Driving through the Nandi Hills Experience

Sudden plans do work out in Bangalore when planned at least the previous evening , but there exists a  hangout spot just outside the city limits for which least planning is required. "Heaven" would be the ideal replacement for the term "spot" as you can witness the clouds walking with you. Yes , it is the famous NANDI HILLS. With a travel of just under sixty kilometres, one can turn any ordinary Saturday into a refreshing one .

The clock was striking ten on a busy Friday evening when it was decided that the bike ride next morning will start at half past four . And exactly at the same mentioned time I started , surely not the bike but from my bed.  I still wonder why two things never go with each other, Men and Early morning wake ups. As the eight of us started from our stay place , rain god also started to show up. My heart stopped shock of a plan cancellation image in front of me,  till when one of the brave hearts came up with a statement....
"YOU PLAN ........ YOU FINISH" .............................."LETS GO"

Those were the last words to be spoken as we started our bikes and caught up with the National Highway(NH7 at Hebbal ). From there it was a straight drive .The morning twilight deserves a mention here, as driving through the dawn into the crack of morning was a picture portrait for all of us. As planned, the first landmark to cross would be the Toll Gate near the International Airport. Another fifteen km down the lane, one has to take left at THE NANDI CROSS   [ Large government direction boards are placed throughout the NH to guide the travellers] . As a formal patch up of the bikes, there was a small halt there . By the time the last bike reached , it was already morning.

Nandi Cross

Following the repeated sign boards would lead you to the base in no time but in such a shivering climate , one could not resist a cup of hot steaming tea . Tea and Biscuits with a such a scenic background will pump your hearts to move on...

Route to the top

From the base, the curves take you along a fog filled path where vehicles at ten feet distance are invisible .
" AM FLYING OVER CLOUD NINE " would be the apt phrase to describe the situation out there but I bet there were more than nine . All drivers should have a check on their speeds for both,  the opposition vehicles on the low lighting track as well as the sharp and dangerous bends.

Fog filled Nandi Roads

Our photographic temptation made us halt at couple of places which delayed the climb up journey ,but the sounds of peacocks and the early morning breeze made up for the delay. More photographs were lined up like this one -- mild appearance of daylight over the dew drops on the green leaves .

Dew Shot

Nandi Hills definitely can be called "cyclists paradise" as many bikers/cyclists were gaining altitude through this seven kilometre ride. It is true that Nandi Beta makes the perfect gateway for hill training but high endurance levels are a must to cycle here.

A lone cyclist enjoying his ride uphill

After many a bends of slow turns , we reached atop and parked the bikes at the entry gate. Bikes are not allowed beyond this point as the roads are not well formed. From here, we started walking .Starting alongside the Fort we walked till the Kalyani pond , a huge and majestic one which was nearly empty... Few minutes later we moved on the path of dewy trees to a small hillock which offered a scenic version of the view below. Nandi Hills also boasts the origin of rivers like Pennar, Palar and Arkavati .

Nature at its best

As we move further , one can cross a 1300 year old Dravidian style temple . Further down , artificial tree house and bridges have been newly constructed for sight seeing purposes. These offer great photographic locations. By then , it was nine and we were hungry for a snacker. There was only one food supplier available at the Nandi top where you get hot beverages, Dosas and Egg omlette at very high expensive rates.
Few more photographs and it was time to start back. We followed our trail back and reached the Nandi base .


A refreshing and mind changing experience for those who had their whole week busy with the city life and routines..More than anything , anyone who drives on their own will enjoy the driving at NANDI HILLS.

In order to assist future trips, details including timings and fare have been approximately jotted down below.

DETAILS:
Date:25August, 2012,Saturday
Co-Trekkers: Velu, Shamil, Oliver, Musthafa, Balaji, Ajith, Airin

Trip:
05.30-- Veeranapalya (my stay place) to Airport Toll gate via Hebbal
06.30-- Nandi Cross
06.40-- Tea at T-junction
07.30-- Reach top (delay due to photographic sessions)
09.00-- Breakfast (costly, Bread omlette-50, Dosa-45)
09.45-- Start to Base

Until Next trip...
Gilbert
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Any day can turn out to be a holiday if you know how to do it~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Way leads to KUNTI BETTA

It does not take much of a decision to choose a place for a Saturday trek , but it really takes a lot of convincing to rope in people as your co-trekkers(just two of them for the day). This time the choice of place turned out to be MANDYA , the SUGAR District of KARNATAKA. Kunti-Betta is a small hillock located in the town called Pandavapura of the same district.

 It all started from the BANGALORE MAJESTIC bus station at 13:30 hours, ( as usual solid three hours delay from our actual plan due to laziness and personal commitments). The route framed by us was
                            ---Bangalore → Mandya → Pandavapura→Kunti-Betta---


Due to lack of buses from Majestic, we traveled up to SATELLITE bus stand. Unlimited buses ply through MANDYA from there. Boarding one of those would land you at the destination at 15:45(Window seat would be ideal for a quick nap). An inquiry with one of the drivers at the mandya bus stand helped us board the bus to PANDAVAPURA . This travel would be so scenic that one could not resist looking out even though the cool breeze would force you to doze off. At 16.30(after reaching Pandavapura),we bargained a local auto-rickshaw to drop us at Kunti-Betta.

 Alas we started climbing the much awaiting Temple steps. There were two hills to choose, of which we chose the one on the right to start the trek. It was a much traveled and easier path that all we have to do is to follow the trails. Certain places were equally tough and slippery to climb which turned out to worthy because the view from the top was awesomely scenic (Hill on one side, paddy fields on the other and lake in the front was naturally framed for perfect clicks). After many a clicks and plays we were lying on the flat rock for the breeze to sway the heat off.

     It was nearing dusk when we reached the base and started walking towards the main road for a drop till the PANDAVAPURA lake. Take a few strolls along the lake side and i bet , one would not believe the view out there. The lakes, trees ,hills and adding to the beauty was the setting sun, all combined would automatically make you utter the word "PERFECT". We played along the lakeside with few clicks followed by a tea and snack session to treat our drought throat .

        The journey of return followed its own steps as we boarded back the last bus towards MANDYA at 19.30, followed by a dinner at MANDYA at 21.00 and reaching BANGALORE MAJESTIC at 23.00 . The clock stroke 00:00 when we hit our beds raising a doubt in our minds--- Should we wish GOOD NIGHT or GOOD MORNING?...

      Alas it turned out to be an eventful day. In case of own transport, I would advice one to go for a early morning trip so that the afternoon session can be used to cover other areas in Mandya district.

In order to assist future treks, details including timings and fare have been approximately jotted down below.

DETAILS:
Date:14April, 2012,Saturday
Co-Trekkers: Oliver, Balaji

Trip:
13.30-- Bangalore MAJESTIC to Satellite Bus stand, KSRTC(8km, bus fare: )
13.50-- Satellite bus stand to Mandya, KSRTC (92km, bus fare: 67rs)
15.45-- Mandya to Pandavapura, KSRTC (24km, bus fare: 18rs)
16.30-- Pandavapura to Kunti-Betta, Auto (4km approx, fare:70rs, It is pretty costly for a distance of just under 4 km, bargaining more helps)
17.00-- Start the trek from the base
18.15-- Trek down and walk toward lake
19.30-- Pandavapura to Mandya(same route and fare)
21:00-- Dinner at Mandya
21:15-- Mandya to Bangalore Majestic, KSRTC (100km, bus fare:73)
23:00-- Reach Bangalore Majestic

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Any day can turn out to be a holiday if you know how to do it~~~~~~~~~~~~~~