Hyderabad to Guruvayur Road Trip

 

Guruvayur...

Without any particular plan in mind, it felt like fate was guiding me towards Guruvayur. It was a regular Thursday afternoon around 4.32 PM when the idea to visit Guruvayur popped into my head. So, I gave my friend Raj a call, and he was totally up for it, we decided to head to Guruvayur, setting off at 10.37 PM that same night.

Planning: Our aim was straightforward - to visit Guruvayur and return home within three full days, covering a total distance of 2100 kilometers round trip. While it may not be easy but I was eager for these long and adventurous drives.

Route: I opted for the Hyderabad -> Bangalore -> Mysore -> Bandipur -> Guruvayur route, a familiar path that I've traveled numerous times before. With my past experiences, I had a clear understanding of the journey, including the timing of the Bandipur check post closure from 9 PM to 6 AM.

Preparation: The main twist of this trip was that I planned to undertake it with my EV car. With this in mind, I quickly arranged for charging halts along the route, ensuring I had backup plans in place. Packing was simple - clothes, my laptop, and plenty of water. Other than that, I set off with minimal preparation.

I relied on the PlugShare app to locate charging stations along the route, and I used the respective charging station apps to verify if each station was operational. I prepared the list for every 200 kilometers of the journey. It only took about 30 minutes to complete this task. 

Day 1: Our journey began at around 10:30 PM as we set off towards Jedcherla for our first charging stop. Upon reaching Jedcherla, we decided to take a short nap and continue our journey in the early morning.

Day 2: Following a quick breakfast, we headed towards Bangalore. Our goal was to reach Chikballapur for lunch, where we intended to recharge ourselves and the car at the Jio-BP charging station situated at the Aditya Grand Hotel. En route, we paused to visit the ISKCON temple in Ananthapur and the Kia plant in Penugonda.

We arrived at the Aditya hotel around 2 PM, only to find that Karnataka was experiencing power cuts. Patiently, we waited for an hour, enjoying our lunch in the meantime. Thankfully, by 4 PM, the power was restored, allowing us to charge our vehicle for 30 minutes. Since it was a 60 kW fast charger, the charging process was swift. With the current charge, I was confident of easily reaching Mysuru. However, as the time passed, I was concerned about making it to the Bandipur checkpost by 9 PM. Missing this deadline would mean waiting until 6 AM the next morning.

Meanwhile, since it was Friday, I managed to do some work from the car while Raj took over the driving duties for three hours.

Due to the power cuts and being caught in the notorious Bangalore traffic for an additional two hours, I crossed the Mysuru ORR around 9 PM. This delay triggered a chain reaction, causing me to miss the closing time for the checkpost, which was another 60 kilometers away. However, I remained calm. Utilizing this time, I charged the vehicle to 100% in Mysore and I reached the checkpost by 11 PM. There, I took some much-needed rest inside the car.

Day 3: By 6:30 AM, we finished freshening up at the check post and proceeded to cross it, entering the Bandipur forest. Every delay seemed to have a purpose. Traveling at night would have meant missing out on the stunning views of wildlife and the serene atmosphere of Bandipur. We were lucky to enter the forest in the early morning. With no traffic in sight and the beautiful fog enveloping the surroundings, the journey became truly blissful. I even managed to capture a few photos from inside the car.

By 9 AM, we crossed into Kerala, with another 190 kilometers to go before reaching Guruvayur. However, driving in Kerala was slower, as we could only manage an average of 40 kilometers due to the hilly and narrow roads. Our strategy was to reach the charging station just before Guruvayur, where they offered freshen up facilities. This way, we could take a bath while the car was charging and head straight for Darshan afterward. Our goal was to complete Darshan by 4 PM.

Elektromec - EV charging station: I must admit, this charging station is one of the best, offering not only charging facilities but also refreshing amenities and quick bites to eat.

As planned, we arrived at the temple by 1:30 PM and headed to Nadini restaurant for lunch. To be honest, I wasn't a fan of Kerala food, and as expected, the food at Nadini was disappointing. However, I had no regrets; my full concentration was on Darshan.

I parked the car in the temple premises, which offered well-maintained paid parking just 100 meters from the temple, making access easy. Kerala temples strictly adhere to a dress code for Darshan, with no exceptions. Men are required to wear a dhoti and be shirtless, while women should be dressed in a saree.

It was truly a divine call from Lord Krishna, as we were fortunate to visit the temple on an auspicious day, which we later discovered was 'Ekadasi.' The temple was beautifully decorated with oil lamps and flowers, and there were numerous cultural activities taking place, adding to the vibrant atmosphere.

Mobile phones are not allowed inside the temple, so I managed to take a few snaps from outside.

I completed the darshan by 4 PM, but I found myself unwilling to leave the temple premises. Instead, I decided to stay and attend a few cultural activities. 

I was still feeling the wonder of the Lord Krishna's Darshan, and then I realized this was my first time visiting a temple dedicated to Krishna. It was a delightful surprise.

We returned to the parking area by 6 PM, and I decided to stick to the same route for the journey back. Knowing that we would reach the checkpost around 11 PM, I saw an opportunity to take a quick nap during this time.

Day 4: The checkpost opened around 5:30 AM, and we were the second car to cross it, encountering no vehicles ahead of us. With ease, we crossed the checkpost and stopped at the Statiq charging point near the Karnataka checkpost to charge the car and freshen up. By 10 AM, we had completed our freshening up and breakfast, and we set off for Bangalore. Our goal was to navigate through the Bangalore traffic before lunch and recharge the car at the Jio-BP station in Hebbal.

Continuing our journey, we encountered power cuts in Bangalore city, leading to an hour-long wait, after a 10-minute recharge, we headed to the same 'Aditya Grand' hotel for a full recharge. By 3 PM, we had completed charging the car and had lunch, then we set off for Gooty, our next charging stop. Meanwhile, the Mysuru - Bengaluru highway is a wonder, allowing us to reach the Bengaluru ORR in just 90 minutes.

By midnight, around 3 AM, we safely arrived home. Throughout the return journey, I mostly relied on the same charging spots we had used earlier.

In total, I traveled 2051 km without deviating from the planned route.

Few points from my experience:

1. Traveling with an EV is no longer a challenge; it simply requires about 30 minutes of preparation.
2. Always have a Plan B when traveling with an EV.
3. This trip may not be everyone's cup of tea. In total, we spent 75 hours on the road, with 40 hours behind the wheel. So please go with a proper plan.

Lord Krishna, I hope for another chance to visit again. Your blessings mean everything to me.

That's all from Guruvayur.