Thursday November 25th

Depart Lotus Resort around 8.30-ish and head along highway NH17 for 30km, probably the worst road so far. Everyone on each others side of road to avoid deep potholes, and very slow - 5-10km/hour. Very trying! After a chai stop we head up narrow gravel zig zags and reach Jog Falls, India's largest waterfall. Spectacular!


Time for lunch, and some of us have vegetable curry in the local restaurant - curry, rice, nan bread and a bottle of water - 70p!

Leaving Jog we stop at a wayside garage to have our tyres inflated - we alone seem to be loosing air, some of them having dropped from 30psi to 14psi - must be the gravel getting through the tread!. Finally we reach Murudashwar, after 250km, most on very bad roads. The hotel residency is by the sea, and we later adjourn to a seaside restaurant and eat alfresco. It's very dark with few street lights - and I walk into a deep puddle consisting of I know not what! At the restaurant, Curry again!!

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Next to the hotel is a large Temple and tower, built by the hotel owner in thanks for his life, and this is already a tourist attraction in its own right.