The Great Arc 1st Recce Notes
Day 1 – 2 Jan 07
Kanyakumari to Arc
At last we are away to the Arc after so much planning, bike preparation, mapping, shipping and anticipation. To run the Arc – is it unattainable?
This adventure will soon reveal all as Uday, in his 1942 Willys jeep, and I, on a 2006 KTM 4000 EXC, which for some reason has become know as Freecloud, drive the short 1 hour ride out of Kanyakumari along the Coromandel Coast to locate 77 degrees 41 minutes. The Meridian know as the ‘The Great Arc’
But even getting to the Arc is too much for Uday and he immediately heads straight to road meeting #2.
The Great Arc
I on the other hand run straight off-road into plantation country. A relief in a way to know that at least the first stage is possible off road. This agricultural land is easy to cross, flat hot and very tropical. It feels all too easy at the moment, but what is to come?
Rendezvous with Uday and spend the afternoon having great fun criss-crossing the river deltas, riding the sand and running across the dry river beds. But then the terrain gets more difficult and the river crossings become deeper and more challenging.
The villages and their life come and ago every 5 miles or so. I on a bright orange rally motor bike am quite a novelty in this land that the 21st century has forgotten. And being orange Freecloud appears quite wonderful wondering the countryside.
Fortunately Freecloud loves the rivers, including the scrub land covered in harsh punishing thorn bushes, that is until we grind to a halt when puncture no 1 strikes! Followed by puncture no 2!
With Uday’s mechanic at hand learning the hard way he quickly repairs the puncture in a fast 4 hours! (Mr. Mechanic soon gets to grip fixing punctures rapidly as the punctures go by.)
We strike camp after the sun has gone, at the side of the road, just west off the Arc, conveniently just behind a welcoming chi stall.
So glad I brought the chairs and table for the fantastic omeletts and chapatti. This is the last place I would ever expect to see myself sleeping! But this is bike riding along the Arc, and the Arc only runs north away from our other world into an unknown tomorrow.
29 Arc (straight line) Miles for the day. 42 miles by my route so plus 13 miles
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Day 2 – 3 Jan 07
Uday and I head straight off road taking us both across railway lines to and run North West of the Arc.
The terrain is delta wet sand protected by cruel thorns. Misplace Uday, and by the time I have crossed the river bed, puncture no 1 of the day has Freecloud and I marooned under a bridge waiting for Uday and Mr Mechanic.
The next river proves impassable to the timid. I run into Tirunelveli and cross the bridge in the town, and back along the north bank to pick up the Arc again.
Find thin strip of graded gravel, more of footpath than track. But very tight for the jeep so take it easy following this track north wind in and out of the villages. Some great chi stops, more importantly we run very close to the Arc.
Fantastic fun these dirt tracks just letting Freecloud run lose playing with the acceleration and clutch for mile after mile after mile; village after village after village.
Then puncture 2 as the sun sets! Plod into village at Achchmpatri, just 1 km off the Arc and the kind villagers invite us to stay in their temple. Wheel off / tyre off fixed again. Chapatti / Omelette and unroll mat to sleep next to the God Ganish.
58 Arc Miles to date. 93 Bike miles = + 35 miles
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Day 3 - 4 Jan 07
Woken as the villages pray alongside us dozing strangers in their temple.
After breakfast Uday and I are straight back on the Arc with a reasonable country road running only 0.5 degrees east off the Arc line.
At Kalugumalai we run the same distance from the Arc on the Arc’s west side. Beautiful countryside, peaceful roads with delightful chi stops. Both Uday and I are now in the swing of the Arc and enjoy the beauty of the countryside and the unbelievable fact that we are here!
Starting to work the compass well which allows us to run close to the Arc. Only rivers seem to interrupt the flow of the country side running north.
The river crossing are the most challenging and time consuming, with the inevitable bank side debate ‘can’ or ‘can it not’ be crossed?
Until that is the hills surrounding the Upper Vaigai Valleys interrupt the flow of the Arc. Both Uday in his jeep and I on the bike always try to keep Arc close, but through the hills it becomes more difficult. There must be a way to follow the Arc but that is something for others to find as we are doing the default route. That said the road we did take gave us a great drive and keeping the hills to our west ran very close to the contours of the hills to get us back onto the Arc line.
Run very late and reach the Cardamom House in the dark after an hour of very punishing roads – who would ever get here? But for all the hardship of getting to the guest house the welcome by the eccentric owner Chris Lucas is delightful, and an enjoyable dinner waits. A welcome change from chapattis and omelettes. Even a bed tonight!
148 Arc miles so far. 257 Bike miles = + 109
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Day 4 – 5 Jan 07
Rest day to service Freecloud, oil and filter change, nut and bolt check. All’s well. KTM running well and without any problems – except tyres which are looking worn and so on with new tyres. But +109 miles is not good enough – come Jan 08 this would be a long way down the leader board - need to do better.
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Day 5 - 6 Jan 07
Plantations, river crossings and cart tracks take us around the lake out of the plain to the start of one of greatest of all hill climbs. Snaking up the side of the Palani Hill with stunning views south across the tropical south. This is a spectacular unknown country. No possibility of following the Arc, but what a ride!
Once over the hill the plain gives us every possibility to run back onto the Arc, off road. Great countryside to ride for miles and miles.
And so Uday and I run the dirt tracks north until night fall. 11 hours in the saddle - what a great day. Life does not get better than this!
Now travelled 100 % more than the Arc miles. I did think we were keeping close! Not close enough this Arc running!
180 Arc miles. 376 Bike miles = + 196
Day 6 – 7 Jan 07
From our village night stop two immediate rivers prove too hard for Uday’s Willys jeep. But I think bikes should give it a go.
Criss-crossing the Arc well today. Pleased with progress and can now read the GPS’ accurately to follow the longitude and latitude and be able to coordinate this with the electronic compass.
Then came across an amazing old dried up canal and tow path.
It was extraordinary running along the old path across ruins of stone bridges, down into the canal bed, up the banks back on to the path.
Fantastic fun and run so very close to Arc.
217 Arc miles. 460 Bikes miles = + 253
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Day 7 – 8 Jan 07
This is quite some day.
Little off road, but one of the most memorable drives anywhere I have been. The Cauvery River is quite glorious snaking the Arc with wonderful forest covered hills rising up and up both sides of this magnificent river.
Then suddenly a wild elephant with trunk high, trumpet blazing, rushed ungainly out of the undergrowth to chase Freecloud and I.
Luckily he appeared on the road behind me but I feared for Uday. Willys jeeps are built like an elephant, but in a straight head to head? However, all’s well.
Run the sand late in day to the river bank and cross with Freecloud on the smallest vehicle ferry in service any where on this earth.
Half way across this 500 yard wide fast following river with two smiling locals, Freecloud and I in a Mosses basket, you can only start to doubt your own sanity.
But not this small craft for Uday. I think maybe Uday and Mr Mechanic were thankful? And so the jeep had a long around trip to cross 500 yards.
On the other bank the locals get the fire going and we camp on the river bank and watch the sky change from blue to red to black to bright stars. Cook serves chapattis and omelettes. But at least no punctures for 2 days!
265 Arc miles. 670 Bike miles = + 315 miles
Day 8 - 9 Jan 07
Carry on with this pretty drive across the hill country climbing up onto the Deccan plateau at 3500 ft.
Lose the Arc for a number of reasons today. Hills take us too far west and then lost a track and never found others to take us back onto the right route, so decide to cut across west to Bangalore via the National Park.
Seemed to end up circling the park’s perimeter to find the entrance on the far west side. But being a Tuesday the part was closed, of course..
Putting this frustration aside the drive into Bangalore was fun, not your everyday city drive. But the Arc miles are slipping away.
330 Arc miles. 670 Bike miles = + 340 miles
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Day 9 – 10 Jan 07.
Well earned rest day and tea on the lawn at the Taj West End.
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Day 10 – 11 Jan 07.
Left late so hard drive out of city.
We had to pick up the Arc north-west of the city. Having crossed a main railway bridge and moved away from the city lights the world is changing. Gone are the tropical plantations and the easy going south with agriculture and chi stops; now it is rugged arid big open rock covered and very beautiful countryside I can leap across with Uday in tow.
Looking away from you the countryside just expands, open and is very beautiful. The only restriction to running the Arc is your own apprehension.
But first cross the forest. Run where you like, just follow the Arc!
Finish the day with a very pleasant ride up into a hill village. This is rather delightful with hospitable villagers who put weary travellers up in the village school house; feed us well on chapattis, omelettes and chi.
371 Arc miles. 765 Bike miles = + 394 miles
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Day 11 – 12 Jan 07
Extraordinary drive across the low lying hills on the plateau of the Deccan, snaking the Arc.
No-one in sight, no trucks or any busses or cars. Just one orange KTM, one Willys jeep, a few bullock carts plus the odd bicycle minding their own business.
Afternoon find crossing over the railway and back onto tracks with a slow run, the Willys held back by the quite fantastic off-road terrain. Quite magnificent riding.
In some cases the terrain is too much for the jeep, but next time I can run this very close to the Arc.
Stayed the night in Sai Baba ashram. What a place – a story (or even a book) on one very bazaar night. For another time!
417 Arc miles. 872 Bike miles = + 456 miles.
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Day 12 – 13 Jan 07.
This is where the real Arc runners will stay close to the Arc with some quite outstanding off-road sections all day long. Great landscape and fantastic opportunities for the brave to run off road along the Arc.
Around 5pm made a dash to cross the Erra Vonka River. Streams cross, some deep, some shallow, blocked our path. This was getting hard and with the sun setting admitted defeat and returned to make camp at Chigicheria. Not before the first puncture for a few days crossing the thorn covered river bed in the dark of the Indian night.
457 Arc miles. 971 Bike miles = + 514 miles
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Day 13 – 14 Jan 07
What a day – Morning drive east around the tank to Narasiouram then off-road all
day!
Very hard going to start, rock littered terrain, trying work for both Uday and myself. But we cut across the terrain and start to make Arc miles by the afternoon. There is
everything - dust, sand, fields, tracks, villages, chi stops – but we run very close to
the Arc.
It is now the Arc challengers will start to sort out the leading group. Camp at
Nella Vallie.
490 Arc miles. 1033 Bike Miles = + 543 miles
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Day 14 – 13 Jan 07
Hard rock country today covering tough terrain.
Once across the railway and then the river crossing the day’s adventure begins. This is
some tough terrain to cross and for the jeep very slow going. But we are both are patient and cut across the landscape of broken rutted tracks, sand and more sand!
River is too wide to cross. Admit defeat and cross over by bridge to camp at Ij
546 Arc miles. 1135 Bike miles = + 590 miles
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Day 15 – 14th Jan 07
What a shame – Uday it’s our last day! Big photos on the last Arc crossing and run into Hyderabad. Can it be over? – 14 fantastic adventure packed days – until next year that is.
Thanks to all.
