Place: Madakasira Fort Trek
Distance: 150kms x 2 = 300kms
Directions: Bangalore > Dobbaspete > Madhugiri > Madakasira
Krew: Anwar (Sharief Bhai) > Karthik (Sp)
Bikes: Pulsar
Previous Visit: Shivagange Trek
Budget: Rs 420/head (Total: Petrol = 600/2, Breakfast = 90/2, Lunch = 150/2)
IN LESS THAN 50 WORDS:
Madakasira is part of Andhra Pradesh, lying about 150 km from Bangalore. This is a 500-year-old fort also known as Simhagiri, the fort of the lion. Our visit was a superb & peaceful one, as there was no one around, and we had the fort to ourselves. A 300km trek is no doubt draining, but worth it with this one. And during the ride back, a crazy incident with a sheep(🐑) occurred, it was funny and heart-warming!
INTRO & PLAN:
With Bhai back in town, it was time to hit the roads again. It had been about 4 weeks since our epic Bhairavadurga trek. Few treks will ever come close to that chapter, trust me on this one. So, anyway, the plan was simple, we had hit a few forts in the Dobbaspete direction, so the plan was to continue the assault one step at a time.
TIME: 08:00 (5/12/2025)
ASSEMBLE & LEAVE:
Oh yeah, woke up at 03:00, did a few push-ups and sit-ups, had a sip of coffee and was all set to go. By 04:00, I was sitting outside on the road. At 05:15, Anwar arrived, and we took off from Bangalore. It had been a while since we headed out, so it felt good. The air was icy cold.
TIME: 05:15
RIDE 1: (Bangalore – Dobbaspete – Madhugiri – Madakasira Fort)
This was a 150km ride, broken down into three fragments. As we started the ride, it was really cold, but the joy of returning back on the road somehow overpowered or rather delayed, the sensation of how cold it truly was. We rode non-stop, chatting all the way, until post-dobbaspet to pull over at our regular Idli stop.
TIME: 06:45
As we got off the bike, we realised the temperature, and we were shivering. Hands, owing to the cold, had completely hardened. Dipping into the idlis felt really good. Having some tea, we set off. Waving a big "hi" to Channarayana Durga hillock outline, we continued to reach Madhugiri, to find her completely shrouded in fog, whew, what a sight it was! With 100km in the bag, we cruised into Andhra for 50km passing by the mighty Medigeshi Fort, bending our heads after the ass whooping we had got last visit, we entered the beautiful town of Madakasira, asking locals for the starting point, and with the ibex's spirit awake within us, we were READY!
TIME: 08:30
MADAKASIRA FORT TREK:
It took us about 45 minutes to ascend the fort. The weather was perfect, cool and dry. The fort has 7 gateways that lead to the summit. Not everybody makes it to the top of the fort, due to a technical stretch in the end. The trek can be divided into the following stages: Stairway to heaven, Boa’s belly and Final test
So, try keeping up with me on this one. Here goes:
i) Stairway to Heaven:
The initial stretch is pretty straightforward. A lot of well-laid ancient steps took us along a well-guided path until we spotted the stairs route right in the middle of two gigantic boulders, making it look like the stairway to heaven. This stretch is very easy and takes a matter of minutes to complete.
ii) Boa’s belly:
This is the core of the trek, the boa's belly. A lot of 90-degree turns, often, is misleading, well, I mean, that is the purpose of the construction that way as well. You wouldn't want to welcome enemies with a straight line red carpet. You can spot a lot of outposts and a Shiva temple at this stage. Knowing the lay of the land we dashed through this stretch as well.
iii) Final tester:
Alright, ready for the last part? Once you are out of the boa fort, the summit is still pending. And this requires some skill to ascend, trust me. And the reason we call it Boa's fort will become evident once you ascend this part. As we got out of the fort, we found ourselves with the ultimate challenge. Even though a steel rope had been placed, we had our doubts about where it was fastened to, so we did some free-style rock climbing to reach the top. And btw, the steel rope was fastened to a small tree, well, not very reliable, I would say
TIME: 09:30
TOP:
As we reached the top, the wind speed picked up. We reached the final mantap on the top and felt so rejuvenated. We rang the bell and declared the completion of the trek. As we sat there, the winds kept blowing at a scary pace, which was actually comforting in a way. We saw a few eagles flying below, we chuckled at it, saying, "We dare to go where eagles dare".
Sitting atop, we discussed the upcoming trips and also the past trips. We had some water and felt really refreshed, as we were about to head back, we heard eagle sound, saw the eagles flying above us, it was like they had heard us and were mocking at us haha!
TIME: 10:15
TREK DOWN:
Well, the trek down took us only 30 minutes, but it had a few intense moments. That is right, the two vertical rock faces. I made my way down first, wedging my feet between rock faces. Then had Anwar came next with me as the safety net. After the final stretch, it was plain walking down the ancient well laid steps to reach back the town, where we had parked our bikes.
TIME: 10:45
RIDE 2: (Madakasira – Madhugiri – Dobbaspete– Bangalore)
This was a 150 km ride back home, and the ride felt really smooth. We had allowed the bike to come to life and guide us back. We sailed through smoothly and, more importantly, nonstop 75km until Kortagere, where we pulled over at our standard juice shop. After spending about an hour here, we headed out at 1pm.
As we left, a lorry with sheep was heading beside us. I have a habit of making faces or waving at the kids. So decided, why not try it with a sheep? I waved at it and smiled at it. And guess what it was responding to it with a loud Baah! We laughed our assess off, happy and surprised, we actually followed the truck for a good 10-15km, enjoying with our newfound friend on the road! :) 🐑
We rode flawlessly until Nelamangala, where we pulled over at Whity Dhaba for some light lunch. Then we proceeded to take the NICE road and enter back into the city.
TIME: 16:00
CONCLUSION:
“This place has a place of its own on the trek list. We would give a solid 4/5 any day. It is a fun climb. Give it a shot! With Bhai back to town, it was a refreshing long ride, 300km and trek to top it, feels draining, but with the right spirits, can be pulled off - take it anyway u want haha”
Until next time, Cia \m/
