotel for some heavy lunch :D

TIME: 12:15 hrs

 

Once we were done with lunch, we left the hotel and back onNH-7. We cruised along the smooth highway to reach Silkboard junction. As it was noon, the traffic was lean we eased through the city to reach back our respective homes.

TIME: 14:00 hrs

CONCLUSION:

I’d like to conclude this article by saying the following “though this was just a 200kms run, it drained out more energy when compared to our much bigger runs. It was real nice to dig out a new place and this being the 50^th chapter meant something special to all of us:)”

PARTICIPANT VIEW:

ZETHU: Perfect rider with whom I maintain sync with on NH-7, his office stories kept us well entertained.

SP: Happy that the 50^th chapter is completed \t/

Before ending this article, here are some of our best (Or what we think are the best) chapters:

[1] Maddur – The Origin.

[3] Mekedatu – Destination danger.

[4] Nandi Hills – Quick Return Mechanism.

[17] Skandagiri night trek – Misty death trek.

[18] Kanva Resevoir – Mechanix ride.

[21] Pearl Valley – Jungle walk.

[22] Talakadu – Come one, come all. (11bikes, 21 participants)

[26] BR hills – Foggy forest cruise. (Coldest ride since 117 years)

[27]Chamundi Hills & Balmuri falls – Classic Flawless ride.

[28] Kabbaladurga Trek – Hello death!! (NDE – Near death experience)

[29] Himvadgopalswamy Betta – Hot oven ride.

[37] Chitradurga fort & Vani Vilas Dam – Time travel into ancient heaven.

[38] MM hills, BR hills, Gaganchukki,Barachukki – Twin hills and falls ride.( 600kms one day)

[40] Markonahalli dam, Melukote, TonnurKere – Old School fun ride.

[44] Mahadevpura – Explore that sanctuary.

[45] Hogenekkal – Blood filled memories on road. (Must read)

[47] Mekedatu & Sangama – Adventure on!! (15kms forest walk)

[48] Coorg(Madikeri) – Big finish to ‘11.

[49] Yercaud – back on the streets. (580kms 1-day ride)

[50] Panchapalli dam – 50^th chapter complete :)

Until next time Cia \m/

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49) Yercaud: (22/1/2012)

Place: Yercaud.

Distance: 250 x 2 = 500kms. (Our run came upto 560kms as the forest route was taken)

Directions: Bengaluru – Hosur – Dennaikotte – Anchetty – Dharampuri – Salem – Yercaud – Dharampuri – Krishnagiri – Hosur - Bengaluru.(Our run - 280kms)
ii) Bengaluru - Hosur - Krishnagiri - Dharampuri - Salem - Yercaud. (250kms)

Particiapants: Zethu > Sp.

Bikes: Avenger 220.

Previous visit: Coorg(Madikeri).

IN LESS THAN 50 WORDS:

This was another classic old-school run to the wonderful hill station of Tamil Nadu – Yercaud. Known as the “poor man’s Ooty” this place is more of a picnic spot for family visits. But yeah one thing about Yercaud all motorcycle clubs love is the ride to the place.

INTRO & PLAN:

Well Zethu was the only one on the confirmed list, and both of us had to get back on SH-17a (the interior forest route after Hosur) as it would refreshen the blood filled memories of our Hogenekkal Trip. So… after having decided to meet at my place at 06:00 hrs, we crashed.

TIME: 00:00 hrs (22/1/2012)

ASSEMBLE:

Yeah I was up at 04:00 hrs, had a cup of coffee, did a few push-ups & was all set for a long day on the road. Zethu arrived at my place at around 05:45, it was more than 2 months since we both had pulled of a chapter, so both of us were pumped up and ready to hit the road. We decided to head out on Zethu’s Avy!!

TIME: 06:00 hrs

RIDE 1: (Bengaluru – Hosur - Saints bunk stop)

Alright this was a 50-60kmsstretch, we got out of the city early as the traffic was lean. After reaching Hosur road (NH-7), we cruised at a decent pace to reach the Karnataka-TN border. Once we crossed the border we entered the Hosur outskirts & took a deviation towards Dennaikotte and stopped at our signature petrol bunk.

TIME: 07:30 hrs

Ps: One can continue straight on NH-7 to Yercaud, the distance comes upto 250kms. But for us, this interior route is something special, a remembrance of our Hogenekkal Trip.

 

RIDE 2: (Hosur - Dennaikotte – Anchetty - Saints outpost)

We had some tea at the petrol bunk, we cruised along the excellent roads of SH-17a. It was not long before we spotted the small stone bench on which we had rested on our way back from Hogenekkal with blood dripping from our heads, knees and hands.

We crossed the two bridges of this route without any difficulty as it was completely dried out. We reached Dennaikottai and as we continued further towards Anchetty the roads became excellent with superb curves. The weather was cool even though the sun was up, this made riding conditions ideal. After some consistent riding we reached the perfect pit-stop.

  

PERFECT PITSTOP:

Well we were a little disappointed that there weren’t any clouds moving around mountain ranges like the last time, but we still sat here for a good amount of time speaking about our last trip & what we had been upto for the past 3 months.

We left the place after 15-20mins and continued further to reach our second signature stop.

SAINTS OUTPOST:

We spent about 30mins here sitting and sharing some of our funny/epic moments. There was thick forest surrounding us in all directions, the idea of night camping did occur but we decided to stick to the original plan.

TIME: 09:15 hrs

RIDE 3: (Saints outpost – Hogenekkal)

So… as we left the Saints outpost, we cruised at a decent pace. In a few minutes we spotted the mighty MM hills and we started recollecting the chapter where we we had spotted elephants. Soon the hair-pin curves started & Zethu enjoyed negotiating each one of them to perfection.

The last stretch to hogenekkal consisted of really good forest roads very similar to Mutathi & BR hills. And yeah everytime we spotted bulls grazing we would slow down & keep enough safe distance :P ha-ha!!

Cruising along we reached Hogenekkal, as it was Sunday the place was jam-packed. And it would also be time consuming, so we decided to skip and continued towards Yercuad.

TIME: 10:00 hrs

 

RIDE 4: (Hogenekkal – Dharampuri – Salem)

Well this stretch was for about 120kms and a good one too. As we left Hogenekkal our first priority was to re-join NH-7. As continued further we spotted the place where we had met with an accident, had a hearty laugh and continued further to reach Dharampuri.

TIME: 11:00hrs

After reaching the NH-7 it was pure sailing on the butter smooth highway. We kept re-collecting our college clowns and it not long before we reached Salem.

TIME: 12:00 hrs

It was pretty easy to get out of the city, thanks to the well organised traffic and broad roads to reach the foot of the mighty Yercaud.

TIME: 12:30 hrs
 

RIDE 5: (Ascension – Yercaud)

This stretch was for about 35kms which consisted of 20 hair-pin curves with beautiful views all along the way. As we started the ascension we found broad excellent roads. We negotiated the first 2 HP curves with joy and were ready to for more, But the next 25-30kms was just plain hill climbing with no HP curves, but yeah excellent scenery throughout.

The last 5-7kms to Yercuad is the best, the remaining 18 HP curves are clustered in this stretch, this made the ascension very quick and the drop in temperature could be easily felt. Once we reached the top, we were 1350 feet above sea level, and weather was cool even though the sun was up.

TIME: 13:00 hrs

 

YERCAUD:

Alright there are about 10 places to cover at this hill station. Vehicles can be taken, but yeah we decided to walk. The walk was for about 10-13kms which drained away all our energies and my right knee which had problems before had taken a the worst turn.

i) Yercaud lake:

First we parked Avy at the Yercaud lake. Boating is a big attraction at this place. But definitely not the thing for us, so we took small stroll and decided to continue further.

ii) Lady’s Seat:

We walked through the town; this view point is about 3-4kms from the Yercaud lake. The view was breadth taking and yeah there was a telescope for viewing assistance.

iii) Gent’s Seat:

Continuing further, Gent’s seat is about 10mins walk from the Lady’s Seat. We bought bottles of juice and sat down & sipping away. We could see the hair-pin curves which had lead us to the top, it looked like a snake :D

iv) Children’s seat/Park:

We thought to ourselves “why couldn’t the entire family have one big seat :P” ha-ha!!

 

v) Pagoda view point:

We walked back to the Yercaud Lake, on our way back we bought coffee powder. We picked up Avy and went to Pagoda point.

Well in our opinion this is the best view point!! The overall view was superb, grabbed a cup of corn and started munching away – it was our first meal of the day :)

After spending about 30min we left this wonderful place.

vi) Kilyur waterfalls:

This is an excellent water fall, but unfortunately was dry. Have to take a 3kms deviation from the Yercaud lake to reach this place.

vii) Servarayan Temple:

The most famous temple of Yercaud.

 

viii) Montfort & Sacred heart:

These are the famous educational institutions of Yercaud. We just had a peep from outside and left.

ix) Bear Cave:

This is a huge cave next to the Nortorn Bungalow. This place used to be a play home for bears.

x) AnnaPark:

As we rode back to the Yercaud lake, we came across this park to witness kids playing on slides, see-saw etc., we had second thoughts of joining the kids and beating them at the slides … ha-ha kidding :P

 

So… these are the important places to see at Yercaud. With the coffee powder tightly packed in the bag & a few sit-ups to make my right knee feel better, we were all set to ride back Bengaluru :)

TIME: 16:00 hrs

RIDE 6: (Decension – Yercaud)

We switched off the engine & allowed Avy to take us down the hill. The HP curves were a joy to negotiate. And believe it or not we covered the next 35kms with our engine switched off to reach Salem city.

TIME: 16:45 hrs

 

RIDE 7: (Salem – Dharampuri – Krishnagiri)

This was a good 120kms stretch of easy riding with sufficient breaks taken of course.

About 30mins on the highway we could hear a sound from the bike so we pulled over & inspected the bike. We found that the engine guard was loose, so removed it. Continuing further we took sufficient breaks for snacks, and stopped at the outskirts of Dharampuri for a drinks break. Once we left Dharampur, the sun went down and the cold set-in real quick. The increase in the traffic was drastic but we cruised along to reach Krishnagiri.

TIME: 18:30hrs

 

RIDE 8: (Krishnagiri – Hosur – Bengaluru)

This was a 100kms stretch on the butter smooth NH-7, but it was no easy task pulling this one off. This was one of my hardest stretches till date, considering the fact we had done 450kms and my right knee was pretty much done.

The cold which set-in was a real bad one and the traffic which had increased drastically (Sunday) was something we both were getting bugged of. I could feel the extra cold as there were no hair on my head :P ha-ha!! So took out a monkey cap, wore it and continued. Zethu rode like there was no tomorrow to reach the outskirts of Hosur.

TIME: 20:45 hrs

 

Continuing further we entered back Karnataka, there was no turning back from then. Our energies shot up again and without taking any further breaks even though both of us were in bad shape, we reached back home.

We had clocked 560kms for the day as we had taken the interior route, it was kick-ass experience – Literally:P

TIME: 22:00 hrs

CONCLUSION:

I’d like to conclude this article by saying “ This was and excellent old-school run to one of the best hill stations of South India.  Eating only corns & drinking only fluids we pulled this chapter off. And yeah it was a great come back for the both of us after the Hogenekkal trip & a great start to a New Year :D”

PARTICIPANT VIEW:

ZETHU: Rode the whole distance, flawless riding. His humorous stories kept us entertained throughout the day.

AVY: More of a companion, pulled 560kms in day :D

SP: Right knee dammar, Creep bandage time :P

Until next time Cia \m/

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