Nandi Hills

Travelogue # 1
Posted by : Surya

Where : Nandi Hills
When : 23rd Nov '08
How : Road Tripping
Who : Deepak, Nithya, Rao, PC, Surya (Driver)
Nearest City : Bangalore (55 kms from Yelahanka)
Best Time to Visit : Anytime of the year
For : Small getaway from daily city life, Group outing, Half day fun, Photographers delight rainy/winter season)
Against : Non-availability of good food, Over awareness, Large crowd in weekends, No activity to do

We had been planning for this trip since long.
So long that our friend MGS abandoned us and flew off to Dubai out of frustration on our slow paced decision.

We (Deepak, Mrs Deepak, PC & myself) were invited by Rao's mom for dinner on Saturday night and given the greedy dogs that we were, we didnt want to miss out on the authentic Coastal Karnataka delicacies that aunt makes.

PC, Rao and myself had planned an early morning trip to Nandi hills the following morning (Sunday) and PC decided to stay back at my place for the night. Deepak however, kept away from the plan as he had other commitments for the day (atleast thats what he said).

After a seemingly long and tiring Saturday at office, PC and I rushed off to my place to get fresh.
We returned back to pickup Nithya & Deepak and left for Rao's house after a generous serving of payasam, prepared specially for us guys by Nithya.

We decided to pick up a cake on the way to celebrate Rao's parents' wedding anniversary (which incidentally was the next day). While Deepak & PC were on the job of getting the cake, I took up the daunting task of convincing Nithya to join us the next day for the Nandi Trip (A visit to Sai Baba temple after the Nandi trip was the carrot that finally convinced Niithya to say yes and saw things finally falling into place)

We finally reached Rao's place at 8.15pm, delayed by 30 mins from our original plan. Post cake-cutting by Rao's parents we had a lovely dinner comprising Neer Dosas, Fried Rice, Curries, Bajji's and mouth watering Gajar ka Halwa.

We convinced Nithya & Deepak to join us the next day, with some small change of plan. We finally decided to leave from base camp (my house) at 10.30.

The next day saw PC wake up to the aroma of masala dosas that were being made by the master chef in the house. After a sumptuous breakfast, we got ready, well in time before the others arrived.



Almost immediately at 11.00, we started off on the journey and in no time were on the highway. Loaded with weapons to beat the hunger (read as chips & chocolates), we were zooming away in the Logan with myself at the wheel.



Having crossed BIAL and Devanahalli, 45 minutes later, we were at the foothills of Nandi, beginning the ascent to the top.





With the audio turned off and windows rolled down, all we could hear was the wind and the Night Angel's heart purring like a docile cat basking in the sun. We soon began to feel at home with the cool climate. 30 minutes of a scenic uphill drive with few stops to catch pictures, we finally reached the top.

They say dogs will be dogs, will always be dogs. The need to emphasise this is the fact that no sooner we reached the top, the first thing on our minds was FOOD. We walked strainght into Mayura Pinetop. The best of the two restaurants available on top. While food and service isn't much to write home about, you atleast enjoy the scenic beauty of all that lies below the Nandi Hills. The panoramic view of the low lands that one can get while having food makes you feel cheerful like a kid.
After some unexpectedly sad Gobi Manchurian but decent dal sabzi and roti chawal, we started walking towards the guest house.

Nandi Hills comes under the Chikkaballapur Taluk, Kolar District in Karnataka. The hills are popular amongst the localites too, who throng to the place in weekends just to spend some family time. We walked past sana's and nazia's on our way to the guest house (for detailed explanation please send an email to:wagonrao@gmail.com) which is the top most point on the hills and is surrounded by lots of flowers on the periphery. With our cameras ready in hand, we scanned the whole area to find that the flower gardens had been dug up recently to make way for fresh saplings to be planted. Never the less we managed to get shots of flowers here and there. A little ahead, we found a cosy corner to pose ourselves for the lens.

We then headed towards Tipu Drop, which is located just behind the Nadishwara Temple (or whatever remains of it). Apparently, Tipu Drop was the place from where prisoners of war were dropped off as per orders of Tipu Sultan.

At the edge of Tipu Drop, one can actually feel like floating in air. Winds are quite breezy and can change direction instantly. The approach road to Nandi Hills from NH7 is seen as a straight line and makes an impressive view from here.

As we sat at the edge, we could see clouds in the distance, speeding up towards us, bringing heavy rains with them. As the patch of rains got whiter, we knew that we were in for a shower. Thanks to the foresightedness of the beloved driver (myslef) out came the umbrellas in the nick of time and soon, there was a river flowing down the hill.

The temeprature decided to take a sudden plunge and we soon found ourselves battling the chill on our backs.

With no sight of the rain coming to an end, we decided it was time to leave.

As we walked back to the car, we could see that the place around us was getting quite foggy and we knew that the cameras had to come out again. So, with a few more clicks, we started our decent down hill. With heaters on and chips stuffed in our mouths, there was no way we could feel the chill anymore. As we reached the foothills, we found that the rain had subsided at this altitude and the weather was rather pleasant.

We were now heading to the Sai Baba Temple, which is just a few km's ahead on NH7 on the right.

I have been a regular visitor to this temple since my college days, when all that stood there was a small temple with a loads of land around for expansion. Today, the old temple still stands. But, what has come up behind is a huge open-air dome construction with a life size idol. After our brief 'darshan' we gratefully accepted the tasty prasadam (bisi-bele-bhath, banana & biscuit) and warmed our backs in the fire room (used to generate the ash).

With food on our minds, our next pit stop was the 'Gharana Family Dhaba'. Just beside the temple, on the Bangalore side, this place is pretty decent if you want to drop in along with a family. Rates are also pretty moderate.

After our quick meal (which we had just for the sake of having), it was time to return to base camp. A good 45 minute drive and we were back to where we started from.