Have you ever imagined, how it feels like, standing right under a river which is coming down from the heavens?
You could feel it, if you come down to Jog Falls, the second highest plunge waterfall in India.
Our much awaited tour to Jog got a bumpy start as a train got derailed just in front of ours and we had to take a much longer detour.
It was a six hour overnight journey to Shimoga from Bangalore, which became a sixteen hour endeavor.
But it provided us with a great opportunity to see the beautiful country side.
We reached Shimoga (which is the nearest rail head for those who visit Jog Falls) by 5 pm.
There we found the famous toy train, which used to take people pretty near to Jog Falls.
To compensate for the lost day, we quickly moved to the Bhadra Dam site where a light drizzle and a refreshing breeze washed away all the tiredness.
Next day early morning we were off to Jog, through the lush green Malanadu or the Rain Country, and it really was a roller coaster ride through the winding roads.
Once we reached Jog falls, we were treated with the amazing view of the Sharavathi river valley.
Enjoying the view of the valley and the falls from the edge of the falls we moved to the observation deck.
The observation deck is the best place to get the complete picture of the water fall, where you could see all four different falls (Raja, Rani, Rocket and Roarer) forming the mighty Jog.
From here we can go down to the river bed through bushes and steep steps cut in rocks( around 1400 in number).
The view kept changing and the whole ambiance became so dramatic and refreshing with a drizzle created by the falls.
And finally we had to turn off our cameras and just feel the ambiance. Looking up, I felt, streams were descending from clouds and meeting the river silently.
No one felt like coming back from this extravagant show of nature, but with limited time we had to explore a few more places before catching our train back to Bangalore.
Other places of Interest nearby:
Ikkeri temple: The old temple of Ikkeri is a less known place and worth exploring.
Sringeri: We managed to explore the Vidyashankara temple and the matha of Adi shankara. The stone carvings of the temple were mighty impressive and show cases the development of the craft some 700 years ago.
Best time to visit: Jog changes from a mighty intimidating falls to a narrow stream from time to time.
During the peak monsoon months(July and August), people are not allowed to go down the steps to the river bed and
during the summer months (January to May) Jog won’t impress you with a scaled down version 🙂
To me, the best time to visit Jog would be just after the monsoon(September and October).
Places to stay: Even though Sagara is the nearest town to Jog falls, more options for accommodation would be available in Shimoga.
fantastic!
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Thanks you so much 🙂
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Absolute stunning pics 🙂
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Thank you so much for your comments 🙂
Hope you had a nice weekend 🙂
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Wow wow wow the Jog falls are stunning
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Thanks a lot, Scott 🙂 So nice to see that you liked the images.
It’s really an amazing place and I am planning for my next trip to Jog 🙂
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Such splendid scenes. Well worth the extended train journey.
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You are absolutely right, if you decide to enjoy the journey without much worrying about the destination, you will never be disappointed 🙂
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Amazing landscape shot!
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Thank you so much 🙂
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I would give 100 likes to these pics , absolutely stunning 🙂 Great job.
Cheers.
Stefy
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Thank you so much, Stefy 🙂
That’s a great comment and I am so happy about it 🙂
Have a beautiful day ahead…
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I vicariously enjoyed this trip to the Jog, and your photos were stunning. Thank you.
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I am so glad to see your comments, Jet.
That’s truly an incredible place and I am planning my next trip to Jog now 🙂
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Wow. Beautiful!
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Thank you so much, Jaap 🙂
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Sreejith my husband and I went immediately to look at a map to see where this beautiful spot is. Hopefully one day we could see it in person but for now we are so grateful for your stunning photos.
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If you plan an India tour any time, please set aside a few days to explore south India with Bangalore as base 🙂
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what a wonderful title- feel a river coming down from the heavens, BEAUTIFUL imagery, I love it! Just even only the words, and a great photo too. but the title is what got me engaged.
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Thank you so much for your kind words, I really mean it 🙂
This tour was some 6-7 years back but still I could perfectly remember how I felt once we reached right under the falls.
We could see streams coming down through mist… it was a shear drop of around 1000 feet 🙂
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I guess that is what i felt when I read the post, the awe
at the natural beauty of the place was very strong in your words. And if it was so long ago that must mean it’s a very special place.
🙂
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Yes, Absolutely 🙂
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Great images!!!!! What an amzing place!! What an awesome planet we live on!!
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Thank you so much, treeshrubs. You are absolutely, right this planet is incredibly beautiful and this forum helps us to discover it through each one of us 🙂
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fantastic shots… the third one is totally surreal… !!!
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Thank you so much, Alexandra 🙂 The country side in this part of India is really stunning.
Only because of an unexpected detour, we were able to see this scenery 🙂
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Tremendous shots Sreejith, and like all great shots there is a neat adventure in getting there…love the descriptions you wrote…wish I could be there. Beautiful work, as is always the case with your work.
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Thank you so much, Randall, I really mean it 🙂
It’s one of the best place I have ever been to, and I am going there again soon 🙂
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Wow, that description along with your photos now really makes me want to go there… Hmmm, do you have room for another?!? 🙂
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Sure…. any time you plan a trip to South India, please let me know 🙂
Have a beautiful day 🙂
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Usually you post one photo…today a marvelous collection of Jog Falls. Stunning, you’ve certainly outdone yourself. You must have enjoyed the sounds of rushing water. It is interesting to see that there’s a bit of yellow shooting out from one of the waterfalls, don’t think it’s ugly, just interesting. India never looked so beautiful 🙂
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Hello Mabel, thank you so much for your comments, as always I used to wait for your comments to get a frank opinion 🙂
Yea, here, all the snaps were taken with my sony point and shoot some 6 years back and the image quality is below par.
But the place is so beautiful that you will get incredible images with any camera 🙂
India is so diverse, culturally and geographically that you could find something interesting anywhere you go.
Have a great day ahead 🙂
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below par on certain standards – but whew – muy bueno!
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It’s really nice to get some Spanish lessons here 🙂 Learned two new words 🙂
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Haha, Sreejith. Thanks so much for the nice words. I try to comment whenever I can…it’s hard with a day job but I love commenting, reading and learning from other blogs.
That’s impressive. A point and shoot. I thought you used something fancier. Your blog and photos have shown me India is more than just packed trains and lonely sparse lands. And I’ve only been following for a short while. Thank you 🙂
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Fantastic!
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This is a journey I will not be able to make except in my imagination, so it is with immense gratitude that I thank you for the opportunity to view these scenes through your photos and your words. I agree with treeshrubs’ comment: we live on an awesome planet! I would add that we share this planet with awesome people, and you are one of those people!
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It’s so kind of you, Linda and what more I could ask for from this forum… truly motivating 🙂
Have a great time 🙂
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So incredibly beautiful! Great photos and it is so fun to see this part of the world.
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Thank you so much 🙂
Yea, south India has quite a lot to explore, pristine forests, grand temples, beaches, hill stations, back waters and rivers…
The best part is, people are so helpful and infrastructure is much developed compared to other parts of India…
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Someday I’d love to check it out!
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I love waterfalls 🙂 Stunning photos 🙂
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So do I 🙂
Thank you so much, Wolke 🙂
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The place look so beautiful like from post card 🙂
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The best thing about this place is the freshness it imparts to our body and mind, the region around this waterfall is called rain country 🙂
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Shreejith, these are amazingly beautiful photos (per usual!) What a beautiful place to visit – thanks for sharing your journey with us!
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I am really glad that you liked my post, Eliza 🙂
It’s really a stunning place and I still cherish those memories…
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Sorry I misspelled your name (I noticed too late) but the message content is correct! 🙂 Love your photos – are you selling them as postcards yet? Put spinner racks in the posh hotels! 😉
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*tears in my eyes* Sreejith, how/where do I find the words to describe what I felt as I saw through your eyes, these Divine Sights? The lushness of your country, the vivid colors, the contrasts, the extremes …. the mystery, the glory, the BIGness, … now you have me wanting to see India. The richness of your country boggles the mind. Yes, I know how much poverty there is, (like here too) but the beauty of the LAND is what I am speaking of as I refer to richness. You stole my breath, and my heart went flying to India. Thank you SO much for bringing us these Priceless Pictures of a country wrapped in mystic beauty. Thank you, Sreejith! Love, Amy
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ditto to what Amy said – now I want to visit this place!!!! 🙂
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WE can all go together. Now wouldn’t that be awesome???
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Absolutely 🙂
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Welcome to “Incredible India”, Yvette 🙂
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Hello Amy,
India is a country of extreme contrasts and it’s entirely up to the individual, to view how it is, and portray it.
Most of times, I try to show the brighter side of this ancient land, which I love photographing.
Thank you so much for your support and encouragements, from the bottom of my heart 🙂
Have a beautiful day a head 🙂
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Thank you, Sreejith. You as well have a beautiful day. 🙂
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Sreejith, I honestly do know how much work something like this post takes. I know how I feel when I work extremely hard to put together a very complex post, and when I don’t get comments, I feel so discouraged. When I see something to this magnitude, on what you did, I just want to shout it out to everyone how hard YOU worked to put this together AND for them to give you a LOT of comments. Most people honestly don’t understand what we go through, first of all to GET the photos, then EDIT them, then to put a post all together. They don’t know because they are not photgraphers. But! I know. And I know how your heart and soul were in on this post. I wish I could reach in to HUG you. Really! Love, Amy
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Amy, How should I thank you for understanding my work and effort…
I have been thinking about this post for months and finally selected some good images, did some basic fixes with Picasa and resized them.
But, I just don’t wanted to publish them as a series of images, but wanted to let others feel, how I felt there, in that magical place, through words.
And finally jot down a few sentences and pressed the publish button.
Once you get a nice comment or seeing the star icon keep blinking at the top right, I feel accomplished and relaxed.
These moments of happiness makes our day.
Have a beautiful day ahead 🙂
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Bless you, Sreejith. You have a beautiful day as well. Love, Amy
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Sreejith – this was such a treat today. I live all the different variety in the post – mix of the architecture with the natural (and the many diff. views of the falls) was fantastic – and in the midst of this all was my favorite pause – it was that gritty and raw shot preceded by this “streams were descending from clouds and meeting the river silently….”
we felt it my friend.
🙂
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wow sreejith .. so beautiful. i love waterfall.
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Thank you so much, Adelina 🙂
If you like waterfalls, you will have a great time visiting south India after the monsoon rains 🙂
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maybe someday sreejith 😦
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Whoa . . I’ve never seen such an amazing view like that
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Thank you so much, Chris 🙂
This waterfall turns pure magical after the monsoon rains and the whole area looks so fresh…
You can certainly include this one in your must see places when you come down to India 🙂
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Beautiful captures Sreejith. The waterfall shots are breath-taking.
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Thank you so much, Andrea 🙂
I am really happy that you liked this extravagant show of nature 🙂
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These pictures are beautiful, Sreejit! Now that I’ve seen how beautiful this place is, I definitely am putting Shimoga in my to-visit list. Thanks for sharing 🙂
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Thank you so much, Rhea 🙂 and I can guarantee you that, you won’t get disappointed.
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Amazing waterfalls!
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Thank you so much and I am so happy that you liked it 🙂
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It’s great to see all this juicy green countryside of India here. Been in the North once which was quite the opposite.
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India is so vast and diverse that you could see almost all different landscapes here.
North east of India is completely hilly and lush green. The mighty Himalaya forms the northern boundary. Vast desert areas in the north western areas and the Gangtic plains is one of the most fertile and populous areas in the world.
And we have the Deccan plateau in the central India, and two great hill ranges along the east and west coasts.
What more you can ask for in one country 🙂
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something with the pic of the flower field made me instantly fall inlove with it 😀 gorgeous set!
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Thank you so much, Ksenia 🙂
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Beautiful set of photos indeed – I can see now now I must return to India for a 3rd time 🙂
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It would be a treat for us, if you tour India again, with all those incredible images that you would be capturing 🙂
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A treat for both of us with all the images WE would capture (y) 🙂
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I love this series. Well, the trains and waterfalls are an easy sell – but you did manage to capture them and the nearby temples beautifully.
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Thank you so much, Bronwyn 🙂
It’s not just the waterfall and the temples, the whole area is so beautiful that, you feel rejuvenated.
That’s the magic of this area called the “Land of Rain” 🙂
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Stunning waterfall shots Sreejith! Wow! You posted it while I was away in England and could not see it, but I am catching up 🙂
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It’s so kind of you, Paula 🙂
Hope you had a great trip to England and waiting to see some interesting posts from there 🙂
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It is really impressive waterfall! Thank you for the story behind the pictures..
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Yes Indah, it’s really an amazing place, thank you so much for stopping by 🙂
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Very interesting post with amazing photos. Maybe one day I will be able to go there.
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Thank you so much, Hien 🙂
If you plan an India tour, this is certainly a place worth exploring.
Have a nice day 🙂
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Jog falls …..another one that still has to be struck off my bucket list. Such fabulous pictures! Loving your blog !!!!!!!
– Pri
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Thank you so much Priyanka, it’s just an amazing place to appreciate the might and beauty of nature 🙂
But, you have to time your travel properly, otherwise, it’s gonna disappoint you.
This year, the dam above the fall is not full and the flow is very less to the fall.
So better plan for the monsoon season, July-August 🙂
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