[NutHead1270]

Guys, Me and another BHPian is planning to visit Gangadhareshwara gudi betta and Bilikal Rangaswamy betta in Scorpio N and Jimny with family. Is it doable? Can the car reach top of the hill as it will be difficult to climb. Also are there any other places nearby?
Thanks in advance!

[mpksuhas]

Originally Posted by NutHead1270

Is it doable? Can the car reach top of the hill as it will be difficult to climb.!

To BR hills, anyway you cannot take vehicle till top, one has to park near the shops at foot of the hill and take steps. However, till there any vehicle can make it.

For Gangadhareshwara betta, the final section is a dirt track, that may be bit tricky based on climate on the certain day.

[NutHead1270]

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

To BR hills

Thanks for the reply. Not Biligiri actually, Bilikal Rangaswamy. Planned for tomorrow, will post photos here for sure
https://maps.app.goo.gl/on5DpBbWMqnCekaa8

[procrj]

Originally Posted by NutHead1270

Thanks for the reply. Not Biligiri actually, Bilikal Rangaswamy. Planned for tomorrow, will post photos here for sure
https://maps.app.goo.gl/on5DpBbWMqnCekaa8

IIRC the last section of Bilikal Rangaswamy bettta is only reachable by bike. I remember that a friend of mine did not take his Thar there and had to use his RE650 to get there. Also latest reviews state that its permanently closed for bikes as well. Do check before you drive.

[NutHead1270]

Originally Posted by procrj

IIRC the last section of Bilikal Rangaswamy bettta is only reachable by bike.

What about Mavathur Waterfalls near Gangadhareshwara hills? Can Scorpio N go there? I saw a few YouTube videos where it was too narrow for N. Is there any other places near Kanakapura?

[NPV]

For a morning drive, are there any other places that can be clubbed with the Bhoga Nandishwara temple (foothills of Nandi hills). I was thinking that if the crowds towards the hilltop is too much, might just visit some other place after the Bhoga Nandishwara temple.

Probably a visit to Sir M. Vishweshwarayya Memorial at Muddenahalli?

[mrpotato]

A sedan friendly morning drive

I was looking for a drive which I could undertake with confidence in a Sedan. I was going through google street maps turn by turn to figure out which destination to choose next. Eventually I landed on a thread from Dr.AD. He had visited Mekedetu Sangama view point and posted some amazing pics of the drive. I wanted to do the same since its bhp-tested now. So thats how this drive happened.

The route was fairly simple. From South Bengaluru where I stay, I just had to get on to Nice road and take the Kanakapura Exit and head straight to Kanakapura. Continue on the Kanakpura road until you reach the Sangama Kaveri Wildlife Sanctuary Check post. The View point is just few kilometres from this check post.

We started off the drive sharply by 7 am. I wanted to go out while the weather was still cloudy and the sun nightly tucked behind the clouds. I took the Bannerghatta entry to the Nice road. The road as always was really good. The only downside being the tyre noise from the cement laden road. Its annoying after a point. I could not enjoy the Nice road much since I had to take the Kanakapura exit in just a little more than 4 kms. I had not been on the Kanakapura road for a good 6 years so I was a little skeptical but boy, was this road awesome for a sedan. Nice wide roads, with proper markings, it was a joy to drive the F30. I did not push the car much but I did manage to do some quick overtakes which I loved.

We reached the Sangama Kaveri Wildlife checkpost at about 9 am. The checkpost was quiet with just one caretaker and no vehicles in front of us. You need to enter your vehicle details there. Then came the most exciting part of the trip. The TWISTIES. Good tarmac with nearly no potholes on the way coupled with the forest canopy felt really nice to look at. The thought of how green this place would be during monsoon kept running through my mind. The F30 handled the twisites quite well we headed straight to the Mekadetu River stop. The tarmac ends right next to the water body beyond which its just land. The place has a really big parking space on the right but a word of caution - The Monkeys. I saw one Monkey jump from the top of a Scorpio onto a Punto the moment I entered the parking space. I parked in a place which had no trees above to avoid Monkeys. The caretaker there asked for another 50 to shoo away the monkeys from destroying the car. The moment I got out of the car, the caretaker was nowhere to be seen. I think it was a scam.

Mekedatu Sangama is the place where two Rivers meet - The mighty Kaveri and Arkavathi. The view from the shore was good with the sun having risen above the water and the reflection shimmering on top.



I so wished to remove my shoes and jump in but having turned 30 recently I already felt conscious and decided against it but mostly, it was because I did not want to get the car dirty. One could hear the feeble sounds of a waterfall coming from a distance. Me and my wife stood there for a while taking in the view, the sounds, the sun, the water, the trees. We clicked some pics on the return journey. Closing this out with some edits I made to the pics. Thanks for reading

[mm_shen]

Had read a post from a fellow Bhpian about a trip to Bolumalai last year. Since then, this place has been marked in my "to-do" list.

May 23, 2025, Friday

I was free on Sunday. Asked my brother if he is ready for a early morning drive this Sunday to see a Sunrise. He asked "where to?". "Bolumalai" was my answer. Without a second's thought or even knowing where this place is he blurted out 'OK'.

May 24, 2025, Saturday

I checked on G-Maps how long would it take it to reach around Sunrise. G-Map showed 3 hours. After a quick research online found that the the road upto the hill top is a bit of an off-road trail, with concrete at only 800 meter of the last stretch.
Evening, brother asked me what time should he be ready. Asked him to be ready at 3AM. His eyes widened and asked "How far is this place?". Retort from my end was "About 130km". He shrugged. Asked "Shall we take my Polo or will you take your Ignis?". A cheeky smile I said "Let's take my Ignis, I do not want your car to get stuck atop a hill." He did not pay 2 cents to what I just said and got back into his computer screen.

May 25, 2025, Sunday

We both were ready at 3 AM. "Yaaaawwnnn" he pushed back the co-passenger seat and relaxed. I gunned towards Hosur. I love Bangalore during the night. No traffic. Peenya to Silk board through the city. 30-35 min!. My God! I just wish this was true during the day too.

It has rained heavily the previous night and continued to drizzle till we reached Rayokotai.

After Rayokotai, you need to take a sharp right turn. mango orchards all the way till the foot hills. We reached the foot hills of Bolumalai around 5.45. Took us through narrow roads of a village.

A mud road started and my brother's eye widened. He finally understood why we did not take the Polo. After carefully driving till the last but final hairpin, I slightly scraped the car's bottom. Did not have to heart to take it further. We parked at the curb of the hairpin and decided to trek the rest of the way. The car nestled inbeween the bushes. Bike pushed on to the top as we walked the rest of the way.


The pic was taken after we got down.

When we reached, there was a check post, where a boy asked us in Tamil, if we had parked our car down. I nodded. He said "100 rupees parking" After I paid him, he told me " Anna, go get your car, there is a cement road rest of the way. Why simply walk?" I did not want to walk down again to get the car. I told him in the the broken Tamil that I know "It is ok. Do not want to walk back down".

The weather was hazy with a lot of fog. I told my brother "I guess the Sun will elude us and so will the scenery. No use of getting up so early". He told me lets wait.



This what greeted us. The winds at the top were gustly.

Thank full the fog lifted and my oh my! The sight around were breath-taking!






There is a temple of Lord Sri Thimmaraya. Adjacent to the temple, there were a couple with a 10-12 year old kid preparing breakfast on wood fire. The husband welcomed us with a warm smile and asked "Anna will you have breakfast or tea?"
Hot food in a chill pleasant climate and with a view, who can say no?
My brother and I blurted out in unison "Yenna irrukanna?" translates to "What do you have brother?"
He said "Paddu, Masalvade and Maggie". "One of each please but Masal Vade two" was the reply he got.

One plate Paddu, one plate Maggie, two MasalVade and one tea. I thought he would charge a premium for the hot food with such a nice ambience. ₹120/- was the bill. Seems capitalism has not reached this part of India. They are working for sustenance. Hard working family! Food was tasty. With a warm smile, we paid, told them the food was good. He and his wife smiled back!

Sat for half an hour admiring and scenery and left back to Bangalore.

What a wonderful short drive! What a wonderful life!

[Chillout]

Nice , more than the place it's the food that we get at these remote places from simple folks that makes it memorable. We had visited Bheeman falls near Tirupuattur, after a good bath we were super hungry and we had an old lady selling similar food minus the maggi, boy we ended up having more than a few plates and one of the best breakfasts that we have had. Do visit Bheeman falls for a trip after the monsoons, u will definitely enjoy and it's only a few hours from Bengaluru

[FlightDrive]

This seems like a good place to visit. Will surely consider going there from Bangalore. Could you please clarify if there is hiking involved? Can we take our vehicle all the way to the top? Thanks.

[mm_shen]

Originally Posted by FlightDrive

Could you please clarify if there is hiking involved? Can we take our vehicle all the way to the top? Thanks.

Hi FlightDrive!

No hiking involved, you can take your vehicle all the way to the top. The problem one might face at the top is reversing the car around. A lot of bikes were parked on the curb. So if you are going on a holiday when foot fall is more, you can park your car after the check post and it is short 700-800 meter walk to the top. Since there is a road to walk on, it will not be as difficult as trekking uneven hilly terrain. If you decide take it right to the top, I suggest reverse the car and park facing downhill. Later when the bikers come park and the road narrows, you need not struggle to reverse it.

Please note, upto the check post the road is an off road trail with mud roads and gravel. Take a high ground clearance vehicle. Sedans will scrape. My Ignis did at one point. But with a little careful maneuvering I could have taken it further. But did not want to risk it. I parked about 800 meters before the check post. While coming back down, I saw an Audi A4 parked about 500 meters after the off road started. Way at the bottom. May be he scraped the bottom and decided to park and walk up instead. But, I also saw a Honda Amaze parked at the top after the check post.