Goa Route Query

[aoldev]

Firstly thanks to the team @ Automotive India , just joined few mins back and i am loving this forum already.
reading the travelogues made me plan for a trip to Goa. After googling for hours selected agonda beach for a 3 ni stay. I will be driving solo on my Wagon R V Xi from coonoor (my hometown) to goa covering a distance of about 800 km. A few important queries

1. which route to follow- NH 206 coonoor-Mysore-arsikere- shimoga-karwar-goa with ni halt at shimoga OR coonoor-mysore-chitradurga-ranebennur-bankapur-karwar-goa OR chitradurga-hubli-dhadwad-goa

2. which is the most scenic route?

3. My car has already done 17k on the odo and is just 1 and a half year old, servicing was done in jan 2013.....any other checks?

4. My past long distance driving experience includes kolkata-panagarh-siliguri-hasimara-bhutan in 2012 may.

i would really be greatful to seniors who can guide me well on my first solo trip

 

[BlrGuy]

Hi,

800 Kms can be done in a day if you decide to leave early in the morning even in your Wagon R. I have done Bangalore to Goa (670 kms in about 10.5 -11 hrs) quite a few times along this route - Blr - Tumkur - Chitradurga - Davengere - Ranebennur -Hubli - Dharward Byepass onto Yellapur - Ankola - Karwar - Goa. This route is good for fast driving and there are plenty of fuel pumps on the way. There are a few puncture shops along the way and near petrol pumps in case of a flat tyre is a boon.

Another route that is fast and scenic is:
Blr - Tumkur - Chitradurga - Davengere - Bankapur - Mundgod - Gunjavati - Yellapur - Ankola - Karwar - Goa. The drive from Bankapur to Yellapur via Mundgod is very scenic through thick forests for about 70 kms. However, driving speeds along this 70 kms stretch can be about 60 kmph and it is a 2 lane road.

The most scenic route would be :

Coonoor - Mysore - Arsikere - Tarikere - Bhadrawati - Shivamogga - Sagara - Talaguppa - Honnawar - Kumta - Ankola - Karwar - Goa. The last part of the journey will be all along the Arabian sea. I am not sure what speeds you will be able to maintain after Shivamogga. Bangalore to Shivammoga roads are good and the drive can be done in about 6.5 - 7 hrs. If you do decide to take a night break you can do so at Bhadrawati that is just 20 kms before Shivamogga. Accommodation will be 30-40% cheaper and the hotel rooms are good with ample car parking facility. I don't recollect the name of the hotel that had charged me only Rs. 350/- for a large double room at Bhadrawati.

Since you have serviced your car in Jan, I presume your next servicing will be after 5k kms ie. when your odo touches 22k. The total journey including local drive within Goa will not exceed 2k kms. Just ensure that the normal checks are all carried out. Check tyre pressure, coolant, engine oil level, brakes should have good breaking power, AC working normally, lights and indicators working in perfect condition, head lights have enough illumination during early morning drive and late evening drive. Carry some basic tools apart from the ones that you get with your car (a torch is a must) and a tubeless tyre repair kit.

I have never driven from Blr to Coonoor and would presume that the road quality is good (atleast from Coonoor to Mysore since Mysore - Arsikere has good roads). I guess, if you leave Coonoor at about 5.00 am, you should reach Agonda at around 7.30 - 8.00 pm including enough breaks for Bfast, lunch and snacks. Since you are driving solo, you will require some breaks to keep yourself alert on the road. Since Agonda is towards south Goa, you will reach perhaps earlier since there is no traffic that you will need to encounter unlike the choice of a destination in North Goa in which case you will need to go through traffic at Margao and Panaji.

I am planning to do this trip (Blr - Goa) toward end of March / early April and this time I plan to take the scenic route via Shivamogga.

Have a nice and safe drive and do post your travelogue on this forum.

- BlrGuy

 

[mukeshus]

Aoldev, the route suggested by Blr guy via Mysore seems to be a good choice.
You need not come to Bangalore.
Conoor is a great place I had been to tea estates that comes after that Madras Regimemt Centre.

Now coming to the topic take the Gundlupet-Mysore-Arsikere as suggested.

I hope you have gone through my recent tlogs.

 

[aoldev]

thanks blrguy for the detailed info.The post by mukesh regarding the goa trip made me plan this trip. I have already booked my stay in Agonda south goa for 3 nights.Rest of the details coming soon

 

[sethumurugan]

Looks like we have another travel freak here in TAI. Hope we can expect some good TL again here.

TAI is waiting friend.

 

[aoldev]

@sethumurugan yes definitely TL will be uploaded by 16 march when i come back.Although I will be travelling solo, I will try to take as many photos as possible

ROUTES FINALIZED

Coonoor(start at 1500h on sat 9 march)-Ooty-thalaikunda-Masinagudi-Bandipur-Mysore(ni halt)-Arsikere-Shimoga-Sagara-Jog Falls(brief stop)-Honavar-Karwar-Goa

coming back
Goa-Ankola-Yellapur-bankapur-davanagere-chitradurga-sira-srirangapatna(ni halt)-mysore- coonoor

 

[BlrGuy]

Hi aoldev,

If the stop at Jog falls is to view the waterfalls than it would be a waste of time. I have read from other posts of folks who had been there a couple of weeks ago and they have expressed their dissatisfaction as the water is just a thin trickle. You may want to visit Jog again during the rains (hopefully we will have a good monsoon this year). Anyway, have a safe drive and do post the pics of this scenic journey.

- BlrGuy

 

[aoldev]

All checks performed my boxer (wagon r)is raring to go

 

[sethumurugan]

All checks performed my boxer (wagon r)is raring to go

Best of luck.

 

[aoldev]

Thank you @sethumurugan sir.One more question how reliable is google maps navigation?

 

[sethumurugan]

I have not used it on GPS. But generally for any place location I do consider Google maps and to my knowledge it is good.

But based on our gurus here i think it is good only. I think Mr. Appu always use it in his car.

 

[mukeshus]

Thank you @sethumurugan sir.One more question how reliable is google maps navigation?

Hey Aoldev don't trust the shortest routes which google maps lead you, as the roads can be in bad condition.

Always decide the route by adding more via points on the maps.

So that even if distance is more route you travel will be better.

 

[appus]

One more addition to what mukeshus said :

If you are using Sygic/MapMyIndia maps, always compare the route with google maps (on a pc). If you add multiple way points (the location you know), it wont go wrong. Do not select the 'shortest route' in settings.

Always see the route in maps.google.co.in and then on your map apps. I do not use google map on phone as it needs data connection (Gprs/edge/3g) to show the map.

All the best ! Drive safe

 

[krish_go]

aoldev-
Shivamogga - Sagara - Talaguppa - Honnawar - Kumta - Ankola - Karwar - Goa was on the radar for a very long time now. Hope your TL will inspire and push me to plan for a trip.
All the best and safe journey!!

 

[aoldev]

@krish_go will surely write the TL when i come back. just had a short trip to ooty and used the google navigation app on my andro phone it was amazinly accurate and i even matched the time as shown on the map.Google Maps needs a gprs/3g/edge connectivity but Google Navigation does not need any data connection it simply uses the GPS of your phone.My travel starts tomorrow 1500h hopefully i will post an update at around 2030h