Friday, February 21, 2014

Yana rocks

Friends, Are you adventurous? Are you planning to go on a trek ? Then the ideal place would be Yana Rocks....Yana is a village located in forests of the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka. It is about 60 kilometers from Karwar port, 40 kilometers from Sirsi.....We have to take a bus from sirsi or we have to hire a private vehicle to reach the foot of the hill...From there our trek begins...Initially we have to walk for a kilometer and a half..... Surrounded by dense forest,in the calm and serene atmosphere all that we can hear is the gurgling sound of a stream that flows on one side and tiny water falls on the other side...As we walk,we can hear the chirping of birds...Of course the trek is pretty exhausting and tiring....We can take a splash from those tiny falls to cool ourselves....After walking for a while, we have to start climbing steps....But half way through the steps,we can see 2 huge rocks....You may be wondering what is so special about seeing rocks? "YES"...It is indeed very special because of its unique formation ...  The rocks are named as Bhairaveshwara Shikhara and Mohini Shikhara which are composed of solid black, crystalline Karst limestone...A panoramic view of the Sahyadri mountain range and the yana rocks,is a wonderful experience....Once we reach the top of the hill, we get very close to the rocks...There is an opening in the rock that leads into a cave...The cave has a "swayambhu Shivalinga" over which water drips from the roof....A cool place where we can rest for some time after an hour of trekking.....A place worth seeing and to get an experience of what trekking is all about.....In summer weather will be very hot and in the rainy season, we cannot reach the place...So ideal months would be from September to February.....So friends plan a trek to Yana rocks and experience it...Don't forget to carry drinking water....Happy Trekking!!!



Monday, February 17, 2014

Apsara konda and view point

Friends,   I would now like to share my experience with one more breathtaking picnic spot "Apsara konda" falls....It is located at a distance of about 8 km from the town of Honnavar, 28 km from Murudeshwar.....Once you reach that place, you can see a temple....If we walk a few meters behind the temple through the forest, we can see the "Apsara konda"... "Apsara" in Sanskrit means Angel....Surrounded by dense forest, the water is clean and not very deep...Hence we can enjoy near the falls...From there if we walk further up, we reach the top of a hill....The view from the view point is mesmerizing....Arabian sea, trees, paddy fields, sand beach, Estuary "wow",really a treat for eyes..There is a small garden close by...Don't feel like coming out of that place....So friends, if you go to Gokarna or Murudeshwara, please make it a point to visit Apsara konda and the view point...Carry food and water along with you and enjoy with family....






Kere tonnur

Friends, especially living in Mysore and Bangalore , Do you want to spend a weekend in a serene atmosphere away from hustle and bustle of the city? Then the perfect place would be "Kere Tonnur".......It is located in the Mandya district near pandavapura and about 25kms from Melkote....If you drive  all the way up to the reservoir bund, you can see a huge lake with clear water surrounded by rocks....It is a man made lake.....The lake irrigates vast sugar cane fields....The outflow of water from the lake has formed a waterfall....But this depends on the level of water in the lake....An excellent place to enjoy....Since the lake is close to Melkote, You can even have darshan  of  Lord Cheluvanarayana......But of course, food and water must to be taken as there are no good facilities close by....An ideal one day picnic with family...Plan one right now and enjoy the week end!!






Train journey From Bangalore to Mangalore

Hi friends.....I want a share a wonderful experience of my life - Train journey between Bangalore and Mangalore.....The train leaves Bangalore at about 7.30am every alternate days(Mon, Wed, Fri)....The train passes through many places like Tumkur, Arasikere, Hassan, Sakaleshpur, kukke Subrahmanya etc to reach Mangalore at about 5.30pm ......But after sakaleshpur is the most amazing part of the journey....The segment on the railway track from Sakaleshpura to Kukke Subramanya Road station is unique because of the dense green forest in which it is situated. This stretch of the track with length about 52 km has around 50 tunnels and bridges with length varying from few metres to 0.75 km and height varying from few metres to 200 meters.....It is an engineering marvel and hard to imagine how they have managed to lay the railway track in such an environment....It is the Green Route often called the trekker's paradise.This is one of the most picturesque route in the Western Ghats of Karnataka.Not only bridges and tunnels, but we can also see a number of water falls on either side especially when travel in the months of July, august and september..If you are lucky, you can even get a splash...The clouds that are trapped between mountains, tall trees , mountains,flowers etc is a treat for nature lovers....So friends please plan a trip with the family and enjoy the unique journey....Travel by second class and not A/C to get the wonderful experience of nature....Preferred time of travel is between july and october....Happy journey!!!