Conquering Forts and Dams

As I pushed my bike out of the garage this Saturday morning, I looked at the sky - circumspect, after a hatrick of weekend washouts; courtesy: a ravaging Northeast monsoon. Whenever I took the bike out during the past few Saturdays, the rain would come down heavily on me. I had slept for a few hours and had dreary red eyes, but this was my riding day.

The ride out of Chennai, heading towards NH45 is nothing to write about except for the ubiquitous presence of noisy and flashy cars. The sun was yet to rise and I had to rely on my 35W halogen to find a good riding line amidst innumerable potholes. I heaved a sigh of relief after going past the ‘NH 45’ post. The road splits into a 6lanes of smooth tarmac. I could stretch my legs and enjoy a quaint sunrise over a cuppa Tea. [Sorry, I made up the last one]

The traffic on NH45 is very light and runs past Ford’s Chennai facility and the upcoming BMW assembly plant. I guess BMW will Indianise their Bangled 1,2,3..7 series in the bylanes of Chennai. Ford has planted lots of trees in their campus that kept their upcoming cars away from the prying eyes of moto-photo-enthusiast and their lenses.

My bike, a Classis 150cc Pulsar, has gathered lots of rust of late, but it surprised me, as always, during the ride with its mile-munching abilities emitting a low growl sound track. The 50 and 100km mark on the trip-meter was dismissed in no time, with a ‘duck-crossing’ livening up the otherwise insipid ride. The NH45 connects to the NH66 through a small village road with a train crossing that helped me with a saddle-break.

If the NH45 is a tolled 6/4 laner, the NH66 is a single-laned beauty. The scenery is stunning with its rocky cliffs and road-abutting water tanks. The 30km ride to Gingee fort was best spent in cornering hard and fast. The pilgrims heading for Thiruvannamalai contribute to the traffic, as expected zip past in their hired Qualises/Innovas. [Depending on which Gen you belong to, but basically they are the same -> loud honking + loud music + overloading + over speeding= biker’s nightmare]

The locals are very helpful with directions and so please thank them for even small favours. I did have a pre-conceived notion about Gingee fort- a moderately built and over-hyped place that passes off as a tourist destination. But I was proved wrong, the fort is truly magnificent and it symbolises victory and power. It has got separate swimming pool, gymnasium, marriage hall, gardens, cannons and pathways. It was like going back 500years in time without actually leaving the present. The trek up to the top is truly arduous in the form of step granite steps. The fort is actually on top of a granite hillock and had been a safe-haven for many a ruler. There is no history of any ruler being defeated in battle while staying in this fort. How can someone climb that flight of steps and fight in the battle without succumbing to exhaustion?



I had planned to ride till Sathanur dam, a further 65km away. I was running out of time and I had to be back home by 6pm in Chennai or face the wrath of the city-motorist armed with his array of honks and high beams. There are lots of trees lined along the NH66 that should keep this route wide open to a biker even during peak summer. The proximity to Banglore also throws up lots of cars with Soft-Pros nut look alike at the wheel. They are no better than a tourist cab driver, probably they are venting their pent up anger from the cubicled environment.

For the spiritually inclined, there are the temples of Thiruvannamalai and Ramana Maharishi Ashram. The later is famous for the ‘Who Am I?’ quote.

The road to the Sathanur dam is only as wide as an Ambassador car. The rural scenery with quaint country side hoses and cattle set up an idyllic environment that needs to be enjoyed by puttering through and not a high speed rip, which in any case is impossible due to the rain-ravaged roads. The children wave and smile at you, the women look at you as if you were an astronaut. The men folk, well, don’t do much anyway and just stare.

Thanks to the monsoon, the water in Sathanur dam stood at 110ft, held in place with just an iron gate and dam walls. It is scary to be on the wrong side of the dam, the potential energy can rip apart everything in 50km vicinity. The attached crocodile farm has some mighty reptiles but photography of any form is strictly not allowed.

The ride was a tough one, having to cover 450km in one day and to spend time in the fort and dam. I had to keep a strict eye on my watch. A shower on the way did help in cooling the temperature and gave an earthly-fragrance, but didn’t dent my travel time. As usual, the tougher the ride, the more pleasant is the experience.

Generally, I don’t like mentioning numbers like km, time, speed etc in my trip log, but for the benefit of future riders.

[5:45am] Start [0km]
[7:45am] Tindivanam [120km]
[8:45-10am] Gingee fort [150km]
[11:00am] Thiruvannamalai [195km]
[12:20-1:20pm] Sathanur Dam [230km]
[5:45pm] Chennai [435km]

[6:00pm] Home [455km]