Karnataka Trip

Pondicherry to Bangalore to Madhugiri to Chikmagalur to Coorg

Hi Everyone,

This is Lone-wolf writing my first lone travel story to Karnataka. Thanks in advance for taking an effect to read my story.

Hi All, One fine day I was starting my daily routine by waking up early morning and got ready to office, boarded the cab. It was around 5:45 AM since my office starts at 07:15 AM every day. I was thinking about office work and how my life is all about. I got frustrated and I wanted to come out of it and go to the places where no one knows me and enjoy the loneliness.

I went to my boss, explained the situation and requested for 1-week leave and he accepted it.

Day 1 – Finding Peace at Silicon valley:

Finally, I started my first ever solo-trip on 1st February 2020 at 05:30 AM with all the accessories, Safety stuff, a few clothes in the backpack tied up behind me in the bike. Since it was a winter season, the climate was so chill. I am not going to surpass anyone in the road, I starting feeling the beauty of nature, the smell of sand, talking with unknown peoples and finally, around 06:50 AM I reached Gingee (The Most Impregnable fortress of India). I will talk about this fort and its history in my next trip and reached Thiruvannamalai (Place filled with spirituality and positive vibes) at 07:40 AM. Here I had my breakfast and started my way towards Bangalore. Both sides of the roads have been filled with nature such as beautiful Lake, Pond, Hills, and Greeneries. Roads were not impeccably good but it is manageable when you are at moderate speed by bike until you reach Krishnagiri – Bangalore Highway. I reached the highway by 10:30 AM and there me & bike felt so happy to see the quality of the road, it’s simply awesome. One straight road to Bangalore and I put on a halt to hydrate myself with Tender-coconut before taking one full stretch to reach Bangalore.

Then I began my ride again and reached hosur where I was staying before 5 years for an Internship. All the memories were rolling in my mind, not much difference but there were some developments. I continued my journey, reached Bangalore around 12:00 PM, and reached my friend’s house at 1:00 PM. My friend kept the lunch ready which was Dhonnai biryani. After a ride for 7 to 8 hours, I felt the taste of the biryani was so osm.

After a nap, my friend has taken me to the famous Pav bhaji shop and roamed somewhere before leaving home. As per my plan, I have to start to Madhugiri by Sunday morning but plan changed another day in Bangalore. Then we decided to go to Nandi hill in the morning. 

Day 2 – A Retreat from Bangalore – Nandidurg (Nandi Hills):

              If you need daybreak from a normal workday then the perfect place to relax your mind is Nandi Hills. It is located in the north from Bangalore which takes 01:30 Hours of travel by bike. This is a place that a person wants to go beside a temple visit and pub there is a place such as Nandi Hills a gateway of nature. Early morning is the best time to visit Nandi hills to feel the chillness and view the beauty of the sunrise.  

We have seen a wonderful view and over chilled climate, in the way through we went to reach the top of the hills by bike. There were 8 hairpin bends and 8 to 10 KMs to reach the top but the way around is fully greenish, Flora/Fauna’s were inviting us. That’s where we felt the peace of mind from normal work pressure. 

The hills are nestled between the neighboring towns of Nandi, Muddenahalli, and Kanivenarayanapura. The hills are traditionally held as the origin of the Arkavathy river. Nandi Hills is the source of the three rivers Penner river, Ponnaiyar river, and Palar river. Nandi Hills obtains its name from an ancient Nandi temple situated on Nandi hill. This temple has a thousand-year-old sculpture of Nandi. An ancient lord Shiva and Parvati temple also adorn this hill. There are many stories about the origin of the name Nandi Hills. During the Chola period, Nandi Hills was called Ananda Giri meaning The Hill of Happiness. Another story is that Yoga Nandeeshwara performed penance here, and so it was named after him. Nandi is also commonly called Nandidurga because of the fort built here by the ruler Tippu Sultan. It is also perhaps called Nandi Hills because the hill resembles a sleeping bull.

We have seen the viewpoints of chikkaballapur and We spent more than an hour at the top of the hills then we left by 11:00 AM. Nandi hills gave us peace of mind which will be in our memories to roll out in the future. 

The entry fee is 10 Rs per person. You have to buy a ticket from the bus stop area. There’s a ticket for Rs 100 for a parking car. If you are paying Rs 100 for parking then no need to buy separate entry tickets for all passengers. Two-wheeler parking charge is Rs 20.

The entry and exit times are now limited to 6 am to 6 pm. 

Note: Day ends, let’s begin tomorrow as per our plan towards Second Largest monolith in Asia (Madhugiri).