Place: Mandharagiri
Trek - Tumkur.
Distance: 70 x 2 = 140kms.
Directions: Bengaluru
– Dobbaspete – Kyatsandhra - Mandharagiri
Participants: Deepak (Deefu) > Karthik (Sp).
Bikes: Zeus >
Pulsar.
Previous visit: Lepakshi- Ancient shredder.
IN
LESS THAN 50 WORDS:
Well, umm what do i say about this particular
run. This was the shortest hill climb we’ve done far; it took us only 10mins to
climb to the top. (With one small break
:P) But the exploration we did beyond the temple premises was something we
enjoyed more than the climb. This place is also known by the name Basadi Betta.
INTRO
& PLAN:
It had been 10 days since out previous run
the ancient Lepakshi. The fire within us had started blazing again so we were hot
on pursuit of some new places. Mandharagiri seemed like one of those places
which we had missed or bypassed far too many times. So with Deefu on the confirmed list,
we decided to get this one under our belt.
TIME: 22:00 (25/5/2013)
ASSEMBLE:
Yeah I was up at around 05:00hrs, had some
coffee, did a few push ups and sit ups. Left my place at about 06:30 and
reached Malleswaram at about 06:45 where Deefu’s pickup was scheduled. But then
Deefu wanted to ride on his bike. I too wanted to ride my bike. So we set out
on two bikes and rode out of the city
TIME: 06:45 hrs
RIDE
1: (Bangalore – Dobbaspete – Kyatsandhra - Mandharagiri)
This was a 70kms stretch on the super
smooth NH-4 (Tumkur Road). As we left we rode at a decent pace beside each
other. After covering about 50kms called out to Deefu and signalled whether he
was done with breakfast. When the answer recievied was a “ no” we pulled over
at our regular hotel and munched on a light breakfast.
TIME: 07:45
After having a light breakfast we rode on
to reach Dobbaspete, continuing further we smiled back Nijaggal Hill where we
had been a few months back. Waving a
good bye, we began to look out for the hill we had in mind. After a few
kilometres of slow riding, and our eyes constantly in search of the hill, we
did spot it. It which stood (or atleast
looked) tall from the highway on which we were cruising.
TIME: 08:45
After taking a right deviation from the
highway we reached the base of the hill. We parked our bikes amidst a farmland near
and with the Astral goats spirit wide
awake within us we were ready to conquer the hillock.
TIME: 09:05
MANDHARAGIRI:
Last trek we had been together was Kabbaldurga,
about 3 months back. And were really pumped up, even to climb up till the sky
if the situation demanded. So we started of our climb at a normal pace. Steps
had been provided, but we preferred the rough terrain as it reduced out energy
consumption and it would be less strenuous on our knees. After about 10mins of
the climb we stood in shock, scratching our heads, looking above, to the side,
searching for another hillock totally puzzled. We were confused as to whether
the journey which we enjoy the most had already reached an end – an unexpected
end.
TIME: 09:15
TOP:
We were still digesting the fact that it was
over. We visited the Jain temple that was constructed on top. The ambience was super
awesome and it had some wonderful paintings i had seen till date.
We did spot a few reptiles running around the top playing joyfully or just
basking in the warm sun.
After having
spent about 20mins at the temple on top, we decided to explore the desert like
stretch of land on the other side of the mountain. And believe me it didn't disappoint
us. We found some ancient carvings left in ruins a few yards away from the main
temple. Exploring further we could see big lake which had gone completely dry
due to the harsh summer. Then we climbed up a huge boulder and sat on top of it
enjoying the sound of the wind. And oh yeah we could see Savandurga afar, we did
wave back :)
After spending
about 30mins speaking about all sorts of shit, we continued our walk through the barren boulder filled land to
reach a small pond on top of the hillock. After which we retraced our steps to
reach back the base of the hill. The Jain temple at the base of the hill could also be visited on the way back.
But we decided to skip it.
TIME: 11:15
RIDE
2: (Mandharagiri – Dobbaspete - Bangalore)
This was a return 70kms ride. First we rode
back to touch the highway. Then we rode at a decent pace discussing whether to
crash at some dhaba or ride back to Malleswaram, or to just to ride back home
and close the trip. Then we decided to ride back home. So we continued till the
Yeswanthpur junction at a good pace where we split to reach our respective
homes.
TIME: 13:00 hrs
CONCLUSION:
“This
had to be the shortest climb ever done so far. But it was an experience we
shall always remember. It’s these trips which prepare you for bigger trips and
you know what to expect when you go out there- that’s right nothing”
Until Next time Cia \m/
PICASA
ALBUM:
MAP:
