Hill Station and Beach in a Day. Hyderabad to Wayanad, Kappad Beach

[RedCruiser]

Where:- From Hyderabad to Wayand ( Vythiri) and Kappad Beach.

Dates:- 24th to 28th September,2017

Swift VXI  with 37K on ODO

Travellers:- Yours Truly with wifey and 7 month kid.

 

Total Kms. 1972 

[RedCruiser]

Few pics

 

 

 

[RedCruiser]

OK.So, that is how it all started.Vexed with long working hours and traffic of well.. "Trafficjamabad" i.e. Hyderabad. Decided to take a well deserved break with family.

 

 Planned a getaway from Bangalore as we have few relatives in there, so the dual purpose of a vacation and family meet-up would be satisfied.

 

Now, the leaves. Getting leaves in a corporate setup is tricky. As most of the other consultants were planning their break from 29th/30th,Sept onwards in view of dushera, had to ask for it earlier.  And they got approved.4 days leave. 25th to 28th and add to it the 24th Sunday and you have 5 days for yourself.

 

Deciding the Destination was easy. Had done Munnar road trip in 2016 and Vagamon was 520kms from Bangalore, so both ruled themselves out. Left with Ooty,Madikeri and Wayanad in the range of 250 to 300 kms from Bangalore. Of these did went to ooty quite a few times,albeit by bus. So Wayanad was enchanting enough and was finalized.

 

Before i go any further, A Special thanks to member teju b for their post on Wayanad road trip which helped alot in planning and resort booking. Initially had planned my stay in Thejas Resorts, but due to close proximity to lakkidi view point,Wayanad churam and Pookode Lake chose Upavan Resort in Vythiri.

 

This is how the map looked during the drive.

[SSSS]

Beautiful pics, Do share more information. How was the roads? Faced any bad stretch? 

[RedCruiser]

Few preparations before the drive:- 

 

For the Car-- as it is the most important thing on a road trip, so, took it to Varun motors, Tolichowki for a checkup and fluids top up. It was serviced at 31K, and everything seemed ok. Fuses, lights, oils,battery, A/C.Perfect,  but the glitch turned out to be wiper blades so had them replaced promptly as expected lots of rains en-route and it turned out to be true and beautiful too. Packed in a towing rope, hydraulic jack,Jump cables for a dead battery, checked the stepney and tyres a day prior to the journey.

 

For the Travellers. Nothing much for wifey and myself except for basic medicines, power banks and a working 4G SIM. Utmost planning was required for my kiddo.Though she had already been on a road trip to Panchgani but that group was much larger and this time around we were only 3 of us. So, all her medicines, diapers, wipes, baby food, emergency contact numbers of pediatricians from my workplace and, of course, a Car Seat made it to the luggage list. One special mention for Car seats for kids. They are a boon on Long drives and do invest in them if you do plan trips with kids.

[RedCruiser]

All Packed and Ready to go. The Schedule looked something like this, atleast on paper ( and in practice too ) except for minor deviation.

 

Didn't want to strain ourselves and firmly believe in " Its not about the destination, its about the Drive "  Adage, thereby took it slowly and the prime criteria was to relax at the resort than to roam around at touristy places wearing a raincoat and carrying an umbrella.

 

Sept.24th

Hyderabad to Bangalore.  Started at 5.45 AM. Covered 596kms. via NH44. Awesome roads though boring.

Breakfast. Food Pyramid at Kothakota. Roughly 120kms from Hyderabad.

Early Lunch at Blue Moon Restaurant, Miduthuru Village near Anantapur.

 

Reached Bangalore at 5pm.  Stayed at my folks place overnight ( Hosur Road )  and wrapped up the day with a hearty dinner and lots of memories and conversations.

 

Sept.25th

 Started at 7.30 AM. Took the NICE ROAD, MYSORE EXIT, ( Toll Rs. 105/- )  had breakfast in one of the many dhabas on this way. I guess, it was named "Vattika".

 

Moved forward and went through NH 48, NH 275. Passing through Ramnagara, CR Patna, Maddur, Mandya and Srirangapatna. Roads throughout were good barring for heavy traffic which is always the case on this highway and humps/speed breakers which are massive and should be carefully dealt with. One good thing about this NH is the presence of loads of eating joints and fuel bunks which works out well if you are with family and kids. It was raining intermittently but not much of a problem though.

 

Bypassed Mysore city via Keasare and continued on with our journey towards Nanjanagudu NH766 and reached Gundlupete.

Again good roads throughout.

Over here, take the right turn to go towards Sulthan Bathery which goes through Bandipur National Forest. Stopped here at one of the dhabas for biobreak,  kid feed and light snacks which we had packed in. The aim was to reach the resort atleast by 4pm as i did'nt want to take the risk of losing way in an unknown territory with zero malayalam language skills asking for directions post dusk time.

[RedCruiser]

Done with the Pit stop, now went ahead and through the Bandipur Forest which is well maintained. Speed Limitations apply themselves with humps spread all over the road in an evenly manner but the restriction to NOT HONK is upon ourselves which was practiced by most of the car drivers barring a few trucks. It was around noon and i guess most of the wildlife was sleeping ( I don't know ) but still spotted a deer. Crossed it and entered into Kerala side with Muthanga wildlife sanctuary.

 

 

[RedCruiser]

Finally, Made way through Sulthan Bathery and Kalpetta which are taluks in Wayanad District taking you through meandering, well-maintained 2 lane roads of Kerala with frequent encounters with crazy bus drivers who drive quite rashly.  Reached Vythiri, the last part of wayanad and made it to the pre-booked Upavan Resort at 4.15pm.

Total Distance. 288 kms.

Time. Roughly 8 Hours. incl mini breaks for Kid and Fuel.

Toll. Only once on NICE Rd.

 

IMHO, Vythiri is the place to be if you want a quick getaway to the nearby sight seeing places but Kalpetta also works fine. The Resort is what brought us all the way to Vythiri.

 

Nothing like seeing your dear car from the room balcony. Surely, a room with a view.

[RedCruiser]

Sept.26th.   While going to the resort had seen a Kerala Tourism  milestone mentioning "Kappad Beach-60kms".

 

This is what ignited the Wanderlust Traveller in me and did some workup on it via GMaps and found it to doable. As such, the waterfalls were closed to the public due to heavy rains ( Soochipara ) and were not interested in doing phantom rock, etc. Wayand Churam and Lakkidi view point were on the way by Ghat section with 8 Hairpin bends to Kappad Beach, so we were not missing much. Started at 10.00 am after breakfast  at the resort, and immediately the ghat road started. Road condition is ok but at the junction of the bends, the road is broken and repair was being undertaken at one of the patches.

 

To and Fro. it was around 150 kms and went through SH 34, 38 taking you through thamarassery and balussery.

Reached there at 1pm.

 

While returning,had lunch at a nice family restaurant named White House serving Chicken Mandi.

Back to resort at 5pm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RedCruiser]

While returning from the beach, after lunch,  there was rainfall on the way with accompanying fog making the view points and the ghat section even more beautiful.

 

No problem with food if you are in Wayanad as most of the restaurants are owned by Middle east returned expatriates and names of restaurants as Saudi, Oman Muscat are quite common which serve proper non veg/veg food including mandi, laham and falafel along with the regular south Indian fare.

 

Had Sulaimani tea at the place where we stopped over for lunch which was refeshing.

Back to the resort at 5pm.

 

One huge round of applause for this product of Maruti Suzuki  going by the name SWIFT  which performed with aplomb on the ghat section and is truly a driver's car at-least in the mid level hatchback segment.

 

 

[RedCruiser]

Sept. 27th. Checkout and Drive back to Bangalore via the same road. Encountered few more deer in Bandipur, this time they were much closer.

 

[RedCruiser]

Sept. 28th... Finally Started from Bangalore and Reached Hyderabad. There is generally nothing eventful and much to write about during the return journeys of road trips  except for happy memories and whole lot of rejuvenated feeling. 

 

The Final ODOMETER READING of the trip.

 

Total Toll Paid.. Around 1500 Rs. Majority of which was on Hyderabad-Bangalore Highway.

 

Avg. Mileage. 21.8KMPL. ( Petrol ) with A/C on/off intermittently though it was not much required.

 

Speeds maintained. 80-90KMPH even on NH44 slowing down on 2 laned Kerala roads and on Ghats.

 

Eateries/Pit Stops. Not an issue throughout the drive and it was tasty, palatable food even in the resort but priced a bit on the higher side.

 

Kappad Beach.. Clean, safe for families, non-touristy with limited food options. It is asosciated with a piece of history in that its the point where Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese sailor first landed in sub continent  ( 1498 AD ) in the Kingdom of Calicut ruled by the Zamorins.

 

Local Savories/Souvenirs. Few. Some woodwork items and Aromatic oils but those are better at other places like ooty.You can still try the Calicut Halwa though. Didn't go much into shopping as this was a relaxed drive and getting stressed out haggling around with vendors was pointless.

[RedCruiser]

2 hours ago, SSSS said:

Beautiful pics, Do share more information. How was the roads? Faced any bad stretch? 

The roads were good throughout the journey. Only while driving towards the beach on the Ghat section at few places, it was broken and there were few potholeswhich are quite expected  near the villages/ major towns of Balussery in Kerala and Mandya, Channarayapatna, Maddur in KA.

[Gowtham]

Excellent pictures. It was fun reading through your posts.
 

3 hours ago, RedCruiser said:

Yours Truly with wifey and 7 month kid.

Great achievement 

 

2 hours ago, RedCruiser said:

the glitch turned out to be wiper blades

 

Faced worst nightmare in of my last drives, due to wiper blades issue, combined with night drive. Must check before a long drive.

 

1 hour ago, RedCruiser said:

While going to the resort had seen a Kerala Tourism  milestone mentioning "Kappad Beach-60kms".

 

Beach looks clean.
Must appreciate Kerala/Karnataka for promoting the tourism.

 

2 hours ago, RedCruiser said:

Nothing like seeing your dear car from the room balcony. Surely, a room with a view.

 

Only a car enthusiast can understand that feeling.  

 

Very helpful information, Thank you for sharing.

[Naveen1]

One of the best/honest travel story.
Loved reading your experience.

Swift is an all rounder.

I was impressed with Petrol mileage of Swift.
What is your cruising speed?

[veeran]

5 hours ago, RedCruiser said:

Sept. 28th... Finally Started from Bangalore and Reached Hyderabad. There is generally nothing eventful and much to write about during the return journeys of road trips  except for happy memories and whole lot of rejuvenated feeling. 

 

The Final ODOMETER READING of the trip.

 

Total Toll Paid.. Around 1500 Rs. Majority of which was on Hyderabad-Bangalore Highway.

 

Avg. Mileage. 21.8KMPL. ( Petrol ) with A/C on/off intermittently though it was not much required.

 

Speeds maintained. 80-90KMPH even on NH44 slowing down on 2 laned Kerala roads and on Ghats.

 

Eateries/Pit Stops. Not an issue throughout the drive and it was tasty, palatable food even in the resort but priced a bit on the higher side.

 

Kappad Beach.. Clean, safe for families, non-touristy with limited food options. It is asosciated with a piece of history in that its the point where Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese sailor first landed in sub continent  ( 1498 AD ) in the Kingdom of Calicut ruled by the Zamorins.

 

Local Savories/Souvenirs. Few. Some woodwork items and Aromatic oils but those are better at other places like ooty.You can still try the Calicut Halwa though. Didn't go much into shopping as this was a relaxed drive and getting stressed out haggling around with vendors was pointless.

wow good write up wonderful mileage bro

[Pralay]

Excellent write up.. pretty crisp & short, I like the simplicity of the writing.  

Very much informative blog. Great that, you follow safety in all manners, especially for the little angel!! 

[uday]

Perfect log. Straight to the point. 

Wayanad drive is pending from years.
Information you shared is excellent. 

 

Can we do it in a single day from Hyderabad to Waynad?

[kkkumar]

8 minutes ago, uday said:

Perfect log. Straight to the point. 

Wayanad drive is pending from years.
Information you shared is excellent. 

 

Can we do it in a single day from Hyderabad to Waynad?

Yes, I did,

Started around 4.00 AM reached Wayanad(maymorn holiday home) by 6.00 PM

Hyderabad - Bangalore - Mysore - Wayanad.

If you struck in Bangalore traffic it will take time.we spend more 2 hrs in Bangalore traffic.

[Gowtham]

37 minutes ago, kkkumar said:

Mysore - Wayanad

 

How is the road condition from Mysuru to Wayanad?

[kkkumar]

1 minute ago, Ranger said:

 

How is the road condition from Mysuru to Wayanad?

Good road to reach wayand via bandipur foresh. we need to drive slowly in the forest area.

and we need to be little careful in ghat section with the opposite vehicle mainly ksrtc they will drive rashly.

  

[sagar]

@RedCruiser Brilliant and very honest travelogue sir. I have enjoyed it thoroughly while I was reading it. Also, beautiful attention to details in your narration. Wayanad is the best place I would rate in Kerala when visited during the peak monsoon season. Good food, great people, superb roads and very well maintained tourist spots makes this place worthy for family trips. Exploring the less sighted places around Wayanad would give you the best feel as the regular tourist spots have grown to become a way too commercial in the present days especially during weekends and long holiday seasons.

[RedCruiser]

23 hours ago, driveking said:

One of the best/honest travel story.
Loved reading your experience.

Swift is an all rounder.

I was impressed with Petrol mileage of Swift.
What is your cruising speed?

Thanks. I maintain a constant cruising speed of around 80kms and not more than that. Morever, a self confessed sedate driver that I am with an easy right foot helps alot in returning good mileage, IMHO

[RedCruiser]

2 hours ago, uday said:

Perfect log. Straight to the point. 

Wayanad drive is pending from years.
Information you shared is excellent. 

 

Can we do it in a single day from Hyderabad to Waynad?

It's doable but requires hectic driving with a fast car and 2 drivers are a must-have as the distance is close to 950km from Hyderabad. You have to also factor in the local traffic and road conditions too.

[Guest PinkPanther]

WoW Awesome?

[RedCruiser]

Thanks everyone. It was one good drive.