Firefighting Motorcycle

During last year's (2015) air show, while returning from the Yelahanka air base, I noticed a brand new (and colorful) motorcycle parked inside the Fire Station. Me being me, I got inside all curious to know what bike it was. The closer I got to the motorcycle, the more familiar it started to appear. It turned out to be a Royal Enfield Electra UCE. However, it wasn't a stock motorcycle we get to see on the road. It was modified to be a..well...firetruck / fire-motorcycle if there is such a term. Luckily I had my cam with me and I couldn't miss out on the opportunity to capture some shots of this interesting machine. It's not always a good idea to point a lens at Govt run establishment without prior permission. So I just walked into the office next to the parking and spoke to the gentleman/officer there. He had no objections if I could restrict my image to capture only the bike and not the surroundings/premises. I was more than happy as that's all I wanted :) So here are some of the photos I could get of the geared-up Electra:

These bikes will be able to filter through Bangalore traffic to reach a location quicker than a bigger more equipped fire truck can and would be able to provide backup in the crucial initial stage of a fire incident. This in my opinion can make a real difference, as in India by the time a fire truck makes it to a location, most of the damage would have been done. So if something of this sort can make it early with a trained firefighter on board, the situation can be contained more easily.

Having said this, I am yet to see one of these in action in Bangalore yet. Hope they are getting used to it and making a difference. 

Have you seen this machine on road? Do share any image/info you may have in the comments.

Cheers!!

Sid

'Nail Mafia' - say what now ??

Hi,

Please don't worry, this news is not as a level of a concern as few of you might have imagined (all thanks to the series of movies that's been made on this subject). Recently while scrolling through the Bangalore Traffic Police page on Facebook, I came across the term 'Nail Mafia' and out of curiosity read the whole post to realize that, it's a scam that was recently busted by Bangalore Traffic Police. Great job guys!! Again, I feel this is nothing new and more or less we (Indians) have already been aware of it. Good to know that cops are being supportive and nabbing such people. All thanks to social media posts and discussions that bring such minor yet troublesome incidents to the attention of authorities. In case you are getting too restless to know what the heck is it that am talking about, read this post:

Now, this incident made me realize that most of the people whom I met and were interested in touring on a motorcycle, shared one common concern. Which is "what if the bike (tires) gets punctured?".

Now if you have already gone through this phase of worrying about punctures (like me), it might sound a bit silly. However, when I recall my initial days tripping on motorcycles, I too always stayed within city limits, just for this reason. So I can totally empathize with the newbie riders here.

So let's delve into this topic and I will share some advice (which may not be the best advice ever but has worked for me), on what to do during a puncture scenario. For those of you, who want to get rid of your fear of a flat tire, read on.

First, Cheer up !!!

Now having ridden enough distance on motorcycles, I can tell you, that puncture is not something you should be worried about too much. In case of a puncture, if you could afford the time and tools and have a spare tube (recommended), you will be back on your way in no time. Someone has rightly said, "Prevention is the best possible cure". So let's take a quick look at a few simple things which are responsible for punctures, like stopping at the side of the road.

Things to know while pulling over to the side of the road:

I have been suggested by many experienced mechanics/riders to be watchful while pulling the bike over to the side of the road for the following reasons:

• Metal pieces, broken glass, nails (taken out from other unfortunate vehicle tires) and even tools (there are many on the Leh-Ladakh route) eventually end up on the side of the road
• Some punks may purposely drop nails (as we got to know from the above post) on the side of the road to target two-wheelers, to make a quick buck
• The road surface may not be even/safe for bikes to stop
• Sometimes gravel on the side might have sharp stones which may damage the tires if run over unintentionally
• The level of the ground on the roadside may be too low, which may cause one to lose balance or fall off when trying to get down

I hope the above points are more than enough to make you watchful and a tad bit extra careful while pulling over. 

Now as you are smarter now to avoid common mistakes which usually cause a puncture, you are reducing your chances of facing one. But just in case, if and when you do face one, the following information will come in handy. 

Given below is a step-by-step guide to learn what to do when you/a friend ends up with a flat tire during a long trip and you see no tire repairing shops in the vicinity:

The moment you realize that your tire is losing/already lost air:

• If you are on a roll as it happens, have a quick glance at your rear-view mirrors (especially to your left), switch on your left blinkers and slowly steer your bike towards the left edge of the road and come to a slow rolling halt.
• NOTE: When tubes are punctured, they lose air slowly enough for you to feel a wobble. So the sooner you realize and initiate your exit to the side of the road, the safer it is.
• Take a deep breath and accept that you have a flat tire. Yes, it will take some time now and will possibly delay your ride schedule by 1-2 hours, so better accept this and stop cursing your fate/the road/your stars/etc. Doing this will help you stay calm and relaxed and you will make fewer mistakes in the following steps.
• Push the bike to a safe place on the roadside away from any moving traffic, possibly to some shade where you can work peacefully on the bike.
• Take off the helmet and gloves (and jacket if it is summer) and keep it safely/securely on the handlebar (if you are to remove your rear wheel) or on the passenger seat (if you need to remove the front wheel). 1) this will help add some weight to keep the side of the bike floating, once the wheel is removed and 2) in India if you are riding in summer, by wearing all the insulated gear, you might dehydrate while trying to fix your wheel because of the heat and exhaustion.
• Take the tools out which will help you to remove the wheel and tube.
• Take out the spare tube and keep it handy.

NOTE:
Do not ride a bike when it's punctured : (unless its the only option left for you due to some unknown reason) - Riding a bike with a deflated Tyre will not only damage the tube, it will damage the tire as well as the wheel (/rim).

While removing the wheel, things to remember:

1. Rear wheel: Mark the position of the adjusters before you open the wheel axle
2. Front-wheel : keep the metal bushes clean and safe when you pull out the axle and also do not press the front disc brake lever when the disc is out

Simple high-level steps to replace the tube:

1. The first thing to do is put the bike on the center stand : so that the punctured wheel can rotate freely, then rotate, find out, and remove the nail/item that caused the puncture (in rare cases the valve stem or the valve might have caused the air to leak, so investigate properly before coming to a conclusion)
2. Remove the bolt from the outside and take the valve out safely and keep it in a clean place
3. Push the valve stem softly, yet firmly into the rim: until it goes completely inside (and is no more visible on the rim). This step will avoid the stem to break from the tube, which makes the tube useless 
4. Use tire rods to break the bead of the tire: Do this step very carefully and avoid using a screwdriver for this work as the sharp side oftentimes damages the tube further.
5. Once the tire is off the rim on one side, reach out for the valve stem and take it out from one side:  Then work your way around the whole tube from underneath the tire until its completely out.
6. Patch it or replace it with a new one: I suggest keeping a new tube on long rides, that's more reliable than a patched tube and takes no time to swap with the punctured one. You can use the same valve if that's not causing any leaks)
7. Follow the same process in reverse order but in a more watchful manner: as the worst thing that could happen in this process is you may damage the new tube just to stop on the road again (Trust me people do this more often than you may think and they will tell tire puncture is hell. Well clearly it is not if we are patient and careful.)
8. Inflate using a Compressor/Hand-pump.

Be careful with the mechanics:
If you happen to find a mechanic to do the above work for you, be vigilant while Steps 5, 6, and 7 are performed. As this is the time, they try to damage the tube or introduce new punctures, just to fleece you, especially if you are already disturbed due to the incident of the puncture. Staying calm and composed helps you here as well! See, I told ya so;)

Now if you want to see the above steps in pictures, just head over to one of my older posts available here:

Replacing Front Tyre / Tube  [ 2014 > August ]


Hope this information helps you be more confident on the road. If you find this post/site useful, or if you have some suggestions/tips to share, do leave a message in the comments. And before we part, here is an inspiring video to watch and appreciate:

Still, you think you can't do something?!!

Cheers !!

Sid

Weekend Morning Ride

Hello,

If you have been following through my last post then you would know this Saturday Morning Ride was being thought of. Well, it happened. Yes, I felt like not leaving the bed with some perfectly valid reasons. Yes, I overcame the same when I had a feeling of being on my bike and cruising through a bend and a sunrise on the horizon. I wanted that bad enough to get past my reasons. Well here are some pics I took before and during the ride. Enjoy...

After dusting off the cover, am taking it off... Been a while since I saw my ride in all its shining glory:)

Filled in the bulls at Shell (opens at 6:30am). While exiting the bunk this beautiful sunrise made my day... :):) It was just stunning.

On the way...

The view from this bridge reminded me of Kerala. Not only the coconut tree, but it's also the greenery as well as the scenery.

Now That's A Happy Steed:)

Hope you enjoyed it,

Sid

Bangalore > Ooty > Bangalore (Day#2 - continued.. )

Hola,

Stop over for breakfast on day#2

Before I jump into the day 2 events, lemme share some good news with ya, I joined the gym today and hoping to be regular this time:) Any of you people who do gymming regularly or follow any fitness routine is definitely an inspiration for me. Keep up the good work and keep inspiring people like me.

Now let's get back to the ride story. So as I was telling you in the last post, the forest route is one continuous ride of 45-50km max(depending on which route you take to reach Ooty). So fill your tank accordingly to avoid being stranded in the middle of the forest. Wild animals are a delight to watch but from a safe distance:) During the forest ride, we came across a bunch of dears munching on grass and trust me it was an awesome feeling to see them in 10 feet distance:) This modern world as well as our lives have changed to such an extent that now seeing a wild animal is a new whole new experience it also reminded me that these animals were a majority on this planet and once lived freely and we humans had a shed around our houses/colonies to keep them out. Now they are restricted to a small patch of land surrounded by fences (called national parks) so that they don't go out of it. Really, it's on my bucket list now to do something for these beautiful creatures at the first opportunity I get. Having said that, the first thing I did during my ride through the area is to follow some of the important instructions like:

• No plastic should be left in the forest
• No feeding the wild animals
• No teasing or disturbing the wild animals
• Riding slow and being aware that animals have the right of way in the forest

Request you all to follow these and trust me, these small things make a huge difference in the long run and would ensure these animal breeds flourish on this planet again.

So we had the pleasure of riding through the lush green forests, we exited the Mudumalai forest gate and headed towards our destination.

As we started getting closer to the mountains, the surroundings started changing accordingly...(notice the distant horizon and the plants)

Vikky shows a plant, which resembles some see a weed.

As we got closer to Ooty a light drizzle started and as we were kinda equipped with the right gear, it was the last of our concerns. So we were enjoying every part of the route and especially the feeling of climbing up. Stopped over many times for snaps and videos.

An outhouse on the way, with a scenic backdrop

I was busy enjoying the mountain rides and Vikky was having a good time seeing the view around, and we reached a village named Masinagudi. Actually, Masinagudi was supposed to be our return route, cause that's the one with 36 hairpin turns and it might be tough to climb uphill with a pillion, and that too in the rain. So we enquired how to connect to the Gudalur (Route A as per our plan) road from Masinagudi. After speaking with a few locals we realized that we have come 10 km from the junction from where we should have taken the road to Gudalur. Now if we roll back, it will be 60+10 km to Ooty and if we continue on the current route we have only 20 km to reach Ooty. The only catch was that 20 km is nothing but the hairpin turns. We had to take this call, whether to climb up the hairpin or spend time riding another 70km to reach Ooty in a long way round. I decided to ride through the hairpin turns:D Ans so we rolled towards the twisties!!! How was it riding up the hill at sharp turns? It wasn't that easy for me or the bike and for the first few turns, I was extra cautious about the tire grip on the wet roads. Also, the turns are so steep and narrow that vehicles coming from both sides were having a tough time negotiating the curves. As we were climbing, we had to always stay in the power band of the bike to avoid rolling or skidding back. Once I got a hang of it I was improvising on the next upcoming turns. Meanwhile, Vikky was having a great time getting wowed by the view of clouds and the surrounding mountains. After dealing with around 36 (I guess) hairpins we could see some civilization of the mountaintop. Which assured us that we have arrived in the city of Ooty.

The first glimpse of civilization after winning over the never-ending hairpin turns.

We arrived in the city at around 1.00 pm and got ourselves an accommodation. Rest of the details I will post soon:) It's time again for me to hit the sack. So you too have a good sleep and will see you in the next post.

Take care,

Sid

Bangalore > Ooty > Bangalore

Recap:

The idea of this ride started from a proposal from Sriky (a bulleteer, has a day job in IT, heart in Indian Army and coincidentally was my neighbour) to visit Kodugu, which is commonly known as Coorg. Just like any other idea, it was more of a topic to talk about when we both are bored and tired of work schedules. But unfortunately it never materialised due to various worldly reasons. Soon I completely forgot that I was looking forward to a trip. Until one day my cuz Vikky, who had been to Ooty to meet some friends came to me and had a lot to share about the route of the tour bus, which passes through the jungle (Bandipur it was!). He knew it was good enough to get my attention. He too wanted to join me for a long ride and this route was something he was craving to see again. The idea of riding through Bandipur got me all excited as well and the moment he mentioned about the mountain roads with hairpin turns, I got a flashback of my last awesome ride to Baba Budengiri Mountains near Chikkamangalur, and I decided....we are riding to Ooty.

Ride Prep:

Once I decided, the first thing to do was to get the bike checked for few niggles which I wanted to be taken care of before I roll. So buzzed my trusted pal Sami for an appointment to leave my steed for a minor check-up. Alongside gmaps became the most common webpage on my laptop. I had a quick look at the map to get a birds eyeview of the checkpoints on the way and the average distance between those checkpoints, so that I can plan how and what time of the day to cover it. As Vikky had been there already, he had many valuable inputs to add, so I got away easily with this one. I prepared the following itinerary based on the distance and type of road:

Friday:

8.00 PM - Start from Bangalore and take the route :

                Kanakapura Road > Nice Road > Mysore Road

11.00 PM - Reach Mysore and find an accomodation (139 KM)

11:30 PM - Have dinner (carry few sandwiches from Bangalore)

Saturday:

5.00 AM - Start from Mysore

8.30 AM - Stop at Mudhumalai Forest (102 KM)

10.00 AM - Reach Ooty via Gudalur route (58 KM) (deviating at Theppakadu)

11.00 AM - Find an accomodation and roam around the city

Sunday:

 5.45 AM - Start from Ooty

 7.00 AM - Cruise downhill through ghat (hairpin) roads via Masinagudi

12.00 AM - Reach Mysore (125 KM)

 3.00 PM - Have lunch and start for Bangalore

 7.00 PM - Reach Bangalore (139 KM) following : Mysore Road > Nice Road > Kanakapura Road

In short the ride would be like:

Bangalore > Mysore > Bandipur > Gudalur > Ooty > Masinagudi > Mysore > Bangalore

Pre-ride Checkup:

As Sami was fine with working on the bike on thursday, I got the following things checked/rectified:

1. Rear wheel wobble at straight road travel (Fixed the alignment for the rear tyre which was changed a month ago)

2. Front disc brake was jerky (checked the brake fluid level and removed trapped air)

3. Rear brake was making noise and not effective despite the new brake shoes (refitted the setup and I guess cleaned the brake drum of any dirt/mud/moisture)

4. Checked bike electronics like headlight, turn indicators and brake lights

5. Topped up engine oil

6. Last but not the least, set the tappet to loose setting for long route riding and rectified the oil leakage (which was due to loose nut which I didn't tightened properly the last time I had set the tappets myself)

So with all the above things fixed, I took the bike for a spin and tested the brakes and handling thoroughly before paying a mere 200 bucks to Sami for the checkup. I was happy that the bike hardly needed any new spare/replacement.

D-day Events:

On friday me and Vikky decided to make some sandwiches at home to carry for dinner on the first leg of the ride till Mysore, and even I feel safe with some clean and hygienic food during ride and nothing is better than home made stuff. So Vikky took up the task of making few sandwiches by the time I come back from office. I had planned to grab some nutrition bars (my usual intake during adventure trips), but couldn't take out time to buy those. I returned around 5 from office and headed straight to the water service station to get the bike a good shower. That done did my usual stuff of post cleaning polishing (this helps in repelling dust and dirt) of the metal and leather/rexene components.

Once the bike is all clean and shinny for the ride, now it was time for the rider to get ready. So rushed upstairs and pulled out all stuff needed for the ride starting with the tank bag. I enjoy such times thoroughly, where in am getting ready for some journey. Played some good old tracks of Lucky Ali (one of my and Vikky's all time favourite singer) and started packing. Following were the items we carried in case any of you need a hint:

    Tankbag: (water resistant with with a rain cover)

• A big yet thin swimming pool towel (good for travelling as well as to wrap any delicate item to protect it from dings)
• My Nikon SLR with lenses
• Gerber multi-tool
• A t-shirt, helmet cover cum carry case
• Bike stand pad (small and round hard plastic plate supports the side stand on a muddy surface)
• My bluetooth stereo headset (for music en-route)
• A small foldable duffel bag to carry the complete tank-bag and contents of saddle bags while checking into the hotel/lodge

   Backpack: (waterproof)

• An additional pair of jeans, socks, pair of tees and you know what:P
• Bike documents, manual (must for enfield as you may not find a mechanic that easily), duplicate key for the bike (this happens too!)
• Camera shoulder strap
• Electronics bag (Phone Wall Charger, Bike port charger, a small lock, a wired headset for music/calls)
• Vikky's clothes:D

  Saddle Bags: (water resistant and hard-mounted)

• Spare cables (clutch, accelerator)
• Spare tube for RE (it's a 19 inch size which is made only for Bullets)
• Spare kit (ring spanner, adjustable spanner, tyre removal levers) and stock bike spares kit
• First aid box (a must!)
• Sandwich packs :D

 Additionally: (tied to the rear fender with bungee cord)

• My Tripod (just in case)
• Bike Cable Lock 

Day #1 Errr...Night 1 of the ride :

8.30 PM Started from home and went to the Shell Petrol Bunk near my home and filled for 600 bucks as I had filled for 500 bucks few days back. Then took a  u-turn and headed towards Kanakapura road. I was really happy that we didn't had to face the city traffic on this exit ride, which is my usual experience from previous rides. We cruised for few kilometers till the Nice Road flyover came, but due to lack of any sign board or lighting, we couldn't be sure if we can join the Nice Road at that point, so we headed ahead (that truly my friend is the beginning of the journey with first wrong turn:P). After a km or so I felt that we should have looked for the entrance to nice road near the flyover itself. So we stopped on the way I took out my new big touch screen phone (relatively big screen compared to my last most-efficient-and-reliable-phone-in-the-world BlackBerry Bold 9900) to get the directions. But alas Vodafone 2G was so pathetically slow I decided to ask someone on the way instead. We took a u-turn and headed back to the flyover and this time we could see the entry to the Nice Road (as usual no lights or signs). Paid a toll of 11 bucks (one sided travelling to Mysore) and hopped on the the awesomely smooth tarmac of nice road till it connects to Mysore road. From there till reaching Mysore, there was nothing special to write home (or even to write here) about. So the time we hopped on to Nice road was 9pm and the time we reached the traffic signal to Mysore was 11pm (as planned:D), but instead of entering the city we decided to take the by-pass and continue towards Ooty. We moved on towards Ooty on JLB road.

Odo reading before entering Nice Road..

 A stop on the highway side McD for a bottle of water and to stretch a bit. Vikky looking funny with his shuffled hair due to the helmet:P

Super-smooth, 3 lane JLB Road

Entry to Mysore City

Me Me Me and you can witness the super cool HID in play on my Bullet

WARNING - JLB road might be tempting for bikers (or even car drivers) to ride at a good speed but the end of the road is unexpected and to be more specific it's a dead-end! 

Yes and add to it there will be no street light where the road ends, so it's completely dark. I am still wondering why they created such a idiotic trap for travellers, despite the awesomely good condition of the road itself. At least few signs should be in place to warn people of the abrupt end of the road ahead will help immensely. Anyway, so from JLB we took the Kozhikode-Mysore-Kollegal Hwy/NH 212 towards Ooty.

Went past the Mysore airport road entrance..

We wanted to cover as much distance as possible, so that on Saturday morning we can enter Bandipur forest road early in the morning. Also reaching there early means we can make as many stops as we feel like without affecting the schedule. So we continued on NH 212 till the odo clocked around 170 kms. As we had already left the city, to avoid getting stranded in the night, we decided to make a halt at the next lodge/hotel we can find. Luckily a newly built hotel got our attention. After having a word at the reception we could strike a deal for a room for 800 bucks (initially the room was told to be of 1400 bucks). As we just needed a night's rest and not really expecting much of their other services, we were fine with anything.

Got a good room for the night..

I was happy with the parking space we were offered.

The hotel room...not bad at all!

Luggage and me taking this pic..

So we plugged our devices for charge and had a good sleep that night with an alarm set at 5:30AM (yes, we decided to have sound sleep for at least 6 hours, as we rode more tonight than we had planned) and planned to be ready by 7:30AM. Did I tell you we had the sandwiches and they were good:D

Day #2...Entering Bandipur Forest :

 I was the first one (as usual) to get up at 5:45AM and went for a shower with cold water. Yep, I have super human capabilities to do such a feat when it's about things I love doing. Like taking a cold water shower, this early in the morning, when weather outside is chilling. Anyway, took shower, put on the clothes and riding gear for the day and was time to wake up the pillion rider too. So we both were ready by 8 and we checked out by 8:30am.

While leaving the Karanji Residency on Ooty main road..

To be on safer side and to avoid running out of fuel in the forest road, we tanked up by another 500 bucks..

With sufficient fuel in tank and few hundred kilometers under our belt on the first leg of the ride, I was more than confident to enter the-much-awaited Bandipur National Park. I was fantasising about the experience of riding through a real forest with wild animals. Yeah it is a big deal for me as am a true nature lover and being a person now living in a dense city, it will be a much welcomed experience for me. This feeling of excitement and enthusiasm was shared by Vikky as well. As he had drooled over the forest route from the bus window and wanted to experience it thoroughly by riding through it. So after 70kms ride from our hotel we finally entered the Bandipur National Park around 10:30am.

First sign board to welcome us:)

There was a gate from Govt. of Karnataka welcoming visitors to Bandipur National Park. For any of you planning to ride/drive this way, you must know that this route opens from 6AM to 10PM (courtesy: some online blog). After reading all Dos and Don'ts while in the national park we proceeded on the way towards Mudhumalai National Park. Basically what I observed during this ride is, basically there is one forest area. The part of it owned by Tamilnadu Govt is called Mudhumalai National Park and the part owned by Karnataka Govt is named as Bandipur National Park. Other than a state border in between, there is nothing else that separates these two (so called) national parks. 

Yawwwnnnn.....am feeling sleepy now. So I will stop writing this blog here today. Rest of our journey of entering Ooty and loosing the planned route (yep you can call it the second best part of this trip! :D), I will post soon. 

Till then ride safe and ride far,

Sid

Road Trip - Bangalore to Bheemeshwari

I have been wishing to take the bull out on a road trip, but really hadn't put any serious thought or effort. So always ended up with, what-else..but reasons why I couldn't go. Well pushing all that aside finally I teamed up with my college buddy and fellow biker Rahul and later Jeetu n Divya joined as crew. So the destination we selected is Bheemeshwari, which seems to have a fishing camp and some Nature Education  Camp from Govt of Karnataka. The point of my interest was the fractionally interesting mountain road that we'll cross on the way  (checked the terrain view on gmaps app). Well, we did ride through the mountain roads and that turned out to be the best 10 km (or so) out of the whole 162 km of ride.

Note to self: O'ways decide on the roads first (as my heart says) and then pick a destination and not the other way round. That's what a ride is for anyway!!!

Itinerary (Timestamps noted here are not accurate and this is the best I could recall at the time of writing this post):

7:10 am - Started from near the Sarakki Signal

7:20 am - Fuel & Air at a fuel station on Kanakpura Road

I filled the Bull for 500 bucks as it hit the reserve just 2 minutes ago. Kept a tire pressure of 26 (F) and 36(R).

Note: There is a Shell petrol bunk on Kanakpura Road. I suggest if could manage for at least 5-8kms, better fill here as they seem to be good (read un-adulterated).

7:40 am - Breakfast

Stopped at a small shop on the left-hand side after a km of crossing the Shell petrol bunk. Do remember to grab bottled water from here.

8:00 am - Stopped for a few minutes to sort out a brake issue my bull had. I had over-tightened the free play adjustment of the rear brake, and add to it my boot was pressing against the brake pedal constantly. Due to the power of the bike I never felt any pressure on the engine till Rahul pointed out that the rear drum is smokin' :D Lollzz Glad, it was nothing serious, we stopped tweaking the adjustment to a loose setting. Got the chain oiled at a garage ahead and that's it. Rolled all the way from there no buzz.

On the way, you will cross the Nice road deviation, DO NOT TURN there, KEEP HEADING STRAIGHT for another 40 km (at least) straight right on the Kanakapura road till Halaguru. Do ask people for Halaguru and the LEFT-TURN towards Bheemeshwari.

11:00 am - Reached a Private Resort (Below pic taken from another blog, I am not sure if the prices quoted are still the same).

We had no plans for such guided tourism at this location, so we headed further ahead and came across the 'Govt Nature Education Camp'. After having a word with the attendants here we decided to park our bikes there. They had a paid package for visitors:

Rs. 200 per person per day : For a hike across the semi-dense forest/shrubs to a location near the river (they call stone beds in the river as islands (lolz), so don't get too excited when you hear that word.

Rs. 500 per person per day : Same as above + Lunch (Really good veg and non-veg home-cooked food) + Tea + Snacks in the afternoon + A Room with attached bathroom and toilet (western commode) to change clothes and take rest till 5:00 pm.

*Please confirm with the staff about the room before booking. However, we as a group of 4 people got it and there were not many people in the camp at that time. So not sure during a crowded season how they will allot the room.

Other Facilities:

Rs. 300 - For bonfire if you wish them to arrange for that

Shacks on Rent - Shacks cost you Rs 1500 per day. I felt the place is very clean and usable for families. Do carry a liquid soap as I didn't see any of those. As a traveler, you must always carry one, especially while traveling anywhere in India.

Camping - They have a lot of camping space in case you wish to camp outside and experience Nature. I highly recommend this if you know how to camp. I am planning to camp there on my next visit:)

Wildlife:

We saw deer from a distance playing around the river. It is not that common but when we were resting the staff called us out to witness the sight. It was a great feeling to see them in the wild. Other than that monkeys will be your constant companion in this camp. However we noticed they are kinda well behaved here, but I would take chance with my gear so I always ensured they are never left unattended.  We also saw a wild boar with its baby. Elephants are also residents of this area, but luckily we didn't come across any, as they might not be as friendly as the other animals I explained above.

Return:

3:15 om - Started from the Campsite

3:20 pm - Stopped on the way to get a ticket for Rs 10 per bike to enter the area near Muthhathi (another well-known Trekking site) and also this same route connects to Bangalore

6:00 pm - Reached Bangalore City (While there was still some sunlight around)

We took the opposite route while returning home hoping for more twisties, but it was not that awesome. However still worth a ride as you will cross some roads on the edge of the mountains with a great view of the valley. Finally reached home exactly at 6:00 pm. Was a great ride and a good trip. The total distance covered was 162 km.

So all in all I loved this place for the following reason:

1. Experienced solitude, there is no noise at all, as this place is miles away from the nearest city

2. You can experience nature without having to trek or hike a lot to reach here. Just a drive away.

3. Cleaner accommodation (including toilets) and good food easily accessible

4. Very less crowd, at least in the mid of December when we visited

5. River bed was a good place to spend some time

6. Mountain roads to reach this place, were a biker's delight (However maintain a healthy speed as the road is narrow, most are blind turns, and frequency of vehicles is less and hence more unpredictable)

Note: There is NO SIGNAL for Vodafone users. So do inform friends and family about your whereabouts before getting deeper into this area once you leave the main roads. I scanned the area for other networks and still couldn't find any network around. So for other mobile phone service users, this tip goes for you as well:)

Hope this post gives you enough information to step out of your sofa and hit the road. Well just to get you going here are some photographs just for your visual delight:

a quick click before I left home.

My ride took it out of the parking early in the morning.

A quick stopover on the way

My ride with the luggage.

Met this donkey on the way back (He might be thinking the same:P Lollzz)

This is the quality of asphalt we rode on.

Me, Rahul, Jeetu

Hope you have a safe ride,
Sid

Royal Enfield Branded Gear

Hi there,

Today am not in my usual energy levels. For obvious reasons, like I got this not-sure-where-I-got-it-from feverish feeling. Glad yesterday's throat ache is gone:) Feel better now to write this post. So my day started late at around 2pm when I decided to step out for lunch, as well as had to get that rear grab bar fitted, which was removed while putting on the new saddle. Got that done n had a good lunch. Damn that weak feeling we get, and haven't actually got fever yet, that is something I really don't like much. So just to keep myself out of home (literally and on purpose) thought of accompanying my neighbour (another enfield owner dude) to shop for some motorcycle accessories. But that plan didn't work out. So instead of heading home, I though of dropping in to 'Royal Enfield Brand Store' which is located in Jayanagar 9th Block (next to East-End bus stop), just before taking the flyover on the left hand side of the road.

RE Brand Store at Jayanagar East-End, Bangalore (South)

I wanted to know if they have any RE branded accessories, as I couldn't find anything online (even discussion forums discuss this as a ghost topic. Some say they have seen it, yet no official trace online.). Anyway, so I thought of giving it a try and just rolled into the sub-lane next to the showroom to park my bike. Much to my surprise, on the side lane there was this fleet of new Thunderbirds (both 500s and 350s) lined up, for servicing I guess. From the rear tale light it looks futuristic. Quality of build looks good. Not sure what path of evolution RE is walking at the moment, but I hope it's all for good. After having a good view of this cruiser I stepped on to the glass walled showroom floor. A medium size high ceiling hall with around 10-15 bikes on display, not to mention all with UCE types. So glad that I still have 'The Real Kind' CI engine:D Anyway, let's save that UCE vs CI discussion for another day. After scanning the floor I could only see few helmets in the corner. So thought may be that's it. But slowly as the crowd in front of me dissolved I could see a tiny corner of the floor holding racks and some leather jackets and tees on display. I just walked straight into the corner to have a better look at what we have at hand here. Here all the list of stuff they had:

• Leather Riding Jacket
• Nylon Riding Jacket (with Mesh)
• Leather Casual Jacket
• Riding Shoes (High Ankle and normal)
• Round neck t-shirts(Black,Yellow,Burnt Orange)
• Polo Shirts (White,Gray,umm one more colour I don't remember)
• Full Face AGV Helmet with MLG (Made Like A Gun) stickers (glossy white and matte black)
• Retro Half Face AGV Helmets (RE branding)
• Buff (a multi-purpose piece of cloth. Can be used as a muffler or bandana, etc )
• A multi-purpose riding glass with accessory set (ear clip, strap, etc)

Well having been to and shopped at the best motorcycling brands(Dainese, Alpinestars, Hein Gerike, you name it) in UK, I could tell the products are overpriced. Which is to some extent expected. Indian buyers mentality is 'if it's cheap it ain't good'. To some extent it's true as well, as ideally the cost shows the effort and quality that must have gone into the product. But whatever the case until the quality part of the accessories are prove, I find the stuff pricey. However I ended up picking up a tee for 1k:) They gave me a catalogue for 2012-13 RE branded gear (all that was there in the showroom). The regular size riding shoes was 5999 INR (I guess), which I would think twice before spending, as RE has no expertise with shoe making for sure and there is no other sign of the manufacturer I could see whom I know. Well other than the tee, I liked the full face helmets, and may pick one later sometime. Helmets inner liner was nice and had a brown leather finish. Seems like it'll be quite comfy to wear. Cost was close to 5k. Well it just stays in my wish-list till then. Had a chat with the kid at the counter and got to know, it's only since last october they got these stuff for sale. RE may introduce some more products in it's catalogue in the coming months, after seeing the market response. Good to hear that. So I picked up the tee and rolled out like a happy camper:) Hope u ppl had a good read and some of you might already be ogling over the pics below;)

Happy to help,

Sid

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone