Madaga Falls at Masur

One of the finest old tank, situated between fort hill and forest, and feeds to irrigate more than 10000 acres of land. The tank is quite an ancient one but has come under rejuvenation during various periods. It is known as Madaga Lake is a beautiful huge lake in a place called Madaga near Masur, Hirekerur Taluk.

 The river Kumadvathi which originates in the Agastya Parvata near Humcha in Sagar flows north near Shikaripura continues towards Masur and forms this huge beautiful lake.  A small waterfall is formed at the out flow of this Lake.

 The 20 feet height 30 feet wide waterfalls plunges into a deep pool and further it continues and joins to River Tungabhadra near Ranibennur. We can actually get down to the bottom of the waterfall and have a beautiful view of the falls. We need to do a bit of rock climbing to reach base. The roaring sound of the falls which created fumes all over were relaxes my body and soul. To have a look at the full majesty of the falls you need to visit the place in rainy season.

This place has a beautiful story behind its formation. Few centuries back there lived 2 big Land Lords - Mallana Gouda from Masur and Puttana Gouda from Rattihalli. Since there was no irrigation in this land, once they both decided to help the people of this region by building a big lake and irrigate the surrounding area. There were no equipments like JCBs, it was all by the human labour, both the land lords, pulled hundreds of people to build the lake and it took few years to form mountains and finally built a big lake. But unfortunately, there was no source of water to this lake, they waited and waited but there was no trace of water to this lake, everybody was very sad and worried.

 Finally they decided to enquire an Astrologer (Bhavisha Kelsidru) then they came to know that, to get water to that lake they have to sacrifice the life of the youngest daughter-in-law Kenchamma (not sure daughter-in-law of Mallana Gouda or Puttana Gouda) It became a very tough decision for them, but looking at the benifit to many people, they took the painful decision to sacrifice the life of Kenchamma. To execute this they made a plan to have a fair in that lake place and have a gold/silver idol of Kenchamma at the centre of Lake.

The ruins of an old fort can also seen, the western face fort-hill offers a commanding view of the surrounding plains. 

Kenchamma was not aware of the plan. After the fair got over, everybody went back to their homes. Then Mallana Gouda / Puttana Gouda asked Kenchamma to go & get the gold/silver idol of her from the lake (plan was to sacrifice her life during this time) It was God's blessings the moment Kenchamma reached the centre of the lake, water flooded in to the lake & Kenchamma was washed away. Since then, Madagh Masur Lake is always filled with water with no scarcity of water. Hence this lake is also called as Kenchamma Lake, there is a Temple of Godess Kenchamma in the centre of the Lake. This temple is only visible if there is a continuous draught in this region for 7-8 years. Hence there is one more temple of Godess Kenchamma on the bank of the lake.

Mysterious Magical Trees, Savanur

Savanur is famous for its Archaeological site, Baobab tree (Local says Dodda Hunse Mara) is one of them which is well maintained by ASI. This is the only place in the state of Karnataka or rather in whole India which boasts of having three big Baobab trees on the outskirts of the town. These are special trees with girth varying from 12.63 - 15.70 meter and height varying from 16.40 - 18.50 meters. Specialty of these trees is that they have a huge base (girth) with branches tapering at the top, giving it a bottle shape.

Parts of the tree is said to have medicinal properties. These trees are famous in different parts of the world for its medicinal use. Local people believe that the any food item kept under these trees remain fresh for long duration.

The Baobab Tree is one of the oldest trees on earth with some trees living to be over 1000 years old originally from Africa .Baobabs have massive cylindrical trunks, up to three meters across, covered with smooth, reddish-grey bark, green palmate leaves, dark brown floral buds or spectacular flowers with white petals. The large, dry fruits of the baobab contain kidney-shaped seeds within an edible pulp.

These are said to be more than 5000 years old and according to mythology Lord Krishna brought the seeds of the same from Africa and planted them here. These are planted in a triangular shape and stand together closely. The state government has put up a fence to protect the trees and a board briefly describing the history of the trees, which also gives the statistics about height and girth.

 The fruit is nutritious, possibly having more vitamin C than oranges, and exceeding the calcium content of cow's milk. The dry fruit pulp separated from seeds and fibers is eaten directly or mixed into porridge or milk, and is also known as "sour gourd" or "monkey's bread". In Malawi, the fruit pulp is used to make a nutrient-rich juice. In Zimbabwe, the fruit is known as mawuyu in the Shona language and has long been a traditional fruit. In the coastal areas of Kenya, baobab seeds are called mbuyu and are cooked with sugar, colored, and sold as a snack. Mabuyu is also the term used in Tanzania for seeds of the calabash gourd, which are prepared in a similar fashion.

BAOBAB TREES HAVE A LONG HISTORY OF PROVIDING NUTRITION AND HEALTH FOR HUMANS AND THEY ARE REVERED AS “THE TREE OF LIFE” BECAUSE OF ALL OF THE HEALING PROPERTIES OF THE FRUIT, LEAVES, SEEDS AND BARK.

lncrdible Bavalakki Cave and Waterfalls

Early morning of Sunday five of us started our ride from Arun’s house best part of this trip was we were supposed to cover 2 falls and 1 cave. Drive was very smooth on the way we stopped for a while Arun went to the nearby village initially I thought he went to meet his relatives but when he returned his friend also joined our team for guide us. After a short drive we parked our bikes and started our trek through areca plantation. Under the canopy of trees so the sunlight didn’t actually dry them so they were slippery beyond belief. At one point the trail goes through narrow edge on top of the waterfalls.

To reach the cave we had to follow a small stream flowing which led us to the bottom of the cave and actually this stream created 2 stairs of waterfalls next to the cave, the winding path to the right of thick vegetation leads to the base of the second stage of the Bavali falls.

There is 30 feet high waterfall, its bottom covered by a vast pool.  What an incredible sight. A stunning, tranquil Waterfall and cave hidden in a bowl of craggy, jungle covered peak. In front of the waterfall grows a massive and gnarled tree with beautiful red flowers. A colorful fresh water crab skitters away from my foot, shocked at this unwanted intrusion.

This unique geographical area has been eroded away over many years and is now full of narrow ledges snaking out into the densely forested valley. Though the fall was a little disappointing with very little water the place around was simply superb.

Later we stepped into the cave, entrance of the Bavalakki cave is partially covered with a thick hanging carpet of tropical vegetation. The view back out the cave entrance and down the cascading stream is mysteriously beautiful. The view out the entrance to the cave made me feel like I was in a tropical jungle, with the roar of the waterfall and the thick green forest all around.

Just as I am about to crawl deeper down a series of small tunnels I spot the gleaming eyes of several spiders clinging to the moist rock walls. Each is the size of my hand and proudly reigns over a thick cluster of web they appear to be some sort of tarantula and do not look particularly friendly. We spend another hour exploring the gorgeous limestone rock formations. In places we pass solid walls of glittering crystal guarded by exquisite trunk like pillars.

Thousands of bats chirp overhead as we penetrate deeper into the heart of the cave. Exploring the cave in winter may wake the bats from their hibernation, causing them to use up their fat reserves and placing them at risk of dying of starvation.  Exploring the cave in summer may disturb mother bats from nursing their young, who may fall to the cave floor and die.  Spring is the safest time to explore a bat cave because there are plenty of insects for them to eat outside, and they haven’t given birth to their young yet because without bats, all humans would starve to death.

 Our relationship with bats is as important and symbiotic as our relationship with honey bees that pollinate all the crops that we eat, and that we feed to our meat animals.  Bats work on the other side of the equation by eradicating crop pests like grasshoppers.  The bat population of a single cave can devour the equivalent of 18-wheeler truck full of insects in a single night.  From just one cave’s bat population.

There’s not enough bug poison in the world to deal with the kind of insect swarms we’d be dealing with if the bats weren’t there to eat them.  Organic farming would impossible.  And the toxic sprays that would be necessary to keep pests off our crops would pollute our waters, killing many other species, and causing untold human health problems.  So that’s why we should care about bats.  They’re not evil, they don’t attack humans. So the long and short of it is that, without bats all human life perishes.  So don’t explore this cave beyond its entrance. We noticed the very large water snakes on the stream bed.

A winding downer path on thick vegetation led us to the base of the second stage of the Waterfalls. We romanced with cold water sprays. Everyone took bath and enjoyed some time in this place, a wonderful soul stirring experience under a waterfall. It truly is a breathtaking place. Best of all we have it all to ourselves very few travelers make it to this corner and although this is likely to change I feel very lucky to be here.

We whole heartily thanked Arun and his family members for the hospitality, soon after having our lunch we back packed and started our ride back. In the end we were only left with loads of memories to cherish.