"Four wheels move the body, two wheels move the soul”, and that’s how I have felt every time I ride my bike (now 12 months and 10,000 km old but still). Fortunately, we live in a country with such a rich culture and heritage that you have more than enough places to visit, things to admire and to explore so as to quench the thirst of your soul. Just get in your preferred vehicle and ride out of the city and you will immediately relate to what I mean.
Besides, I think I’m fortunate to live in Mumbai. To the north, you have superb highways leading to Gujarat and then further north towards Rajasthan; to the east, you immediately cross the Western Ghats is the Deccan Plateau leading to Nashik, Ajanta and Ellora, and many more. However, the real fun starts once you turn to the South – the entire Western Ghats, the beautiful temples, and the architecture spread across southern India.
After getting my bike in Jan 2019, I have clocked more than 10,000km in a year. In addition to multiple short day trips ranging from 50km to 250km, I also completed three medium distance trips spread over 2-5 days ranging from 700-1600 km. These were:
Tapola: Route followed was Mumbai - Pune - Kaas Plateau of flowers - Tapola - Mahabaleshwar - Pune - Mumbai, i.e. approx. 670km.
Hampi: Route followed was Mumbai - Pune - Kolhapur - Belgaum - Hubli - Hampi - Badami - Kolhapur - Pune - Mumbai, i.e. approx. 1600km.
Goa: Route followed was Mumbai-Chiplun (Old Mumbai-Goa highway)-Goa-Chorla Ghat-Belgaum-Pune-Mumbai, i.e. approx. 1200km.
This blog is all about my trip to Hampi. Hampi, as many of the readers may know, is not just any archaeological site but a UNESCO world heritage site. It was the capital town of the Vijayanagara Empire in the 14th century. At its peak, it was one of the most prosperous towns of its time, situated beside Tungabhadra River with numerous temples, farms, and trading markets.
Located in Karnataka near the modern-era city of Hosapete, Hampi's ruins are spread over 4,100 hectares (~24 sq km) and it has been described by UNESCO as an "austere, grandiose site" of more than 1,600 surviving remains of the last great Hindu kingdom in South India that includes "forts, riverside features, royal and sacred complexes, temples, shrines, pillared halls, mandapas, memorial structures, water structures and others".
Trip Planning
We dabbled in the idea for a bike trip to Hampi in early Dec 2019 amongst a group of six bikers. Five of them confirmed, however with my workload at that particular time, I wasn’t sure if I'll be able to make the trip. Finally, the plan was put in place with an onset date as Dec 24th 2019 and return to Mumbai by Dec 29th 2019. While I was able to confirm my participation just a few days before departure, one of the other riders dropped out.
So finally, a group of 5 bikers, with different riding experiences riding for the first time as a group, amongst the 5 of us, we had a Royal Enfield Himalayan, 3 Dominar 400 and my Toothless (Ninja300). Mumbai to Hampi is a good ~700km ride, so many of our fellow bikers suggested to avoid riding at night (which is always good advice). Instead, they suggested we start early in the morning and then try to reach Hampi by night. On paper, this definitely sounds great, however, one should always fine-tune the plan as per the riders and that’s what we did. Things we took into consideration:
Early morning start means; we need to be very disciplined about the time we start in the morning; any delay and it could become difficult to complete the trip the same day.
Of the 5 riders, only one of us was experienced in long-distance touring. Lack of experience of long-distance riding will certainly make it difficult to complete 700km in a single day.
We wanted to ride at our own pace, without pushing it and still wanted to keep the cushion in case there are any delays because of unforeseen reasons.
So, after considering these points we still decided to start in the afternoon of 24th with a bit of riding in the night.
Enroute to Hampi
We started in the afternoon of Dec 24th, and after a few stops (waiting for each other), picking few essentials (which we forgot to pack), one random work call, by the time we crossed Panvel, it was already dark. While none of us preferred to drive post-sunset, it couldn’t be avoided if we wanted to follow our itinerary. We crossed Pune, and rode till 10 to 10:30 pm and then halted for an overnight stay in the next hotel we found.
While the plan was to start early, as it usually happens, we only started by 8:30 am. But unlike riding in the dark, now we were riding in the daylight on six-lane NH-48. The highway is superb by all accounts and we were covering good ground at a decent pace.
The plan was to go left from Nippani to reach Hampi. However, after reaching Nippani, locals advised us to proceed till Hubli on NH-48 and then take left for Hampi. The road from Hubli to Hampi was under construction, and because of watering and dirt, it was not an ideal condition for riding in the dark. We somehow managed it without falling or hurting ourselves and reached Hampi around 9:30 pm in the night.
We have booked our stay online at a Hostel - Wayfarers. Word of advice, don’t stay here, rather go to Hippie Island, and you will find an equal value of money accommodation options with tourist-friendly owners as well as fellow travellers.
Hampi
We assumed that two days would be more than enough to explore, if not all, then at least the main sites of Hampi. Let me tell you, if you are interested in ancient architecture and history it is going to take at least a week to properly enjoy and savour the sites at Hampi. In addition to the sites, Hampi also offers a quaint local environment that one can explore at his own pace.
Another thing that any traveller should keep in mind is the weather. We went to Hampi towards the end of Dec, and it was still 30+ degrees during the day. I guess the best time to visit Hampi would be during the second half of January. Irrespective of the time, remember to keep a bottle of water with you so that you can keep yourself hydrated.
I’m probably not going to bore the reader with copy-pasting the list of places to visit at Hampi that one can easily find on Google. We started our first day morning with a visit to a very local roadside breakfast place, and it was one of the most delicious Dosa’s I ever had. After having a heart full of the delicious breakfast, we proceeded to the Vithala Temple, and as soon as you lay your eyes on it, you realize that every word used to describe this ancient marvel has been true.
This is the place with the iconic elephant stone chariot (that also makes an appearance on the 50 rupee note), the famed musical pillars and what many may not know, carved out ‘mystic animal’ on the pillar which is supposed to be an amalgamation of nine animals and birds.
Another thing that I would recommend to all readers while visiting any ancient sites, do look up at the ceiling and you will find the most spellbinding carvings, and designs, often making you wonder how our ancestors achieved this level of finesse with supposedly basic tools.
After spending almost half a day at Vithala Temple, we decided to have lunch. Again, we chose a local outlet that only had thali as an option, and I can tell you, you won’t regret that thali for any price, the affordable price made it even more delicious.
After lunch, we moved to the more famous ‘Virupaksha Temple’ and nearby site. I’ll be honest here, while Virupaksha Temple is the more famous site, in comparison to the Vithala Temple, it was a tad disappointing. Don’t get me wrong, it is still magnificent but being more famous and revered, it attracts more devotees and tourists resulting in a ‘not-so-clean’ place. Also, I could bring myself to identify anything which makes Virupaksha Temple more famous as compared to the Vithala Temple, but as I said this is in my personal opinion.
I enjoyed the sites around the Virupaksha Temple, i.e. temples on the Hemkuta Hill. It’s is simply amazing how our ancestors constructed these huge structures on a rocky, sloping hill.
We ended our first day in Hampi on this hilltop at the ‘Sunset’ point.
On the next day, we proceeded to the other side of Hampi which had ancient sites where the Royal place once stood in all its grandeur, the Queen’s bath, the all famous Lotus temple and Elephant stable. In between these more famous sites, you will find numerous other smaller sites and each one of similar splendour and beauty.
Completely tired, we wrapped up our second day and went to bed as we had planned to start our trip back early in the morning. On our way back, we decided to ride via Badami which actually deserves a day or two of its own to do justice to the place, but given the limited time, we decided to make the best of it. And it turned out to be one of the best decisions we made on the trip. First, the roads were in much better condition than Hubli-Hampi route and second, we were driving through state highways across the forests, villages experiencing nature in its actual beauty which many a time we start to forget living in concrete jungles of Mumbai and other cities.
Badami is best known for its Cave temples dedicated to Vishnu Avatars, and very well preserved. If one pays attention, one will observe that the cave hill at some point in time in history had been converted into a sort of fort or a strategic defensive point. On the other side of the hill, a separate compound held a group of temples around a lake which was in contrast against the hill but equally mesmerising.
Here are some of the pictures that I have clicked during the trip.
Way Back to Home
It was evening by the time we started out from Badami, our target was to take an overnight halt at Kolhapur. The roads were in a very good condition, but we had to ride very carefully with a full lookout for tractors with unmarked trolleys fully loaded with sugarcanes. A Few farmer brethren were sensibly aware to put reflective markers/strips at the back of the trolley however these were in the minority. Advice to any fellow riders riding after sunset, please look out for these trolleys.
Our journey to Kolhapur was thankfully uneventful, as we halted in a small hotel by the main highway. We started early (8 am :)) the next day and reached back home by evening. This was my first 1000+ km ride and definitely one that will always be cherished and fondly remembered.
For the visual story of our trip, you can also visit the Highway Stories - Hampi Road Trip, youtube channel.
About Writer
An investment manager at an Impact Fund by profession and a traveller and biker at heart. Love to travel to places where history comes alive, or anywhere the two wheels can take!!!
Nice Blog!!
Please look here at https://delhi-tourplaces.blogspot.com/2020/10/10-top-places-to-visit-in-delhi.html