PAYANIGA

It’s been a long while since I rode out of town on a long ride. It’s time to hit the road. Last time it was a two day ride to Madikeri.

Now I’m heading west, towards Mangalore. I’ve four days in hand and a wedding to attend on Sunday. The plan is wide open. As of now probably it’s going to be riding around Udupi, Mangalore & if possible Kasaragod. And looks like I’ll be taking the same route which we took while riding to Goa 15 months ago.

Also on the agenda is to meet couple of bloggers and one of them is a travel blogger.

Previous bike rides:

• Gopalaswamy betta
• Kambadahalli
• Mookana mane falls

Photos from my recent visit to Sringeri, Goddess Sharada’s abode. Nothing much to say from my side, enjoy the photos :)

Silhouette – Lord Vidya Shankara temple

Tunga River

View from the other side of the river

Fishes, as seen from the bridge.

Another silhouete – Temple of Goddess Sharadamba

More details about Sringeri & it’s history –

• Temples and Shrines at Sringeri
• Karnataka Tourism

Virupapura hillock & the stone mantapa
Virupapura, one of the few places that I have visited countless number of times, is a tiny village which has a story linked to Ramayana. Situated around 75 KMs from Bangalore and a stone’s throw way from my native, the place gets the name from Rama. Previously known as Virupakshapura and along with the time, name got changed to Virupapura.

Shivagange as seen from the hill-top
Main reason for me to visit this place repeatedly is the small hillock to the north east of the village & the panoramic view it offers from the top. My usual routine used to be – climb up the hill which doesn’t take more than 15-20 minutes, reach the lone stone mantapa, sit & ponder for hours.

Temple of Lord Siddarameshwara
Link to Ramayana – As per the local stories, when Ravana kidnapped Sita, Rama & Lakshamana in search of her reached this place. And Rama built a temple of Lord Shiva (called as Siddarameshwara temple by villagers) here on the hillock. And there are plenty Custard Apple trees (Sitaphala or Sita’s fruit).

Present sorry state of the hillock
I visited the place after a long gap of 8-9 years. And I could see lot of changes. One main change that bothered me was stone-quarrying. Almost 25-30% of the hillock is missing when compared to old days. Take another 3-4 years, that good old small hillock which inspired me into treks and hikes will disappear forever. It’s hard to digest but that’s the sad truth.

How to reach there –

B’lore – Nelamangala – NH48 – Marur handpost – turn left – Kudur – Sugganahalli – turn left – Virupapura

Or B’lore – Nelamangala – NH48 – Tippasandra handpost – Sankigatta – Mayasandra (my native village :) – Virupapura.

Distnace approx 75 to 80 KMs

Update: Republished as photos were missing :)
Update 2: added route details

Last journey of year 2007 & my first visit to Nandi hills. Travel plan to Nandi was decided on the previous day at 9.30 PM. And our plan was to reach the top by 6-6.15 to catch glimpse of Sunrise. But we were late in starting reached Nandi only at 7.45. End result along with Sunrise, we missed the misty moring.

Bird’s eye view

Leaves & clear blue sky
As soon as we got down, all four of us split and roamed around aimlessly for almost an hour before regrouping for breakfast. After filling our stomach it was time for us to explore the place – Yoganandeeshwara temple, Tippu drop, Nellikayi basavanna & then a quick nap at the view point ;)

Another view from top

FlowerI missed the mist covered mountain top. May be I’ll go there to catch them.

How to reach:

There are different routes to reach Nandi hills – via Doddaballapur & Devanahalli. Suggest you to go via Devanahalli as the road conditions are better.

Similar One Day Outings from Bangalore:

• Devarayana durga
• Achalu betta
• Gopalaswamy betta
• Kambadahalli
• Manchanabele