It was fun filled rain ride, covering a distance of little over 700 KMs in two days.

• Bangalore to Gonikoppa: A rainy start
• Irpu falls
• Bhagamandala and Talakaveri
• Visits to Lord Igguttappa temples
• Bylukuppe: The Golden Temple

Route taken-

Day 1: Bangalore - Maddur - Srirangapatna - Hunasur - Gonikoppa - Srimangala - Irpu - Srimangala - Gonikoppa - Virajapet

Day 2: Virajapet - Murnadu - Bhagamandaal - Talakaveri - Bhagamandala - Nelija - Kakkabbe - Virajapet - Gonikoppa - Hunusur - Srirangapatna - Bangalore.

PS: It's been a busy schedule at work. Though I managed to travel over weekends, finding it tough to update payaniga. Hope everything comes back to normal soon. :(

Two months after my bike trip to Coorg, I was back in that beautiful district. But this time the visit was for half day & restricted to Namdroling Monastery at Bylukuppe. Being Saturday Monastery was buzzing with activity, but inside the Golden Temple it was complete silent and peaceful.

A student monk. He was more interested looking out of the class room instead of listening to the lectures.

Paintings inside the temple are huge, beautiful and very nicely done.

My visit was of very short duration. Just touch and go. This place is still there in my list of places to be visited :)

Also read:

• Bike trip to Coorg
• Kumara Parvatha
• Mallalli Falls

From Nelija, we rode towards Kakkabbe where another Igguthappa temple at Paadi is situated. Again here the temple was closed due to renovation. After spending some time roaming around the place, we started our journey back home, to Bangalore.

During our visit over 2 dyas, we managed to see few places. But still there are plenty of places that I've to visit - Tadiyandamol, Brahmagiri, Nalknaadu aramane, Abbi falls, Dubbaare - the list is endless.

Bhagamandala is a pilgrimage place in Kodagu, Karnataka, in India. It is situated on the river Kaveri in its upstream stretches. At this place, the Kaveri is joined by two tributaries, the Kannika and Sujyoti rivers. It is considered sacred as a river confluence (kudala or sangama, in Kannada and Sanskrit respectively).

It is a common practice for pilgrims to take a dip in the sangama and perform rituals to their ancestors before proceeding to Talakaveri, the birthplace of Kaveri. During Tula Sankramana which falls on October 17th or 18th, pilgrims assemble here in large numbers.

After spending sometime there & a quick visit to Bhagundeshwara temple, we headed to Talakaveri, the birth place of river Kaveri located at Brahmagiri hill. Quick bits from Wiki –

Talakaveri, is the place that is generally considered to be the source of the Kaveri River. It is located in the Brahmagiri hill (not to be confused with the Brahmagiri range further South) near Bhagamandala in Kodagu district, Karnataka, 1,276 m. above sea level. However, there is not a permanent visible flow from this place to the main river course.

Continued - Lord Igguttappa temples

Related links:

• Sringeri
• Kambadahalli
• Himavad Gopalaswamy Temple

By the time we reached there it was close to noon & raining had stopped. And the place was filled with tourists. Sandeep & Ganesh decided to take a dip while Nithin guarded luggage. I roamed around for sometime taking few photos & then sat silently enjoying the beauty of the nature.

Legend says that, this falls was formed when Lakshamana shot an arrow to fetch some drinking water for his elder brother Rama, during their visit while searching for Seeta. Lakshamana theertha flows westwards & later joins river Kaveri. There is also a temple of Lord Rama.

How to reach:

Gonikoppa – 25KMs - Srimangala - continue towards Kutta - 7KMs - turn right - 3KMs – Irpu.

Related links:

• Mallalli Falls
• Somavathi falls
• Dabbe falls
• Mookana Mane Abbi falls

4.40 AM, Oct 20, 2007. I was waiting for other riders at the scheduled meeting place – near Mysore road – NICE road junction at Kengeri. When rest three reached the place in a span of 15 minutes, all of us were wet to the innermost layer of the clothes. It was pouring heavily. For a moment I thought of turning back home, but made up my mind and decided to continue with the ride.

For the next two days it was fun filled & rain filled ride. Where ever we went rain followed us. From Kengeri it was a non-stop ride till Srirangapatna. By the time we reached Srirangapatna, rain eased out. And when we stopped next at Hunsur for breakfast, we were almost dry. After the breakfast Srik turned back towards Bangalore as he had office. Rest three (Ganesh, Sandeep & I) continued. En route Irpu falls, we tried our luck of passing through Nagarahole. But we came to know by people at Hunsur that two wheelers are not allowed in Nagarahole. So we took different route to reach Gonikoppa. Nitin, Ganesh’s friend was waiting for us at Srimangala who acted as a guide for two days. And all of us were happy that we were completely dry. But by the time we reached Irpu falls, we were wet again.

Highlight of the day was riding through Rajiv Gandhi Wild Sanctuary between Hunsur & Gonikoppa. Animals sighted - few common deer & Pea fowls.

Continued – Irpu falls

Related links:

• Goa
• Gopalaswamy Betta
• Manchanabele