WCR 1113

13^th Nov 2014: Mangalore to Wayanad:

We left early in the morning. Today we would be entering Kerala where we would be spending the next four days of our tour. The road was not in great condition. It turned worse when we entered Kerala. This wasn’t the sort of welcome we were expecting. The traffic was even worse. All sorts of vehicles were plying on the narrow stretch of highway. Buses coming in opposite directions nearly scraped each other. The drivers were always eager to overtake so every vehicle was always travelling in the middle of the road.

We thought conditions would improve later on and then turned towards Bekal Fort at Kasargod. The road to the Fort was broken and wet. We were still optimistic and showed patience. Soon we pulled into the empty parking lot. The Fort was very well maintained. The real sight was on the other end of the entry gate. It overlooked the sea and a wonderful beach. We spent a good time clicking photos here.

On exiting, we asked for directions to Wayanad. Surprisingly, we faced a language barrier. Kerala is a very hot tourist destination with high literacy. We were taken aback to find this barrier here. Thankfully, we didn’t need to go back the route we came to reach the highway. The road onwards also connected to it, although the names of the towns in between were very difficult to remember and pronounce.

Moving on the main highway, Zaheer was again in the lead. He was stopped at a police check post while the rest of us cleanly passed through. We also stopped a short distance ahead. The language barrier showed itself again. It resulted in heating up the conversation. Only one of the officers was speaking broken Hindi. It resulted in some confusion on showing the registrations. The cops were grabbing at the tiger on the front mudguard(extra fitting) and parking lights(extra light). They relented on these two but then stuck on the absence of rearview mirrors. When the rest of the riders reached the group, they were convinced that we were part of a single group and were genuine tourers. Finally after checking all papers, they let him go warning him to get mirrors installed before the next town.

The “next town” was a misnomer. There isn’t such a thing in Kerala. We had now covered 100 kms and were continuously surrounded by civilization. The “town” seemed to be never ending. There wasn’t an empty patch to be seen. Ignoring everything else, we came across our first Toddy shop in the state and immediately stopped. Only Ashok, Gyan and I were interested while the rest took their breakfast in the neighboring shop.

Unsure of the quantity, we ordered only half a litre between the three of us. It is said to make one very tipsy if it ages. Fried spicy fish was offered as snacks. The tipsy effect was displayed by a local there. He was very interested in talking to us. He straightaway came and handed a big wad of money in Ashok’s hands. He then started to narrate his family problems. He downed three glasses one after the other in quick succession and then said goodbye to us.

We found the taste of toddy very appealing and decided to have a lot more in the night. For now, we were struggling to find the road to Wayanad. Everyone we asked had a different route to suggest and understanding that route was very difficult. Moreover, the continuous running town had way too many turns and traffic. It was difficult to stick together. The signboards were showing a different direction than the one suggested by the locals. Wayanad isn’t the name of a town. Its actually a district. What we should have asked instead was Pulpally. All of us finally joined together after Kannur on the way to Kuthupuramba.

The traffic was still heavy but thankfully lighter than the main highway. News had reached us from BoP Bangalore chapter that they were just 100 kms from Pulpally at noon. They had encountered rain on the way. We had been lucky till now. But as we crossed Kuthupuramba, it started to pour. Rain suits were brought out. We stopped for lunch after some time and it was still raining. Gyan and I immediately headed to the nearby toddy shop. Lo and behold, for snacks they served pork. We should have called Nilu right then and there but the thought didn’t cross our mind. Again we purchased only half a litre. We were increasing our intake incrementally.

When we reached back and told this to Nilu, he was agitated. He immediately ran to the shop in the rain to have pork. Unfortunately, Gyan and I had finished the last lot. Nilu was furious. His face was that of a child deprived of promised chocolate. This could bite back at us viciously.

We set off again as the rain lightened. Now, we were seeing countryside. But what tensed us was that none of signboards were showing Pulpally. Majority were pointing to Sultan Bathery. After much navigating, we finally saw the signboards. We had made it to Pulpally right before dark. Now began another exercise of finding Holidays Inn Wayanad guided by directions of Ms Malini. A nearby spokesperson of CPI(M) distracted us. He was speaking with vigor. Unfortunately, not many of the passersby were interested in what was being said. Throughout our journey in Kerala we had seen the red flags of CPI(M) besides the road. The students’ association even added a Che Guevara pic to their signposts. Such is the influence of Che in a country he never visited.

We made it to Hotel Wayanad Inn and dumped our luggage. Now began the daily exercise of cleaning up and going out to pick up supplies. Our journey of 250 kms today had left us exhausted. It had still taken us 12 hours to cover the distance. We were not expecting journeys to be so long. We went to the Toddy shop in town and brought in 6 litres of toddy along with pork for snacks.

While Gyan and I fetched the drinks, BoP Bangalore had reached the hotel as well. The North and South chapters of our club were meeting for the first time. We met like brothers separated in Kumbh Mela. This was the first time the two chapters would be riding together. What made the Ride even more special was the Anniversary month, November. This was a grand celebration.

Now we had to pour the toddy from the packed polythenes into the water jugs. One of the three bags had leaked and we were being extra careful in pouring out the contents. All went to the floor as one other bag came crashing down on the floor, due to my misplacement. A litre of toddy spilled on the floor. We would have to make do with the leftover.

All of us gathered at the dining table and cheered for the occasion of Anniversary. 

We all laughed at the narration of BoP Bangalore’s misnavigation to reach Wayanad. The laughter didn’t stop after that. There was plenty of toddy and time in our hands. Even though a litre was spilled there was enough to go around. We could manage to finish only 4 litres. One litre was still left. After some time, Rohit and Zaheer went out into the town to fetch dinner. The hotel didn’t have a kitchen. They returned with ample quantities of chicken biryani, chilli chicken, rice and some veg, along with sweet dish. The toddy had made our heads heavy and we didn’t eat much food. Tomorrow would be a day to explore.