Single day trip to Jog (from Bangalore) and back

Bullfrog · 14th September 2007, 14:30

Was a flash decision to drive down to Jog in monsoon time to witness the falls in full glory after seeing some snaps in newspapers. For the uninitiated, Jog falls is the highest untiered waterfall in India that plunges from 829 feet and is located in Shimoga district in Karnataka, and about 400km from Bangalore.

This drive happened during the weekend of 18th August. Started from Bangalore in the night at 10.30 on 18th August. Filled at the Shell pump on NH4 and proceeded towards Shimoga. Roads are pretty much OK except around Tarikere where it gets bad which is not so good news for a 5 person loaded stock Zen (old). Rest of the travelogue in pictures...

Sharavathy river full to the brim

Our ride

Entry to the View point at the top of the fall

Different Views of falls

As seen above was very misty. The fall is so big that it sets up a very local weather system, the one of continuous precipitation. So we decided to drive to a different viewpoint which is on top of the fall. On the way decided to visit the scenic bridge as seen below

Entry to the top of the falls
Customary warning sign: Translated reads, Danger ahead. Do not walk on the rocks.

Some views of falls

On the way back visited Talguppa railway station which has (had, rather with latest news of closure of track) one of the last surviving Metreguage Railbus running. When we visited the service was temporarily suspended due to heavy rains. Here are a couple of pictures of a very scenic station

Also it has a turntable which is used to reverse the engine as Talguppa is a terminal. The process of turning is engine is manual with 3-4 people involved !!

So all of it was done by around 4 PM of 19th Sunday. We headed back for a eventless journey and reached home by 11 PM.

So thus ended the 24 hour dash to Jog and back. Not bad eh...?

cheers
Bullfrog

rjstyles69 · 14th September 2007, 14:44

Wonderful pictures and trip log , bullfrog. Jog at is absolute beauty captured by a t-bhp'ian !! splendid.

srishiva · 14th September 2007, 15:03

Wonderful pictures !! Looking down from the top should have been amazing.

deepaktpatil · 14th September 2007, 15:10

Good pictures, the mist you captured is fantastic.

akroy · 14th September 2007, 16:11

Splendid pics Bullfrog, I specially the pics of the Talaguppa Railway station, absolute amazing...
Are they stopping the service? if yes, any idea why?

Abhi

Lukeskywalker · 14th September 2007, 16:27

Great pics, lucky you to get a clear view of the falls in the monsoon, they are always covered by mist.
Where did you take the snaps 6,7 and 8?
talguppa is a sleepy picturesque town.
The photos speak better than any travelogue.

lohithrao · 14th September 2007, 17:26

Nice pictures there, btw how long did you take to reach Jog? Planning a trip to Jog, but trying to do it on a weekend would be a bit tight i suppose!

kumar2007 · 14th September 2007, 17:37

Lovely pics and nice report. Any place to stay near there? Was it very crowded?

Nitin · 14th September 2007, 21:49

Beautiful pics!!
I've always wanted to go see Jog falls..but somehow or the other I've missed out .

black12rr · 14th September 2007, 22:14

wonderful bullfrog , very nice pictures.The railway track is very senic .Would love to potograph it ,next time will try to deviate here.

kousik · 15th September 2007, 00:32

That was an amazing ride! The photos are awesome, reminds me my ride last month: Hacking | Photography | Bird-Watching: 500 kilometers a day keeps blues away

Enjoy riding,
Kousik

-GT- · 16th September 2007, 10:51

Bullfrog:

Absolutely beautiful pics. I didn't know that you could go up all the way to the top of Jog; By the way, is it also possible to go down to the base?

Is there any place to stay overnight?

chandan · 16th September 2007, 18:16

Great pics bro....nice to see Jog in full strength.About a month ago,the Karnataka tourism dept organised a Fall festival here & in Shivasamudram.The turnout at jog on that weekend was about 70,000 & there was a mile long traffic jam....shows how popular this place is, all of a sudden.

Bullfrog · 17th September 2007, 11:17

Some comment to hopefully answer some of the queries.

Accomodation maybe available at Sagar and could be very basic. If planned in advance can book British bungalow not sure about the department though, could be forest dept. British bungalow is the one seen on top of the falls.

One sure way to escape jam is to reach there early morning (5 am types). This involves driving in the night and can be done only by experienced/multiple drivers. That way by the time whole world wakes up and trying to get into the Jog falls, you are on your way out of the place

Have heard the news that railbus has stopped and that could be permanent. Some old pics which we shot in year 2003 are seen below.

The Birur line itself has 100 year old history and Talguppa shot to prominence when there was heavy logging on during British times. Anyway Metreguage is on its way out. Only the few celebrated non-broadguage lines are retained as heritage with tourism playing a big role in the same. Alas that is not to be the fate of Talguppa line.

More on operation of Turn table can be seen here

[IRFCA] Indian Railways Photo Gallery - A trip on the Shimoga Town - Talguppa MG railbus.

regards
Bullfrog

lancersfx · 23rd September 2007, 10:09

Hey Bullfrog....Nice travelogue....I recently had been to Jog falls twice during the last three months.....But I ended up hiring a local autorickshaw and also got a chance to visit the the shooting spot of one of the songs in the movie "Dweepa" it is the backwaters of a dam...
The link is as follows

Another pic of the tiny island

I am the one clicking the pic.....

14th September 2007, 14:30	#1
Bullfrog BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 195 Thanked: 114 Times	Single day trip to Jog (from Bangalore) and back Was a flash decision to drive down to Jog in monsoon time to witness the falls in full glory after seeing some snaps in newspapers. For the uninitiated, Jog falls is the highest untiered waterfall in India that plunges from 829 feet and is located in Shimoga district in Karnataka, and about 400km from Bangalore. This drive happened during the weekend of 18th August. Started from Bangalore in the night at 10.30 on 18th August. Filled at the Shell pump on NH4 and proceeded towards Shimoga. Roads are pretty much OK except around Tarikere where it gets bad which is not so good news for a 5 person loaded stock Zen (old). Rest of the travelogue in pictures... Sharavathy river full to the brim Our ride Entry to the View point at the top of the fall Different Views of falls As seen above was very misty. The fall is so big that it sets up a very local weather system, the one of continuous precipitation. So we decided to drive to a different viewpoint which is on top of the fall. On the way decided to visit the scenic bridge as seen below Entry to the top of the falls Customary warning sign: Translated reads, Danger ahead. Do not walk on the rocks. Some views of falls On the way back visited Talguppa railway station which has (had, rather with latest news of closure of track) one of the last surviving Metreguage Railbus running. When we visited the service was temporarily suspended due to heavy rains. Here are a couple of pictures of a very scenic station Also it has a turntable which is used to reverse the engine as Talguppa is a terminal. The process of turning is engine is manual with 3-4 people involved !! So all of it was done by around 4 PM of 19th Sunday. We headed back for a eventless journey and reached home by 11 PM. So thus ended the 24 hour dash to Jog and back. Not bad eh...? cheers Bullfrog
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 14:44	#2
rjstyles69 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Bengalooru.. Posts: 4,343 Thanked: 842 Times View My Garage	Wonderful pictures and trip log , bullfrog. Jog at is absolute beauty captured by a t-bhp'ian !! splendid.
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 15:03	#3
srishiva Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Bengaluru Posts: 4,375 Thanked: 2,256 Times	Wonderful pictures !! Looking down from the top should have been amazing.
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 15:10	#4
deepaktpatil BHPian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: KA 05, MH 10 Posts: 303 Thanked: 128 Times	Good pictures, the mist you captured is fantastic.
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 16:11	#5
akroy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: San Francisco, CA, USA Posts: 2,423 Thanked: 85 Times View My Garage	Splendid pics Bullfrog, I specially the pics of the Talaguppa Railway station, absolute amazing... Are they stopping the service? if yes, any idea why? Abhi
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 16:27	#6
Lukeskywalker Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,397 Thanked: 1,243 Times View My Garage	Great pics, lucky you to get a clear view of the falls in the monsoon, they are always covered by mist. Where did you take the snaps 6,7 and 8? talguppa is a sleepy picturesque town. The photos speak better than any travelogue.
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 17:26	#7
lohithrao Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Kudla/Mangaluru Posts: 3,204 Thanked: 225 Times View My Garage	Nice pictures there, btw how long did you take to reach Jog? Planning a trip to Jog, but trying to do it on a weekend would be a bit tight i suppose!
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 17:37	#8
kumar2007 BANNED Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 213 Thanked: 34 Times	Lovely pics and nice report. Any place to stay near there? Was it very crowded?
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 21:49	#9
Nitin Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 3,294 Thanked: 20 Times View My Garage	Beautiful pics!! I've always wanted to go see Jog falls..but somehow or the other I've missed out .
	() Thanks

14th September 2007, 22:14	#10
black12rr Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Ridin earth now Posts: 1,278 Thanked: 339 Times	wonderful bullfrog , very nice pictures.The railway track is very senic .Would love to potograph it ,next time will try to deviate here.
	() Thanks

15th September 2007, 00:32	#11
kousik BHPian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 202 Thanked: 59 Times View My Garage	That was an amazing ride! The photos are awesome, reminds me my ride last month: Hacking \| Photography \| Bird-Watching: 500 kilometers a day keeps blues away Enjoy riding, Kousik
	() Thanks

16th September 2007, 10:51	#12
-GT- BHPian Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Chennai / Dubai Posts: 171 Thanked: 3 Times	Bullfrog: Absolutely beautiful pics. I didn't know that you could go up all the way to the top of Jog; By the way, is it also possible to go down to the base? Is there any place to stay overnight?
	() Thanks

16th September 2007, 18:16	#13
chandan BHPian Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: sakleshpur Posts: 251 Thanked: 47 Times View My Garage	Great pics bro....nice to see Jog in full strength.About a month ago,the Karnataka tourism dept organised a Fall festival here & in Shivasamudram.The turnout at jog on that weekend was about 70,000 & there was a mile long traffic jam....shows how popular this place is, all of a sudden.
	() Thanks

17th September 2007, 11:17	#14
Bullfrog BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 195 Thanked: 114 Times	Some comment to hopefully answer some of the queries. Accomodation maybe available at Sagar and could be very basic. If planned in advance can book British bungalow not sure about the department though, could be forest dept. British bungalow is the one seen on top of the falls. One sure way to escape jam is to reach there early morning (5 am types). This involves driving in the night and can be done only by experienced/multiple drivers. That way by the time whole world wakes up and trying to get into the Jog falls, you are on your way out of the place Have heard the news that railbus has stopped and that could be permanent. Some old pics which we shot in year 2003 are seen below. The Birur line itself has 100 year old history and Talguppa shot to prominence when there was heavy logging on during British times. Anyway Metreguage is on its way out. Only the few celebrated non-broadguage lines are retained as heritage with tourism playing a big role in the same. Alas that is not to be the fate of Talguppa line. More on operation of Turn table can be seen here [IRFCA] Indian Railways Photo Gallery - A trip on the Shimoga Town - Talguppa MG railbus. regards Bullfrog
	() Thanks

23rd September 2007, 10:09	#15
lancersfx BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 225 Thanked: 44 Times View My Garage	Hey Bullfrog....Nice travelogue....I recently had been to Jog falls twice during the last three months.....But I ended up hiring a local autorickshaw and also got a chance to visit the the shooting spot of one of the songs in the movie "Dweepa" it is the backwaters of a dam... The link is as follows Another pic of the tiny island I am the one clicking the pic..... Last edited by lancersfx : 23rd September 2007 at 10:17. Reason: adding the pics.
	() Thanks