Bangalore to OOTY

Mode of Transport: Car

If you ever plan to go to OOTY from Bangalore always leave very early in morning. I left at around 4:30 am, I mentally calculated that I should be there in Ooty at around 10:00 am and spend my entire day moving around int he wonderful city. I also tagged myself with a ROUTE map as

Reached Nanjangud via Mysore Ring Road and took a break for breakfast. After this break left towards Gundalpet which came around 8:30 am. I thought maybe I am running late but with the speed I was driving 110 kmph , it was pretty much ok. Reached Bandipur forest and then the check post, here you are asked your destination and purpose or maybe sometimes some smart bugs which you cannot call it as bribe from Tamil Nadu Check post officials. They are charming people who also let you pass by, without giving anything too.

Then comes a short cut which saves around 40 kms to ooty which you take and I recommend you take it, as the next set of drive/journey would be a good experience which you may never forget. The road which runs through the Madumalai forest is meant for only one vehicle at a time. Whenever you see a opposite vehicle approaching you, kindly slow down or you would get run over by the speeding monsters, so I slowed down and many a times came off the road to get into the mud road. The approaching vehicles are mostly local jeeps which ferry people from one village/town to other via the forest road. The jeeps are generally full and as these drivers are mostly locals, they do not entertain others to use there road. So a kind advice to all, slow down and give way to people.

Well then you come over a start of zig zag pattern route which runs into big mountains. Driving here is very interesting as you always have to run the car on 2^nd or 3^rd gear. I have no clue how an Auto gear car would run in this 40 around hair pin curves. :-)

Reaching on top would get you into OOTY. It took nearly 5 ½ straight hours to get here.

Moment you reach here you tend to forget your tiredness and start making plans to explore this small town which is 2700 mts above sea level. Check in to your booked hotel and start exploring the city. It is a pretty relaxed & setback city where anyone can stretch and pass out there stress and revive themselves.

Make sure you do and visit these places and atleast spend 3-4 hours each.

Biological Gardens: Spend some time in the lawn, best time to visit near evening.

Nilgiris Express: Reservation in advance would be a good option to go to Coonor and back.

Boating: Only if you have energy on the first day.

Dodbetta: Good to visit in morning.

Tea Factory: On the way to Dodbetta Shop for some Quality Tea. Tea is generally good and classy.

Wellington: Relaxed and a good drive

Coonoor: Drive through the estate seems like a dream

Pykara Lake: Is too beautiful to relax.

Food in Ooty maybe a problem if it is not served in your hotel. You need to go to the city and find yourself a good hotel to eat. Food is not expensive. I ate lot of Kerala Parotas and Egg curry. I liked it rather. Coffee was great too. There is also a local delicacy for non vegetarians and veggies.

Non Vegetarians: Pork Curry and Rice

Vegies: Awesome Sambar and Rice.

Rice is something very common in south India and is available mostly in every hotel.

Shopping: Nothing great to shop other than Tea and coffee, yeah but off course chocolates which are home made and are a good buy.

Commercials: Since it is tourist setback city every fancy item is available and for a fancy price ofcourse.

Coming back to Bangalore: Always make your plan such that you reach Bangalore by evening so that you can relax with a good night sleep. So leave ooty around by 11:30 am, coming down by the same way 40 curves road, keep an important thing in mind, always use 2^nd gear to come down, Else your brake drums and brake would give away by the heat they generate. Never rush and speed down the valley. While you are driving you can also smell your brakes getting brunt up, this is ok and natural for any vehicle at this situation. In case of any Brake failure feeling where you cars do not stop immediately on applying brakes, you can always slow down with your hand brake and shut off your engines and relax for atleast 20 mins so that your brakes are cooled down and active again. The driver should never panic in situations like these because if there are much people in the vehicle they would make it very difficult to the driver to handle the drive later :-) .

Timing should be such that you pass the forest area by evening atleast and reach Nanjangud for your evening Tea break.

Overall I am sure the whole journey would be great and you would keep this one in mind for a long long time to come; as with me.

My experience: Awesome and somewhat adventurous

• Drive to ooty was very nice, a non stop one
• Moving around ooty and seeing my family relaxing was a nice feeling
• Had a near fatal experience when my brakes failed while coming down of the cliff 40 hair pins turns. So had to apply hand brakes and gears changes to stop the car
• Attacked by Lemurs in Madumalai forest while filming other animals. So never get down from your vehicle at any cost.