Ooty cycling expedition

In the month of April 2017, I participated in Yhai's Western Ghats cycling expidition which started from Ooty. Here, I share my expirence.

April 23^rd

We left Bangalore by car at 9am and reached Ooty by 4pm. The rest of the day was free and we just roamed around the streets of Ooty.

Cycling Distance = 0km

April 24^th

Today we received our cycles ( a firefox target ). They then conducted a test ride on the route to the Doddabetta peak. The ride was 7.5kms one way but totally uphill. The elevation was so much that unintentional wheelies were common. The downhill was super fun though! We were back to the Ooty base camp by lunch time. We were let free for the rest of the day and visited the botanical garden which was 1.5kms away. (visit not sposered by yhai )

Cycling Distance = 15kms

April 25^th

Today our destination was to Manjur which was 35kms away. We were told that 30kms would be downhill and the rest 5 would be uphill ( really steep ).We lwft the base camp at about 8:30am and reached Manjur at about 4pm. Participants took a lot of photos as the ride was really scenic and passed through lush green tea gardens. Once we reached Manjur, we visited a local tea factory.( visit not sponsored by yhai ). The night was to be spent in a Government school.

Cycling Distance = 35kms

Elevation = -250m

April 26^th

The next destination was Masinagudi which was 45kms away. But due to some reason 20kms was covered in a pickup truck. The rest 25kms was a gradual climb. But the area covered in the vehicle  was all downhill. We reached Masinagudi by 5:30pm and freshened up. 6 of us wanted to go for a safari. ( not yhai sponsored and there are local safari jeeps willing to take you on a safari ). It costed each one of us Rs120. We were able to spot deers, elephants, bisons, peacocks and wild boars.

Cycling Distance = 25kms

Elevation = -800m

April 27^th

Our next destination was Naduvattam  which was 30kms away. According to me, this was the toughest leg of the expidtion. The uphill was way too steep. We reached Naduvattam at 4:30pm and then just roamed the streets. Once we were back, sleeping arrangements were ready in a government school.

Distance = 30kms

Elevation = 800m

April 28^th

Today was the final day which involved cycling. The distance to cover was only 35 kms with a  very gradual climb of 250m. We left Naduvattam at 9:30am and made it back to the base camp at 12:30pm. Since we overshot the lunch point, we had lunch in a restaurant in Ooty. We spent the rest of the day shopping ( especially for chocolates ) and certificates were distributed in the evening.

Cycling distance = 35kms

Elevation = 250m

April 29^th

This was the final day and we visited the rose garden which is about 3.5 kms from the camp once we checked out.

After all this was a really pleasant experience with yhai and was worth every single penny. The food was outstanding, and the staff were in plenty and were always there to help you. Although they could cut down on those pickup truck rides.

Goa Cycling Expedition - Dec 2016

During my 10th grade Christmas vacations, I attended Goa Cycling Expedition conducted by YHAI, for a duration of 7 days from 20th December to 28th December.

DAY 1

We left from Bangalore to Goa, journey of 1 hr by air and reported at Base Camp Panaji.
It was the reporting day ( 20/12/2016 for us ).We spent the rest of the day at Miramar beach which was a kilometer away.


DAY 2

We woke up at about 6:30 in the morning and had a stretching session. After that, we had breakfast at about 7:45.Later we had a brief introduction session and were given cycles. Later in the day there was an eligibility test which everyone had to pass. Then we were taken to a place where there were some challenging uphill climbs. Post that, we returned to base camp and had lunch. In the evening we had a 6 km ( one way ) joy ride to Dona Paula point from where we could have a scenic view of Goa. We then returned and had dinner and later had to deposit our extra luggage and packed our necessary things in a ruck sack for our expediton that would start the next day.                



DAY 3

The next day, we woke up at 6 in the morning and had breakfast and took packed lunch at about 7:30 and left by 7:45. We went to Dauna Paula ferry point where we took a ferry to Vasco. From there on it was highway cycling for about 20 kms and then we took a turn and then headed on to one of Goa's inner roads and continued for about 15 kms till we reached Colva beach, We stopped there and had our packed lunch. It was about 1 pm at that time.From there, we cycled for about 8 kms on the beach, The experience was really nice. After 8 kms at about 4 pm, we took a deviation onto a road and continued for about 5 kms. At about 4:30 pm, we reached our night's camp (Assolna). At 5:30 pm, we had tea and  snacks  and dinner was served at 7:45 pm. We went to bed at 10:15 pm.


DAY 4

Today's ride was from Assolna to Netravali. We left at about 7:30 am and reached at about 1 pm. It was a really good ride as it passes through lush green forests. Even the camp is in the middle of the Netravali Wildlife Reserve. It was about 40 kms that day. Later we trekked about 6 kms down to a waterfall. It was really nice and refreshing.We had dinner at 8 pm and went to bed at 10 pm.


DAY 5

Today's ride was somewhat similar to  yesterday's ride. Again, riding through forest area....It was exciting. We left at about 8 am and reached Karmane camp at  about 3:30 pm. The ride was 35 kms long but felt much longer. We then  had a group meeting once we reached the camp regarding the ride on day 6.


DAY 6

Today was the most longest and toughest ride of 55 kms. Those who wanted a bigger challenge were given an option to visit the Tambdi Surla temple (built in the 13th century). which would mean an additional 22 kms. To cover this distance, we left our camp at 7 am and reached Khandepar camp at 4 pm.This ride also included a 6 km offroad uphill climb.


DAY 7

We left Khandepar camp at 8;30am as it was a really short distance to the base camp 40 kms and that too downhill. We reached base camp at around 12pm and received a warm welcome.

I thoroughly enjoyed my cycling expedition and got to make friends with a lot of people from different states of India.



TIPS AND HACKS

1.Always stay with the group as you wont miss on photos and other things.
2.Never be way too ahead as it gets boring after a while and moreover you may loose your direction.
3.On day 4,5 and 6, be very careful as there is no mobile network ( except BSNL ) so, if you are lost, you'll be lost for a long time.
4,On day 4 and 6,if you are uncomfortable carrying packed lunch, don't worry because along the route, there will be shacks that offer omelette, vada pav and other food stuff.
5.Make sure your cycle has been well oiled and has enough of air in the tires.
6.Keep yourself well hydrated and drink coconut water or sugarcane juice on the way.