I have been thinking of doing a one day bike trip from the time I returned back to India in December. We thought of visiting the Ananthagiri Hills but it didn't materialise. We also planned an early morning trip to the new Shamshabad international airport just for the kicks, but that too got cancelled - we ended up going to Runway 9 instead. The main problem is that there isn't much of an enthu junta for these kind of trips. This trip was already cancelled by me once thanks to some work at home. Finally, everything fell in place this weekend ( even though 2 people dropped out at the last moment). So it was kranthi, ashok, prakash and myself on 2 bikes off to this reservoir/dam near the village of Singur.
The whole plan of the trip ( as it always is with a bike) is to enjoy the ride. The last time I really enjoyed a bike ride was on 15th September 2006, the day I was flying off to Finland. I had gone to visit the Chilkur Balaji Temple in the morning. I left home early at 5 am alone on my bike knowing quite well that this ride would be my last bike ride for another 6 months at least( which somehow extended to 15 months). Once I crossed Langar house and reached the Pargi road, the fun began. Dark empty roads, the headlight illuminating the canopy of trees, fresh morning breeze, dawn in sight, greenery all around me and the silence. The sweet grunt of the engine ( yes, I ride a Honda) was like music to my ears. The whole feeling was very divine. Nirvana was attained.
So, now back to the present day. The plan was to attain nirvana again, but as it turned out, we actually left at 10.30 in the morning ( Prakash had some urgent work in the morning which could not be postponed). I was waiting for his call from 9 am. Kranthi and I had decided that we will wait till 10.45 before packing the whole trip up. Finally prax called at 10.30. After applying a thick coat of sunscreen lotion ;) , I started off towards ameerpet stopping briefly to fuel up. I picked up ashok near ESI hospital and we were immediately greeted with a traffic jam near some rythu bazaar. We managed to reach JNTU and meet meet prax and kranthi at around 11.15. From there on, there was lots of road construction happening near Patancheru and ICRISAT with heavy traffic crawling slowly.
We got out of the city limits on the Bombay highway sometime around 11.45. The road was new, smooth and inviting. So I opened up the throttle and managed a long decent speed. We crossed Muthangi and I couldn't resist the sight of the green fields adjacent to the black road. So we stopped for a quick photo session.
Soon, we crossed Isnapur and reached Sadashivpet. We had to take a right turn after Sadashivpet to reach the reservoir. But before that, we decided to have lunch. So we stopped at a dhaba and were forced to order dal fry and paneer sabzi with roti.
We took diversion from the highway towards Atmakur village at around 2 pm. The single lane road was newly carpeted and had beautiful fields and poultry farms on its either side. The ride was very enjoyable. Atmakur was around 10 kms from the highway. From there on, the road condition became very bad. It was a muddy kacha road but was manageable on the bikes. We also came across some very weird roadblocks.
Finally reached the reservoir after asking directions more than a couple of times . It was a sight to behold. We were shocked looking at the size of the lake and the cleanliness of the surroundings. I have seen many lakes in my life (trust me when i say that :p ) but this one was a very pleasant surprise. The bund was very long and the dam was quite big too. This is the reservoir which supplies water to most of the norther part of the Hyderabad city through the river Manjeera. Here are a few pics
We were at the place for nearly an hour. Mind you there isn't much to do here other than admiring the surroundings. No place to rest, no place to eat, no place to spread out your picnic basket etc. We didn't visit the other side of the bund which leads towards the Singur village since the road( the bund actually) was very bad. There could be a few interesting places on that side. At least we could see an accessible grassy beach. We walked over the dam, took lots of pics. Kranthi also washed his face in the waters ;). It soon got cloudy and we could see hear thunder. So we decided to leave at around 4pm. We hardly travelled 2 kms and it started to rain. We took cover under a section of a concrete pipe which was there on the roadside.
We waited here for 15 Min's. Hardly had we travelled 10 meters when it started to rain again. And we again took shelter under another pipe :). And man, did it rain or what.
Our journey back was very frustrating, tiring, finger numbing and wet. It was raining so frequently that we made nearly 10 stops. When it wasn't raining, I let loose the throttle and the one horned mythical creature galloped away on the black asphalt. We somehow managed to reach the city limits at around 6pm with our clothes through the complete wash cycle, drying and rinsing at least thrice :) And not to forget all the mud splashed on us from truck tires which travel the length and breadth of the country. Nirvana attained ;)
We stopped at a tiffing center near the BHEL gate to feed the rodents having a field day in our tummies. The rain was so sporadic and intermittent that Kranthi and Ashok were stuck in heavy rain just 1 km behind us. By the time they reached the tiffin center, prax and me were done with our idly+wada and masala dosa respectively. We left the place by 6.30 and were engulfed in the nauseating city traffic at Kukkatpally. I was in a bad mood already and the traffic was getting to my nerves.I couldn't take it anymore so I told Ashok who was my pillion now to hold on tight as I drove through the traffic like a maniac. We reached the ESI hospital in no time where i dropped off Ashok. The traffic wasn't that much as it usually is near SR Nagar and Ameerpet areas it being a Sunday. I was home in another 20 Min's at about 7.30 pm.
On a whole, it was a nice trip, we had fun and it was a learning experience. I wanted this first trip to be a short one so that I could get an idea of how much of riding I am capable of in a day. Now, I also know what my bike is capable of and what it is not. This experience will help in the planning of a couple of longer trips in the near future.
Hope you enjoyed reading the post and also the pics. Do comment. And please leave your name or atleast your initials along with your comment..pleaseeeeeeeeeee. I am not good at guessing anonymous comments :)
And hearty Ugadi/Gudi Padva wishes to you and your whole family.
ciao
~nk
Trip Info:
Place : Singur Reservoir. Singur village, Pulkal mandal, Medak district, Andhra Pradesh.
Date: 7th April. 2008
Distance: 85 Kms from Hyderabad.
Route: Take the Bombay Highway out of Hyderabad. Sadashivpet is approximately 70 kms from Hydearbad. Cross Sadashivpet and after approximately 3 kms there is a small unmarked road at the right which leads to Atmakur. The road comes after a big spinning mill on the left. You cannot miss the sign of a poultry farm at the beginning of the road . 10 kms inside is Atmakur ( single lane new tar road). From here the reservoir is 5 kms. 2-3 kms of kacha muddy road. Difficult for a family car to travel. Bikes or high ground clearance vehicles can manage this easily. The last 2 kms is again a tar road.
Facilities: Nothing. No food, no shelter, no leisure activities like boating etc.
The whole plan of the trip ( as it always is with a bike) is to enjoy the ride. The last time I really enjoyed a bike ride was on 15th September 2006, the day I was flying off to Finland. I had gone to visit the Chilkur Balaji Temple in the morning. I left home early at 5 am alone on my bike knowing quite well that this ride would be my last bike ride for another 6 months at least( which somehow extended to 15 months). Once I crossed Langar house and reached the Pargi road, the fun began. Dark empty roads, the headlight illuminating the canopy of trees, fresh morning breeze, dawn in sight, greenery all around me and the silence. The sweet grunt of the engine ( yes, I ride a Honda) was like music to my ears. The whole feeling was very divine. Nirvana was attained.
So, now back to the present day. The plan was to attain nirvana again, but as it turned out, we actually left at 10.30 in the morning ( Prakash had some urgent work in the morning which could not be postponed). I was waiting for his call from 9 am. Kranthi and I had decided that we will wait till 10.45 before packing the whole trip up. Finally prax called at 10.30. After applying a thick coat of sunscreen lotion ;) , I started off towards ameerpet stopping briefly to fuel up. I picked up ashok near ESI hospital and we were immediately greeted with a traffic jam near some rythu bazaar. We managed to reach JNTU and meet meet prax and kranthi at around 11.15. From there on, there was lots of road construction happening near Patancheru and ICRISAT with heavy traffic crawling slowly.
We got out of the city limits on the Bombay highway sometime around 11.45. The road was new, smooth and inviting. So I opened up the throttle and managed a long decent speed. We crossed Muthangi and I couldn't resist the sight of the green fields adjacent to the black road. So we stopped for a quick photo session.
Soon, we crossed Isnapur and reached Sadashivpet. We had to take a right turn after Sadashivpet to reach the reservoir. But before that, we decided to have lunch. So we stopped at a dhaba and were forced to order dal fry and paneer sabzi with roti.
We took diversion from the highway towards Atmakur village at around 2 pm. The single lane road was newly carpeted and had beautiful fields and poultry farms on its either side. The ride was very enjoyable. Atmakur was around 10 kms from the highway. From there on, the road condition became very bad. It was a muddy kacha road but was manageable on the bikes. We also came across some very weird roadblocks.
Finally reached the reservoir after asking directions more than a couple of times . It was a sight to behold. We were shocked looking at the size of the lake and the cleanliness of the surroundings. I have seen many lakes in my life (trust me when i say that :p ) but this one was a very pleasant surprise. The bund was very long and the dam was quite big too. This is the reservoir which supplies water to most of the norther part of the Hyderabad city through the river Manjeera. Here are a few pics
We were at the place for nearly an hour. Mind you there isn't much to do here other than admiring the surroundings. No place to rest, no place to eat, no place to spread out your picnic basket etc. We didn't visit the other side of the bund which leads towards the Singur village since the road( the bund actually) was very bad. There could be a few interesting places on that side. At least we could see an accessible grassy beach. We walked over the dam, took lots of pics. Kranthi also washed his face in the waters ;). It soon got cloudy and we could see hear thunder. So we decided to leave at around 4pm. We hardly travelled 2 kms and it started to rain. We took cover under a section of a concrete pipe which was there on the roadside.
We waited here for 15 Min's. Hardly had we travelled 10 meters when it started to rain again. And we again took shelter under another pipe :). And man, did it rain or what.
Our journey back was very frustrating, tiring, finger numbing and wet. It was raining so frequently that we made nearly 10 stops. When it wasn't raining, I let loose the throttle and the one horned mythical creature galloped away on the black asphalt. We somehow managed to reach the city limits at around 6pm with our clothes through the complete wash cycle, drying and rinsing at least thrice :) And not to forget all the mud splashed on us from truck tires which travel the length and breadth of the country. Nirvana attained ;)
We stopped at a tiffing center near the BHEL gate to feed the rodents having a field day in our tummies. The rain was so sporadic and intermittent that Kranthi and Ashok were stuck in heavy rain just 1 km behind us. By the time they reached the tiffin center, prax and me were done with our idly+wada and masala dosa respectively. We left the place by 6.30 and were engulfed in the nauseating city traffic at Kukkatpally. I was in a bad mood already and the traffic was getting to my nerves.I couldn't take it anymore so I told Ashok who was my pillion now to hold on tight as I drove through the traffic like a maniac. We reached the ESI hospital in no time where i dropped off Ashok. The traffic wasn't that much as it usually is near SR Nagar and Ameerpet areas it being a Sunday. I was home in another 20 Min's at about 7.30 pm.
On a whole, it was a nice trip, we had fun and it was a learning experience. I wanted this first trip to be a short one so that I could get an idea of how much of riding I am capable of in a day. Now, I also know what my bike is capable of and what it is not. This experience will help in the planning of a couple of longer trips in the near future.
Hope you enjoyed reading the post and also the pics. Do comment. And please leave your name or atleast your initials along with your comment..pleaseeeeeeeeeee. I am not good at guessing anonymous comments :)
And hearty Ugadi/Gudi Padva wishes to you and your whole family.
ciao
~nk
Trip Info:
Place : Singur Reservoir. Singur village, Pulkal mandal, Medak district, Andhra Pradesh.
Date: 7th April. 2008
Distance: 85 Kms from Hyderabad.
Route: Take the Bombay Highway out of Hyderabad. Sadashivpet is approximately 70 kms from Hydearbad. Cross Sadashivpet and after approximately 3 kms there is a small unmarked road at the right which leads to Atmakur. The road comes after a big spinning mill on the left. You cannot miss the sign of a poultry farm at the beginning of the road . 10 kms inside is Atmakur ( single lane new tar road). From here the reservoir is 5 kms. 2-3 kms of kacha muddy road. Difficult for a family car to travel. Bikes or high ground clearance vehicles can manage this easily. The last 2 kms is again a tar road.
Facilities: Nothing. No food, no shelter, no leisure activities like boating etc.
