Mahindra Mojo - Jungle Trails 2016
Jungle Trail -2016
Motorcycles were meant to be ridden and boy did we ride! 1000 odd km's through jungles, with a mix of solid tarmac, loose soils taking us through the beautiful village roads of Karnataka, Kerala Tamilnadu and back into Karnataka.
When Mojo came into the picture, many trails evolved along with it, Jungle Trail was on the top and brought in much excitement. On a not so cold and not so warm morning of 29th April, 25 plus bikes were flagged off from Whitefield in all its fancy. Naveen Malhotra (Head of Marketing & Product Planning) flagged off the boys and also wished he could ride along. We had riders from Mumbai Pune and Chennai joining us to make it a big success.
After negotiating the traffic we had our first regroup point just before Nelamangala flyover, and then the open roads ahead let us ride in peace. The day was hot and we were all suited up in the riding gears, which did definitely slow us down but never topped us. With hydration stops and quick smoke breaks we landed up at Hotel Mayura for breakfast. Few of us were new to Mojo and took a while to catch up, the early birds took, this time, to hang around take some pics and get the bikes checked by the Technician. This ride had solid preparation behind it and that reflected along the ride,a well-planned route and a solid support crew to follow. This made sure we accepted surprises as it happened and ensured that it didn’t slow us down in anyways.
Bangalore heat has been unbearable and Chikmangalur’s coffee plantation was the only ray of hope for us. Riding along the narrow and winding roads of Chikmangalur made us forget the heat and tiredness. Riders were fresh the moment the greenery kicked in and we could see people relaxing and enjoying the ride much better. The first halt for the night was at Eagle Eye Resort and what a fun place to start with. Bikes parked safe, boys checked in to get fresh and land back around the campfire for some fun. We had a long riding day and few of us were tired and loved to hit the sack, However, Mr. Govindarajan(DGM R&D – Vehicle Testing) had a session planned and brought in some Mojo Love. He kick started with Mojo Story and how it came to be. He also made sure to share technical specifications of the bike and the functionalities. This was welcomed by the new owners as they could understand the bike a bit better. Following a quick round of feedback sessions, Dinner was served and we called it a day.
Day 2 saw boys waking up in peace and dragging themselves out of the comfy beds, the view around was beautiful and made it even tougher to let go. After a long round of photo session and good breakfast, the day's plan was shared and boys got on the bike and rolled out. The day ahead would see us covering more greenery as we pass through Mudhigere touch the highway at Hassan Bellur cross and then vanish into the Jungles of Kushal Nagar. If you have taken this route, I am sure you want to redo this again and again and again. Bikers get a mix of all, Straight stretch to go full throttle, Winding roads that get you the chicken strip happiness and rough terrains to push the foot peg and stand and send. These roads deserve all your attention or you will be pushed away like road kill, actually, it’s not just these roads, Its motorcycles as such. You are going against the laws of science and if you don’t know what you are doing then you will learn it the hard way. 
So much fun on the road and we took solid 10 hours riding with ease and landed up at Kadamakoli resort just before dark. From T shettigeri bus stop it's all noodles and if you don’t keep an eye you are in the woods. The roads are narrow but well-laid tarmac makes sure you have all the fun you can. Few of us went off the road and came back with a grin, what fun it was. We knew we are heading in deep and would be camping in tents for the night, few of us were grinning as we landed up at the spot, and we were surrounded by greenery and had a good camp set up to lighten up. Kadamakoli resorts are a laid back set up and might not offer you the fancies of life, but if you wish to just lazy around and do some nature related activities this is the place for you. We had done close to 600 km's in the last two days and the fatigue was slowly kicking in, few of them haven’t done such ridesand though they were excited the body wasn’t helping and had to crawl back to their respective tents.
Day 3 was here and the roads ahead lead to beautiful Masinagudi.While doing that we jumped one state a time, so we entered Kerala near kutta and then from there Gudalur to enter Tamilnadu and from Bandipur to Karnataka. This was a thrilling experience and we did it while riding through the tea plantations and scenic views. We had long forgotten the heat and were enjoying the spirit of a road trip. Greenery as far as you could see and the fragrance of different stuff as we move on brought alive the senses. At Masinagudi we were way before time and that was kickass, people threw around the stuff and took off on the jungle safari that awaited them. Few were lucky to get a glimpse of elephant herd while few managed to spot a leopard. Wild Haven was the halt for tonight and was well known for animal spotting. We managed to ride parallel with a huge Tusker, he did slow down and ask us to step back which we obliged and let him move ahead. This was a really huge one and the task was as long as me. 
The evening turned into more fun when the campfire kicked in along with live barbecue. Food at Wild Haven topped my list as My munched the fish fry on a repeat mode, I am going back there again for the animal spotting and maybe for more fish.
Day 4 saw few of us riding up to Ooty and coming back on time to join the crowd, from here on it was to be a slightly fast pace ride as we had experiences to share and way to eager to go back to our family and friends. After the lunch stop at Adigas near Mandya we took off to Moto cafe & Store to pick up some ride goodies, cut a cake and celebrate the ride. Bengaluru welcomed us with some drizzles and we didn’t complain. We did about 1200 km's and had our share of minor breakdowns but nothing that we couldn't look back and laugh at.
With dreams of riding the mountains and a rough plan we split from Motocafe and promised to join along and be a part of more rides.
Next up on the line is Mountain Trail and is scheduled around last week of first week of July.
Gps Extracts
Google drive link
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