17th March - Kundapura to Gokarna

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Biked just under 150km today! Amazing day :-)

Up at 8 and had a lovely relaxed breakfast. Getting into a new book and found it difficult to put down while eating breakfast. Had a potter round town and then on my bike for 10. I should have set off earlier as I wanted to get to Gokarna today (approx 150km) but I was faffing and chatting to the hotel staff.

I spent a while looking at google maps trying to find an alternative route to NH17 but there were no other roads that I could see that went the right way for any distance. I am glad I did not go any other way as it turned out to be a great day on the National Highway. The NH17 was really really busy with trucks and buses around Mangalore area and I was desperate to leave it asap. Today however, the road was quite and went through some great countryside. For the first hour or so the terrain was similar to the day before but then the road climbed and started to become more desert-like. There were less vehicles and the fews of the mountains where amazing.

I realised that the reason that there are no alternative small roads other than the National Highway is because of the massive rivers joining the sea in this area. The only bridges for miles are the NH17 bridges... There was a major bridge every half an hour or so. The views from the bridges are fantastic. There are palm trees all the way along the side of the water and in one direction is the sea and in the other direction the Western Ghats.

This photo was taken from a bridge just north of Kasarkod.

The road condition today was really good - better than anywhere else in India and for the first time I was doing speeds similar to Aus and NZ. It felt good.

The first 100km or so was reasonably flat and I was making good time and so I decided to push to get to Gokarna. I worked out I would get there about 6.15 - half an hour before dark. However, the last 50km was much more hilly and hard work. The Western Ghats come to meet the sea here where as they are much further inland in Kerala.

The views were absolutely amazing and I found it so hard not to stop and take photos when I should have been biking hard to get to Gokarna before dark. Fortunately, I knew that the last stretch was not on the highway and was a local road (where there are few buses and trucks). The windy road from the highway to Gokarna is beautiful and passes through salt lakes and farm land. It was a great finish to a great day.

As I passed though a village there were some random Indian men dressed up in matching football tops with masks and head dresses doing a dance and chanting outside each shop. They would perform for about 1 minute and then move on to the next shop 5m away. I did not manage to get an answer in English to explain what it was all about....

I got into town just as it was dark. My first impression was: OMG white people! The first in well over 1 week! It was like entering a different world to the India I have been cycling through over the last few days. Loads of hippy westerners....

I biked through town, passed the famous temple and the little lanes and towards the beach where I had been told there was good accommodation. I checked in at a little guest house and then went for an explore around town. I was not feeling hungry and so I spent some time on the internet before heading back.

Emily Jefferson's location@19:57,3/17