Cycling, experience, fitness, travel

A trip to Jawadhu hills

Jawadhu hills or jawadhu malai is situated in the Tiruvannamalai district of southern most state of india, Tamilnadu. awadhu hill is a nice weekend getaway from Chennai.  If you want to know more about the Jawadhu Hills. My first visit to jawadhu hills was during the ‘Greencruiser 400 BRM’ in Jan 2020 and my second visit was during ‘Jawadhu 400 BRM’ in the subsequent year January.

Many of us have already completed the SR series and wanted further practice at hills. Also after my first ultra randonneuring experience the feeling was to practice more hill rides. We chose to go to jawadhu as a weekend trip by car and return on the same day. Five cycles in a car , three in a rack and other two inside the back seat of Innova.

We gathered at padma’s house at 5:00 am in the morning, dismantled our cycles and put two of the cycles inside the backside of car along with the wheels of all five cycles. Then fixed the rack and loaded the three cycles and secured firmly. We had our first break near mamandur and then proceeded towards polur. We had our breakfast in a road side shop. Egg dosa and idly were gulped by us and then reached a friends house, known through Shiva Raju.

We unloaded the cycles and started the assembling the wheels and checked tyre pressures and then applied lubes to chain and gear. After assembly did a small test ride and gathered again. The area was full of paddy fields.

All five of us started riding from polur and reached the check  post after which we started climbing at our own pace. It was rising gradually and then once the hair pin bend sign boards are seen, the climb becomes steeper. For well practised legs it isn’t much steep. There were a total of five hairpin bends and at the end of the fifth hairpin bend a watch tower is available from where the panoramic views are stunning. I enjoyed the scene and forgot to take pic from the top. I realised it only after descending from watch tower.

Watch tower at Jawadhu hill

I reached there quickly in less than 45 minutes and descended till I saw padma and rode with him to the 5th hair pin bend. After taking some pics we rode again to the next person and climbed again. In this way all we repeated till all five of us were there at the top. We took some group pics and some local kids joined us too.

It was rainy season and the weather was also pleasant. We descended till check post and looked out for snacks in the nearest shop. And then took some pics befor leaving.

Then went to the friend’s house in polur, dismantled our wheels and put two cycle frames in the rear side along with ten wheels and then the remaining three frames in the rack. We then reached polur junction and lucky to have the meals. After the meals we proceeded via Uthiramerur route and then reached home by 10:00 pm in the night.

The journey time, dismantling and assembling the cycles at both onward and return took more time than the actual hill ride practice. So we decided that for the next hill ride practice sessions in the subsequent months will stay overnight.

See you in the next hill ride.