Monday, August 24, 2009

Day 168 - Aug 23 - Kanhangad to Ernakuklam

Aug23 at EveryTrail

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345 KMs Trip Meter 24124 KMs

Ernakulam some 300 kms south seems to be the target for the day. Its going to be tough with the all the traffic that is promised. Santoosh had to leave for Bangalore and decides to rode with me till Kannur. Think of having breakfast some where outside kanhangad hoping to eat something else than chapati and tomato fry. When we stopped at a hotel for breakfast we endup eating the same anyway! As expected there's lot of traffic on the highway. Many bad patches on the road in between as well. We take turns leading and the trailer used to get left behind many times due to the traffic. Hard to ride together and have to slow down for the trailer to catchup. There are quite some very rough patches of road. Really hope the panniers can withstand the torchers of south. Takes us like 2 hours to cover 70 kms and thats gives an idea of avg speeds i will be doing till i reach Kanyakumari.

Bid byes to Santoosh as he getting of the highways heading towards the mountains on his way to Bangalore. It was nice riding together. The road now goes closer to the coast and just a few feet from the water many places. See many back waters on thew way. Could actually see the flow of water from the sea into the backwater canal. There was this heavy traffic jam at Mahe. Every things is occupied here. The cities and towns never ends and this area of country is thickly populated. The ppl seem to be well of in general. Have to get used to the aggressive traffic and am at my almost defensive riding. Well thats not much of help either as you have to be with the flow of traffic if not faster. Progress is very slow. Stop for a leasure lunch around Ayyanikad i guess. Lil did i know what was waiting for me.

Start by around 1.30 pm wondering if i will be able to make it to Ernakulam today as i am yet to reach calicut. The next 3.5 hour session was quite an experience. The roads got bettor wider curvy'er and boy did i feel like i am in F1 race. Never experienced such aggressive traffic. Hardly find any sober drivers. Every ones driving at their optimal speed and boy are they fast. Busses doing 100+ speeds on the narrow curvy roads. All the vehicles do these wild jerky turns to adjust their trajectory. Each such act gets my heart beating up. Next ones up before i relax. Every car, bus, pickup, truck zipping in either direction. Overtakings and evasive manuvers! Even a small bike with huge box of fish on the rear of zipping around. Every over taking was hard earned. It was not only humbling experience but also scary. Its hard to ride slow as its narrow and will be honked from behind in no time. Never experienced an ambassador or truck come behind me and honk at me! Have also to worry about traffic behind as i am not sure when one will pass me. If you cant beat em join em! Geared up for my share of adrenalin. It was hard to keep up with some cars on narrow curvey roads. Narrow i mean 2 lanes plus width but narrow for the aggressive driving in display! Remember especially a dark blue Mercedes c200. Boy was he driving. Tailed him for quite some time and when even if i could did not overtake him cos he would pass me dodging the opposing traffic in no time! Then i loose him. I mean i loose him driving ahead of me! When i look into those aggressive cars , i dont see some rich daddy's maniac kid, instead regular people with families inside and old passengers! Get shivers from the busses hurtling down on the curves from opposite direction at 90+ speeds. Scary overtaking the buses as you just never know when they will swirl right on me! Even two wheelers are no less. Many times they get on to their quick crossing initiative and see me get startled and jamming my breaks; so they politely stop and let me pass with smile, but it takes some minutes to recover from what i think was an Accident just missed! I guess in other places drivers are used to drive in traffic free roads and tone down in traffic areas, but ppl around here always ride in such heavy traffic and they get very good at it i guess! NH 17 in Kerala is a completely different experience! Was just hoping that i would be safe till the end of the day. Boy this has turned out to be a whole different adventure which i will remember.

By 4Pm around Kuttipuram and stop for a break to catch my breath. Boy was the session good. Ask for further directions and Ernakulam seems to be 100 kms. I dont think i can make it in daylight. But also heard that roads to Trissur are very bad and i am bettor of riding via ponnani closer to the coast. Arun had suggested me to get off the highway and ride south on the mountains as the roads are bettor and less traffic. But that would mean riding for a day or two more. Which i declined as i am aching all over and want to keep it short or so i think. Even a guy at the petrol bunk suggested the NH17 instead of NH47 to Ernakulam. Said its just 100 kms and taking 50kmph its only two hours. I knew this was another of those impossible and highly optimistic timings these locals make. I really want to see how they manage 50kmph avg riding/driving at 40 to 60 kmph! Any way i get off the wide and nice l ooking highway to the narrow road towards ponnani. Now where am i sent? the road is very narrow, it started raining, there are lot of potholes and even have to do rain water puddle water crossings and how am going to maintain avg? But on every enquiry i was reassured the way i was going. Looks like it would be a long evening ride. I have to take a leak but cant as there is no concept of outside city limits. There are continuous houses on either side of the road. Takes me like an hour to hunt for a place to relieve myself! Reach ponnani and the road becomes wide here and pace increases. But not to be very happy cos its bad patches and narrow paths every now and then. Sure enough its gets dark with 35 kms to Ernakulam. My bike's HID is officially dud now! Cos it keeps switching of. The halogen bulp not much of help. Plus the wet road and opposing lights. It was tough i must say. Any way reach Ernakulam by like 7.30. Find a hotel after a couple of tries and bikes gets a safe parking. Thats about the day.


Santoosh and me before we start of for the day...


The medicated warm drinking water you get in Kerala restaurants...


Our early pitstop for breakfast...


Road for the ride...


Santoosh negotiating the bad patches...


Good that the bus is off the road!


See many back water canals..





The empty road is some short lived lauxary i must say...





Boats on the back waters.


NH 17 going parrallel to the arabian sea...


The arabian sea by the road...


NH 17 for you!!


Always houses on either side of the road....


Traffic jam at Mahe...


Water from the sea getting into the backwater canal...


This is outskirts between towns on the map!


Some free roads to give me comfort...


A Kerala veg thali with the big and thick rice...


Thats the rice variety unique to Kerala. But i must say i liked the lunch very much..


Where i had lunch, a house turned into a hote...


Some awesome streches in between....





Boy these nimble looking buses, boy they can drive these things!!


Then it rains...


Ganesha festival today...


People going to do Visarjan of this year's idol...


Huge fishing net beside the backwater...

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