solo road trip A solo road trip to Hampi!

[Pralay]

It was Dec of 2018, my wife had a full week plan in the Christmas to go to Calcutta to meet her family. We usually travel together, be it for a trip or a visit to our hometown, Calcutta. But this time it was impossible for me to get a leave sanction of a week or 10 days, due to my office commitments. Without any other choice she booked her flight to Calcutta during Christmas.

 

At the same time I thought, I can get 4 days for a trip, 23^rd to 26^th , if I can manage 2 days leave. ( I have Saturday office).

Since long, two of the many things of my bucket list were:

 

1)      A solo road trip in my car

2)      A visit to Hampi

 

And this time I realised this is a perfect time to tick off both from my bucket list.

 

And as we travel together, my wife was quite upset about my plan. But as a good friend, we never stopped each other for doing anything. So yes, finally I managed to get the leave sanctioned and this is the tale of my journey to tick off the two things at a go, “A solo road trip to Hampi!”

 

There are lot of posts about Hampi in the internet; so, not posting about my stay details further. Hampi is having all sorts of hotels or stay options depending upon your budget & preferences. So just limiting my log to the route, photos I have taken and other small details.

 

I usually do my research on the route rather than what Google is suggesting. Google was suggesting the route via Raichur but I took this route:-

 

Hyderabad – Kurnool – Alur - Bellary – Kamalapur – Hampi.

 

Took numerous breaks for photos, food or stretching, so I had to drive nearly 10 hours before I reach Hampi, else I could have reached much earlier. So let’s get started..

 

Cranked the engine at exact 6 AM:-

 

 

Reached hill park restaurant, Jadcherla around 7.15 AM, to take the breakfast:-

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/CYntB9cfixQ2

 

 

 

Around 10 o’clock reached Pullur toll plaza, near Kurnool:-

 

 

Somewhere between Alur and Bellary:-

 

There are plenty of options available once you enter the Bellary town. I avoid rice at lunch during drive. So, had a Masala Dosa at one of the food joints. I observed that, food options at Bellary are more on the opposite side of the road while going to Hampi from Hyderabad,. So in case you want to explore the town while going to Hampi, park your car on your side, cross the road & explore. Plenty of options are available.

 

Finally around 4 O’clock in the evening I reached Hampi!

 

 

Now, let some snaps taken in and around Hampi do the talking:-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next day morning, trekked all the way up to Anjana's Hill to experience this beautiful Sunrise:-

 

 

 

 

 

 

Again let some pictures do some talking..

 

 

 

 

Day 3:-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Near Tungabhdra River..

 

Evening of Day 3, once again I trekked all the way up to Matanga Hill to watch the Sunset, and the trek was quite tough than the Anajana’s Hill's..

 

But once I reached the top, the tough trek had paid off.. 

 

This view.. 

 

When you finally managed to get a selfie with the beautiful background, but someone photo-bombed it.. 

 

 

Found an interesting structure, once I get down from the top :-

 

 

The famous Virupaksha Temple at dusk..

 

Had a lovely dinner at Mango Tree:-

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/VsqAkovkBHz

 

It was the last day and I had to head back to Hyderabad. So had my breakfast at my hotel before I started off around 8.30 in the morning:-

 

 

 

Touched a magic figure in between.. 30000 & up!!

 

 

Had a decent lunch at Food pyramid:-

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/EiZQWDuuPeH2

 

Reached Home around 5 o’clock. “A solo road trip to Hampi!”, done & dusted!!

 

Untill next time, much love, my love..

 

 

 

 

Cheers!

Pralay

 

[Gowtham]

Excellent pictures.

What kind of camera are you using?

Wide angle pictures are eye pleasing.

[Pralay]

5 minutes ago, Ranger said:

Excellent pictures.

What kind of camera are you using?

Wide angle pictures are eye pleasing.

 

Thank you @Ranger ?

 

I used my Redmi Note 6 Pro & SJCAM action camera in the Hampi trip.

[Sridhar Tandra]

@Pralay I saw you saying 4 days for this trip and you have updated day 1 (Drive) day 2 morning and evening treks and Day 3 return is it? I mean 4th day was not utilized in this plan, is my understanding right or am I missing something here?

 

Also, can you help us with the details and cost of the hotel you stayed in Hampi?

 

Approximate toll costs on your route while going and returning? Your return route was also the same?

[BORNDRIVER]

Very Very  Nice picture Pralay. Did not feel bore as a SOLO motorist in this trip...... ? ?

 

The road after Kurnool till HAMPI looks single lane but looks to be in perfect shape without any pot holes. Is this correct ?

[Pralay]

@Sridhar Tandra,

 

I started on 23rd.. (Day 1) & explored Hampi a little bit during evening 

24th to 25th (Day 2 & 3) Covered Hampi fully

26th (Day 4): Return journey from Hampi to Hyderabad

 

Overall It was around Rs 4.5 to 5k except fuel & toll. Advantage of solo trip ?

 

Toll Cost was Rs 225/- except ORR. (One way). From Kurnool till Hampi there is no toll. And I took the same route while return. 

 

 

 

 

[Pralay]

11 hours ago, BORNDRIVER said:

Very Very  Nice picture Pralay. Did not feel bore as a SOLO motorist in this trip...... ? ?

 

The road after Kurnool till HAMPI looks single lane but looks to be in perfect shape without any pot holes. Is this correct ?

 

Was it solo? My car was there with me ??. To be frank, I never felt bore and on a road trip? it is impossible! 

 

The entire stretch till Hampi is good except a patch of a 45 mins drive near around Bellary is in bad shape due to industry belt & road widening work

[sagar]

Lovely post @Pralay.. Your pictures are damn good.. I know how it feels to do a solo trip .. Im hoping to do one soon too.. it’s been a while since I’ve done one.. I would have chosen to camp if I had done a solo.. ?

[Pralay]

11 hours ago, sagar said:

Lovely post @Pralay.. Your pictures are damn good.. I know how it feels to do a solo trip .. Im hoping to do one soon too.. it’s been a while since I’ve done one.. I would have chosen to camp if I had done a solo.. ?

 Thanks @sagar.. ?

Actually camping was in my mind but thought camping alone will be hectic.. Like arranging everything in one hand is too much. Yes i could go in some groups.. But then purpose of solo trip wouldn't have been served.. So decided to scrap the idea of camping and focused on driving and exploring??

[Shekar]

Excellent log. I never did a Solo till now and may not do also. Photos are crisp and live. Hope you have more photos to share. I could find your love for your travelmate your car in the photos. Keep traveling. 

[Pralay]

16 minutes ago, Shekar said:

Excellent log. I never did a Solo till now and may not do also. Photos are crisp and live. Hope you have more photos to share. I could find your love for your travelmate your car in the photos. Keep traveling. 

 Thanks @Shekarfor your kind words ?

[ksa171983]

Very good pictures Pralay .
I did a solo to Hampi way back in 2011 and then last year to Tirupathi during monsoon end .
Inner peace [emoji1605]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Pralay]

51 minutes ago, ksa171983 said:

Very good pictures Pralay .
I did a solo to Hampi way back in 2011 and then last year to Tirupathi during monsoon end .
Inner peace
 

 

Thanks bunch man☺️

Taste of Solidarity is beyond to explain in words.. the moment when you meet yourself! Inner peace.  

[Pralay]

11 hours ago, Shekar said:

Hope you have more photos to share.

 

@Shekar, I do have lot of photos but restricted to post here, as it might be boring for the readers. Wanted a short & crisp blog. ? 

[mit1682]

@Pralay as always, your photos were awesome. Share more it will not be boring. In fact it will very helpful for newbies like me. Like photographic tips & tricks.

[BORNDRIVER]

17 hours ago, Pralay said:

 

Was it solo? My car was there with me ??. To be frank, I never felt bore and on a road trip? it is impossible! 

 

The entire stretch till Hampi is good except a patch of a 45 mins drive near around Bellary is in bad shape due to industry belt & road widening work

Yes Yes I forgot your best friend.....??

Well said. It seems we both have some similarity on feeling towards our cars...

[uday]

lovely pictures mate. I never did a solo trip in my life. I always wanted to do one. Your post game me some boost. 
For Hyderabad people Hampi looks good and ideal for solo trip.

 

17 hours ago, sagar said:

I would have chosen to camp if I had done a solo

 

How do you guys camp in unknown places? It is fine around Himalayas. But in places like Hampi, I will be dam afraid to camp solo. 

 

 

[Gowtham]

6 hours ago, ksa171983 said:

Inner peace

 

Hopeful symptom of life for travel junkies like us. 

 

18 hours ago, Pralay said:

I used my Redmi Note 6 Pro & SJCAM action camera in the Hampi trip.

 

Pictures are crisp. Mobile pictures are getting better every year.
I used to hate mobile photography due to lack of control.

 

Now, I shifted to mobile from past one year and I love flexibility. 

[nagendrasinght]

Photos are Awesome. Nice post. Thank you for sharing.

[Pralay]

2 hours ago, mit1682 said:

@Pralay as always, your photos were awesome. Share more it will not be boring. In fact it will very helpful for newbies like me. Like photographic tips & tricks.

 

Thanks a lot mate. Glad you liked it. ?

21 minutes ago, BORNDRIVER said:

Yes Yes I forgot your best friend.....??

Well said. It seems we both have some similarity on feeling towards our cars...

 

?

 

20 minutes ago, uday said:

lovely pictures mate. I never did a solo trip in my life. I always wanted to do one. Your post game me some boost. 
For Hyderabad people Hampi looks good and ideal for solo trip.

 

 

How do you guys camp in unknown places? It is fine around Himalayas. But in places like Hampi, I will be dam afraid to camp solo. 

 

 

 

Thanks bunch man. Solo or family AVOID hampi during summer, as it is extremely hot out there.

About camping, if Himalaya is safe for camping then it is safer in Hampi. As in general Hampi is having good vibe & locals are very friendly & helpful.

Why I am telling is, 

Firstly weather in Hampi is not at all unpredictable as Himalaya, 

Wild animals are surely more in Himalayas than Hampi 

etc. ?

 

 

[Pralay]

3 minutes ago, nagendrasinght said:

Photos are Awesome. Nice post. Thank you for sharing.

 

Thanks a lot man.?

[Pralay]

12 minutes ago, Ranger said:

 

Hopeful symptom of life for travel junkies like us. 

 

 

Pictures are crisp. Mobile pictures are getting better every year.
I used to hate mobile photography due to lack of control.

 

Now, I shifted to mobile from past one year and I love flexibility. 

 

+1

Add to that the ease of use, ease of sharing, editing or just about everything makes mobile camera popular.

The reason I bought Note 6 pro is DIS in the video, it was really really useful.

 

But, if you want to take some serious photos and ease of comfort then mirror-less is one of the options I guess. 

[veeran]

23 hours ago, Pralay said:

It was the December of 2018

 

Lovely pics brother, Very creative.

 

[SK01]

Lovely pics and fantastic write up as always  @Pralay. Reviews on SJ Cam please? How are the videos in it? Planning to take one for my road trips. 

 

Again, the pictures are beautiful, worth praising. 

Edited April 3, 2019 by SK01

[Pralay]

1 hour ago, veeran said:

Lovely pics bro... Very creative 

 

Thank you ? 

1 hour ago, SK01 said:

Lovely pics and fantastic write up as always  @Pralay. Reviews on SJ Cam please? How are the videos in it? Planning to take one for my road trips. 

 

Again, the pictures are beautiful, worth praising. 

 

Thanks a lot. ? 

The model I use is quite old and I bought it way back in 2016, when action camera is just coming in the market. Since then technology has been updated and I am sure better models are available in market today. But in these years I found there's no replacement for good version of GoPro. But SJCAM, YI are also good considering the price point. I acquired my action cam at around 15k including many mounts and accessories. That time GoPro was coming at around 50k with mounts.. So it totally depends upon your budget & preference. Only thing i would suggest is, grab one which is having IS.. It would be more pleasing to eyes. Apart from that I am extremely satisfied with the cam. ?

[SK01]

13 hours ago, Pralay said:

So it totally depends upon your budget & preference. 

My  budget is 5k₹. A GoPro with mounts is more than 30k₹. A fellow member in our WhatsApp group suggested SJ Cam. 

Amazon review are good, thought of taking known and reliable review. 

 

My preference is to cover my road trip videos, in different modes and different angles, occasional photos as already have a Sony Alpha, should be water proofing because I  use in rains but don’t swim. Will make travel vlogs with the cam. So as a whole making travel vlogs with my cam is in all conditions, angles and modes mounting it to my car is the priority. 

[Pralay]

1 hour ago, SK01 said:

My  budget is 5k₹. A GoPro with mounts is more than 30k₹. A fellow member in our WhatsApp group suggested SJ Cam. 

Amazon review are good, thought of taking known and reliable review. 

 

My preference is to cover my road trip videos, in different modes and different angles, occasional photos as already have a Sony Alpha, should be water proofing because I  use in rains but don’t swim. Will make travel vlogs with the cam. So as a whole making travel vlogs with my cam is in all conditions, angles and modes mounting it to my car is the priority. 

 

Ok, I think then SJCAM will be fitting in your budget, may be without mount. Apart from that you can check up YI cameras as well. @Ranger can give more insights to it as he is a current YI user I guess.

 

Be it any camera, would be cheaper if you can get it from outside country.

 

Overall I would say, SJCAM is great considering the price point, and I am extremely satisfied with it. But still would suggest to go for a cam with good DIS if not OIS. Trust me, you will not regret. Videos with and without IS make huge difference to eyes.

 

Happy Hunting!! ?

[karthik]

Fantastic report, liked each and every bit of the information and pictures. keep posting and motivating lazy (never did a solo drive) bums like me. 
White i10 looks awesome in those backdrops. 

[Gowtham]

1 hour ago, Pralay said:

can give more insights to it as he is a current YI user I guess.

 

I have used all types of action cameras in different trips. 
GoPro is the best option available without any doubt. 

 

If you are looking for value for money option go with YI 4k/4k+

 

If you are going with action camera, you have to buy all  the mounts. (head, chest, car etc)

GoPro mounts will cost you a bomb, on the other hand Chinese mounts are cheap and reliable. 

 

If you serious about capturing action footage, go ahead and buy GoPro.
If you your doing it for passion/fun nothing can beat Chinese value for money options. 

 

Recently, I got a chance to use DJI Osmo pocket Gimble. It is fantastic.  
Best stabilisation, If you like panning shots.  

[Pralay]

1 hour ago, karthik said:

Fantastic report, liked each and every bit of the information and pictures. keep posting and motivating lazy (never did a solo drive) bums like me. 
White i10 looks awesome in those backdrops. 

 

Glad that you liked it. ?

 

1 hour ago, Ranger said:

Recently, I got a chance to use DJI Osmo pocket Gimble. It is fantastic.  
Best stabilisation, If you like panning shots.  

 

Will it support non type-c phones? What about i phones?

Still 30k+ is heavy on pocket for people like us who seldom travels and do not vlog much. I guess, with the time this gadgets will be easier on pocket.

 

[Gowtham]

1 hour ago, Pralay said:

Will it support non type-c phones? What about i phones?

Still 30k+ is heavy on pocket for people like us who seldom travels and do not vlog much. I guess, with the time this gadgets will be easier on pocket.

 

 

Agree on it, We are passionate on using such gadget during our travel. 

Investing 30k for people like us is not worth it. 

Over the time price should come down. 

I have a DJI Osmo mobile 2, it works with mobile camera. 
Got it form US, costed me around 7k, it was an impulsive buy. 
Now, I don't get much time to use it. 

DJI Osmo pocket Gimble : This is not mobile dependent. It can work individually. 

DJI Osmo mobile 2: This is mobile dependent.

[Pralay]

11 minutes ago, Ranger said:

I have a DJI Osmo mobile 2, it works with mobile camera. 
Got it form US, costed me around 7k, it was an impulsive buy. 
 

 

Still 7k is fine. but 30k+ would be pain when you realise that you are not using it much.  

 

12 minutes ago, Ranger said:

DJI Osmo mobile 2: This is mobile dependent.

 

Thanks for the info & clearing the doubt. You are always spot on when it comes to sharing information. ??

[SK01]

12 hours ago, Pralay said:

Videos with and without IS make huge difference to eyes.

Yes I completely agree with that. Thanks for the suggestion and review.

[SK01]

21 hours ago, Ranger said:

If you are looking for value for money option go with YI 4k/4k+

What’s the difference between SJ cam and YI? Does YI serve the purpose of an action camera as it’s a dash cam?

21 hours ago, Ranger said:

on the other hand Chinese mounts are cheap and reliable. 

Yes they are really cheap and reliable. I should look for good alternatives. 

21 hours ago, Ranger said:

If you your doing it for passion/fun nothing can beat Chinese value for money options. 

For travelers like us who solely concentrate on travel and do videos/vlogs out of passion investing 30k or even 10k for a camera solely is not worth. As said by you we seldom use them. Till last year I was crazy about GoPro and desperately wanted to buy one. That interest slowly washed away and now I don’t even want to take it unless I go on a really adventurous road trip. 

Edited April 5, 2019 by SK01

[Gowtham]

6 hours ago, SK01 said:

action camera as it’s a dash cam?

 

Never use action cam as dash cam. They are built for different purposes. 

Action cam has bigger battery and can generate more heat compared to dash cam. 
Dash cam have smaller internal battery, which can take heavy usage/charge/discharge cycles.  

 

 

[SK01]

On 4/5/2019 at 2:32 PM, Ranger said:

generate more heat compared to dash cam. 

Thanks for the suggestion @Ranger. In that case I should buy YI cam for my day to day purpose and then separately take an action camera. 

 

But I have a doubt, in what way does generating more heat effect our car? And SJ Cam SJ4000 has a dash cam mode. Would that help?

Edited April 6, 2019 by SK01

[Gowtham]

On 4/6/2019 at 9:42 PM, SK01 said:

what way does generating more heat effect our car?

 

Action cams are not designed to work continuously they get heated up after an hour. 

They are meant for different purpose.
If you are on long drive for more than 12 hours, I am sure it will be dead on continuous charge/discharge. 

 

On 4/6/2019 at 9:42 PM, SK01 said:

SJ Cam SJ4000 has a dash cam mode.

 

I am not sure about this feature.

 

You can get a decent dash cam for 3k. Buy it fix it and forget about it. 

Invest on action cam depending on your requirements. 

[SK01]

21 hours ago, Ranger said:

Buy it fix it and forget about it. 

Sounds simple and economic. Any suggestions o dash cams or shall I go with tested YI?

[kumarrgk]

That's was a excellent journey.  Why did you miss the return journey details ?

[Gowtham]

2 hours ago, kumarrgk said:

That's was a excellent journey.  Why did you miss the return journey details ?

 

usually return journeys are boring.  

[Sridhar Tandra]

2 hours ago, Ranger said:

return journeys are boring

and sad!!!

[PareshBhinde]

Such a beautiful post.. Lovely pics. Thanks for sharing!!