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RLT: Palakkad to Bangalore

Over the weekend, I made a trip from Bangalore to Palakkad (Kerala). Took the usual route of Bangalore - Hosur - Krishnagiri - Dharmapuri - Thoppur - Mettur - Bhavani - Perundurai - Coimbatore - Palakkad. Returning back on a working day on this route would’ve meant that I would hit the rush hour traffic from Hosur in the evening. Moreover, this route is very crowded with slow moving trucks and insane bus drivers (specifically between Bhavani and Coimbatore). Also, there aren’t any good restaurants where you can relax.

While coming back, I decided to take a route less travelled. Took the Palakkad - Coimbatore - Sathyamangalam (Sathy) - Chamarajnagar - Mysore - Bangalore. It was a gamble, but I really liked the drive. The road is definitely not straight like the usual one, has no cell phone coverage in some sections and has bad stretches too. But I found it far less stressful because of the lack of traffic. Also, Mysore is a good place for a break. Given below is the driving log. Note that the kilometers given are approximate. I stopped taking notes from Chamarajnagar - so kilometers from there are from my memory.

• [07:30|0 km] Starting from beyond Palakkad at NH-47. Take right at the T-junction in Palakkad. Left takes you to Palakkad town.
• [08:15|40 km] BP station at right side of the road on Madukkarai. Tank full of diesel. Take left after the fuel station to go inside Coimbatore. Straight takes you through L&T byepass to NH-47 to Salem.
• [08:30|47 km] Take left at the 4-road junction and go through the toll bridge (Rs. 7/-). You reach Ukkadam junction and bus-stand. Go straight. After the signal, the road forks. Take the left to go to Gandhipuram. At the end of the road, take right. I got lost here and took left - that takes you on to Ooty road! From Gandhipuram signal, take the straight road to Sathy.
• [09:15|69 km] Almost out of Coimbatore. Drive down through Sathy road - NH 209. I reckon I lost about 30 minutes and 5-7 kilometers trying to figure out the way Traffic is very thin.
• [09:35|89 km] Annur. Take the first right and then take the small left fork to Sathy. There is a signboard, but that is at the junction and by the time you read it, you will be already on Avinashi road. I did, and then had to come back. Note that the road is good, but has lots of curves. Tamil Nadu police also has the habit of erecting obstacles to reduce the speed - so watch out for these. These do not have reflectors, so really watch out if you are driving at night.
• [10:00|125 km] Sathy. Now follow signs to Mysore. You need to take a right turn, cross a bridge and then a left at the end of the bridge.
• [10:20|140 km] Bannari. The famous Bannari Amman Temple is on your left. Take a break if you need to. Next up is the ghat (mountain roads) section.
• [10:25|142 km] Ghat section. First of 27 hairpin bends ("switchbacks", in American English) starts. Cell phone signal is very rare for the next hour.
• [10:45|155 km] Thimbam. All the climb is over. Now the road winds down, but it is not really like a mountain road.
• [10:50|160 km] Asanur. Go straight. Road is now over flat lands. You are soon getting into Karnataka. Immediately, road becomes narrower and unmaintained. It is not that bad, but compared to the roads in Tamil Nadu, this looks more like a village road. You can still maintain about 60kmph, but there is not enough side when you need to pass a truck or a bus.
• [11:15|175 km] Some unknown forest! We took a break for 20 minutes. On the way, keep looking at signs pointing you to Chamarajnagar, Mysore, Kollegal or Bangalore.
• [11:45|206 km] Chamarajnagar. Keep going straight past the signal. Road takes a left turn. Then a right turn takes you to Bangalore through NH 209 (Kollegal, Malavalli, Kanakpura) and saves you about 25km. However, road quality is like what you’ve seen so far in Karnataka and there are hardly any restaurants. I suggest you go straight, towards Nanjangud. The road has some potholes, but has good stretches in between.
• [12:20|240 km] Nanjangud. A board asks you to take the byepass towards the right. The road is horrible. After 3-4 kms, it will drop you on to NH 212 that goes to Calicut in Kerala. Take a right there towards Mysore. I think if you ignore the byepass, you can get into Nanjangud town (which is nothing but NH 212 with some shops and school on either side). If you do take the byepass, you can see the huge temple (known as Dakshin Kashi) of Lord Shiva on to your left. It is pretty impressive - I am planning to do a weekend trip there some time. You can see the river on to your right as well. The road to Mysore is pretty good.
• [12:45|260 km] Mysore. There is a board that asks you to take a left turn to the byepass that takes you to Bangalore road. I took that in April and thought it was way too long. You can continue straight to Mysore and enjoy the scenes instead. We took a 1 hour break to have lunch at the Kamat Madhuvan (on to your right after you pass yet another board that asks you to take a right turn to Bangalore). Vegetarian food, but very clean and spacious. I find it very convenient to feed my 2.5 year old daughter there.
• [13:50|262 km] Mysore palace. Go round the circle and take the sharp right turn (gentler right will take you to the Palace gates). Drive past the Palace walls and another gate to reach a junction. Take the road at mild left (11 O' clock - there is a board that says "Bangalore"). Go past Mysore bus station and cross the signal at the petrol station. You will reach a junction with about 4 roads. Again take the mild left (right one will also take you to Bangalore road). Go straight past St. Philomina’s Church. Take a right turn. At the end of the road, you see a fountain (pretty dry!). Take a left there. Just follow the road to reach Bangalore highway. Here is where the byepass would’ve dropped you. Bangalore highway is very good these days. It is a divided highway with very good surface. You can easily do 100+ kmph. Channapattana (~90km from Mysore) is an interesting place where you can get great handicrafts and toys made of wood.
• [15:45|392 km] Outer Ring Road junction. I took a right to go through the ring road to Banashankari where I stay.

Surprisingly, the distance covered is about 30km less than the normal route.

Driven on my 2004 model Silver Fiat Palio 1.9D that has now clocked 40000km.