Solo ride to Nandi Hills

Last week, I really felt like a ride, it was the middle of the week. The fact that I had just bought my first armored jacket might have had something to do with it. Not to mention the fact that the wife and kids were away.

So, it was at 5:00 a.m. that I hit the trail. The route shown here, from J P Nagar to Nandi Hills via Malleswaram, Nelamangala and Doddaballapur to reach Nandi Hills !

The initial part of the ride was in darkness since I left quite early. That part was in the city so it was perfectly fine to ride in the pre-dawn. By the time I hit NH4 – Tumkur road to make my way to Nelamangala, the sun was rising.

The route was quite a nice one, most of the route was on the SH 74. You leave Tumkur road at the second on the Toll road. You then go under the Toll road and in to Nelamangala and from there on to the SH 74.

The SH74 is an absolutely brilliant route, with only one blemish near a railway crossing where you need to take a 200 meter detour on a mud road to avoid the tracks and get back to the main road.

The SH 74 is an excellent road, it has a decent tree cover and is gently winding for a large part of the journey. A couple of spots have really sharp curves. The kinds that a bikers dreams are made of! The weather as is usually the case in Bangalore was perfect and coupled with the road it made for a great morning ride.The best part was the sparse traffic, especially the big vehicles which are a pain in the backside for bikers.

About 2/3^rd of the way through you hit Doddabelapur which is a small town, get directions for Nandi Hill from the local people as it can get a bit confusing. The next part of this journey was a little busier than the first. Of course the day had begun in earnest which contributed to the traffic. However, it was still very gentle traffic, no heavy  vehicles.

Going up Nandi Hill was a complete pleasure with the winding curves and the slope. It was good fun to ride, being a weekday and early there was no traffic at all. The monkeys seemed to have taken the day off too. Up on the hill I saw a few bikes parked, other than these I saw no vehicles while going up or coming down. A great way to start a weekday !

Coming back I chose to try the busier route via Yelahanka. There was plenty of traffic on the road and one was welcomed back to Bangalore with the usual quota of fumes and honking, just in case you began to miss the city.

The joy of the morning ride will stay for a fair number of days and will make it all worthwhile!

I would recommend this road for a ride, whether you like to ride a motorbike, a cycle or a car.

But for those who ride a Bullet, I would doubly recommend and be happy to join for another ride on the same path.

Thump on!!