It is obvious to get tired of your tedious and chaotic everyday city life, and the best way to treat your tired soul is to flee from your normal daily schedule to encounter what nature has for you.
This idea took us to Shivanasamudra Falls. Shivanasamudra is a small city, situated on the banks of the river Kaveri in the Mandya district of the state of Karnataka, India. The island town of Shivanasamudra separates the Kaveri stream into twin cascades Barachukki and Gaganchukki falls.
Apart from waterfalls, the small town has a group of very old temples. Shivanasamudra is also famous for having the first hydroelectric power plant in the whole of Asia, which was worked under the stewardship of Sir M Visvesvaraya.
Let’s start the engine
So, after a short history of Shivanasamudra, how about we move to the adventure to the Barachukki Falls from Bangalore. The total distance from Bangalore to Barachukki falls is around 136 Km, which makes it a convenient one-day trip from Bangalore. There are two routes you can choose depending on your stay in Bangalore. Shivanasamudra is towards the south of the Bangalore, hence you have –
i) Mysore Road: Bangalore – Ramanagara – Channapatna – Madduru – Malavalli
ii) Kanakapura Road: Bangalore – Kanakapura – Sathanuru – Halagurur – Malavalli
Malavalli is basically a junction town to both the routes which redirects to Shivanasamudra.
It takes around 2.5 to 3 hours to reach the falls. As the traffic in the mornings is calm you can easily come out from Bangalore and the rest of the journey is somewhat tranquil. I and my friends are not morning people, we left by 9 am and reached there by noon 12. I strongly recommend you leave early morning so that you can reach there by 7am to 8am to spare yourself from the searing warmth.
Barachukki has paid entry, which is around 20 bucks collected at the entrance. As you enter inside you have a big parking space and a small market like scene, people selling, food, water, and ice-creams. Head straight towards the viewpoint and there you are. You get the most astounding panoramic view of the Barachukki Falls. This place is always as beautiful as it is throughout the year, but monsoon is the best season to get flabbergasted by the finesse of the falls. But due to the rising water level, the entry to the foot of the river is confined. And yes, we were unlucky as the entry downstairs was closed. Reaching early in the afternoon and find the gates closed was not exactly as we planned for, but I have heard from many that the place down there is awesome and fun. Neva-mind, maybe I’ll have a second visit soon considering inquiring about the gates.
OK! So there you have the first sight of the falls. The viewpoint is very well constructed and there are many cameramen who can get you a paid photo with the giant falls in the background. And now time for a small tip, be aware of our mischievous relatives, Monkeys. Yes, they are all over the place and are not scared to snatch that food bag or anything that might excite them. You might also encounter some Langurs if you look towards the small streams of waterfalls on the extreme right of the main falls.
A HUMBLE REQUEST, PLEASE DO NOT THROW PLASTIC BAGS AND ANY OTHER WASTE IN THE OPEN SPACE. I have witnessed many monkeys carrying the plastic bags from the dustbins and roads in search of food. Thank You!
Now it's time to XPLOR. Since our trip had turn disaster due to the heat and closed access to the river, one of our friends decided to find somewhere to reach near the river, And we found one place. So just before you pay at the entrance, there is a right turn which leads to Hotel Mayura and exactly behind the hotel there is a gravel road which leads directly to the river. Strolling to that way you will find some incredible landscape views and reach a perfect picnic spot by the river where you can sit and appreciate the quiet and relieving mood of the river. Sit and relax for some time, go inside the water and beat the heat. But be safe at the rocks as they are very slippery and there might be barely people coming to help you when in need. And yes again to reiterate do not leave any waste near the river or banks.
Nature is very caring and brimming of surprises provided we believe in keeping it the same. Remember, when you can’t give back to nature, at least take care of it.
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Happy reading and and keep XPLORing...