bike

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1300 km Ride to Dandeli and Karwar in 4 days

This was to be my longest ride till date. The best I did before was a 768 km ride in 48 hours, and this one was meant to be 1300 km spanning over 4 days. We were going to pass through national highways, forests, ghats and were also going to do some off roading along the way. I was sick of doing many single day and two day rides and wanted to do a longer ride, so this was my chance and I lapped it up.

We left Bangalore on Friday at 8 AM expecting it would be a long day considering we planned to cover more than 500 km and reach Dandeli by nightfall. We started well but were soon delayed by nagging problems with one of the bikes. Though this meant we lost a lot of time, it also ensured proper rest for all of us. We managed to reach Hubli, which is around 430 km from Bangalore only after sunset and it has also started raining by that time. We headed towards Dandeli which was another 100km of riding through not so good roads but were again stopped in the ranks by a flat tire. After another hour long break, we finally managed to reach Dandeli just after midnight, which meant 16 hours of riding. Phew… Off we went to sleep after an hour of chatting..

All the bikes at Dandeli amidst the rain

All the bikes at Dandeli amidst the rain

Sleeping off late obviously has to carry forward to the next day. On day 2 we were supposed to ride to Karwar, which was a port town in west Karnataka and come back by evening. But we were able to start only by 11 am and were stopped by another bike problem for an hour in between. There was some 15 kms of off road biking involved and that was a good experience similar to my off roading experience in Kemmanagundi an year earlier. But all this took time and it was raining too so we managed to reached Karwar only by 4 pm. Considering we were late and there was a beach to relax in Karwar, we decided to stay overnight and leave for Dandeli the next day.

The evening sky at Karwar

The evening sky at Karwar

We chilled off in the beach at Karwar for around 3 hours in the evening. Karwar is only a small town 90 km south of Goa and hence the beach was quiter, and cleaner than the beaches in any other major city. It was a refreshing and relaxing atmosphere as we just sat and enjoyed the cool breeze that was blowing. We wrapped up after the sunset in this quite town, and headed for dinner and other ‘refreshments‘…

A picturesque scene at the Karwar Scene

A picturesque scene at the Karwar Beach

The tar.. it feels best when it touches the rubber

The tar.. it feels best when it touches the rubber

Day 3 was supposed to be a chill out and easy day before another long and tiring 500 km ride coming up on day 4. We chilled out again at the beach in the morning at Karwar and left for Dandeli at noon. This time there were no bike problems and we reached our resort at Dandeli by 3pm. The route was as scenic as it gets. Again there was some off-roading which was a memorable experience. Casual talks followed in the evening and some much needed rest and preparation for the next day marked the rest of the night.

Next morning we headed back for Bangalore from Dandeli at 9am. It was supposed to be another long ride of more than 500 km and we expected to do this in 10-12 hours. The road along NH4 was as excellent as it gets and many of us were doing speeds of more than 100km/hr. As it was the fourth day of riding, there were some tiredness and we took constant water and tea breaks in between. A dog decided to commit suicide in front of one of the bikes causing some damage which resulted in a extended two hour lunch break.

Myself during a break along the way

Myself during a break along the way

After getting the bike fixed, we resumed our journey back and we did two continuous stretches of over 100km in 90 minutes or so. That really helped in covering the distance and we reached within 100 kms of Bangalore by sunset. We last assembled at Tumkur around 7:30 pm and after some tea and refreshments, we started our different ways leading to home. The highways were wonderful all along the way and due to it being 15 Aug, we didn’t see as much traffic in the city as we were expecting. I managed to reach home by 10 am.

After doing 1300km in 4 days on a bike, my whole body was aching like anything. But that was the fun of the ride and a reminder of all the fun we had during the ride. All the high speed riding, through highways and ghats, riding in the rain and the bone jerking off roading was an experience to cherish.

My Thunderbird.. A wonderful companion for a long ride

My Thunderbird.. A wonderful companion for a long ride

P.S. – To see all pics of this trip, click here

Why did I buy a Royal Enfield Thunderbird?

Many people have asked me that when I decided to buy a bike, why did I choose a Royal Enfield Thunderbird? Well, my answer is – I didn’t decided to buy a bike, I decided to buy a Royal Enfield bike and choose the Thunderbird among its offerings. So what inspired me to go for a Royal Enfield? And how I am finding the experience so far? Discover the answers to these questions in the following paragraphs.

During a ride

During a ride

Long Distance Riding
I was always loved traveling and enjoyed wherever I went. But long distance riding on motorcycles was something which always excited me. I have always heard about how adventurous these trips can be, how wind blowing in your face can give you an exhilarating experience. Moreover, on my trip to Mashobra with my 99acres team in 2008, the tour was organised by one such person who used to organise motorcycle rides regularly. A biker dude… u can say!! We hit off somewhere during that trip and since he was also from Delhi and living not far away from my place, we became good friends. So he was the one who inspired me to try this out and really “live” life. To know more about him and his tours, please visit http://www.soultrailsmotorcycletours.com

Just Do It
After the motorcycle bug hit me, I used to follow up on any news / info regarding these rides. I thought of buying a bike many times, but always gave up, because of the huge financial cost of these bikes (Rs 1 Lakh +). As I moved to Bangalore soon after that Mashobra Trip, I tried a small bike ride on a rented pulsar to Nandi Hills and enjoyed it. But I could not find an option to rent Bullets in Bangalore. I kept postponing the decision for almost over a year, and finally, in September 2009, I decided to “Just Do It!”.

Doing what people believe you can’t do
For those who don’t know, it is one of the best bikes available in India and considering my built, nobody ever expected me to buy this as my first bike. After all, the weight of the bike is 3.5 times my weight, and I do find it difficult to handle when the engine is off. And whenever I discussed this with anybody, either they laughed or suggested that I took a lighter bike instead. But then, where is the fun? It is always fun to do something which others think you can’t do. Even now, when I tell someone that I have bought a bike and it is not a 100-150cc one but a 350cc monster, the look in their eyes is worth seeing…

The Over the Helmet View

The Over the Helmet View

So I just went ahead and bought my first bike. It was difficult handling it at first, but after a month of riding, I was feeling very comfortable. The weight is still a issue, and luckily, I have not had a punctured tyre till now 🙂 But whenever the engine is on, I don’t need to worry about its weight. And I think it is worth the pain of dragging it in case of a breakdown (which happens very rarely). And I can always ask for a little push from someone if I find it difficult to handle it!! And the results have been good, with 4000 km worth of riding done in 6 months.

In the last 6 months, I have done rides to Nandi Hills, Shivasamudram, Yelagiri and Bandipur. The last one was wonderful as I covered over 580kms in two days. It do takes you time to get used to riding long distances, but the thrill and adventure of cruising on highways is amazing. With riding, you are “in” the scene, not just watching it from a window of your car or bus. And the fun of riding with fellow riders is amazing. When 10 or more bullets pass thumping through any road / village / town, the bikers are the center of attraction and it is an amazing feeling, I can tell you.

Bullets, lots of them

Bullets, lots of them

Bandipur Ride

Bandipur National Park

Bandipur National Park

Murphy’s Law proved itself to me on two consecutive weekends. First, the plan to ride to Pondicherry with some friends on the Christmas 2009 weekend was cancelled at the last moment. Then, a ride to Lepakshi on 3 Jan with the Royal Indians club started off badly with the clutch cable giving up as soon as I started. So the ride to Bandipur on 9th-10th Jan was awaited with much enthusiasm.

We were 4 of us on two bikes, my Thunderbird TwinSpark and one Yamaha. Bandipur is a widlife sanctuary about 220 km from Bangalore. Just after you cross Bandipur, you get into Mudumalai Tiger Reserve which falls in Tamil Nadu. We got two tents for the one night stay near Gudalur, around 15km after Mudumulai Reserve on the way to Ooty.

We planned to start at 6am on 9th January, and finally started at 6:30am. We took the Mysore Road out of Bangalore and after the initial city traffic, we were cruising at around 80km/hr. We took a break at 8:10 am for tea after around 60km. We left again at 8:25am towards Mysore. The highway towards Mysore (state highway 17) was excellent and we reached Mysore at 10:10 am. The trip meter read 160km. We stopped for breakfast for 30 mins in Mysore.

After Mysore, Bandipur was another 85km and our camp was another 25km from there. We took the road to Ooty out of Mysore. After crossing Nanjangud and Gundulpet, we took a halt for 15 min just before Bandipur at 11:45am. The road after Mysore was not as smooth as the Bangalore-Mysore road, but was still pretty good. Near Bandipur, the road was patchy at places and road construction work was going on at some stretches. We started once again at 12 noon and reached the camp at 1:15 pm. It was 270kms done.

After doing our lunch, we booked a night safari into Mudumalai in the evening, chilled out in the camp, went by riverside nearby and took some rest. In the evening, we got some drinks / snacks for the night. Our jeep for the night safari was ready at 7pm. Soon we were into Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. Very soon, a tusker was waiting for us at the road side. Our jeep driver ensured we got a good look at the elephant. He turned the jeep towards it with the headlights pointed at its eyes. Basically, he scared the poor animal away. So much for the poor animal. We continued ahead but it looked like other animals were too scared to wander near the roads. We returned after a disappointing 1 hour night safari at the camp. Had our dinner and drinks and retired for the day.

Woke up at 6 next morning, got ready and left for Mudumalai on our bikes for a van safari. The Van safari took us on a beaten path and we managed to see deer, elephants and peacocks on the way. We came back to the camp after that. After breakfast, it was time for checkout at 10:00am. We decided to go uphill to Gudalur town to get some Chambala Tea which had a factory nearby. Thereafter we left back for Bangalore through Mudumalai and Bandipur.

Going through the jungle on our way back, we weren’t expecting much. But as soon as we entered Mudumalai, we saw a massive Bison by the roadside. Some cars were already stopped there taking snaps. We took the snaps and continued on our journey. Soon we entered Karnataka and were into Bandipur. We were for a surprise. As I rode through Bandipur, I saw two elephants, a mother and baby elephant duo, by the roadside. I slowed down the bike in the hope of catching a few snaps. But, to my utter surprise, as soon as I slowed down the bike, the mother elephant started chasing our bike. I never an elephant could run so fast. As it chased us, dust / mud flew up as a heavy truck has passed through there. I was startled and accelerated. But in the process of slowing down, I had taken the bike off the road into the gravel sideby. I could see the elephant getting nearer in the rear view mirror. Soon the bike was on the road again, we zoomed off the tusker faded in the rear view mirror. There were moments of panic when my bike slid into the gravel and luckily we didn’t skidded off. In the end, my bull was chased by an elephant but it was a good enough experience.

Continuing from there, we took a break at Mysore for lunch and two more breaks after that to ease our asses which were now beginning to ache. We continued travelling after that and reached our homes back at 5:30 pm. The trip meter read 580km over 2 days. In all, it was a good ride, riding a bike through the jungle was fun and getting chased by an elephant was the icing on the cake. After reaching home, we put our tired asses to rest. Rest till the next ride comes calling!!