Published

Today got yet another dose of a high... Royal Enfield decides to publish the latest trip on their web site. Read the story here on my blog or there on their site.

The link to the site click here.

The 8 day south side story

Hey as you know a blog runs sequentially in reverse order. The last post coming in first... I tried to construct this trip story in one or two posts, but tough luck, then it ran into quite a few pages. So the only option was to break it up into a few posts and make it by day and place of visit.

As usual lots of things happen when you have an open mind and a restless soul.

To get to this trip story from the beginning click here. Do leave your comments. And thanks for stopping by.

October 6, 2007 – Saturday. Wayanad to Mysore

We desperately wanted to stay back but then the rooms were full and a new lot was coming in that day so we had to pack up.

With the last day going behind brooding, we wanted to freshen up a bit before reaching home. So it had to be Mysore before Bangalore.

At about 130 kms its was a short and great ride through a bit of Waynad and Bandipur forests.

What a change from the hole drive to smooth roads and soon the Bullet was cruising away at my favorite speed. 90 kms/hour. And averaging it as well.

There were places where the sun could not shine through because of the dense overgrowth. The tress and overhanging creepers giving the place a great feeling of living it inside a forest. This lasts for about 15 kms. And then you cross over to the Karnataka border and into Bandipur which is not so dense. You see lots of greens but shrubs and more grubby.

No animals encountered. And we reached Mysore in a flash. The ride took us 3 ½ hours and we were not even tired.

So after grabbing a beer and a bite to eat at Mysore after checking in. We went around town to the palace which was getting decked up for the Dasara festival which was a huge draw here. The town Mysore name after the evil king of asuras Mahishasura was killed by the goddess Chamundi (or Durga.)

The celebrations take place not only in the palace but also around town lights, set-ups the whole city was preparing itself for the mid October celebrations.

After the city rush we went to chill out with birds at Srirangapatnam. Even though this was not season we caught a few. Wifey wanted to become a bird watcher immediately. Good activity. Told her to Ask google.

After lazing around the bird sanctuary while also going to some of the other sights around we rode back to the hotel for the last night out.

Next morning had to be the uphill ride to the Chamundi temple and Mysore city view and then back home.

October 3, 2007 – Wednesday. Kannur

Reminded me of that song by Winwood
Bird flying high and you know how I feel
Sun up in the sky, you know how I feel,
that's what I mean
It's a new dawn
It's new day
It's a new life for me
And I'm feelin' good

That was how I felt at 7 AM. New dawn, new day. Albeit, with a little back ache no doubt. Wifey was not yet up and she was more tired than me. So I let her be.

I took some time out to re-live the day before. This was one I’ll not forget in a hurry, don’t think both of us will. But then, we were here in Kannur, and that too for a special reason. To try and locate a Theyyam.

As the local folklore goes, this goes way back. Precedes even Hinduism. It was a religious ritual plus an art form. No one really knew which part was the ritual and which part is the art. But then, it’s a spectacle for anyone, whether he’s seen it or not. While the performer is doing it, he goes into a trance or a possessed state where he becomes identified with the god he’s portraying giving it a mythical identity. Theyyam means godlike.

The make up, dressing and discipline before the act is rigorous and often stretches into hours where the artists fast till its over without even water to drink. These happen at Kavus or mangroves which are plentiful in Kanoor and Kasaragod. Therefore we were at the heart of Theyyam territory and probably in season.

Talking to people around, the hotel manager, locals etc led us to find out about a certain folklore academy in Kannur. If we were up to it we would be going there today.

But first, we needed a change of slippers. So went to town to get our feet covered. The afternoon sun was really hot and were in the mood to just chill for the day. So to hell went all research and out came a few beers and then lunch and crash.

Late afternoon we did find the Kerala Folklore academy … bad luck Theyyam season started end of October none to be sighted now. But on grilling the unwilling boys at the academy there emerged one place where it happened but in a small way in a temple. The Patasinikadavu temple where it happened everyday but then at 5:30 in the morning.

Rest of the evening went out in the regular sightseeing, the fort, the beach, the town.

So next morning’s plan was made. The Bullet was given for clean-up and service after I found out the station. Got it back in good shape. Any other vehicle could not have taken that slaughter. That’s the difference between a Bull and the rest.

Lazed around in the evening to unwind.

Theyyam or other things? Click here.

October 2, 2007 - Tuesday. Nagerhole to Kannur

Trip start point Jungle Inn
Distance 140 Kms (approximately)
Trip end point Malabar Residency, Kannur
Route Nagerhole – Husur - Coorg – Irrity - Kannur
Duration/time 6 hours (11:30 AM – 5:30 PM)

The day began at right earnest. With the morning came the call, that Kerala would be the place to visit and not Mysore. God’s own country beckons.

So at breakfast a short quiz with the manager, re-confirmed the route and went back to the Bullet…ready to go. Problem. The rear tyre was FLAT. The friendly staff at the resort brought out a leg pump for air, the only way out, pump it up take it 20 kms to Hunsur and get it fixed.

Baggage dismantled quickly, a rushed out pumping later, I set out to Hunsur at rocket speed through the narrow lanes…

Found the puncture shop, got it fixed, bought a new tube, got it wheeled in, gassed up and rushed back to the resort. 2 hours gone. The most helpful manager came with me and helped through the entire drama… good to see people like this exist.

Back to resort, the entire baggage settled in. Distraught and a little stressed out, but then, that lit the fire in the belly to do what everyone seemed against. We both decided it had to be Kannur and not Mysore come hell or highwater. 11:30 AM.

So instead of turning right on Hunsur road we turned left. A fatal left turn that we came to learn within an hour or so of cruising through coffee and rubber plantations and slick roads and cool breeze on our faces.

Right after the plantations at Coorg the roads become a little potholed. But then, what the heck we thought, if this was what the guys back there were talking about, we’ve seen worse… this was nothing.

Somewhere, (I just did not observe nor do I remember the point) it starts to drizzle. And then came complete disaster. It came like hell unleashed. We hit what was the remnants of the hill road. It was mudslide, gorged up, watered, loose, bricked up, slush pits…

The speed came down to 2 kms/hour. We had to stop at various point and wifey had to dismantle. There were wide pools of mud which had to be ridden through. Jutting rocks which had to be avoided. Loose slippery mud to be crossed quickly, and that was not all, there was rain beating down from the heavens above. Well here's a real taste of gods own wrath.

We went on, soaking wet, praying that our water resist bags remained water resistant. From one hole to another, hop, skip and skid through the terrain.

Only those who did not know about this terrain chose to venture here apart from some foolhardy truckers who came this route to save a quick buck probably or were insane.

We found a stretch where trucks were stuck in the mud. The drivers were piling up rocks on a sudden death pit so that it could cross over. A couple of cars stalled in the middle drivers thinking of turning the other way around.

The rain began lashing out heavily. We stopped beneath some trees and in a mud pile. I got so stressed that I got the urge to puff a cigaratte. Which I did. I lit one and smoked it in the rain. AAAH. What a relief. That hit felt good. Once the nicotine got into my blood and that too after almost 4 months of laying off I was feeling lighter and the pain reduced, a little refreshed.

After that both of us went for it. Eff the rain. And this time focused and serious about getting over with this. Did not have the balls to take out my brand new camera kit to shoot this terrain as a show piece.

Gods own country they say Kerala is. I am sure, that was God’s own shit pot. Where he farted and crapped leaded balls to devastate anything that moved.

I wish the people in this part of the country woke up and started doing a bit of work. Like booting out their idiosyncratic government to the vultures. Bloody politicians filling up their own coffers while devastation like this exists.

Co-incidence that this was Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday as well. What a debacle to the state of the nation.

On one side we talk of progress and on the other such disasters exist. The only thought I could summon up at that time was to build a remote controlled car chain the state head and his crony inside and run that car at 50 kms/hr (no more) flat out on the terrain ONE WAY. If he’s still alive, then, I am sure he would do something about the road within the next 24 hours.

For gods sake at least BLOCK THE TERRAIN for traffic!

We soon reached a shack which seemed like a place to get some tea and also get out of the rain and terrain for a bit. The shop served up delicious Kerala parotta’s (pancakes) and sweets. Wifey dug into them and we lighted up a bit.

As the rain slowed down a bit, we mounted the bull and were off again. We found that the rocks would last another 2 kms. Well after about half an hour we crossed the landslide zone and into a small town.

Passed through it quietly. Surprise, even here the roads were pothole ridden. Nothing compared to other terrain but then, not roads by any standards.

Wifey had taken the brunt of the attack from the rear… the jerking is more painful for the pillion rider and she almost gave up at a point. Where she just wanted to break off. Try to hire a cab (if one existed in these villages) and go.

Somehow managed to coax her to hang on. Some coffee and cigarettes later we rode on to Kannur. And that last 10 kms was good, we made it in one piece. Victory. Found our way to Hotel Malabar Residency a 3 star hotel vending out cheap rooms… well this was off season mate and no one comes here anyway.

The rest of the day went into unpack, drying, slugging a drink, eating and then blacking out! The worst was over.

Next day at Kannur. Click here.

Rockin in them cotton fields ... October 1, 2007 Monday

Fresh and quick to wake up. Great morning, the sun was about to rise. It was 6 AM. Not a soul out on the tread. I went around the campus to figure out if the morning safari was on as that would’ve been fantastic. Alas there were no other takers at that time so it had to be in the afternoon.

So we spent the morning in the fields. Cotton and paddy. Walking around with the village folks. Chilling out right in the middle of the fields and way off the roads… Almost fell off the Bullet in one of these fields rides in the mud.

But then, this is just the right concoction to beat the heat of the city.

3:00 PM our resort manager comes looking for us and takes us on for the Jungle ride. The ride in the cramped up Gypsy was ok for wifey, but for me there was no leg room at all…

While we started off with much gusto this became a wimp as we discovered it had rained last night and we were not allowed to take the mud roads into the real terrain to do some real spotting.

So we had to settle for some deer, wild elephant, fox, bison and monkeys…so much for Jungle Jim. To top it off a short shower followed, so the very thought of probably doing it again next day was off.

That night was the drifting for the next destination. Much discussion, debates, references. Books, routes, times ... Kerala seemed like a destination. Somewhere I read about a fascinating ritual called Theyyam. And Kannur was the hot spot for experiencing this, it said October was the given time for it.

That was it. Both of us were in agreement. To the land of Theyyams be it. Let the free spirit rock.

After a quick dinner we told the manager that we would be out the next morning after breakfast. We told him where we were headed. He gave us a mysterious look (which we'll realize why later on the next day when hit the road) and then told us that there were bad roads ahead. A long stretch of it. And it was raining on the other side. The total distance would take us about 4 hours.

That was enough for another round of debate between me and wifey and we left it undecided till the next morning. We were going out anyway we’ll decide if it’ll be Mysore or Kannur on the way!

The journey to land of Theyyams or Gods... click here.

September 30. A raging bull in Nagerhole.

Trip start point Airport Road
Distance 200 Kms (approximately)
Trip end point Jungle Inn (Nagerhole)
Route Bangalore – Srirangapatinam – Hunsur – Nagerhole
Duration/time 4 1/2 hours (8 AM – 1:30 PM)

This ride was really really repetitive and boring. Done this stretch so many times. Cut till Hunsur. Nothing changes… do refer to my earlier trip stories for more on this route (Bangalore-Mysore).

After Hunsur comes the diversion to the small single road which leads to the jungle. And that’s where everything changes. The road less tarred. Lush greens all around. Cotton fields on either side. Clouds painting sketches in the blue sky. Lone cottages looking serene. The cool fresh air right on your face. And even the mind changes, thoughts change. Forgotten are the frustrations of the city life, the irking traffic, the pollution, the navigation, the deja vu... this is life to be lived, loved.

This is fresh, green, passionate. The mix with the clear blue sky, a canvas that makes the mind go wild… the whiff of natural scents, the flowers blooming, the smell fresh soil which has tasted water… this was the real trip.

Well, it lasted all of 20 mins and the resort sign welcomed us. We dismantle the Bull and walk up to the office where the friendly manager helps us find a place to stay room or tent was a choice. We were lucky he said, normally, this place was packed on weekends this weekend the bookings were a bit low.

We went for the jungle tent which was a contraption hung on solid foundations of course and with a walled up toilet.

Freshening up and lunch went in a flash, we were out on the road to find our way to the Jungle. And it came within 5 minutes… NO ENTRY FOR MOTOR BIKES.

No amount of coaxing the forest guard could change his mind. So I guessed something must’ve happened. On chatting up with the manager later that evening we got to know that some bikers were caught unawares by a wild elephant and had suffered injuries. I am yet to fathom how one could survive an elephant attack though!

Anyway the day went behind finding designs by clouds and subjects by the village folk. Thumped back in the evening to our tent.

The night is different here. Everything shuts down at 7. There’s no light, no music no cacophony of sound. One can hear the sound of crickets, some distant howling, and of course the staff at the resort having a scrap over something insignificant.

After a heavy dinner, a short night walk around campus, and, overhearing a corporate gang's drunken conversation how they should be working (there was a convention on those two days at the resort) we decided to call it a day.

Quick to fall asleep with dreams of getting into a jungle safari the next day.

Read the next part. Click here.

Roads to terrains by accident. September 30 – October 7, 2007

The wandering mind…a spoonful of indecisiveness or a thimbleful of inspiration? - quote by "yours truly"!

This was the much needed break after cramming the last few months of real hard work. While the break was a necessity, the places came quite by accident. And, even the actual date of riding out came like that... an accident.

Only two things were planned. One, the deed of taking the break, and two, the thought of biking “somewhere” …

To be true to the spirit of the road hog that I've become, the Bullet was checked up, serviced and tuned to perfection, a short test ride to make it highway prone, the saddle bags sunned out, a list of things to buy and do before take off made and ready.

The leave due on September 25, dragged on till the 28h. The vaguely-fixed date of departure 29th, we still were not clear where we should go… few bland options…Mysore, Hassan, Ooty, Bandipur … seen em all many times over. Boring mate.

So the 29th was the first day of inspirational focus, to figure out whether we’re going out at all or not. Loafed around the whole day, bought most of the things needed, hung out at Pecos, waffled over a movie, floated over a book, random searched google (with words like yawn, fiber optics, tar, nicotine not even remotely associated with what I wanted to do)…

It did strike early evening. Wildlife as a first to go. So after a few searches and phone calls later, we KNEW that we were going to ride out the next day, and where we were headed and the first pit stop became Nagerhole.

Time to move to the next part of this travelogue. Click here.