What do you do when you are stuck in a four walled house in a metropolitan city like Bangalore during lockdown?
What can you do when while 'Working from Home', all you can think about is of the sizzling waterfall, mysterious forts which mesmerizes one with its splendour, turquoise blue waters...
What can be done when you want to break free and run to the mountains but you happen to have a one year old?
What if you don't want to go far from the city but have already visited the usual spots?
So that's when we can say, "Move over Nandi Hills, Gundibande is Here"
Gundibande Fort is less than 100 kms from Bangalore.
These days people are always crowding Nandi Hills during the weekends so it is advisable to try this quaint little getaway not too far away instead. It's not all hill, it has its own little lakes, the Bhairasagara Lake and Vatadahosahalli Lake.
This has to be one of the most underrated treks in and around Bangalore. It offers a pretty decent climb with exploration too.
As Gudibande was a new place for us, lot of back study went behind before it’s planning. Since it's the pandemic era, we decided on home cooked meals in order to avoid contacts with unknown people. The idea was something we haven't explored in any of our previous trips being always dependent on hotels and dhabas. To be honest, picnic on the road has its own charm.
We started from Bangalore at 8.00 AM as we wanted to trek before afternoon. The first stretch is the Airport Road. We rode until Devnahalli and from there headed towards Chikaballapur. We could spot Nandi Hills afar. We were glad we were avoiding Nandi Hills seeing the sheer number of cars and bikes taking Nandi Hills road.
Making our way past Chikabalapur we entered NH44 Bangalore-Hyderabad highway. The whole ride took us through picturesque places: awesome road, one side of the road we can see hillocks and the other side grape vines.
After about 40 kms in Bangalore-Hyderabad Highway, we took a diversion and travel towards Gundibande.
Our First Spot: Bhairasagara Lake
We were greeted by fresh winds when we arrived at the lake The lake was a huge one.Natural giant rocks lay around the edge of the lake which is quite easy to trek.
We gobbled down on some homemade sandwiches while enjoying the view and the wind.
We shared some amazing pictures in our family WhatsApp group, which prompted our parents to decide that they wanted to be part of this trip.
So they started from Bangalore and planned to join us after we have trekked Gundibande Hills.
So after spending around half an hour at Bhairasagara Lake, we started towards our next location: Gundibande Fort, around 500 mts from the lake.
History Of Gundibande
Gudibande translates to ‘A temple on top of a rock’ in Kannada is a 17th Century fort built by a chieftain Byre Gowda. It is said to be a concise replica of the Madhugiri Fort.
It is a multi-level edifice that was built about 400 years ago, in the 17th century, by Byre Gowda, a local chieftain of Gudibande who ruled the place for only three years.
A noteworthy feature of the fort is its seven levels that have interconnected escape pathways that were made for the soldiers to break free in the event of an emergency or battle. This site also boasts of stone-carved sculptures and caves.
Another intelligent aspect of the fort is the 19 rock ponds constructed at different levels of the fort in order to harvest rain water.
Atop the fort is an ancient Shiva temple that is home to one of the 108 Jyotirlingas.
Drove out car to the foot hills of the fort. Parked and start climbing the stairs.
It is a climb uphill right from the start. The way to the top is mainly through 500 odd steps, most of which are cemented on their surface.
Initial stretch is laid with concrete steps but as you cross the gates it is a rocky climb. If you love to explore the forgotten paths here are many! There are caves, ruins of temples, ponds etc.
The views from the top of the Gudibande fort are unmatched to any other.
It usually takes about one hour to reach the top, with a lot of stops to catch breathe. Once on top, we forgot about the sweat and effort, because the scenic beauty of this place left us awestruck.
As we reached the summit we were greeted with gushing wind and scenery that looked like a painting. The view of the Byrasagara lake and the green vistas and hills all around was awe-inspiring.
We explore the multilayered fort which has temples, small ponds and the caves. The view from the top is worth all the trouble!
Once on the top, there’s plenty to explore around in the ruins all the while stunning views of the mighty Byrasagara reservoir accompany you.
The climb down took us 45 mins, all tired but still ready to explore next destination on the list.
Last Spot: Vatadahosahalli Lake
An oasis of tranquility. Situated just 8 kms from Gundibande Fort. Perfect place to rest after a trek to the fort.
Beautiful lake surrounded by hills on all sides. A beautiful picnic spot. You can spend half a day here. It provides for an excellent camp site, set up a tent and stop and cook your food while enjoying the beauty of the lake.
We can take our cars right to the shore of the lake. It's a vast lake with ample place to maintain social distancing. We were joined by our parents here and we enjoyed a yummy home cooked meal.
After spending 2 hours, we started our journey back to Bangalore.
It is a totally underrated place.
The small, sleepy town of Gundibande is truly a hidden gem near Bangalore. So it is the perfect place if you are looking to escape crowd and experience breathtaking scenery.
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Roads are just awesome and so was the weather!!!
Planning a trip to Gudibande town? Know this:
1. You can use Google maps to reach the place. If in doubt, ask a local for directions to the foothills of Gudibande Fort.
2. Gudibande Fort hardly gets visitors during the weekdays. It attracts the majority of visitors on the weekends.
3. Carry lot of water and eatables as there are no shops in the vicinity.