First view of Makalidurga Hills

Place: Makalidurga Hills, Doddaballapur, Karnataka

Distance From Bangalore: 62* 2 = 124 km

Type: Trekking

Ideal for: Friends

Budget: Approx 100/Head

Makalidurga is a hill fort situated near the village of the same name. It is 60 km north of Bangalore and 10 km after Doddaballapura on the way to gauribidanur. The fort at the summit has an old temple of Shiva with Nandi and in legend Markandeya Rishi performed penance here. 

First view of Makalidurga Hill

Some interesting Facts:

• Standing as tall as 3664 feet high, Makalidurga is one of the best spot for trekkers.
• There is a small fort on the peak protecting small temple dedicated to goddess Makalidurga.
• Difficulty level is easy to moderate with trail marked by paint en route

Important notes:

• Ways of transport:
• Train: There are plenty of trains run between Bangalore - Doddaballapur, get down at Makalidurga railway station and walk for 3 kms till the base of the hills. Most of the people coming on train will be taking this way.
• Bus: The bus will stop near the hills from where you can walk to the base of the hills.
• Private Vehicle: You can either park at Railway station or near the base of the hill.
• Carry your own water and food.
• There are arrow marks to help people follow the trail, these marks will be repainted every now and then.  

3 Days before the Trek

One week back I became a member of BTC, as one of my friend advised me to join this and asked me if you need some changes other than work then do some trekking with BTC. It will be full of Fun and interesting. After that we got an email about this, which is going to be on 24th December 2016 Saturday.

When I saw this mail, I called my other friends and everyone had only one answer GO GO GO....

After returning from Office, we registered our self in the given link and after one day our names were shortlisted in the List. We were excited and happy too. That night we fulfilled all the terms and conditions, in the sense what organizer had advised, all things were with us .we slept early and started dreaming.

Saturday Morning

Alarm was irritating us from 4 am, after snoozing it for dozen times, atlast we all woke up at 5.30 am, we all got ready and freshened up by 6 am. 

ASSEMBLE

Booked the Cab and after 40 minutes we reached the Meeting point Byappanahalli Railway Station. Met the BTC crew there - all geared up with backpacks and trekking shoes. It is a mixed group of guys and gals. surprisingly, two children’s were also in our group. They made our trip happening and also interesting and memorable. I will speak about them little later. There is something good about the vibe. They all were engaged and calling and asking where others, because some of our CREW members are coming from other station and there meeting point was different, Next up is catching the train.

First pic with our BTC group

This trip is about connecting with nature and that should not be an expensive affair at all. Soon, a second class compartment in a passenger train is filled with enthusiastic souls, grabbing window seats. Train moves... a lil coo coo here and there and we departed from  Byappanahalli.

Started trekking at 11.50 pm and our target was to reach top and spend some time on the top but the thing is, we have to come back asap, as we have train at 3.30 pm.

Departed towards our Aim

When we started the trip, we did not know each other because with me there were many others who were new to the BTC, but after 2 hour of train journey we became good friends and it’s like we knew each other from many years.

Rising, one step at a time towards Makalidurga hill 

Finally the trek started with lot of talks and jokes. we covered the 3km on the track and reached the foothills. As the sun was up , we did finish half of the water at foothills only , so always keep more water with you while going. Started trekking at 11.50 pm and our target was to reach top and spend some time on the top but the thing is, we have to come back asap, as we have our train at 3.30 pm.

Until we reached the fort at the top, the number of breaks increased and we all are getting dehydrated almost.

WHEWWWW...... Finally we could see the fort walls from a distance some more steps to conquer the mighty peak!! 

WE REACHED FINALLY

Smiles at the Top.. Our Top Performers of this grand event

Reaching the top is a huge relief, the trek is relatively small with snail pace we reached peak in two hours. There is a temple at the peak dedicated to Goddess Makalidurga, after seeing the surrounding places we decided to take rest under a tree, it was almost 1.30 pm in the afternoon but the climate was not too cloudy. But the cool wind rushing at my face , as sweat kept running down.

While Descending

Most Awaited moment:

After having Potluck lunch at the top we started journey back to Bangalore. We enjoyed thoroughly till we reached back to Bangalore. it’s really an awesome and wonderful experience of my life. THANKS to BTC and all the Crew Member who had joined this group and made it more interesting ant successful

Suggestion: Carry back all the glass/plastic wastes and dispose the same in a proper bin. Caution may be exercised for leaving any valuables in your vehicle. There have been many reports of Engine, Carburetor, Helmet and Petrol theft.

Until Next Time Cya, Sayonara CATCH YOU ALL IN OUR NEXT JOURNEY!!!

Written By     : Vikash Kumar

Organized By : Gaurav Kamath

Date of event : 24th Dec, 2016

Place              : Makalidurga

Pictures         : BTC FB Page