To Heaven and Back! – a place above clouds!
There are some places in the world where nature just overwhelms you with its beauty and grandeur… Skandagiri is surely one of them!
Although famous for its moon light trek, we decided to reach there early morning and give a shot on this moderate rated trek.
Chilly winds swept by as our bike engines blared on the Bangalore-Hyderabad highway in the wee hours of Christmas eve (Was good to compete with Santa on his reindeer drive 
).
Reaching this place was a bit of pain as we took a shortcut to state highway and got confused (Should have stuck to NH and reached Chikballapur). Finally reached the foothills by 4:30 and started the ascent without a guide first with just one torch (6 ppl ). Soon realized we’d easily get lost like this… so took a guide who not only guided us on right path but also showed which were the ‘wrong ways’. Night trek was an interesting one, with nothing visible, we were all on the mercy of two torches and some mobile backlight.
It took almost 1.5 hours and finally reached the top, panting heavily and totally exhausted. But all the pain was worth it as we were rewarded with some amazing works of nature. It was better than those mail forwards of Skandagiri passed on to me!
We spent another 2 hours drenched in nature’s paint strokes and were spellbound by breathtaking panorama of clouds. It was truly heavens for sure on a Christmas eve! Below are some snaps from the trek.
Best way to travel: 1. Bike 2. Cab
Travel Route: Google might show you a way via State Highway which can be very confusing (which we took). Best way is to reach Chikballapur via National Highway and then find someone there (at least police guys would be there ) and ask them where is Skandagiri/Kalavaarahalli Betta[ya its a tongue twister which would go off your mind so better take a print:)]/Papagani Mutt.
Travel Time: Best to leave Bangalore by 12:30, reach BIAL (International Airport) by 1:30, have a break at CCD and then leave for Hyderabad highway by 2:30 so that you reach Chikballapur by 3:30 and ultimately Skandagiri by 4:00 (all times in AM )
Travel Tips: Carrying these things is a must:
1. Torch (per person) we had only 2 torches (including that of guide:)) and had a hard time finding anything using mobile backlight
2. Snacks
3. Raincoat and spare clothing
Also, do not travel without a guide as the trek is quiet treacherous and the way is blocked at some places by thorns by the guides ofcourse . Hope all this helps!
Gallery :
11 comments
shubhajoy says:
December 29, 2009 at 6:44 am (UTC 5.5)
Only the cover picture can be magnified. Please do the same for the rest. They are “wallpaper” material! And I am already planning a trip this new year eve with my friend to this wonderful place! I could never have guessed there can be a place like this so near Nandi Hills, otherwise instead of going there a second time, I would have preferred this place the last weekend.
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prahlad says:
December 29, 2009 at 7:22 pm (UTC 5.5)
I have heard that we cannot go on a midnight trek to Skandagiri on new year’s eve.. can anyone tell me if it’s true?
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Abhishek says:
December 30, 2009 at 9:21 am (UTC 5.5)
Even we heard that night trekking is banned there but there were guides in plenty there to help you reach the top [at non-negotiable prices of-course [Rs.500/-]]. It’s worth a try though but not sure if you want to put your new year’s eve on stake
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ani says:
December 30, 2009 at 9:24 am (UTC 5.5)
I am planning to go on new year’s eve since its going to be a full moon and it would be fun to trek on that day. Leave early around two. looking forward to the trip.
Nice article though! would be great if you could post some more details of the trip like best way to travel, hours of travel etc.
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abhishek says:
December 30, 2009 at 5:59 pm (UTC 5.5)
Hey Ani, I have added the details asked by you in the post itself. Let me know if it was helpful!
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Harish Mohan says:
January 11, 2010 at 5:35 pm (UTC 5.5)
Hi,
After reading lots of blogs we planned and went for a night trekking at skandagiri. But on the way some people told us that the trekking is banned there and there are police men over there. So we had to cancell the trekking and went to Nandhi hills instead.
Highly dissapointed
..
is it really true that the trekking is banned there? please advice..
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April 21, 2010 at 10:41 pm (UTC 5.5)
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April 25, 2010 at 7:09 am (UTC 5.5)
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April 25, 2010 at 3:37 pm (UTC 5.5)
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