Kawar beach - Between a rock and a watery place

The main attraction of Karwar is the beach. On one side the western ghats tower over you. You can see the Konkan railway train precariously passing on these mountains. On the other side is the Arabian sea where the hot orange sun cools himself by slowly immersing himself into the waters there. No wonder Gurudev Ravindranath Tagore was impressed and inspired by this place.

We went to the Karwar beach that evening. We saw a strange sight there. We were standing at beach waiting for the water to careess our legs. The waves came and splashed against us. When the next wave came, the wave front would die a couple of feet before us. The next round would see the wave dying a few more feet before us and after a few mins the wave front was ending atleast 10 feet before us. It was as if the sea was withdrawing itself. In due course of time, the wave front would come forward till our feet and the cycle would repeat. The effect of tsunami. It felt as if someone had taken hold of the globle called earth and slowly rocking it.

The beach was quite clean and we had a good time there. We would see some ships anchored at a distance and the lights of the ship glow when it became dark. There were some municipal people monitoring the situation near the beach and cautioning the people not to go in too far into the sea. There was also some cultural show going at the beach. Some school kids were dancing and we watched it for some time. The whole setting on the beach was very nice, with the wind blowing from one side and music from the other.

The next day morning we started for Devbagh beach. This is a property of Jungle Lodges. If you dont get a reservation there, you can do a day trip to Devbagh from Karwar. I had paid for a half day trip at their office opposite the hotel I was staying (Hotel Badra). You need to go to a small jetty from where a motor boat will take you on the Kali river and deposit you at Devbagh. We went to the jetty and saw that the Kali river was boiling. See the state of the river Gayathri wanted to turn back and not take any risk. The boatman didnt make it better either. "I have never seen the river like this sir. Heard some huts along the banks were washed away yesterday night. All these due to the tsunami". Added to this we had to wait for some time for the boat to arrive from Devbagh. All these led to escalation of anxiety. Finally the boat arrived. As it took us towards Devbagh we felt as if was bobbing up and down too much. Anyway we arrived at Devbagh and went to the beach. The long strech of sand here is very clean and they provide the beach umbrellas and chairs to relax. Given that the tsunami had stuck the earlier day and the waves were behaving unpredictably, they didnt allow us to get into water, though we managed to get our feet wet !! There were no water sports either. The whole atmosphere at Devbagh invites you to just hang up your boots and relax. The cute cottage, the long stretch of the beach, the pine trees all around and the seclusion make this an ideal place for honeymooners and for those who want to rejuvenate themself. On the way back, Kali river has subsided quite a lot. That evening we went to the Karwar beach again. Well, there isnt much you can do at Karwar than go to the beach !!

Udupi, Sringeri and Hornadu - A short pilgrimage

The next day morning after breakfast we started our drive from Karwar to Udupi. The NH17 is a great road to drive. It follows the west coast all the way from Trivandrum to Karwar. The sea is always around 1 to 2 kms away from the road. Unfortunately the sea never is seen from the road except at Marvante. At Marvante for some distance the sea comes along with you. I made a mental not to come to this place sometime in the future (hasnt happened yet). On this road is Murudeswar, where the imposing Siva statue can be seen from the road. I saw it and went in to see it from near. It was hot at the beach and we had a darshan of Siva from the car. This place with the giant statue of Siva on the beach and the mutistoried hotel nearby is very impressive. I am sure it gets quite crowded during the season. We did see a lot of people on the beach even though it was close to noon and hot.

We arrived at Udupi at lunch time. By mistake I took a wrong turn and ended up at Manipal. I didnt realise the Udupi and Manipal were so near. I mean you just step out for a walk at Udipi and you are in Manipal !! Anyway we reached our hotel, had lunch and relaxed. Which meant we slept. The evening was spent at the Malpe beach. This is around 7 kms from Udupi. Here too the waves exhibited the same tendency as at Karwar but to a lesser degree. This was also a very clean beach but a bit crowded. Since it was the christmas vacation time, there were bus loads to school children at most places that we visited. The were some college going kids as well here. Ranjani and Harini enjoy being at the beach and they enjoyed themselves at the Malpe beach. They also had camel rides here, which for the kids, was a thrilling affair.

Returning back from the beach, we headed to the famous Krishna temple at Udupi. The temple structure is not like the traditional temples of Tamil Nadu. The way you see the idol is also is also unconventional. You the see the idol through a small window. (There is a story associated with this). I know that some people are disappointed when they see a small idol and that too through a window. Both Gayathri and I liked the atmosphere of the temple. It is paradoxical but there was some sort of serenity here though the whole area was crowded and noisy. We sat there for some time to soak in the atmosphere and we promised to ourselves that we will visit the temple again the next day. The temple has an elephant and we saw it outside the temple which made the kids very happy.

Since I had been driving for long streches, I decided to give myself a break and hire a cab to go to Sringeri and Hornadu. The cab driver came in later than we had asked him to. We started to Sringeri. On the way was Agumbe. It is a short ghat section but very steep. We stopped at the top to have a view of the surounding area. As usual with most hill top views the surrounding mountains were covered in haze. The sunset view is supposed to be great from here.

We arrived at the Shringeri temple around noon time. The temple is on the banks of the Bhadra river. We went to the Sharadhamba sannidhi. This is a very well maintained temple and the place is calm. There were some children learing the vedas and the sound of veda recitation always brings in some untold joy and peace. After the darshan of Sharadambha we went down the steps to be on the banks of the river. There a lot of big fish here which are fed by the devotees. The kids were happy watching the fish thrash around in water when some food is thrown. We had our lunch at the temple. Most of the temples in Western Karnataka provide food for the devotees. Here is the first time that I observed rasam being served first and then sambar !!

From Sringeri we left for Horanadu. The drive through Kudremukh was wonderful and I was sure I was going to come to this place again, which I did. (I had written in detail about Kudremukh and Hornadu in my earlier post). We had a darshan of Annapoorneshwari at Horanadu and came back to Udupi in the evening.

Next day morning was a visit to the Udupi Krishna temple, evening at the beach. The day after we left Udupi for Bangalore. While climbing the Sakleshpur ghat we could feel our car grunting and groaning and going up the ghat with great difficulty. After we got down the ghat, I opened the bonnet and peeped in, as if I knew all about cars. I had no clue what to look for and as can be expecetd found nothing wrong !!! We came to Hassan and I took the car to a mechanic. He found out that one of the cable which goes to the spark plug was faulty. Out of the three cylinders in the car, only two have been firing !!! So we had climbed up the Sakleshpur ghat with only 2/3 power !! Should appreciate the Maruti 800s sturdiness. The mechanic changed the cable and now it was a different car altogether !! We stayed at Hassan and visited Belur and Halebid, where the sculptures were mind boggling. That afternoon we left for Bangalore.

The drive from Hassan to Neelamangala was smooth and we came to Neelamangala in quick time. As usual the drive from Neelamangala to my house was a nightmare. Welcome to Bangalore !!

On to the Kudremukh mountains

I wanted to explore the Kudremukh mountains so my brother and I started off one day by car to Kalasa. This was during May 2006. The family was in Chennai and we two decided to go off to Kudremukh. I was fascinated by the Kudremukh region when we had earlier gone from Sringeri to Hornadu.

I searched the travel books and came to know that there are only two options which are available for your stay. And both of them at Kalasa. There is no option to stay at Kudremukh. One option is the Silent Valley Resorts and the other is Hotel Chandan . Since Silent Valley Resort was fully booked, I called up Hotel Chandan and booked a double room.

Kalasa is a small place and the hotel isnt great a great place to stay if are with your family. I saw lot of small cockroaches in the room. So avoid it if you are going there with your family. The Silent Valley Resorts is the other place and is around 5 to 6 kms from Kalasa on the way to Kudremukh. Those who have stayed at Silent Valley Resorts have not waxed eloquently on the facilities but were quite neutral. Food is a problem in Kalasa. You dont have any decent hotels here and people werent too happy with the food in Silent Valley either.

We started off early in the morning from Bangalore, stopped on the way at Hotel Mayura enroute to Hassan. Then we took the Belur road. The road was newly laid at that time and it was a great pleasure driving on this road. From Belur you go towards Mudigere and then towards Kottigehara. (You can find the directions for reaching Kalasa in the Silent Valley Resorts website www.silentvalley.net/roadmap.htm). At Kottigehara, we stopped for tea. You need to take a right turn here and proceed 7 kms before taking a almost U-Left turn. The road climbs steeply here. We missed this turn and by the time I realised it we were far gone !!! It turned out to be a blessing in disguise since the road was in a bad condition compared to the wrong road that we took. (We realised it when we came back by the normal route). We went almost till Ballehannur and took a left road which led us to Kalasa. We checked into Hotel Chandan.

After having lunch and relaxing for some time, we left for the Annapoorneshwari temple at Hornadu. Hornadu is around 7 kms from Kalasa would take you around 15 mins to reach there. On the way you get a nice stream where you can stop for some time. The road is also good in the sense that there are lot of twists and turns. (I am nowadays so hooked to these ghat roads that driving on straight roads doesnt give much pleasure :(

You can rarely get such a location as the one where the Annapoorneshwari temple is situated. It is in a valley, surrounded by mountains on all sides. The mountains seem to enclose this place and the moment you stop your vehicle and get out, you feel a kind of calm even before you enter the temple complex. Sitting on the steps leading to the temple and looking at the mountains rising in front is an experience you must not miss. If you sit there during the twilight hour, your experience will be more enriching as it was in our case. Being so close to nature gives a sort of peace which we city dwellers can only dream about.

The temple is a nice though not as spectacular as the more famous temples of the south. The idol inside is a big one. As is the custom in many temples of this region, guys have to go in bare chested. Free meals are provided in the temple. (Afterall, she is Annapoorneshwari , one who provides food and she cant let her devotees go hungry)

Next morning, after a simple breakfast (we really didnt have a choice :) we left for the Kudremukh National Park. My idea was to just drive through that region and enjoy the scenery around. We passed the Silent Valley Resorts on our way to the park. The drive is an enjoyable one with the forest cover or coffee plantations always with you when you drive. The roads have lot of twists, turns and gradients to keep you awake :)) It is green all around and you may spot a langur or two on the way. Though it is called a National Park, except for monkeys and birds, you will not get to spot any wildlife.

Our stop in the National Park was at Hanumangundi Falls. On the way to the falls you see a board saying 'Ganga Moola' 1 Km. You need to trek for a km to get to the Gangamoola but the problem is that you need to stop your car and then trek. At the place where you want to stop there is a No Parking board !!! Infact at many places they say that you shouldnt park your car in the park and wander around. I dont know how they expect you to trek to this place if you cant park your car anywhere nearby !! Gangamoola is supposed to be the birthplace of three rivers, Tunga, Bhadra and Netra. Given the peculiar problem that I described, we couldnt trek to this place.

We stopped at the Hanumangundi falls. Dont immediately imagine that we stopped very near the falls and you can see the falls from the place where we stopped !! The place where you have to stop is near the Hanumangundi Falls hoarding !! There is an office here which will issue a ticket. I forgot the cost of the ticket. After you buy this ticket, you need to climb down a good number of stairs before you see the waterfall. The steps are steep and you will lose breath climbing back if you are not in good shape.

The climb though is worth it. The waterfall is a nice place to have a bath. So go prepared with change of clothes. You will find people at the waterfalls but it is not overly crowded. You do get a feeling of seclusion even if a few people are around. You can easily spend an hour or more at these falls.

From here, Karkala isnt too far off. If my memory serves me right, it should be around 25 kms or so from here. At the Karala, you can get to see a nice Jain temples and a huge statue of one of the Jain gurus. This place is situated on top of a small hillock. The temple was closed when we went. We could only see the statue from outside the gate and it looks impressive.

More importantly, Karkala has some good places to eat !!! Seeing the hotels, I thought it would be a good idea to stay at Karkala and explore Kudremukh than staying at Kalasa. We had a decent lunch and got back to our hotel. We left the next morning to Bangalore and on the way I was able to get some good shots of the mountains with the sunlight filtering through the clouds.

This area is definitely worth a two day trip.