Chikkamagalur, Karnataka
Imagine, you plan for a trip overnight and you have 2 days.
One of the best places you can think is the Land of Coffee –
Chikmagalur. 243kms from Bangalore.
If its unplanned, like ours, then this is for you.
= The Journey =
We planned for this trip at 9:30 PM on Friday. We started
our journey, from Yeshwanthpur, on Saturday, at 4:30 AM IST and reached
Chikmagalur by 8:30 AM IST.
It is good to start early to beat the traffic especially on
weekends / long weekends.
Reach Nelamangala
on NH4 -> Take NH48 at Nelamangala until Hassan -> Look for a Diversion to get in SH57 (Belur Road)
Toll Road until Hassan (inclusive). Costing upto Rs. 202 (
20, 35, 41, 41, 35, 30). Advisable to carry sufficient coins especially of
denominations 1 and 5.
Note: Toll fee is subject to change. The above mentioned
total toll cost is to give you an estimate.
 |
| SH57 (Nelamangala to Hassan) |
SH57 (Hassan to Nelamangala)
= Breakfast and
Refuel =
We stopped for Breakfast at Hotel Raama -- Swad Restaurant on SH57. They start to serve only by
7:30 AM IST. Good ambience and friendly staff.
Hotel Raama. Right at the bottom is entrance to Swad Restaurant
Also, there is also an Indian Oil Petrol bunk right next to
it, for refueling. 58 more kms to Chikmagalur.
== Journey Continues
==
Proceed on the SH57
until you reach Neharu Nagara Circle.
Take the 1st exit and continue on SH57.
This Signboard shows that you are close to your Destination
Welcome to Chikmagalur
30 more kms and you should reach the town of Chikmagalur.
Nearby places from Chikmagalur
== Chikkamagaluru to Mullayanagiri via Kaimara ==
Once you are in city, ask for MG Road. There are one-way roads to confuse you. You need to enter
MG road before you can continue. Once you join MG Road, you need to drive straight
to get into SH57. From here, you
need to reach Kaimara Toll Gate.
Scenic View of Coffee Estate towards Kaimara
Two-way road leading to Kaimara
== Kaimara Toll Gate to Mullayanagiri / Sitalayyanagiri ==
·
Entry Fee:
Rs.20 for 4 wheelers.
·
Location:
Scenic.
·
Road
Condition: Arguably good, narrow and two-way.
·
Distance:
11.3kms
From Kaimara Toll
gate, you need to drive on Attigundi
Rd for ~6.3 kms
Attigundi Rd
Once you have driven for ~6.3kms, look out for signboard for directions towards
Mullayanagiri. You need to take a sharp left into Mullayanagiri Road.
Mullayanagiri Road leading to the peak
Note: Proceed
with CAUTION. It’s a narrow road with 2-way traffic and there are many blind
turns. Never go off the road if you don’t have a choice and if you vehicle is
not meant for off-roading.
Scenic View –
Drive towards the peak
There are lots of View Points on this stretch and it’s
a visual treat. Advisable to spend only few mins as you may be blocking the
road and this in-turn may lead to traffic jams.
== Pre Trek ==
Once you reach, you will face your 1st challenge.
Nope, I’m not talking about the trek but to find a, suitable, place
for parking your vehicle.
Parking Area –
Foothill of Sitalayyanagiri peak
Essential Things to
Carry: Water-bottle (2 litres), jacket, cameras. Binoculars can be an
add-on to enhance your visual treat.
Advisable to wear Sports shoes for its grip. Acts like an
ABS while trekking uphill or downhill.
One would enjoy if you start your trek as early as possible.
Lesser the crowd, less congested the trek.
Eateries are available. Cabs / Autos were plying to-fro the Mullayanagiri
peak.
There is a road that leads towards Mullayanagiri peak from
the foothill of Sitalayyannagiri peak. Not advisable to take your personal ride
as the roads are narrow and two-way. It can be a nightmare as you may end up
off-roading and it is very dangerous.
It is advisable to trek Mullayanagiri peak first and then
Sitalayyannagiri peak.
= The Trek =
Considered as Karnataka’s highest peak, Mullayanagiri welcomes
you and brace yourselves for one of the amazing treks.
Signboard welcoming you to Mullayanagiri; Road towards Mullayanagiri
peak at the foothill of Sitalayyanagiri peak
Path leading to Mullayanagiri
Path leading to Mullayanagiri. ABS of your shoes comes to use.
View of Sitalayyanagiri peak (far left) from Mullayanagiri peak
Reaching the halfway mark –
It reads Sri Melu Gadrige Mullapa Swami Mutt
Steps leading to Shiva temple on Mullayanagiri Peak
Signboard –
Highest peak in Karnataka –
besides the temple.
Peak above the temple
Place outside the temple where prayers are offered.
Entrance to the Shiva temple atop the peak
Scenic View 1 from Mullayanagiri
Scenic View 2 from Mullayanagiri
Scenic View 3 from Mullayanagiri
After a tiring trek, it would be lunch time. There are few eateries near the parking area.If you decide to drive back and then start feeling hungry,
there is house like hotel at a junction, 1km ahead from the parking area where
they serve Pulav (Rs. 20 – medium serving) and Mirchi Bajji (Rs.
10 for 3). If you miss this then one can have decent meal only in the town.
== Drive to Jhari
Falls aka Buttermilk Falls ==
From the foothill of Sitalayyanagiri
peak, you need to drive back on Mullayanagiri
Road for ~5kms until you reach
the turn where you took sharp left from Attigundi Rd to enter Mullayanagiri Road.
From here, you need to drive on Attigundi road for ~7.6kms
to reach a place where you will find lot of cars parked on either side of the
road and you will find jeep drivers looking for tourists who would want to
visit Jhari Falls aka Buttermilk Falls. Advisable
to park your car on the extreme side of the road (off the road)
Jeep ride towards the falls costs Rs. 600 (2-way). Jeep can accommodate 8 persons. If you are a group less than 8, then it is advisable to
wait for more heads to join in. This would save your share of the ride.
Trust me it’s worth the price, if not for the falls
but for the off-road ride. Recommended to take the front seats .
Engine Start. Doors Locked. Brace yourselves for a memorable
ride.
= Highlights of the Jeep
ride =
·
Jeeps can be seen plying on a narrow road at
speeds higher than you would expect.
·
Jeeps sometimes go backwards to make way for
incoming jeeps and the speed of deceleration is higher than speed of
acceleration.
·
Jeeps can be seen driving right next to each
other on the narrow road where there is hardly any space for a single jeep.
Video of our ride has been uploaded in Youtube:
Our Ride
Advisable to wear Sports Shoes (not white), carry extra pair
of clothes, ¾ ths or shorts preferred over pants.
= Jhari Falls aka Buttermilk Falls =
 |
| Jhari Falls aka Buttermilk Falls |
 |
| Jhari Falls aka Buttermilk Falls |
Scenic Beauty on returning from Buttermilk Falls
= Drive back to Bangalore =
You are given 2 options:
Option 1:- Less Strain, lesser travel and more rest.
-- Start early, say 9 AM and drive straight to Bangalore and you should take 7 hours inclusive of lunch break.
Option 2:- Straining, 2 more places to visit, restless, additional travel, returning during peak-slow moving traffic.
-- Drive to Halebidu, Belur and then drive to Bangalore.
P.S: If you are planning to stay for more than 2 nights then you can visit Bababudangiri, Kemmangundi, Hebbe Falls, Kalhatti Falls
= Stay in Chikmagalur =
Since, our trip was unplanned and we hadn’t
booked room for stay, we decided to get back to Chikmagalur.
We were advised to check for lodges on IG Road. We stayed in
Malnad Paradise Delux hotel and had
to shell out Rs. 1080 for a night. Thankfully, it had rooms still Available on
a long weekend. The room has double bed, an attach bathroom (hot-water
available from 6 to 9am), TV.
If you are staying at a hotel in IG road and if you are
looking for a good restaurant, then we would recommend Hotel Soundarya Veg
Rooms in Chikmagalur
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