Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Coorg Reloaded!





Genre: Multi-day trip
Bangalore to Coorg: Drive down – One of our friends’ Scorpio
Route: Bangalore – Srirangapatnam [via Mysore Road] - Hunsur [SH88] - Madikeri
Duration: 6 hours by Scropio

Accommodation

We stayed at WindCrest, a cottage on top of a beautiful hill which gets blanketed by the mist especially in the evenings, the kind you’ll see only in your dreams! The owner stays in a lovely cottage on the hill itself. There are two other cottages, one half-way down the valley and one almost in the valley. First one can accommodate 8 people and the second one probably 5. It is a standard 24 hours check out. Check the link for details.

We were 7 and took the first one. Rate was Rs 8000/- including two complimentary breakfasts. They’ll arrange for a camp fire on request with no extra amount. You can probably tip the guy who arranges it if you wish [I’m sure you will!].

A walk around the hill is one of the best recipes perhaps for almost every sort of people. Whether you badly need a break/vacation or you are with your guy/girl or you are recently married, the hill has something for all! As the evening sets in, the place indeed lives up to its name. The Gazebo on top of the hill provides you a view of the entire valley from where you can appreciate the hands of God that created this picturesque piece of land! You’ll be forced to relax, is the least I could say. All you need to do is yield to that heavenly bliss and let the cold misty breeze pamper you! I loved every moment of it!!!

Attractions/Locations
The drive is totally awesome with Mysore Road Highway till Srirangapatnam & State Highway 88 from Hunsur till Kushalnagar. There is a stretch of around 20 kms between Srirangapatnam & Hunsur which is not that good. The stretch from Kushalnagar till Madikeri is really bad.
We were fortunate to travel in this season with either side of the roads dressed up with fully blossomed trees proudly showing off their red, orange and yellow color flowers!
You may refer to one of my initial blogs named Charming Coorg to get further details. Just mentioning an additional place which we visited this time:
Dubare Elephant Camp - You cross a very serene river by stepping on the stones carefully to reach a small sized Elephant Camp. You can see the elephants, touch them and even join the mahouts in giving a bath to them. For people who’ve not been closely associated with these largest mammal on land, it could be a very ‘touching experience’!

Seeing the beyond!

We were in Bangalore at the beginning of second decade of the millennium. The city was probably breathing its last few days as one of the co...