Cold-infused air, endless knee-down moments on an endless road, cup of can-stove coffee, the de-tan dip, bed of pebbles, cannibal fishes, beach hopping, snorkeling on land, exoskeleton giants, silky waterfalls are what defined the whole experience in short.
Always wanted to do a long ride to a beach, especially Mangalore, Gokarna and Goa. So finally the dream ride came through on 11th October 2015, having included can stove coffee, ghats, waterfall, dip in cold river, boat ride and crabs just made it absolutely awesome.
Being a last minute trip, the gang shrinked to 3 and remained in perfect sync throughout the journey.
Anyway, time to let the digital memories do the talking :D.
Nungu – Must have on a hot sunny day, shaped like a seed, jelly looking and tastes just like coconut water.
Took a long 2 hour break dipping in Netravati River, Dharmasthala.
The endless ghat roads till Mangalore were absolutely awesome, no traffic, no potholes/ patches/ bumps (almost :P), tackles them all with a series of endless happy knee-down moments.
By 1700hrs we were at Mangalore hunting for a good place to stay. Unfortunately the only place we were able to find was a hotel called “Hotel Royal Park”; perfectly located, good rooms, good view, the ONLY elevator killed the mood when it literally took a minute to go from 5th to ground floor. Anyway, place was just perfectly located and everything was walkable from there.
Day 1 ended with a perfect dinner, tried Crabs for the first time, tasted awesome plus I was getting fed the meat directly instead of me cracking through those hard exoskeletons :D.
Jump started day 2 with super early morning walk to the bus stand, followed by a smooth bus ride to Udupi Bus Stand. There are frequent direct buses (so called direct; goes till Malpe City, changeover to another bus to go till the Malpe Beach).
Luckily when we arrived, a fishing boat arrived with their catch and started dumping the unwanted stuff (Variety of Crabs, Sting Ray, Shrimps, Cuttlefish, Start fish etc) on the beach. We are having a blast photographing and handling them, we were really to see them without actually diving in the sea.
A fun fact about Cuttlefish (Search for “True Facts About The CuttleFish” on YouTube or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDwOi7HpHtQ) is that they can change their shape or texture and color to blend with the environment, plus they can hypnotise their prey.
Bought the boat ride tickets to reach St Mary’s Island (costed Rs. 200 per head). Ride was fun and bumpy, clear blue-green water.
There was cultural fest running in Udupi which had to skip because of shortage of time. Caught a bus to Mangalore as fast as we can, reached room, got fresh and went on a beach hopping run next; Ullal Beach (plain shoreline, nothing to describe about), Someshwar Beach and Tannirbhavi Beach (sunset spot).
One needs to take a boat to reach Tannirbhavi beach from Sultan Bathery or drive through the only road through Mangalore Port, Panambur.
The day ended with a visit to one of the most beautiful temple in Mangalore, “Shree Gokarnanatheshwara Temple“.
Day 2 came to an end with another round of awesome dinner @Mangalore, this time we switched to Malabar Food.
Next day plan was to start by 0200 hrs from Mangalore, got delayed and started by 0530 hrs.
Stopped on the way before reaching Sakleshpur, there was a small water stream flowing parallel to the road. Relaxed there for half an hour.
Giant oranges (not sure what they are called), tasted much better than oranges – a bit extra sour, slightly bitter, extra strong Flavor.
Luckily spotted this beautiful waterfall alongside of road a few clicks before reaching Sakleshpur, took a short photo-break here.
PG’s bike desperately needed a gearbox checkup, so we stopped at Sakleshpur (ask for Kitti Garage to anyone over there if your bike is in need of one ever, approx co-ordinates – 12.943905, 75.791237).
Next part of the journey was filled with almost non stop ride, with moments of refreshment breaks (loads of coconut water, cucumber etc).
Reached home by 2030 hrs
Advice:
- Book a room in advance through OYO/ Stayzilla or similar stay apps.
- ATMs in Mangalore and Udupi are like treasure chests, loot whenever you find one 😀
- Motor Garages are closed on Sundays in Mangalore.
- Try the local cuisines – Neer Dosa, Chicken Sukka etc.. and not to forget Crabs (or any other sea food)
And I am already in a mood to camp out somewhere in a jungle or a peak, lets see.
Until then, ride safe and trek safe.
Last Trip: Camping Under The Stars – Horagina Betta
