[mpksuhas]

17-01-2015

We had planned to visit Shravanabelagola during our Halebidu trip last year. However we got late and by the time we reached Shravanabelagola, gates to top of the hill was closed.

So, one year pass and this January we don't have any long trips planned. Hence decided to visit Shravanabelagola on a weekend. Thought of adding Melukote to the itenary since the place is nearby and during a bike ride couple of years back, had seen the temple on top of the hill from a distance.

So as usual we start off early in the morning. From Marathahalli, Bangalore we take the NICE road to Tumkur road / NH4 and continue till Nelamangala.

From Nelamangla we take right on to NH 48 and continue towards Hassan. NH 48 and NH 4 and NH 7 are my favorite roads out of Bangalore since there are atleast few hours each day when you find these roads devoid of traffic.



After a two hour drive we stop at hotel Mayura for breakfast. A long breakfast and we start towards Shravanabelagola at 07.40 AM.


Shravanabelagola


We take left turn at Hirisave and proceed on SH 8, road conditions are good throughout.



Soon we pass through picturesque country side



Traffic is less on this road and only vehicles we encounter are few bikes and goods carriers. We reach near foot of the hills around 08.30 AM, find parking near KSRTC stand and proceed to start the climb.

The entry to hill is open from 06.00 to 18.00.







We keep an eye of the vehicle from top of the hill



Nearby Chandragiri hill is visible across the town.





The climb is moderate and takes around half hour.







Unfortunately there were many who did not make out what was written




Ancient writings on top of the hill








Main temple complex








We saw a replica of the main statue and worship done on the same




We reach back at parking around 10.00 AM and start off to Chandragiri located nearby.

[mpksuhas]

Chandragiri

Located next to Shravanabelagola, Chandragiri is a smaller hill which has one of the oldest Jain temples in south India.

We park on road side next to the hill entry and start the climb, compared to Shravanabelagola climb, this is easier.





We can see the Shravanabelagola / Vindyagiri hill across




A 900 year old tomb




The temple complex on top of the hill







Unique rock formation found all around here




We are back near parking by 11.30 AM and start towards Melukote

[mpksuhas]

Melukote

Road towards Melukote is broken in certain pockets and superb in certain others










We reach Melukote and are greeted by view of the temple on top of the hill




Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple

Next to the foot of the hill, is a complex which has a beautiful pond. Unfortunately it is badly maintained and full of filth.



We start the climb towards the hill temple.






Parking lot visible mid way from the climb






Melukote town



One hour after start of the climb, we reach back to parking at 1.50 PM. We decide to have lunch first. Having read a lot about Subbanna Mess, we decide to give it a try.


Subbanna Mess

Rated highly on travel websites, the place is famous for its variety of rices. The place is located midway through Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple and Cheluvarayaswamy Temple.

Parking is not an issue, thanks to empty wide roads nearby.





Meals



The mess is located inside a house and very much the single food option in Melukote. Only vegetarian rice items are served for lunch. Though nothing to complain about, do not expect an airy anti-septic atmosphere. Meals are priced Rs. 75 per plate.

Food was tasty and service superb, however we felt the food not living up to the hype created on TripAdvisor.

It is 2.20 PM and we start towards Cheluvarayaswamy Temple located nearby.


Cheluvarayaswamy Temple

We reach the temple only to find it closed.





Temple timings



We spend sometime around the temple and start back to Bangalore.



Instead of taking the Pandavapura- Srirangapatanam route we decide to take Mandya route to avoid Bangalore - Mysore road as much as possible.

Being a Saturday, traffic on Bangalore - Mysore road was not bad. We take the NICE road from Kengeri and reach Silkboard junction by 06.00 PM.

[mpksuhas]

Route details

Onward route



Melukote route



Return route




Epilogue

• Shravanabelagola can be combined with a day trip of Halebidu & Belur from Bangalore.
• Similarly, Melukote can be combined with Mysore trip.
• Try reaching both the places either early in morning or late in evening to avoid climb in sun.
• Melukote has a descent restroom inside KSRTC bus stand.
• Route thread.
• There is another parking in Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple than the one we parked, this will help in reaching almost mid way to the climb. For reaching there, proceed on the road from town past temple entry and take the next left.

[Eddy]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing.

[guyfrmblr]

Nice travelogue. The pics of Shravanabelagola reminded me of my primary school trip around 20 years back. I have never climbed the hill after that even though I have passed on that road multiple times.

To return from Melkote, the best option is to take SH-19 through Nagamangala to reach NH-48 (Bellur Cross). It's a superb road and you'll reach NH-48 within no time.

[Ddrive]

Nice reporting as usual sir.
Your short trips are awsome. Lovely snaps too.

[Soumyajit9]

Awesome snaps there mate !

Even when me and wifey had visited Belur and Hassan, we couldn't visit Shravanbelagola due to:
- Time loss due to multiple stops with a kid.
- Cranky kid after 2 days outside of his home.

So we had planned a trip with 4 couples in a Beat and a Figo for tomorrow (24th).
Due to some change of plan, we had to cancel the trip this morning.
And just now saw your T-Log.

Hopefully will make it someday soon.

[mpksuhas]

Originally Posted by guyfrmblr

Nice travelogue. The pics of Shravanabelagola reminded me of my primary school trip around 20 years back.

To return from Melkote, the best option is to take SH-19 through Nagamangala to reach NH-48 (Bellur Cross). It's a superb road and you'll reach NH-48 within no time.

Thanks. It was almost a similar experience for me too, the last time I climbed the hill was some 25 years back. From what I remember and from old pics, nothing much have changed thankfully.

Yes, as mentioned by you I guess it is best to return to Mangalore highway from Melukote and drive down to Bangalore. We decided to come via Mysore road to avoid taking the same road as onward trip. Also, since it was a Saturday it was less crowded. However, still considering speed breakers it is best to come via Mangalore highway.

Originally Posted by Ddrive

Your short trips are awsome.

Thanks Ddrive.
OT: Is your PM option disabled? I am not able to send message you mail.

Originally Posted by Soumyajit9

So we had planned a trip with 4 couples in a Beat and a Figo for tomorrow (24th).

Thanks Soumyajit.

Hope you make the trip soon. For us too the trip was delayed since last one year and postponed numerous times. Unfortunately had to plan without one couple.

[dhanushmenon]

Lovely travelogue Suhas.
Well detailed and lucid.

Another superb effort which gave an insight into places which generally was elusive of popular tourist maps.

Good work.
Seems, you can now make a guide book for "Unknown Weekend destinations in Bangalore"
How about a new thread for that??

[aaren]

Thanks for the excellent post.

Reminded me of my own trip to Halebid, Belur, Shravana Belegola. I took a cab from Bengaluru to cover all the points. From Shravana Belegola, we traveled to Mysore where we stayed for a night and then returned to Bengaluru.

The one thing about visiting temples in South is that they are not open all day long. So one has to really plan these visits so that one can cover multiple temples in 1 day. I really liked that no one bothered the tourists at Shravana Belegola. It was peaceful.

Thanks for enabling to do some "time travelling" !!

[NPV]

Suhas - As usual, excellent travelogue with lots of detail and wonderful pictures, thanks for sharing

Keep up the wanderlust spirit

Can one combine Melukote temple visit with a visit to the Kanva dam ?
What would be a good routing for such a day trip from Bangalore and back ?
Prefer good roads, even if it means longer distance.

[mpksuhas]

Originally Posted by dhanushmenon

Seems, you can now make a guide book for "Unknown Weekend destinations in Bangalore"
How about a new thread for that??

Thanks Dhanush.

Similar to your Goa sojourn thread?

I had initially planned something similar, however I lost details of few trips made couple of years earlier. Hence thought best to keep creating separate threads for each trip.

Originally Posted by aaren

I really liked that no one bothered the tourists at Shravana Belegola. It was peaceful.

Yes. Timings is something which you need to consider. We had faced the same issue last year when we reached five mins past the closing time of 06.00 PM at Shravanabelagola. And yes, there are no usual pestering touts which is associated with most pilgrimage / tourist locations.

This was same with Melukote too. However, we felt the place needed bit more upkeep considering the garbage thrown around.

Originally Posted by NPV

Can one combine Melukote temple visit with a visit to the Kanva dam ?
What would be a good routing for such a day trip from Bangalore and back ?
Prefer good roads, even if it means longer distance.

Thanks Narayan.
Yes, it is very much doable. Considering you are still staying in CV Raman nagar you can consider two route for Melukote. The SH 17 route via Ramanagara - Mandya - Melukote or via NH 48 - Nelligere as guyfrmblr mentioned couple of posts earlier. Considering you take the route via town and not ORR / NICE road to get out of Bangalore, I guess the difference in distance will be less than 20KM's.

I would prefer the NH 48 route since the less said about Mysore road the better.

It would be best to visit Melukote and visit Kanava reservoir on way back. From Melukote you can join SH 17 either at Srirangapatana or at Mandya (like I did) and proceed towards Kanava.

From SH 17 soon after you cross the rail over-bridge between Channapatana and Ramnagar you need to take left. Apart from KA tourism signboard, there is a temple at this junction which can be used as landmark.

[girimajiananth]

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

17-01-2015
The climb is moderate and takes around half hour.

May be you are in good shape to trek / climb. I had been to this place a few years back with some friends on my bike. The ride was exciting . Once I started climbing I ran out of breath and had to stop half way . My friends decided to continue without me [just like top gear] . I was literally gasping for breath and other pilgrims were staring at me .

Thanks a lot for sharing the pics , I now know what I have missed on top of the hill.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by dhanushmenon

How about a new thread for that??

Here is one for you Dhanush.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...bangalore.html

Suhas,
To add to what @guyfrmblr said, you could have also done : Shravanabelagola-Nagamangala-Melkote. Shravanabelagola-Nagamangala is fantastic road. Part of it being @guyfrmblr's favourite SH85

Another place one can add to this journey is Markonahalli reservoir on Shimsha at Yediyur. The turning is very easy to find. It is right opposite the Adigas on NH48. During the monsoon period is its a nice place for a visit.