Manjarabad fort -Sakleshpur

That was a late evening as everyone had tired after an elongated journey. After finishing our evening coffee at Shkleshpur our team members proposed a trek to Manjarabad fort which was quite easy. Trail would be just 500 meters hike from NH road and was well maintained and crowded.

Manjarabad fort set at a height of about 3,240 ft. above sea level, and it’s supposed to have been built 1792 AD during the reign of Tipu Sultan. It is constructed out of stones and mud and it has chambers all around. The name 'Manjarabad' has an interesting story behind it. While inspecting the construction of the fort, Tipu Sultan is said to have observed fog (known in Kannada as Manju) around this place and decided to name this fort Manjarabad.

Manjarabad Fort served as a strategic defensive location during Tipu Sultan's rule as it commands the approach to the plateau beyond Sakleshpur from the coast. It is also believed that there is a tunnel that connects the Manjarabad Fort to another fort in Srirangapattana near Mysore there even closed doors to this tunnel, almost right at the center inside the fort. Apparently, it had to seal off as the tunnel had many reptiles.

After climbing a few hundred steps up to the fort, you arrive at the arched entrance-ways, the architecture style of which is Islamic. It is well kept and so green inside the fort, what with the entire insides filled with grassy contoured ground. A walk along the fort wall is probably the best activity to do – to enjoy the beautiful landscape that spreads out in all directions from the fort.

While I expected the fort to look like, well, a fort, this one is very different – it is almost just an excuse to get up there to enjoy the beautiful views of the beautiful Western Ghats. I Just enjoyed imagining the purpose of such a fort, the way they planned and built it, and of course the purpose of the location why in the middle of nowhere.

After spending some good time in the fort, it was time to head back to our van. Took some time to settle down, recuperating from the exhaustive ride. Don’t have words to explain how breathtaking the place looked, while the sunlight played some hide and seek, while the clouds went past the peaks of the mountain. All this definitely made us forget the tiredness of long journey.