A ride with the Bikernis was long due. Its been 2 months since I joined them and yet had not been able to go for a ride with the ladies. When the quarter calendar got published with Mekedatu in it with a date that looked convenient, I jumped for it. Home front taken care, the ride was planned for November 16th, day ride. The exciting part was not just long riding with the Bikernis but also with my best buddy for the first time.
I started from home at 4:00am and met up with 3 of them first. Meeting point decided was Panchamukhi Ganesha temple on Mysore road at 5:15am. We somehow managed to get there in time. Total of 16 bikes & 17 ladies (Captain had a pillion with her). Clear instructions given on the protection gears to be in place, riding safety, who the Marshall was, who would be the sweep & the team was asked to follow the captain.
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| 5.30am meet |
After about 1.5hrs of ride we stopped over at Vasu Restaurant on Kanakapura road. Small place known for its Crispy Dosa. Large masala dosa and Gulab jamun & a small glass of Coffee is what I had.
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| Hungry faces |
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| Coffee's in |
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| Crispy crispy Dosas |
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| Yumm Gulab Jamun |
Breakfast done, we got back on road. We rode through the narrow but beautiful green roads towards Mekedatu.
Rs.30/- entry fee at the checkpost & another Rs.30/- to enter Mekedatu.
'Mekedatu' means 'goat's leap' in Kannada. It is said that a goat being chased by a tiger made a desperate attempt to save its life by leaping from one side of the gorge and managed to cross over the raging river below, whereas the tiger did not attempt to replicate this feat, and abandoned the chase. The point where the goat leapt has widened since then from erosion caused by the river Cauvery. It is about 110+ km from Bangalore.
Mekedatu is a good place for one day trip, spend more time at the river bed before you get into the bus, that's where you get a chance to touch the water. River crossing in Coracle & bus ride takes you to the view point where you can see Cauvery flowing through the deep gorge.
Some photo session & fun at the entrance and we were ready to go for the coracle ride. The excitement got even better with the boatman taking us on a spin in the coracle. he charged us a bit extra for his effort. We shifted into a bus after crossing the river. After sitting in the bus we felt that if biking would have been allowed it would have a great track for us to ride through, but yes we do understand the care taken to preserve nature hence not allowing public vehicles in this patch of land. Have uploaded some videos below to show you what am talking about. With good rains this year, there is good green cover across.
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| The gang |
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| Bikernis with the bikes |
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| Start of Coracle ride |
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| Cauvery flowing through narrow gorge |
Kalasutra designed jacket by Sameera was tried by all the girls (who could fit in :D ) and that called for a special round of photo session. A whole of lot of pics taken, photo sessions, fun time. The bus ride to see the Cauvery was a bumpy one. With Sun on our heads we were all hoping we could get something cold to drink..and just when we were starting a round of introductions to know each other better, another bus stopped and downloaded crates of cold drink. Chilled with cold drinks, happy pictures taken, it was time to get back in the bus for the ride back in coracle. By the time we returned back thirst had kicked in again, coconut water kept us hydrated this time. Lunch was at Mayura restaurant. Not great, but much needed hot food bought- self service.
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Mekedatu
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The Girls
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while they were busy staring down
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With my bestie
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Hola
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Post lunch we started back on our journey to Bangalore through those green paths & hairpin bends. One short stop for a cup of coffee at Balaji Restaurant and ride along till Nice road entrance before we all split our ways towards home.
The best part about this ride was, every rider followed the instructions given in the beginning of the ride. The roles of the Captain, Marshall & Sweep were played fantastically; the Captain of the ride Sneha, ensured not a single biker is left behind and the Marshall Shwetha ensured all 16 bikes stuck together while maintaining an average speed of 60kmph through out. Thanks to the girls who captured natures beauty in their cameras and shared..I am able to put together everything because of them.
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| In the bus |
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