A Deluge of Memories!!

What is the connection between “BOYS” and “BIKES”? Why do we make plans about hitting the road with our buddies? Is it the thrill of riding as a brotherhood, or is it the knowledge of being safe while being yourself in the company of those we trust?

Before we could get around these questions, we got totally engrossed in planning for the ride to Chikmagalur, with Partha-Monalisa and Sakti-Gitanjali. Three bikes, three couples, two days and 550 KMs. The home-stay was booked well in advance, the bikes were serviced, the packing was done, and we all were all set for our date with India’s Coffee Capital.

05-Sep-2015, 3.30 AM: 

Ugh, this was becoming a habit now with Sanket. I was literally dragged out of the bed by my all too enthusiastic hubby and forced to get ready real quick (yeah, one hour is “real quick”, ask any girl). After the confirmation call from Sakti, we set out from our home by 4.45 AM.

We were joined by Sakti and Gitanjali in their Honda CBR 150R in a couple of minutes and called Partha to inform him of our approach. Now, Partha resides in Indiranagar, through which one can take a shorter (in the night time of course) route to Nelamangala. We reached Indiranagar in 20 minutes flat, thanks to the still sleeping-and-not-out-on-road Bangalore traffic, and the wait began. Partha, the self-proclaimed “Suryavanshi” is an absolute nocturnal creature and has a problem with getting up with the sun. That translated into a waiting time of 15-20 minutes for us near Indiranagar Metro Station. And then there was the refueling delay on MG Road. We ended up truly hitting the road only by 6 AM.

The best part of being a pillion is getting a chance to doze off while the ride is on. I got one chance, and did the shut-eye for a good 15 minutes before my helmet was assaulted by Sanket’s. “No sleeping on my bike!” he ordered while hitting my helmet with his. And so I had to find something else to do to stop dozing off again. And what do I get, these “random clicks”:

At around 9 o’clock, when our stomach wouldn’t stop growling, we took our first pit stop at Hotel Mayura for breakfast. This hotel is situated on Bangalore-Mangalore highway, near Belur Cross.  As we were entering, we noticed a Triumph Tiger 800 XCx parked in the parking area of the hotel. And the guys started hyperventilating!! We girls had to bring them back to reality and cajole them to take the table & have the food.

As it is on a road trip with friends, we started pulling each other’s legs, or GD as we call it, as soon as we got over the Triumph Tiger mania. Food done, groupie done, we then set out again around 10 o’clock.

Our stay in Chikmagalur was booked in the Yelagudgi homestay in the Yelagudgi Coffee Estate, located in the hills off Aldur, which is again 22 KMs from Chikmagalur town. We reached there by 1 o’clock, just in time for lunch. While we were waiting for the lunch, we wandered off to the garden to find many guava trees and started plucking the fruits from the trees and eating them. All in the name of childhood memories! And when we were called inside to have the actual lunch, we were again wolfing down the food. A dish to remember particularly was the chutney from tangerine (known locally as mosambi hannu) grown in the estate itself.

We then headed for the foothills to explore around. It being monsoon season, the entire area was covered in lush greenery. We even got a video to prove the beauty –

 

Of course, these sights are what anyone would witness in any hill station. But we were also witness to a magnificent peacock flying across the road, its magnificent tail trailing along in all its glory. Of course, as a popular FB post says, the best moments are the ones when you forget the camera. So we do not have the photo to prove this moment. And hence, we now take our blog to the point where we actually went to: a small waterfall not more than 20 KMs away from our home-stay. Although small, the fall was breathtaking in every way. 

The spray seemed to drench anyone who came even midway near. Sakti could finally resist no more and just went ahead and got under the fall.

By the time we returned to the home stay, one more guest had checked in: not a two legged one, but a tailed, furred, four legged canine guest. It was a seven week old Labrador retriever puppy!! The puppy had been left behind by one of the relatives of the owner of the home stay. The puppy was very playful, full of energy and seemed to enjoy being passed from one set of hands to others. It became the main attraction for all of us. 

When it was finally his time to sleep, we passed it to the right set of hands and settled down for a bonfire with a set a playing cards. September being one of the monsoon months, a drizzle had started and before we could even start preparing for the bonfire, it turned into a heavy downpour with thunderstorm and lightning. In this process all our fire wood was soaked in the rain, so we had to settle down in the verandah with the set of cards, GD and drinks, which went on till 11 PM. We grudgingly made our way to our beds only because we had to be out by 10 AM.

 

The next morning, we got up and were ready by 8.30 AM. As breakfast was still not ready, we decided to look around in the home-stay. We found a large room which, along with an old fashioned attic, served as a dormitory for large groups (10 and more) of visitors. We also found a couple of antique wooden carvings decorating the place.

We also came across our four legged hosts, a Daschund (Topsy) and a black Labrador (Ruby). And not to forget the puppy we had been playing with the previous day. The puppy too was up and about by now, and we all took turns posing with it.

I could smell something delicious in the air and went up to the kitchen. The estate owner, Padmashree, herself was preparing our breakfast! Although not very proficient in English or Hindi, she chatted quite some time with me and gave out the recipe for the Mosambi Hannu chutney (which I am not going to share here!) :P.

Breakfast done, we had one more round of photo shoot while packing and loading our bags on our bikes:

We had decided to visit the Mulyanagiri peak, then the Baba Budangiri peak and then coming down, the Halebidu ruins. We passed through the accumulating clouds while on our way to Mulyangiri. So it was misty when we made to the top. Being the highest peak in Karnataka, the view from the top is breathtaking. Sanket was not able accompany us to the top because of a muscle pull on the night before while we had a long ride back home.

We left the Mulyanagiri peak as we could see the mist thickening, and condensing on our faces and helmets. A light drizzle had started by the time we started towards the Baba Budangiri peak (which is close to Mulyanagiri). To our surprise, our bike, the Dark Knight as we call it, started to become thirsty. So we had to miss Baba Budangiri and head for Chikmagalur town. Winding down the slick road as fast as it possible, we took a stop at the foothills to put on our rain gear. Annoyingly, the rain had all but stopped by the time we entered Chikmagalur town, hardly 20 KMs away. We got our fair share of wide eyed stares for our fluorescent rain jackets, which we took off while refueling.

By this time it was well beyond noon, so we decided to have our lunch before we start our journey back home. Partha suggested a small North Indian restaurant named Gowthami Family restaurant, at the entrance of the town situated on the way back from Mulyanagiri. Famished as we were, we ordered almost half of the non-vegetarian dishes on the menu. To our surprise the food was very delicious, even better than some of the costliest Bangalore north Indian restaurants. We took a good 2 hours break for the lunch before we started our return journey. By the time we were ready to roll, we could see dark clouds on the horizon. So we were very sure of heavy rain on our way back. So we put on all our rain linings in the jackets and the rain covers on the luggage as well, only leaving the portion below the waist unprotected. We quickly had a fuel stop for Partha and Sakti’s bikes.

Looking at the swiftly darkening clouds, we had to drop Halebidu as well from our plans, since we wanted to be home before dinner time, and be ready for the MONDAY MORNING OFFICE BLUES too! Partha, the “Suryavanshi”, finally put on his rain jacket just in time to save himself from the lashing of the heavy rains. Sometime before Hassan, the rains took a break and so did we. This break was actually for loo, but it turned out to be another photoshoot break. Sakti and Sanket got a canine friend to pose for pics.

We were then struck by heavy rain for the third time. It was a good thing that we had already worn our rain gear, so that we did not have to stop again. Thankfully it was a drizzle and the rain gear held on well. We thus rode nonstop in the drizzle till a petrol pump where the signboard said 140 KMs to Bangalore. The sun was now lying low in the sky, shooting out golden orange streaks across the western direction. The drizzle had also by now stopped. We allowed ourselves a round of tender coconut; after all it wasn’t just the bikes that needed refueling ;). As the sun drew closer to setting, we hit the road, hopeful of making it home by 8.30 PM. I was personally wishing for no more rains, since it would be doubly difficult to ride in both rainy and dark conditions.

There is a saying: “Man proposes, God disposes”. And so the rain God decided to dispose of my (wo) manly proposals of a dry ride home. Within 10 KMs of our last stop, we faced the rains again, this time a solid downpour that reduced visibility to barely 5-10 meters, i.e. the vehicle right in front. The three bikes rode close in a single file, using the standard hand gestures for bikers. We came across a hotel after riding 1 hour in this way, and decided to take a snack break which would also double up as a break from the rains. Not that it was helpful in any way other than dousing our pakora cravings! We were set back by another 45 minutes when we set out into the same (if not heavier) downpour, also drenching the entire dining section of the hotel in the process.

With reduced visibility comes reduced speed. The distance of 90 KMs which we had in front of us now seemed so much more with our bikes registering a mere 40-45 KMPH and the clock’s hour hand marching its way past 8. It was around 9 PM when we reached Nelamangala. Our party was again delayed due to an industrial exhibition going on and a VIP movement. Inching our way through the deluge and the traffic, we came up till where NICE road splits and one road goes to Bangalore city and another to electronic city. Here Partha bade us farewell, since he had to make his way to Indiranagar through Bangalore City. Sanket and Sakti took the NICE road that would open at Electronic city as it is close to our homes.

Our stretch of the NICE road was completely engulfed in darkness and heavy downpour. By this time because of the very heavy rains throughout, our rain jackets had given up. We could feel the chilly rain water seeping in slowly into the deepest layers of our clothing. And we could feel that typical sensation which Sanket elucidate as “Tingling Sensation” throughout the lower half of our bodies. In this way we finally reached our homes around 11PM at night completely drenched and took us some time in the parking lot to drain all the water from inside. As you can imagine, there were six people calling in sick on Monday…!!