A short, repeatable loop I do 3-4 times a year. Bangalore → Madikeri → Bhagamandala → back, with the exact fuel stops, breakfast joints, and the one stretch worth waking up at 4am for.
If someone has a weekend and a bike, this is the ride I send them on. It's the right amount of distance, the right kind of corners, and the kind of coffee at the end that justifies the soreness.
Saturday: Bangalore → Madikeri (260 km)
- · Leave by 5:30am. Mysore Road is a different animal after 8am.
- · Breakfast at Maddur Tiffanys — Maddur vada, no debate.
- · Fuel at Hunsur. Last reliable HP before the ghat.
- · Pick the Hunsur–Madikeri ghat over Mysore–Madikeri. Quieter, twistier, better surface.
Sunday: Madikeri → Bhagamandala → Bangalore
Bhagamandala is 36 km of pure ghat from Madikeri. Do it before 9am — empty road, full mist, and the kind of grip wet basalt gives you when no one's pushing past.
What I'd do differently
- Carry rain gear June–September. Non-negotiable.
- Mud-Terrain or dual-sport tyres are overkill. Good road rubber + sense is enough.
- Don't ride the ghat after dark. Cattle, pedestrians, no streetlights.
