Mysore to Goa by Gravel Bike

Our guide meets you at your hotel at 14:00hrs for a bike fit. Post-that, we visit the palace, also known as Amba Vilas Palace is a 14th-century enthralling structure, which is beautifully lit at night on special days. After the historic sight, we make our way into the busy Devaraj market. The market is a concoction of sights, sounds, and smells – a real visual treat. Walk around the stalls stacked with conical mounds of Kumkum, stacks of glittering bangles, blocks of jaggery, and huge mounds of fragrant marigolds, jasmine, asters, and even antiques!

We convene tonight at the dinner to celebrate the start of a fabulous cycling journey.

Mysore Arrival: We recommend taking a Mysore Vande Bharat train (20607) that starts from Bangalore City Junction (SBC) at 10:20 hours and arrives at Mysore Junction (MYS) at 12:20 hours. We can assist with the booking of same. Alternatively, you can also fly to Mysore from Bangalore.

Take a transfer to the surroundings and get on the bikes for a ride toward Shravanbelagola, en route to Hassan. Shravanbelagola is a Jain pilgrimage with a mammoth statue of Gommateshvara Bahubali atop a hill, overlooking the town. The statue was constructed in 993 AD and is the subject of intrigue and reverence for many travelers. We make a short stop here and later head towards Hassan. The ride today is going to be nothing short of a roller coaster.

We start riding from Hassan through the sparsely populated roads, through thick foliage and green paddy fields into Halebidu, the essential temple town on this route. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, the Halebidu temple, also known as Hoysaleshwara temple, is 103 years of hard work resulting in 4000 exquisite carvings in slate stone. You can see the Hoysala emblems, statues of dancing ladies and portions of the Indian epics unfold in the black stone. The depiction of the mythological ‘seven in one animal’, Makara, and tales from Ramayana and Mahabharata are more explicit here. All this is better understood with a guide.

Time-dependent, we take a ride up or take the shuttle to Chikamagalur. Once you are past the town, the sprawling coffee estates start emerging, with a promise of copious cups of coffee and great weather.

We depart from the coffee-scaped hills of Chikamagalur and pedal along to Shimoga. The route to Shimoga is one the most scenic on this trip – the roads are largely devoid of heavy traffic and the richly green Western Ghats keep you company for the most part of the trip.

Today is a spectacular ride on a bike as for the most part we will be riding along the Tunga river. The route largely remains undulating and keeps you close to the Kodachadri Mountains. The route skirts the Gajanuru state forest and is breathtaking – you are likely to spot a Malabar Giant Squirrel and a variety of birds.

Today is an awesome ride skirting the Sharavati Wildlife Sanctuary to Matthuga, which serves as a base to visit the nearby astounding Jog Falls. Along the way, we will be taking a short Ferry to cross the mighty Linganamakki reservoir.

It’s a long day ahead of us as we are headed towards Dandeli today, passing through various forests. We plan to start early today with a transfer in the van, followed by cycling to Dandeli.

Here, we arrive at Dandeli and settle into our simple accommodation, surrounded by the views and sounds of nature.

With a few uphills and a constantly green-forested region for the company, we enter Goa. The countryside area is brilliant to cycle around with rich green thickets and nothing but birdsong filling the air around. Our next stop is Mollem, where you can get a feel of rural Goa.

Post-lunch, we make our way to Goan beaches. Ride past a road flanked by beautiful forests with a robust wildlife population. It’s a classic forest route today with undulating terrain along the way.

Our trip ends in the late evening. We recommend extending at Goa for a few days.