[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by ankan.m.blr

I noticed the wikipedia link mentions a lot of wild-life including bull elephants in this forest. Is there any threat from these elephants? Also, is there any food joint / resting place near the temple (assuming this temple is the tourist attraction on B R Hills)? Looking for friendly options for ladies & kids .

This is a thick forest zone, so no surprises if you spot some wild animals, especially elephants on the way up. Do proceed cautiously just in case. The forest stretches can get a bit eerie.

There are a couple of resorts on the top where you can have your lunch stops or even rest stops. The temple is the only famous tourist attraction here. There is also a viewpoint of the panorama from the summit, but that viewpoint is accessible from inside the temple premises.

There are 3 decent places you can request for lunch at :

- Gorukana resort. Easily the best choice. Slightly upmarket rates, but well worth it. Outstanding service and excellent food. I'd readily recommend this place among what is available here.
http://www.gorukana.org/

- Akasa getaways (you can contact their Mysore hotel office to pre-book)
http://www.homestay360.com/property/...a-BR-Hills.htm

- Jungle Lodges K.Gudi is just ~2km from the temple on the top. I don't think they may just agree to serve lunch. They usually prefer customers making advance booking and going for that full 1-day programme, but no harm in trying.
http://kgudiwildernesscamp.com/

[ankan.m.blr]

Visited BR Hills this weekend. the roads are in fine shape. I never guessed the forest would be this dense. As it was a day trip, stayed for a short while. Spotted a gaur in the bushes (couldn't click any pic :( ). A few photos :
1. NH-209 was deserted;
2. breakfast break at highway dhaba - this is a new joint opened a few KM before Kanakpura on the right side;
3.Went past Kaveri; didn't stop at Shivanasamudram
4. the ghat road is not so steep
5. the forest is very dense ; and beautiful
6. greenery all around
7. A parting shot

[bsdbsd]

Awesome, very nice photos. Thanks for sharing. Looks like taken out of a nat geo book!

[rohitrag]

I am planning to go drive to the K Gudi JLR Camp in October. The google maps search is asking me to take a left at Yelandur town and an immediate right and continue on to Hondarbalu, where the road meets the Chamarajanagara-BR Hills road. Is it advisable to take this route or is it reccomended to go till Chamarajanagara and then take the Chamarajanagara BR Hills road instead? The route suggested by Gmaps seems to be shorter but nobody in this forum has addressed this stretch, so was wondering if anyone has any insights on this. Cheers

[NPV]

Originally Posted by rohitrag

I am planning to go drive to the K Gudi JLR Camp in October. The google maps search is asking me to take a left at Yelandur town and an immediate right and continue on to Hondarbalu, where the road meets the Chamarajanagara-BR Hills road. Is it advisable to take this route or is it reccomended to go till Chamarajanagara and then take the Chamarajanagara BR Hills road instead? The route suggested by Gmaps seems to be shorter but nobody in this forum has addressed this stretch, so was wondering if anyone has any insights on this. Cheers

I had taken this route back in 2011 to travel to K Gudi, stayed at the JLR Wilderness camp. From Yellandur as soon as we took the right turn, a stretch of about 2 Km the road was being relaid back then. After this, the road was narrow passing through hills and forest with few potholes but nothing alarming.
This route is discussed on this thread on Page #2 as well as in the K Gudi thread here

[sdp1975]

Is this route safe to drive at early morning hours ? I'm planning to leave quite early , around 3 am from home and my family will be with me.

[mpksuhas]

I have travelled on this road through Yellandur towards Gundelpet and back multiple times, have not felt any safety issues till now. However the deviation to BR hills goes through forest and a 3AM start will see you reaching there before 6AM which is time for animals to move around. Just maintain distance from elephant herds if you come across as mentioned in post above.

[nkrishnap]

The forest check posts are open from 6 am to 6 pm. It should not cause any issue if you are going via Yelandur side. However, watch out for tuskers especially going up the hill from Chamarajanagar side. The forest is quite dense. It is advised not to stop and get down from the vehicle.

[lancer_rit]

Originally Posted by rohitrag

I am planning to go drive to the K Gudi JLR Camp in October. The google maps search is asking me to take a left at Yelandur town and an immediate right and continue on to Hondarbalu, where the road meets the Chamarajanagara-BR Hills road. Is it advisable to take this route or is it reccomended to go till Chamarajanagara and then take the Chamarajanagara BR Hills road instead? The route suggested by Gmaps seems to be shorter but nobody in this forum has addressed this stretch, so was wondering if anyone has any insights on this. Cheers

Been to kgudi wilderness camp last Friday. Drive through yelandur - br hills - kgudi is great. Only few stretches just after yelandur has rough surface and the occasional pothole.
You have to cross forest checklist before the climb - maybe you can start couple of hours later if you want to enjoy the scenic route in early daylight."

[rohitrag]

Originally Posted by lancer_rit

Been to kgudi wilderness camp last Friday. Drive through yelandur - br hills - kgudi is great. Only few stretches just after yelandur has rough surface and the occasional pothole.
You have to cross forest checklist before the climb - maybe you can start couple of hours later if you want to enjoy the scenic route in early daylight."

Lancer_rit, I am talking about the road which doesn't touch BR hills proper but kind of goes parallel to the main highway and joins at this village called Hondarbalu. Hope you are referring to the same. Cheers

[lancer_rit]

Originally Posted by rohitrag

Lancer_rit, I am talking about the road which doesn't touch BR hills proper but kind of goes parallel to the main highway and joins at this village called Hondarbalu. Hope you are referring to the same. Cheers

Yes, I took the route through SH57 in both directions. Going via Hondarbalu is a longer route, so I did not try that. ON Sh57, Quite less traffic on this road even in daytime. On a weekday like Friday, the whole route through the forest, hardly any traffic.
Turn off from SH57 to KGudi (a bit before the BR temple), I drove ~18km w/o a single vehicle in either direction crossing by - Google maps shows this as SH80. This stretch is through dense forest. And continues from K.Gudi onwards to Chamarajnagar, I think.

[sdp1975]

Are there any safari options for visitors not staying in Jungle Lodges ? If any, what are the timings and location ?

I'll visit and return on the same day.

[sdp1975]

Did some googling and the forest department does have a safari in K Gudi, see http://brt.gov.in . The site is down now but a cached version in google shows the rates as Rs400/- per head.

Timings are 6:30 am to 9:00 am and 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm as per the site.

[rohitrag]

Thank you all for the clarifications. So i think the most ideal route to the K Gudi Wilderness camp is kanakapura-malavalli-kollegal-yelandur-BR Hills - K Gudi. This is the route I am going to take and will post about my experience driving this route once I am back after my trip in October.

[Gokrish]

Originally Posted by sdp1975

Did some googling and the forest department does have a safari in K Gudi, see http://brt.gov.in . The site is down now but a cached version in google shows the rates as Rs400/- per head.

Timings are 6:30 am to 9:00 am and 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm as per the site.

I, with my family, went to KGudi sometime in May 2013 and stayed at K'taka forest guest house mentioned in the link. The booking has to be done at Chamrajnagar office and it is really cheap at around Rs.1500 (inclusive of B'fast, lunch and dinner for three). But it takes much persuasion and explaining on the purpose of trip to Director of Forests, Mr. Lingaraja, IFS to book the accommodation, though. If accommodation is booked, then a drive between BR hills and KGudi during evening and early morning hours is a must and a possibility of spotting tuskers and other animals is high. And the department arranges for a safari in their vehicle too.