Well this month, there was lot that happened in office starting from the phenomenal growth of  the Kolkata branch to amazing success of our overseas packages . But this is the very reason why I thought of enlightening every thing that happened …. beyond the office! I really thought of cooling my heals,  took the weekend off, packed my bags and headed off to tame the western ghats on two wheels. Here is the account of what we experienced.

The slight hum of the 1000km old engine was vehemently outdone by the winds blasting through my ears.  The month old R15 was no baby, and it was to be put to test on the treacherous roads of Madikeri. My pal Kshitiz was comfortably tucked at the rear, as the bike began to soak in the misty air of Mysore Road at 6 in the morning. We weren’t exactly lucky to see the sunrise as the cloud cover ensured a pleasant journey ahead.

Monsoon they say is probably the deadliest season to go riding, but riding they is when you shed off the protective guile and let your instincts take over.  The 256 Km stretch was certainly the longest I would do on a bike and the riding it for 6 hours straight up was no joke.  But I guess we weren’t exactly mugs with the bike and with our combined riding experience almost a score, we were more than sure of making it faster than 6 hours.  We weren’t the usual biker club boys who would not push the gas beyond 70 Kmph. Instead we were thrill seekers, eager to push the machine to its limit and challenge our four wheeled brothers. The joy of seeing the rpm needle touch the red zone is inexplicable!

With a few pit stops of ten minutes each , we entered Mysore in less than two hours.  The road from here to Madikeri (Coorg) was no longer a 4 lane highway, instead the ‘twisties’ of the western ghats waited to welcome us.  40 Km on and  there was a significant difference in the air quality. It was like the corridor of virgin green was pumping out oxygen in all directions. We stopped by at what we thought to be a café coffee day, but it turned out to be a certain ‘café coorg’!  The similar graphics and design was enough to make a traveller believe it to be CCD. The food wasn’t exactly heavenly, but convenient for our famished tummies at 8 in the morning.

The real journey I must confess had started right after the morning coffee.  The roads became seemingly straight, and it shot into the horizon like a Russian bullet. The high revving engine, sensing the vast stretches responded almost immediately, and started pushing the machine beyond the 130 Kmph mark. It did not quite show any exhaustion while doing so, and so did we. Must confess, the highly overcast conditions proved to be the biggest boon, making our journey a complete cakewalk.

The roads of Madikeri were undergoing widening and the drenched weather created a puddly sight. While ascending the 1170 m hillstation, the roads became slightly treacherous, as the sharp turns and slippery roads with loose gravel taking the challenge to whole new level. There I was, ascending the heights and getting greeted by a blanket of fined gained drizzle that completely eroded the tiniest morsel of stress that I might have picked on the way. Madikeri, I here I come.

…. continued on Road Trip Part 2