South Indian Peninsula 2010 South Indian Peninsula trip 2-up on a BMW R1200GS
Day -5 Kochi to Kanyakumari
The
original plan was Kochi to Trivandrum, but some
other unexpected commitments meant that we head
until Kanyakumari today. Packed up early and had
a simple breakfast at Woodlands that consisted
of the local Kerala specialities such as Idiappam,
Idli, Vellappam and departed thru Thevara bridge
and then proceeded towards the direction of Allapuza
city.
Kick-off
photo after breakfast at Woodlands Hotel and departing
from cochin
Earlier,
as I was doing the daily routine bike check, I
find the oil level a little low but not alarming.
I know BMWs being oil/air cooled engines, sometimes
they tend to burn up a lil more oil depending
on your riding style, besides my bike was nearing
the 10K km mark for its next service. On a Sunday
morning with most people heading for mass at church,
I knew it was going to be difficult finding Castrol
GTX 20-50 oil as it is sold in exclusive Castrol
shops which may open late or remain closed for
the whole day. Hence I started hopping from one
fuel station to another looking for Castrol and
finally gave up and settled for the 20-40 Servo
brand oil. The oil top-up means I again had another
live audience at the gas station where I performed
the work.
No,
we don’t sell Castrol GTX 20W50
Opening
up my seat/toolkit and performing the oil top-up
The
regular question of the price of the bike &
fuel-efficiency… Back on the road, as per
the advise recd at www.xbhp.com,
I head towards the towns of Allapuza and then
to Changanacherry.
The
common folded lower garment of people in Kerala..
The
famed houseboats of Allapuza (better known in
Venbanad Lake, Kumaragam)
From
Changanacherry to Chengannur towns, the roads
are not too good, but post Chengannur, I ride
the absolutely fabulous MC road all the way until
Trivandrum. This is probably the best stretch
of single carriageway road that we encounter on
our whole trip. Silky smooth asphalt, lots &
lots of long sweepers, tight curves, zig zags,
uphill/downhill curves, etc, perfect banking on
the curves, very sparse traffic and as a bonus
it was not a very sunny day. I enjoyed every meter
of the road. The GS with its upright high seating
position, wide handlebar, tele-lever/para-lever
suspension and abundant power available on tap
was an absolute treat to ride and I was literally
flying on the road. I don’t know what MC
Road stands for, but I have renamed it the “Motor
Cycle Road” & definitely recommend it
to any biker headed in that direction. The video
glimpse will show you that.
Enjoy
the ride……
The
neat display at this fruit shop caught my cameraperson’s
attention!
The
GS taking a breather during our hydration break
More
admirers for the GS……
The
pot-sellers colorful display
ENJOY
THE RIDE WITH US
We
cross Pandalam city, bypass Adoor and are headed
in the direction of the capital of Kerala State,
Trivandrum. As I am nearing Pothencode, I establish
contact with members from xbhp-Trivandrum team
and we decide that I head to Technopark, and meet
up with the xbhp gang near Subway restaurant there.
Around
2 pm, myself & wife arrive at Subway and are
greeted by the wonderful group of bikers from
xbhp.
After
some chit-chat, we all head in a group ride to
the renowned Kovalam beach. Yes, we did create
some stir on the roads! It was a pleasure to ride
thru Trivandrum city with a group of like minded
souls who are deeply passionate about biking and
take their rides seriously and ride very responsibly.
A
relaxed group ride with the Trivandrum xbhp gang
After
some twisty & curvy roads we are suddenly
on a steep descend into the wonderful Kovalam
beach. As soon as we park, a small crowd gathers
as most of us are in full protective gears with
helmets, jackets, gloves etc. We find a safe place
to park and I humbly tell the parking attendant
I don’t mind people touching or photographing
etc, but just look out nobody tries sitting on
this tall bike and ends up dropping it!!
Here
is a steep descend onto Kovalam Beach with the
xbhp Trivandrum group
We
all soon take a stroll along one among the most
beautiful beaches of India. Ofcourse, my xbhp
friends in Trivandrum warn us about the various
tourist traps along the beach and later we settle
for some juice & soft drink break. It’s
a sunny day and while the foreigners are enjoying
the tan, we are all fine with our natural tan…..!
I also got into some funny trouble with a tourist
policeman when I took a pic of the beach landscape
as that loony thought I was shooting the ‘westerners’
getting a sun tan in their bikins! When I showed
him the harmless landscape pic and also told him
dammit I am with my wife, he didn’t know
what to do(!), but went on arguing about how seriously
they take their job…Anyway, it was a unique
experience!
Group
photo with the Trivandrum xbhp group
I
wanted a pic of just the GS against the beach,
but no way..
Being
a Sunday, the beach was really crowded and then
our friendly hosts suggested we head for a secluded
clean beach at a nearby place called Aazhimala.
As we are leaving Kovalam and we align for a departing
pic, soon a small crowd gathers like some film
shooting is going on! Many of the guys in the
crowd jump in front of our own photographers &
start clicking snaps as if this is some kind of
a once a century event!!!!!! We were puzzled.
The
obligatory line-up photo with the xbhp gang
Curious
onlookers
Also,
a lot of them were already puzzled to see such
a huge bike, now they were curious to see how
my short wife would mount this super tall &
vague looking bike. Besides, being self-conscious
of all the stares, I didn’t want to end up
dropping the big bike & make a fool of myself!
As soon as my wife does the step-on-climb-roll-over
maneuver and settles into her pillion seat, we
get a nice applause from the crowd!!! It was hilarious….
After
leaving Kovalam, some more narrow roads and we
all arrive at aazhimala. Absolutely, prestine
beach with stunning views and no annoying crowds.
What a feeling - a group of enthusiastic bikers,
the bikes, the empty beach and one ice-cream seller.
Isn’t that a nice combination to have for
a simple Sunday evening ride.
The
big brother keeping a watch over his smaller siblings!
After
spending some time there, clicking pics &
having an ice cream we head back into the city
and our local xbhp hosts guides us onto the highway
heading to Kanyakumari and it is finally parting
time. Although I wished we could have spent more
time in Trivandrum (lots of things & places
to see) if our schedule wasn’t so tight,
we say our goodbyes & heartfelt thanks to
the nice & lively bunch of bikers and leave
Trivandrum.
Its
close to 6 pm and it will soon get dark. My international
touring pledge always says ‘no riding after
sunset in any country’, but today there is
no choice and of all the places, in the chaotic
traffic in India.
After
having ridden the gorgeous MC road in the morning,
this road from Trivandrum to Kanyakumari as pre-warned
is filled with potholes, heavy traffic and passes
thru crowded towns enroute slowing our pace. After
some distance I notice the signboard ‘The
State of Tamilnadu welcomes you’ and then
I realize that I have fulfilled my long cherished
dream of motoring the entire length of Kerala
State entering from Kasaragod district and exiting
thru the Trivandrum district and it has been a
thoroughly entertaining experience traveling thru
Kerala, which is fondly called - Gods own country.
BTW, this southern indian state of Kerala is 100%
literate. Yes, everybody in this state knows to
read & write.
As
we proceed deeper into Tamil Nadu and its dark,
I learn that on Indian roads, horns rule the game
during day and hi-beam headlight rules during
the night!! So our nightmare begins after sunset
with oncoming traffic blazing their hi-beams at
us. I soon realize that being courteous by not
using the hi-beam won’t reach me anywhere,
so I decide to blast open my Hella super white
aux lights and soon the roads are lit up like
daylight. These pics will show you what I mean:
Normal
headlight
Together
with Aux lights ON
The
intimidating front view
So
the added lighting makes it easier to dodge the
potholes, increase my speed a bit and also surprisingly
oncoming vehicles are giving me way – Darwinism
on Indian roads - Survival of the fittest!! Going
ahead I head thru Nagercoil and a few small towns
and finally arrive at bottom most tip of the Indian
peninsula - Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) by 7:45pm
where my lovely brother has again made hotel reservations
including safe parking for my bike.
We
have a quick bath, simple dinner and hit the sack
as we want to wake up early to catch the sunrise
at the cape. During the night to our surprise,
there is some religious event taking place nearby
and the loud-speaker was blasting music and sermons
all night. Anyway, being exhausted from the night
riding, this disturbance didn’t bother us
from sleeping like a log.
