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. :(

River Tunga. We had to cross the river. And we had three options -

1. By bus over the bridge.
2. Using a hanging bridge which was half a kilometer away.
3. By walk through knee deep water

Place: Hariharapura, 15 KMs from Sringeri in Chikkamagalur district.

People were busy washing their clothes, bathing.

He saw me. Stopped his work for a moment. Smiled at me & continued with his chores.

Crossing the river was quite an adventure. Trying not to get our clothes wet & along with carrying the camera. Though it was knee deep, currents were pretty strong.

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

Just back from Sharavathi valley after a two day adventerous exploratory trek, from Kanoor to Nagavalli. Though Kanoor - Doctor mane (Doctor's house) - Kanoor Kote (Kanoor Fort) is a known explored trek path, we kept Kanoor as starting point and end point Nagavalli via Doctor's house & decided to explore a new route with the help of Ganapati of Sharavathi Adventure Trails.

If you ask me which was the best moment of the trek, it's very difficult to pick one from the below list -

• Traveling in a luggage carrier for 10+ KMs after a bus journey of 10 hours
• Getting scratched by thorns as we trek. And you look ahead to find no path, all you can see is thorny bushes
• You reach stream after 4 hours of trek or rather say exploration, and jump into it immedeatly
• Lunch is ready & served, you are hungry, but you can't eat because it's steaming hot :)
• Everyone volunteers to help for preparing dinner. Menu: Chapathis, Rice, Sambar & Moong dal Kheer (hesaru bELe paayasa)
• No lights around and you have moonlight dinner
• After a sumptuous dinner, you go on a night trek for a KM
• And to top it all, journey of 40KMs sitting/lying down on the bus top
• You duck/bend every time when someone shouts to avoid tree branches & electric wires

Previous: Kumara Parvatha

We woke up to witness a beautiful & peaceful morning. Rain God was in a good mood & we were spared from getting drenched. We repacked our backpacks, thanked our hosts & started back towards Beedalli. We were bit late to reach the place & we missed the bus again. Luckily a jeep was available and owner of the jeep agreed to take us to Mallalli falls & then drop us at Somavarpet.

To reach Mallalli falls, one has to take a deviation at Hanchinalli. Hanchinalli comes 2 KMs before Beedalli when travelling from Somavarpet towards Beedalli. From Hanchinalli it's a bumpy jeep track for 2 to 3 KMs. And then a walk for almost a kilometer. It was completely misty even at 11 in the morning. End of wonderful walk brought us to the view point which gives us a majestic view of the falls. Though we had lots of time, we decided not to go down to the foot of the falls as it was very slippery on the rocks.

We spent a quality time over there enjoying the roaring waterfalls. And then headed back home. A jeep journey till Somavarpet, a quick lunch & then back to Bangalore by bus. End of another wonderful weekend & still Kumara Parvatha peak unconquered.

Waterfalls of Karnataka:

• Dabbe falls
• Somavathi falls
• Soochippara falls
• Jog

My third visit to Western Ghats in less than two months period. First one to Sharavathi valley & next one to Kudremukha range. This time we were heading towards Kumara Parvatha or Pushpagiri, which marks as a boundary to Kodagu (Coorg) & Dakshina Kannada districts of Karnataka. But this time we started on a wrong foot.

Our plan was to start trek from Somawarapet side, camp near the summit on day one & then get down towards Kukke Subrahmanya on day two. But instead of booking bus tickets to Somawarapet, we landed in Virajpet on that Saturday morning at 4.15 AM. From Virajpet we changed two busses to reach Somawarapet via Madikeri. By the time we reached Somawarapet, the only direct bus to take us to starting point had already left. After breakfast at Somawarapet, we took a bus till Kannahalli Katte & the conductor of the bus arranged for a jeep to take us to Beedahalli or Beedalli - trek starting point.

It was cloudy & started drizzling when we started our trek. Initial 3 KMs is along well laid road till the village 'Heggade Mane'. There is a temple in Heggade Mane where one can pitch camp there. We were still discussion our options whether to go ahead to the peak or camp near the temple as it was already 2 PM. Finally we decided to trek further. After getting permission from the forest office (a small one room office further down from the temple), we marched ahead. As it was monsoon, there were plenty of water streams which we had to cross during our ascent. With every step, leeches started attacking us. Initial half an hour we stopped here and there to rub tobacco leaves & snuff powder to get rid of them. And later we got tired of it & let them suck our blood.

Race began between us & the Sun. Initial stretch from the forest office is a gradual gradient. We moved quickly through the thick forest. Sunlight was a rare commodity as it was cloudy & rain pouring. After two and half hours of trek rain gave away & we were halfway to the peak. At 5, we stopped for lunch. By the time we finished lunch, it started raining again. That’s when we had to take the hard decision – of turning back. We decided to return to Heggade mane & camp instead of trying to pitch tents in the dark on a windy, rainy night & donate half of our blood to leeches.

It was around 7 by the time we reached Heggade mane & spent the night at priest’s house. Slowly one by one drifted to sleep with determination of hiking Kumara Parvatha post monsoon & plans of visiting Mallalli waterfalls next day. It’s time for me to complete this unfinished task :)

Next: A visit to Mallalli Falls

Kuduremukha (or Kudremukha) trek log links consolidated -

• Basarikal gate to Mullodi on day one
  
• Somavathi falls @ Mullodi
• To Kuduremukha peak on day two
• General info on Kuduremukha trek
  
• Some random photos & more photos

Previous: To Kudremukha peak

Some general information on Kuduremukha -

• Kuduremukha in Kannada means horse (kudure) face (Mukha). And is approximately 350KM from Bangalore.
• Kuduremkha peak is at 1892 meters above sea level.
• Route (that we took): Bangalore - Kunigal - Hassan - Mudigere - Kottigehara - Kalasa - Kuduremukha.
• Refer Karnataka wilderness tourism website for detailed information on different trekking routes within Kuduremukha National Park range. And also for contact details to get permissions for the treks
• In case you want to stay at Mullodi at Sathish's place, call him up & inform before reaching the place - 08263-249595.
• Nearby places of interest: Horanadu, Kalasa, Sringeri

And here is the same trek story in Shashank's (fellow trekker) words

After a long break we started from 'Onti mara'. Path from there onwards is much steeper & again the group got split into smaller ones. Next stop was near a small stream in a shola. Though it was summer, water was trickling down and the water was refreshing & cold. Another long break there & we moved ahead, along the zig-zag path, inching towards the peak. When it was more than 2KMs to the summit, we were greeted by blood sucking insects bigger than house flies in size. They attacked us in huge numbers, we had tough time with them. As we moved towards the summit, cool breeze & clouds welcomed us.

Reached the peak by 1PM & it was completely misty. It was an amazing sight sitting at that height and watching clouds play hide & seek. We spent a good one & half hours there - lunch, lazed around, listened to some philosophical speeches, dozed. By 2.30, we repacked & started home. Trekking down was faster and by 4PM, few of us were near 'Onti mara' while resting of the gang was coming slowly behind. We feasted again on the jamun fruits & continued. With the help of gravitational force, we moved down quickly and to our surprise we found a mango tree near Lobo house. We had somehow missed this while trekking up. It was time for us to show our skills at throwing stones at the fruits - end result 3 mangoes, one each for us :)

While rest of the gang were still behind, we reached Mullodi village by 5.30Pm and headed straight to Somavathi falls to have a dip. Another round of slipping & sliding, a refreshing bath and we came to Sathish's house. We did a phone-booking for a jeep to transport us back to Basarikallu gate where our vehicle was waiting. 13 (including jeep driver) of us with 2 tents, 5 sleeping bags, 6 sleeping mats & 11 backpacks - stuffed into a single jeep. It was fun drive back on a bumpy road & took us half an hour. Our vehicle was waiting, we dumped our luggages & headed straight to the nearby hotel. Wonderful dinner - Dosas, rice, sambar, curd, tea, bananas. And we started back to Bangalore. The end of an amazing trek.

Related links:

• Trekking near Ooty
• A day's trek to Shivagange
• Trekking in Sharavathi valley

Somavathi falls is a very small but dangerous waterfall near Mullodi village. The falls is not more than 8 or 10ft height but very slippery. Each one of us who got under the water slipped at least once. Though it was fun, one fell down and gave back a piece of his teeth to the nature. We sat down under the water slipping & sliding, waiting for turns while others were slipping & sliding.

A late lunch of chappathis & teplas after a refreshing bath. And then we spent a quality time listening to gurgling water, bird songs (especially the long whistle of Malabar Whistling-thrush. We came back refreshed & recharged to Sathish's house (home-stay) where we stayed for the night. We played disk throwing & cricket till dark. And then it was round of leg-pulling & general chit-chat. After a nice dinner, we slipped into our sleeping bags & a sound sleep.

In case you are not interested in trekking & just want to have a dip in Somavathi falls, you can hire a jeep from Samse village to Mullodi. Have fun and come back same day. Or else, you can stay at Sathish's place which is a non-commercial homestay. Sathish's family are very hospitable & friendly. If you plan to stay there, you can call Sathisha & make arrangements in advance - 08263 249595.

Continued - trek to peak

Related links:

• Waterfalls of Karnataka visited in 2007
• Trekking in Western Ghats - Sharavathi valley
• Mallalli falls near Somawarapet

Friday May 18th 2007, eleven of us started from Bangalore towards Kuduremukha. Picking up everyone from nook & corner of the city took two hours and unfortunately I was the first one to get into the vehicle. Around 11 PM, we stopped near Nelamangala for dinner and took off. We reached Horanadu by 7, next morning. After a quick bath, paid a visit to Horanadu Sri Annapoorneshwari temple. From there we went to Samse via Kalasa, where we were planning to hire a jeep to trek starting point.

Seven of us got down in Samse village with luggage, while rest went to Kuduremukha town to get permission from the forest department. Our plan was to hire a jeep at Samse till Mullodi, (last village, afterwards its Kuduremukha National Park range). From there trek till Lobo’s house and camp. On day two, start early, reach summit & back, pack-up, trek back to Mullodi, take the jeep back to Samse by evening and back in Bangalore by Monday morning. But, whole plan changed as no one is allowed to stay/camp overnight inside national park premises & entry was restricted for just 12 hours time - 6AM to 6PM next day.

We changed plan accordingly. Instead of hiring a jeep, we started our trek first leg of from Basarikallu gate to Mullodi village. It was noon by the time we started. And we moved along the dusty jeep track towards Mullodi slowly on a hot mid-summer noon. The group moved slowly stopping for breaks, sipping energy drinks & water. We took 3 hours to reach Mullodi, an approximate distance of 8 KMs.

Reached Mullodi village tired, thursty, drenched in sweat. As soon as we heard there is enough water in the nearby falls - 'Somavathi falls', we almost ran towards it.

Continued...

Related links:

• Some random photos taken during the trek - here & here

There now -

And gone next moment, hidden by the mist -

Place:

Mallalli falls, Kumaradhara river, around 30 KMs from Somawarapet and approximately 275 KMs from Bangalore.

Had been to beautiful Western ghats again. Third time in less than 2 month span. And each time it was a different experience. Earlier two times in Western ghats were during summer. And this time it was mid-monsoon. I got to see leeches for the first time in my life and donated lot of blood to those blood-suckers.

I had been trekking to Kumara Parvatha a.k.a Pushpagiri with four others. And that's where we encountered these leeches. Bad execution of our trek plan made us to return half way and we were not able to reach the summit :(. But it was an amazing experience trekking in rain, donating our blood. Though we did miss the camping at the summit, we got to see the majestic Mallalli falls the next day instead.

Kumara Parvatha, I'll be back again. Soon, very soon.

Here is a glimpse of our legs - before, during & after the trek -

  

Random photos taken during trek in Kuduremukha National Park 2 months ago -

Detailed log to come soon. Blame my hectic schedule at office :(

When I started writing trek log of our three day venture in Sharavathy valley, I never thought this would go so detailed. Here is compilation of the logs of Sharavathi valley trek for your easy reading & navigation -

• Beginning & Bheemeshwara
• Bheemeshwara to Halgodu
• Halgodu to Dabbe mane
• The majestic Dabbe falls
• A dip in Dabbe falls
• Travelling on the bus top
• Biking around Jog falls

We were tired. Trek of 25KMs in todays. Just when we were about to call it a day, Bharath (my sister-in-law's brother) asked whether we want join him to the nearby temple. We were about to say no, but changed our minds as the temple is inside the power generation plant in Jog. Access to that place is restricted and is allowed only for local people. It was half an hour's drive to the temple along almost deserted twisty roads. View along was amazing. Roamed around the temple which was getting ready for a function next day. Reached home by 8PM. Dinner and soon we surrundered to sleep.

Next day started early and we were ready for the long day. My sister-in-law's house is amidst fields and we roamed for an hour enjoying nature. And then went for a walk, eating mouthful of jamoon fruit (plums). Then a quick bath, breakfast, a visit to near by friend's house (my colleague Pradeep's house). Pradeep's brother Prashanth (a namesake :) was expecting us. A cup of tea and we started towards Jog falls on bikes. Prashanth & Srikanth on Prashanth's bike and me on Mahaveer's bike (My SIL's younger brother).

    

So that was the end of a long weekend. Let me take a break and come back with more travel stories. Till then enjoy the rains with a cup of coffee :)