Sunday 25th November:

Sunday 25th November:

Start:                23,055

Finish:    23,230

Distance:         175km

Route:     Ooty – Gudelar - Gundlupete – Mysore

Hotel:               Radisson Blue

Today

Ooty,  It was a shocker and it was not just about the facilities. For the first time at any of the places we have stayed at, one felt there was a disinterest in the guests.

Not only were the staff slightly abrasive, but verging on intimidating, Unfortunately, this was coupled with an extraordinary misrepresentation in the marketing material. The room was cold, damp, limited facilities, unclean and basically, just very unpleasant.

Outside was particularly foggy, so there would have been little to see had we taken the train up the mountain.

Room was heavy in condensation, everything felt damp and we both felt the need for the first time to break-out a middle layer of clothing for the start of the journey.

The biggest bonus ….there was a corridor left for us to drive out and make quick, our escape from the most disappointing experience of our trip. I was delighted to receive a little later, an auto-generated request to provide feedback….and did I feel better once this had been completed !!  

It was a short ride through the community onto the main Mysore road and commence the climb up the mountain side…..jeez it had a chill in the air, the roads presented running water in places and alternated between being dry, damp and wet.

The mist was getting thicker as we climbed the mountain, until I had to stop to refix a strap. It was then when I took off my glasses, I realized they had a film of mist on them….no wonder it was becoming a little challenging.

These were new conditions for us, with the combination of wet roads, poor visibility, partial sunlight, mist and lots of potholes, cunningly concealed round corners or in the shade under the trees. So Tony took the lead, as I had no option other than ride without glasses.

In other circumstances, it may have been idyllic, as glimpses of expansive views could be caught through gaps in the trees. But it was not to be today.

We also passed through areas of terraced tea plantations and paddi fields, that were reminiscent of other Asian countries visited, and almost unseen in our travels, until now.

The area is obviously a productive agriculture area, with numerous roadside vegetable markets and plentiful activity of cattle, sheep, goats, dogs and all, on and alongside the roads.

There was also plenty of early in the day religious ceremonies taking place in the various communities, with villages packed with men dressed up in their Sunday best whites separate from the ladies and the roadsides full of bikes, cars, and buses that one assumes have brought worshippers in from outer lying areas.

We were determined to get some distance up the road before we stopped for some brekkie and the thaw out the fingers. It was a novel experience to feel the cold, but we had climbed some 1,800m into the Nilgiri Hills since leaving Coimbatore.

When the roads leveled out, we entered the Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary, for tigers, elephants, bears and various other wildlife. There was no indication of any centres for viewing and presumably focused on maintaining the boundaries as a protected wild life reserve. There was certainly a large ranger and police presence along the route, plus a very, very repetitive number of ‘ball-breakers’. We must have negotiated a 100 of the things through this area

.

We then passed out of Tamil Nadu and back into Karnatakka State and through to town of Gudalur. It was not until we reached here, that we saw a likely ‘watering hole’. The town looked very organized, well laid out and relatively clean when compared to any of the other villages & towns.

Having regained some circulation in the fingers, it was off to Gundlupet, the Nugu Wildlife Sanctuary and a relaxing and gradual drop down to Mysore. An exec decision and instead of poncing around looking for a decent coffee place, let’s go to the Radisson Blue and either have a coffee there and or check-in.

We rolled up to the large security entrance, a 2* Security man lifted the barrier and we were directed to park the bikes directly opposite the main entrance. Then what can only be described as a ‘territorial discussion’ commenced between 5 guys as to where the bikes should be parked, with the head door-man (colourfully dressed in a gurkha style outfit) won the day and we dutifully moved the bikes 20feet to the opposite side.

Staff just seemed oblivious that we had arrived on two very dusty motorcycles (and not been chauffeur driven) and like everywhere else (except Ooty) They wanted to take the panniers off, give us a welcome drink, store our helmets….. To cut a long story short, we were offered discount + an upgrade, so the decision taken and a pretty good choice it was too.

Not only is it an impressive hotel, we arrived at a civilized time to enjoy it. This combined with the fact that Mysore has been rated the 5^th cleanest city in India…..and it shows.

Here we are, delux (twin bed) room, with

 a view overlooking Chamundi Hill and facilities to befit two ‘celebrity bikers’ !!

The usual ablutions and an explore of the facilities. The quick squizz around the ground floor to have a quick cleansing ale and the idea of a snack was quickly replaced when we were taken through to the outside dining area and passed the Sunday Buffet…it was quite novel for us to be faced with this type of dilemma at 13.30 in a place where we were washed and changed and where we wanted to be….the deal was done with the next couple of hours spent sampling the most delicious local cuisine.

Eventually, we were forced to leave for the adjacent mall to replace TB’s sunglasses and quickly return to continue the sampling of the facilities !!

Now we have both been fairly distant from the news since starting the trip and it was a cursory glance ‘at the box’ that showed the last F1 GP was to be shown on Sky. So it was a little decadent to settle in and watch the last race whilst languishing in Mysore, a city in the middle of Southern India.

A late supper and ready to catch-up on some shuteye.