Ever since we bought 2 cycles from Decathlon last March, we wanted to go touring. However, even daily cycling didn’t go well as we expected. Rains made our cycles idle inside our home for at least 2 months. I and my wife Rajna took rides to the beach road initially. It went really well as cycling at night was fun.
The morning cycling tours within Vypin
I decided to go cycling in the mornings as evening turned out to be busy. Moreover, morning is best to see the places around. There won’t be much traffic, it’ll be a little cold outside, and most importantly the sunrise makes everything looks beautiful. Rajna decided not to come as she doesn’t want to wake up so early. Even though I don’t like to wake up early but there is no other way I can do these rides.
As a preparation for this, we did a short ride on Sunday evening through our local pathways. It went really well. It is that small ride that gave me the idea of these daily morning rides.
1st Day – Monday – Fort Vypin
The plan was to wake up before 6. It was easier than I thought to wake up at that time. I think it’s my desire that actually made me leave with my cycle at 6:30 AM. Fort Vypin was the place chosen to hit the first day in this 5-day plan.
At first, I tried to gain speed by peddling fast. Then I realized that my cycle is an MTB and it doesn’t work like that. Slower and steady rides are its forte. I’ll tell you more about the advantages of having an MTB down the road.
Within 30 minutes I reached the Fort Vypin road endpoint. I took a 10-minute break there. The fishing boats passing the port and the long view of the city were nice to see. Looks like everything is better at the start of the day.
I started my ride back and I started feeling tired and exhausted a bit. It’s because I haven’t done cycling for some time now. I maintained a slower pace in lower gears. This made my peddling easier.
I reached back by 7:40 AM.
2nd Day – Tuesday – Lighthouse, and Beach
On the second day, I was a little more punctual. I was able to get started by 6:30 sharp. I decided to go to the beach, take a round of the lighthouse, and come back through the Valappu beach road. There are really decent roads between Puthuvype Junction – Beach – Valappu Beach – and my home.
This is a common route we take for our evening time rides. By the time I reached the lighthouse, I wanted to rest. Instead of taking a rest at the entrance to the beach, I decided to go to the beach.
The road to the beach was full of rough stones. This is where an MTB scores. My cycle doesn’t have a suspension but still, its grippy tires and solid frame made the ride through this rough terrain bearable.
There were some visitors already there on the beach at this early time of the day. This surprised me. The sea was rough and there were many locals fishing using nets. I took some photos and started to ride back.
What I liked most about coming to the beach is the ability of my bike to let us move through the sand without getting stuck. Normal cycles usually don’t feel this easy to ride in sand. I canceled my plan to go back through Valappu beach as I was already exhausted.
Went back straight home at a slower pace as usual and I completed the ride by 7:45 AM.
3rd Day – Wednesday – Panambukad
By this time I gained some confidence and decided to go a little longer. I had a list of places in my mind to visit these days. We have plenty of options when it comes to picking cycling routes. It’s just that these routes are not familiar to outsiders.
Panambukad is the place that came to my mind next. There are a few things special about this place. This is the island that we see across the river from our place. There is a temple on that island which we can see from here. We can actually hear and see all the music events and drama events they host from this side of the river in between.
Moreover, before the Goshree bridges were built, the Panambukad islanders actually traveled to Ernakulam by coming to our Island in small boats and then catching the Ernakulam boat from Vypin. Thus, we personally know most of the people residing on that island before.
This is the main reason why I wanted to go to this place on my morning rides. I wanted to look at my house from the other side of the river. We have gone there many times since my childhood, through small domestic boats.
With all these nostalgic factors in mind, I started off my home at 6:40 AM. After crossing the first Goshree Bridge I took the road left to Panambukad which passes by the rear side of Vallarpadom Basilica. Even though they are less in number, people in Panambukad are actually very active in the mornings I think. Saw plenty of people engaged in walking, running, playing, etc.
There were many people waiting for buses to go to work. Children were waiting for their school buses. To my surprise, school buses from all top schools in Ernakulam were spotted on the narrow roads of this island at that time. I felt happy that the lifestyle and quality of education on this small island have skyrocketed in the last decade(ever since the Goshree bridges came).
As the name implies I saw many thick Mangrove forests like greeneries there. Cows were resting underneath them. There were also plenty of fish farmlands on both sides of the road. There was a church and multiple temples spotted on the way. First, I decided to go straight to the tip of this island. The road ended in an old boat jetty which is no more active. I could see Karthedom from there, which is another part of my Island. (I didn’t realize it was Karthedom until I visited that place the next day morning:p)
Next, I started to make a visit to the temple and boat jetty that comes straight opposite my house on the other side of the river(Veeranpuzha). Roads became even smaller in width when going inside. The temple is now surrounded by a wall, which actually ruined that open feeling before. I stood there looking at my place for 10 minutes. It was so satisfying.
I returned back soon as I wanted 8 more KMs to reach back home. When I reached back I saw Jose chettan. It was good to see his surprised face when I told him I went to Panambukad in the cycle. It’s just 16 KM but that’s the longest ride I have done so far.
4th Day – Thursday – Karthedom – Pukkad
The idea of going to Karthedom was actually my friend Pavi’s. He and another friend used to cycle to this place during the lockdown period.
I started from home around 6:30ish and moved towards Karthedom after taking a right turn after Malippuram bridge. First came the old royal-looking house where the Mammootty movie ‘Pothanvava’ was shot.
I stopped by the Karthedom church for a minute and resumed moving toward the old boat jetty. The path to the jetty became interesting as it entered a tile paved way. The boat jetty was almost ruined. The view from this place was very cool. You can see tall buildings in the site in the background with small foggy islands in front.
I could also see Panambukad end point from here. It was then I realized it was this place I saw from Panambukad yesterday. There was a small building with a flowering plant in its front, I couldn’t resist taking a photo. I then moved towards Pukkad.
The road to Pukkad was narrow and after a point, it entered an area where it became beautiful with water on both sides. I even saw a few unique birds. Small narrow bridges and fish farming lakes are everywhere here. Cycling through the roads dividing them is a great feeling.
I then saw the main boat jetty at one point and decided to go till the end of the road. It was totally worth it and that was totally looking like a cinema set with old buildings, tea shop, temple, etc. The view from this boat jetty was wider and more scenic than the one in Karthedom.
After spending some time there I decided to get back home. On the way back I entered the state highway through the Elamkunnapuzha bus stop and went straight to my which is 3 KMs away.
5th Day – Friday – Unexplored beaches in Vypin
On the last working day of the week, I decided to make a visit to a less explored stretch of beaches in Vypin. The road from Valappu beach road to Njarakkal is a mysterious path for me. However, we saved this route for later until now as it wasn’t tarred.
Set off from my home at 6:45 AM. I took the Puthuvype beach road and turned to the right towards Valappu beach road. As I knew the road towards these unexplored beaches in going to be gravel paved and not tarred, I asked a few locals to know whether it is good to go.
I started moving through the gravel road and visited a beach area that was almost like a secret place. The path towards the shore and the serene beach made me feel relaxed inside.
I started liking the ride through these off-road conditions as the cycle made me feel very comfortable even in these no-road conditions.
Next, I stopped by another secret beach in that stretch, which was similar to the Puthenthode beach in Chellanam. I had a short Chat with a man there and he told me that the large wood pieces in the beach came with the waves a few weeks ago when the weather was harsh. There were too many dogs in that beach.
After that, I moved towards Elamkunnapuzha beach road. I wanted to go further through the gravel road but the locals told me the road is rougher from here. I the. Started to cycle towards the state highway Elamkunnapuzha bus stop.
On the way, I was lucky enough to explore some more interesting and beautiful places. The Mangroves, sunny conditions, and the water bodies made the background really beautiful.
I came back home by 7:45 AM. I was so happy as I didn’t just do cycling all weekdays but I covered some of the best places on and around my Island. As I know there are numerous other amazing routes in Vypin Islands, I will definitely keep exploring them in the coming days. Stay tuned to catch up with all my stories.
Subscribe to my stories from the bottom if you found this interesting. Have a good day 😊 Stay Healthy ❤️
