Jog Falls: Feel a river coming down from heavens

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.

 

 

In and Around Bangalore: Shivanasamudra Waterfalls

Got bored with the ever repeating city life, and planning for a weekend one day tour from Bangalore?

There is Shivanasamudra for you.

Feel the fresh air, get exposed to bright sunlight, and enjoy the different shades of green as far as you could see.

Shivanasamudra is around 130 km from Bangalore and can be reached following two different routes.

Route-1: Following Bangalore Mysore highway, take left turn at Maddur and follow the Malavalli route.

Route-2: Following NH 209 (Kanakapura road).

At Shivanasamudra town Kaveri river splits into two streams and forms two gorgeous falls called Gaganachukki and Brachukki.

We will get the majestic views of the Gaganachukki falls from the viewing tower set up by the tourism department, but from a bit far.

Barachukki falls is a place where we can really have a lot of fun.

We need to climb down through steps cut in the rocks and through bushes.

If it’s monsoon time, you will have a feel of being in the middle of hundreds of streams coming down from heaven.

Taking the Coracle and go near the falls is fun and if the Coracle guy decides to entertain you with some swirls, it’s a bit frightening as well.

Taking bath under the falls is something everyone enjoys here but during monsoon months people are not allowed to go very near to the falls.

We can a have great view of the falls from a different angle near the “Darga Hazrath Mardane Gaib (Imam Ali)” which is around 5 to 6 km from the main parking lot.

Best Time to Visit: Through out the year,  but if you want to see the falls at it’s ferocious best, visit during the monsoon months (June to August).

Where to eat: There is only limited options available nearby. Tender coconut and soft drinks are available with packed snacks.

Where to stay: There is hardly any options nearby the falls, but you can find a few options in Maddur.

Other Places of interest: We can take a slightly different route to the falls through, Kokkre bellur, a village known for the migratory birds. We need to take a left turn just before reaching Maddur and it’s around 12km from the highway.

Famous Hoysala temple at Somnathpur, known for the intricate stone carved sculptures is around 50 km from the Gaganachukki falls.

Another place worth exploring is the temples of Thalakkad on the banks of river Kaveri.