11 Places to Visit near Bangalore for Short Trips..!!

May 1, 2021

Bangalore has become a metro-cum-workstation city lately. Many workaholics are busy working there and sometimes looking up for a trip as for break nearby to relax. Short trips aka weekend trips are like our best friends. Takes us away from all our problems. Gives us a happy break. Makes us feel good again. Lets us forget all our problems and never too far from us. Just a plan and bookings away..!! Your bff might ditch you on your trip but trips won’t ever ditch you with awesomeness.

So, heere we have come up with sorted list for you hard-working travelers to add some magic amidst your life and jobs:

1. Ooty

Distance from Bangalore: 297 km

Drive Time: 7 hours 30 minutes approx.

A relaxing half day drive and you reach in the laps of ‘Queen of Hills’. Making its place in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, it is an actual paradise. Lakes, gardens, viewpoints, tea and coffee plantations, all count to the charm of this little town. But the most affluent attraction of Ooty is the toy train route. Experience the beauty of mesmerizing wooden huts of the hills through the tiny colorful windows of the toy trains and get lost in its magic.

2. Kabini

Distance from Bangalore: 206 km

Drive Time: 5 hours approx.

This pretty place is a must for the wildlife enthusiast. Kabini Forest Reserve and Nagarhole National Park gives you all the perks of rich flora and fauna. Sight Bengal tigers, golden jackal, Indian bison and many more on your jeep safari. Swing with the chirping rare birds on a boat ride in river Kabini or opt for a coracle ride accompanying the locals of nature. Take an elephant safari in the deep wooden jungles or just sip a fresh cup of coffee amidst the delightful nature. What else a weekend trip asks for??

3. Chikmagalur

Distance from Bangalore: 243 km

Drive Time: 4 hours 30 minutes approx.

Chikmagalur is perfect stop for the coffee lovers. Known to be as the capital of coffee plantations, it lives with the aroma of coffee. Though the town has something to offer for almost every kind of traveler. This pleasant hill station serves all adventures- caving, trekking, rafting and so on. Experiences doesn’t stop here, you can also go for your love for flora and fauna through the wildlife sanctuaries of Chikmagalur. Apart from all such experiences it has the tranquil peace which you search coming out from the hustle-bustle of your city Bangalore.

4. Bheemeshwari

Distance from Bangalore: 104 km

Drive Time: 2 hours and 30 minutes approx.

Residing beside the Cauvery river, this little town has all the water- based adventure. From fishing to kayaking, rafting to boating or the traditional coracle ride choose any of these and show your type of love to the water nature. May be just lie beside the river on a camp night and gaze the pretty stars or sing and dance with your group on a bonfire with some lip-smacking local cuisines and start your day around with a perfect sunrise walk. Bheemeshwari has great options of fishing resorts and camping to make your weekend a perfect service. Also, outskirts of Bangalore can always surprise you with the wildlife sighting due to rich flora and fauna it has!!

5. B.R. Hills

Distance from Bangalore: 173.2 km

Drive Time: 4 hours approx.

The Biligiri Ranga hills or commonly known as B.R. Hills is a nature’s delight with the confluence of both western and eastern ghats resulting in diverse ecosystem. The hilltop is named on the famous temple Biligira Rangaswamy residing here. It is the most common weekend hotspot for the people of Bangalore. Visit the place to spot the Dodda Sampige Mara, the big, holy Champak Tree which is known to be as more than 2000 years old.

6. Mysore

Distance from Bangalore: 143.6 km

Drive Time: 3 hours and 15 minutes approx.

Mysuru or Mysore is architecturally and culturally rich city along with the yoga place of the country. This city has too much to tell the travelers who are interested in culture, architecture, yoga, food-hopping and lots of shopping. Pridely flaunting its glittering Mysore Palace which is the most important sight-seeing treasure of the city. It has alot apart from this. Mysuru is also famous for its Dussehra celebration which attracts tourists from around the world. This can be your perfect weekend stop to attract peace from its different style of yoga and together enjoy its other beauty.

7. Wayanad

Distance from Bangalore: 271.2 km

Drive Time: 6 hours approx.

Wayanad has been a favourite place amongst tourists for long years. If cave adventure is your type of interest, then this little town is a perfect go for you. Adding to other adventure activities such as trekking, rappelling, rock climbing, mountaineering and many more. Most beautiful Chembra Peak Trek has its way from here. Make up for it, if you are fond of nature treks and have extra days in hand. Wayanad offers pretty wildlife scenes, rich in flora and fauna with a perfect touch of soothing weather. You can spot asiatic elephants, tigers, leopards and lots of beautiful birds chirping in the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary to amuse you. Other than this, also try bamboo rafting here for a different but amazing experience from the normal rafting. Also, take a visit to the Asia’s second largest earth dam, Banasura Sagar Dam. Adding upto this, Wayanad also have beautiful temples too, for the spiritual, pligrimage tours. Does this place leaves any reason to not visit it?

8. Hogenakkal Falls

Distance from Bangalore: 126.6 km

Drive Time: 3 hours and 30 minutes approx.

Commonly known as the ‘Niagara Falls of South India’ is the most budgeted weekend trip from Bangalore. Lying on the Kaveri River, Hogenakkal is an ultimate stop for nature lovers. Feel the thunder of the water here with some scrumptious seafood. Also, try coracle ride amidst the waterfalls to give you another experience of adventure. Apart from all the fun, Hogenakkal is the perfect weekend spot as it also has good local oil-massagers for the best relaxing short vacay.

9. Kudremukh Trek

Distance from Bangalore: 310 km

Drive Time: 6 hours and 30 minutes approx.

For all the nature and trek lovers, steps to Kudremukh Peak is not difficult. Changing scenery with every steps will keep you amaze throughout the trek. This is the reason, the trek seems neither difficult nor long. Magic of western ghats can be perfectly felt on the way with cascading waterfalls, beautiful streams and lush, green forests. Not only these, peaceful chirping of birds will motivate you to walk the heights easily. The picturesque view on the top with chilly, windy waves will make it worth all the hardships you faced. The tiredness and dullness of Bangalore will all brush out with the tiredness of Kudremukh trail. Also, read out the Kudremukh experience of one of our writer, before planning yours- Trek to Kudremukh, A tale of rains and leeches.

10. Nandi Hills

Distance from Bangalore: 61 km

Drive Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes approx.

Nandi Hills is a mixture of fun for history buffs and adventure lovers altogether. Majorly known for the hill fortress of Tipu Sultan for their summer retreat, this little hill station offers the same retreat presently too. It is the shortest break you can take from Bangalore with adequate fun. Visit the famous Nandi Temple and other historical remnants of fort and various temples. Enjoy cycling and paragliding amidst the clouds. Take a peaceful walk wondering the beauty this little town holds. Also, take vineyard trip on the way to sip some amazing wines.

11. Coorg

Distance from Bangalore: 242 km

Drive Time: 6 hours approx.

Coorg has been the most breath-taking beautiful hill station of Karnataka. Known to be the ‘Scotland of India’ because of the exotic landscapes and misty scenic views. It is a heaven for the couples. Coorg is a coffee plantation town, a hub for coffee-lovers. Also, an admiring place for the culture lover with a local clan of Kodavas. Try homestays here for they are the lovely hospitality provider. No place near Bangalore will leave adventure, being amidst the nature. Hiking, rafting, trekking will be your companion here too with the best of views and weather.

Though Bangalore has very magnificent nearby places. The list is long. But we sorted a few which had less driving time, so that you take less time to travel and more time to chillax.

Also check, weekend trips near Delhi, if you have a group of friends there and join them to cheer their days.

Happy Traveling!!

Trek to Kudremukh, A tale of rains and leeches

Kiran Rathi

May 28, 2020

I have vacations, I can go anywhere, I can do anything. Yet, the travel bug in me decides to travel 1170kms to Bangalore, for a trek, to a place experiencing the highest rainfall in the Western Ghats. Rolling green hills laid out in a mosaic of sprawling grasslands, cloud kissed mountains, forest trails, bamboo shrubs, and a dozen waterfalls, all of these tricked me to leave the comfort of my home and embark on a monsoon trek to Kudremukh, the Himalayas of the South.

ABOUT THE PEAK

Coming under the Chikmagalur District of Karnataka, Kudremukh is the third highest peak after Mullayanagiri and Bababudangiri with a height of 1894m from the mean sea level. Literally meaning ‘horse-face‘ in Kannada, Kudremukh Peak boasts some of the most beautiful views of Western Ghats. The trek to Kudremukh Peak is one of the longest treks of Karnataka with a distance of around 10 km one-way.

Review: Basic Skiing Course at JIM & WS- Ski Out Your Heart

THE JOURNEY

It all started on a Friday night, when the three of us, me, my sister who had come from Chennai and our friend in Bangalore, boarded a bus arranged by a trekking company, with a bunch of odd people. We got the absolute last seats of the bus. When we reached our destination in the morning, our tailbones were acquainted with all the potholes and speed breakers on the way.

At the base village, we boarded a jeep. Somehow surviving the bone-rattling ride, we reached at our homestay in Mullodi, where we freshened up and had our breakfast. We were handed a packet of tamarind rice, which was to be our lunch. By the time our trek guide briefed us, dark clouds had begun to cover the sky. It looked like a storm was heading our way.

THE KUDREMUKH TREK

How to become a tourist guide in India

After having walked about half a kilometer, we reached the check post of Kudremukh National Park, which is the entry point to the mountain ranges. After walking an initial heavily stony muddy trail, I realized this trek was not going to be an easy feat as the rains had made the path quite slippery.

An important topic of discussion among us was our soon-to-be-companion, Leeches! Everyone shared their own theories and experiences of their encounters with these blood-sucking creatures. All of this discussion did little to lessen our anxiety about the slimy, icky looking slugs. Whilst walking our eyes were continuously glued to the ground, fearing that even a minute of distraction might make us a delicious lunch for the leeches lurking around.

The green carpets of grasslands soon gave way to stretches of evergreen Shola forests, so dense that even the sun rays could hardly penetrate. We crossed our first river here. But none of us dared to hang around to admire the sheer beauty of the variety of trees, whistling birds, rustling leaves and crackling twigs, so as to avoid the creepy creatures from catching up on us. But there was no escape from them! Now and then, we flicked the leeches off each other’s bodies, meanwhile hoping that one of them has not found its way into our socks or onto the back of our neck.

By now, what was drizzle in the morning had converted into a heavy downpour. To shield from the rains, everyone had put on their ponchos and rain gears. And as it so happened that my sister and I, instead of packing ponchos or rain jacket, had packed our school time raincoats with us! Yes, the one with transparent material, floral print, and a funny cap on top! Embarrassed, we tried to avoid putting them on as long as possible, but later when we could no further bear the rains, we, too, geared up in our raincoats and started walking towards our destination.

However, one good thing that happened was, somehow the number of leeches that managed to find a way to our bodies was way lesser than our fellow trek mates who were wearing ponchos and rain jackets! We blessed ourselves for those funny looking raincoats of ours!

Our expectations of clicking spectacular pictures of our trek to Kudremukh and uploading them on social media went down the drain, as the rains had no intention of stopping. Hardly anyone paused to take in the view of the majestic mountains, we had read and googled so much about, as all we had in front of us was a thick fog of grey. Besides, the incessant rains, the constant lookout for leeches, gusting winds, shivering hands, and our runny noses made it very difficult for us to concentrate on anything else other than our air-short lungs!

Thick blanket of fog covered the view ahead of us

In the middle somewhere, we stopped to have our lunch. We opened our rice packets and started eating with our cold, moist hands. We gobbled our food because the rain and wind gushing around us, coupled with the fear that a leech might crawl onto our torso, made us forget all our table manners!

Somewhere between asking for “Aur kitna durr hai?” and Huffing and puffing for air, the three of us managed to reach the top of the peak! We had long back given up the hopes to have mesmerizing views of green velvety mountains. So when at the top, a vacuum of white greeted us, we were not disappointed.

At the top, the winds blew even more strongly, threatening to carry us off the peak. We sat down there for a while and gave our crying feet, knees, and lungs a break. On our way down, the modest shelter of our raincoats did little to provide us any respite from the relentless rains and the strong winds.

THE DESCEND

The way down was even worse because the terrain had become extremely slippery and slushy. Even after being extra cautious, we slipped a few times. Everybody was helping and looking out for each other. The rains lashed harder and did not stop until we successfully completed the 22kms trek and were back at the homestay.

After reaching the room, we removed our drenched, mud-covered clothes and tended to the leech punctures. Some people had it easy, while for others, the blood kept oozing for a couple of hours. We decided it unanimously to cancel the next day’s plan of visiting the coffee plantations and directly head back home, the first thing in the morning. The next day in Bangalore, we tended to our sore bodies and attempted to feel human again.

This entire Kudremukh trek was an experience of a different kind! The feeling of having survived the blood-sucking leeches, lashes of rain and winds and having trekked 22kms were enough for us to proclaim ourselves superhuman!

BEST TIME TO VISIT

For all the monsoon trekking enthusiasts, if the idea of all the miseries we went through appeals to you, then head to Kudremukh between June and August.

But for others, Kudremukh trek from October to February promises “visible” picturesque views of the rolling hills and verdant valleys, a little easier climb and of course, leech less paths!

Tag: kudremukh trek