The Idyllic Holiday Trip...

I had an unmatched combination of holiday at a hill-station and also had an opportunity for exploring the wildlife, a few days back with my friends. This month 4^th morning at 9 we reached Mysore & we took morning shelter at my friend Ravi sir house; we started our journey a little late in a hired taxi.

Our journey initially was not much attractive but later we felt pretty good as per our plan late noon we reached MM hills &occupied  the already reserved rooms unloaded our luggage had food & we turned to see Hogenkal waterfalls. By 4.30 evening we reached Hogenkal & hired 2 boats to take us to the waterfalls. After a 30 minute journey in the boat reached another side of the river & had stunning view of the huge milky waterfalls Because of heavy volume in falls & lack of time we couldn’t reach the bottom of the waterfalls.

After having a scenic sunset we returned back to MM Hills & Night temple was very rush but easily we had grace of Goddess Mahadeswara with a help of some influence.

 

Next day we reached BR hills at 11 compare to MM hills this temple was little neat & scenic. Here Lord Ranganatha is situated on the highest peak (1700meters) of the hill range, on the 'white cliff' which gives the hill its name. The local form of the deity is called Biligiriranga and is depicted in a unique standing position. The Annual Car festival of the deity held during “Vaishakha “in the month of April, is famous in the region and attracts thousands of pilgrims from far and wide.

 

The local tribes present a large pair of slipper measuring 1 foot and 9 inches, made up of skin, to the Ranganathaswamy once in two years. The temple premise is also famous for its great valley view.

 

Next we reached K G Gudi, we decided to have Wild Safari. We booked one forest Jeep & by 4.30 we entered forest. Our expectation as not much initial While the numbers of species were small, we get incredibly (and safely) close to the animals.

The Jeep tour of the park was cutesy, but we were fortunate to get within an arms length of bison and other mammals. The portions of the park had live animal exhibits that were surprisingly intimate with the animals and yet humane. We enjoyed the park! It was clean and well kept.

 

The staffs were happy and friendly. We enjoyed looking at the animals in their native habitat it’s an hour tour through the free-roaming area of the park on board a motorized Jeep driven by one of the park guides who points out the different animals as we pass. See buffalo, deer, goats and geese up close and personal. For intrepid explorers, there are many trails from this place.

Finally we returned back from a wonderful unhurried scenic trip through some of the most spectacular places in Western Ghat.

Gaganchukki and Bharachukki Waterfalls

Shivanasamudra Water Falls

120 Km from Bangalore –85 Km from Mysore- Cauvery River – Second Biggest water fall in India and sixteenth largest in the world.

(2,784 ft / 849 m ).

Gaganachukki waterfalls .  -18-05-08

The Gaganchukki and Bharachukki Falls are on the Cauvery River after the river has winded its way through the rocks and ravines and drops off to form waterfalls. The river divides in to twin side-by-side falls around the 700-acre picturesque Shivanasamudra Island. On the one side, it forms the Gaganachukki falls and on the other it rumbles down as the Bharachukki falls. The segmented waterfalls has an average width of 849 meters, a height of 90 meters. With the Cauvery basin receiving heavy rains, the twin falls have roared back to the glory.The two falls lie at a distance of 1 km (0.6 miles) from each other

Bharachukki Waterfalls .

When both falls are compared, Gaganchukki falls from very high height than Bharachukki. While Bharachukki falls is quite wider than Ganganachukki.

Beautiful valley in Gaganachukki...

The time of best flow are the monsoon season of July to October. And this time you can also enjoy the romance of clouds with the nature accompanied by the showering rains. Therefore, thousand of people drive here.You miss out on the fun of playing in water, but the spectacular sight you witness will more than make up for it Splendorous scenery also add great taste to your journey.

Gaganachukki waterfalls

Bharachukki Waterfalls

Bharachukki Waterfalls

Bharachukki Waterfalls

Bharachukki Waterfalls

Bharachukki Waterfalls

Himavad Gopalswami Betta

Gopalswami Temple- 17-05-08

This is one of the highest peaks in the area in Chamarajnagar district. It rises to a height of 1454 meters above sea level. The place is so called because it is covered in mist. It is approximately 220 km from Bangalore and 80 km from Mysore.There is a motor-able road all the way to the top of the hill. Entry fee is collected at the forest department check-post at foot of the hill. Visitors are allowed from around 6am till 5pm. Overnight stay on top is not allowed. Trekking and videography in the surrounding hills are allowed only with prior permission and to be accompanied by the forest department guides.

Himavad Gopalaswamy Betta, is a grassy hill located in the Chamarajanagar district of the state of Karnataka, India. It lies in the core area of the Bandipur National Park and is frequented by wild life including elephants. It gets its name from the Himavad Gopalaswamy Temple located on the top of the hill. Himavad means filled with fog in the native language of Kannada.

The temple was built in 1315 by Perumal Dandanayaka, a Chola Viceroy. The temple is dedicated to Gopalaswamy, which is one of the names of the Hindu God Krishna. The gopuram of the temple is single-tiered and rests on the compound wall of the enclosure. A dhwajastambha (flag-pillar) and a bali-peetam (sacrificial altar) is present in the mukha mantapa (inner-porch). The parapet wall of the façade of the mukha mantapa contains the sculpture of dashavatara (the avatars of the Hindu God Vishnu) with the centre portion of the sculpture depicting Krishnavatara (the avatar of Vishnu in which he appeared as Krishna). There is a shikhara tower over the garbha griha (sanctum sanctorum).

The garbha griha contains an idol of Krishna holding a flute under a tree. Krishna is flanked by his friends and the posture is that of a dance with the left big toe resting on the right one. The panel also features several characters and icons from Krishna's avatar. Lord Gopalaswamy's idol is flanked by his consorts, Rukmini and Satyabhama. Cows and cowherds are featured towards the right side of the panel.

Legend says that sage Agastya, performed intense penance and as a result lord Vishnu blessed this place and promised to reside here. As this was a place of worship and penance, it used to be called as 'Hamsatheertha', which means the the lake of swans in Sanskrit. Swan acquires a mythological significance in Hinduism, symbolizing knowledge, tranquility and salvation.

Being a part of the Bandipura wildlife sanctuary, the hills are frequented by grazing wild elephants. The place is also known for its picturesque views of the surrounding hills, valleys and visitors may also see the spectacular sunrise and sunset from the top.

This temple was built in early fourteenth century by Cholas. And main specialty of the place is wild elephants which can be seen in herds of 60s-70s. Luckily we were able to sight them.