A Bike Ride Through the Forest to Mysore

At 4 a.m. we headed to Mysore from Kottakkal(Malappuram) with a group of 6 people. Our journey took us on 3 bikes. It takes about 9 hours from Kottakkal to Mysore(290 km). This is the first time I have ever ridden a bike on such a long journey. I had a thrill and excitement of it.
Around 7:30, we reached Gudalloor in Tamilnadu state. From there, we drank a cup of tea and sped up. We are about to start our journey through the forest from here. There are two forests along this route. One is Mudumalai National Park in Tamil Nadu state and another is Bandipur National Park in Karnataka state.
We continued our journey. Half an hour later we entered the Mudumalai forest. It was nicely cold and slightly snowy. Good dense forest on both sides of the road. We were riding very slowly for enjoying the beauty of it. Occasionally, we spotted a few deer herds and peacocks. I was scared of what would happen if suddenly some wild animals came along. Before that, I had gone to Mysore in the same way while attending school but it was on the bus. Now the ride on this bike was a whole new experience. It is about 10 km from the Mudumalai forest to Bandipur.

               

Half an hour later we entered Bandipur forest. Bandipur is not a dense forest like the Mudumalai forest. It was a flat forest. I saw some deer there too. Apart from that, we could see wild buffaloes, elephants, monkeys, and pigs. There was no parking in the jungle, but we parked the bike for a while. There were full monkeys. One of the monkeys snatched the seat of a bike that belonged to us. We quickly picked up the bike and left. By that time the weather was starting to get warmer. On the way, many passengers were taking photos of animals.
It was about ten o'clock, and we reached Gundlupete. It was a pretty big town. There we stopped for a while. Take one or two photos. I looked at the people there. I felt that most were farmers. From there we set off. After Gundlupete town, there was arable land on both sides of the road. We bought some watermelons from a street trader. There were many crops, including cabbage, watermelon, and potatoes. I could know that flowers were coming from here to Kerala during the Onam season. From Gundlupete to Nanjangud there were whole villages except for a few small towns. The bike ride along that road was a good experience.
                      

Afternoon we reached Mysore. First, we visited the Mysore Zoo. It was a huge zoo and It was from there that I saw the white peacock for the first time in my life. There were many other animals and birds. There was a lot to see inside.
From the zoo, we headed straight to the Mysore Palace. It is a very beautiful Palace. Mysore Palace is the historical palace and a royal residence of the Wadiyar dynasty who ruled the Kingdom of Mysore from 1399 to 1950. This magnificent palace is located in the center of Mysore. It contains a lot of ancient portraits. The architecture of the palace surprised me as much as anyone. It was late evening. Later we took a hotel room there. We roamed the city at night.

                     

The next morning the room was vacated and we headed to Brindavan Garden. Brindavan Gardens is located in Mandya District of Karnataka. It lies adjoining the Krishnarajasagara Dam which is built across the river Kaveri. It is about 45 km from Mysore. The garden is located on about 60 acres. We also spent some time there.
From there we set off to Chamundi Hills. Chamundi Hills is a popular tourist destination located at a distance of 13 km from Mysore. Chamundeswari Temple on the top of the hill is a major tourist attraction. In addition, there is a statue of Mahishasura holding a sword in one hand and a snake in the other. Apart from the Chamundeswari Temple, there is also a temple called Nandi(bull). From the top of Chamundi Hill, you can see the entire Mysore city.
We left there in the evening. On our way back, we decided to go through Wayanad. It was decided to go through the Muthanga forest.

                  

We arrived at the check post at 7 p.m. Officials said the two-wheeler could not enter the forest after 7 p.m. All the vehicles can be entered until 8 p.m. but they have not agreed. We requested them to let us pass. In the end, they demanded Rs 300. Finally, we paid Rs 150 and left. When we entered the forest, it was dark and we could not see anything. The road was empty except for the occasional freight vehicles. It was a scary atmosphere. We did not know what courage was on our bike ride through the forest that night. Finally, We came back with unforgettable memories of a good trip.