Talacauvery, where Cauvery is born

The journey to Coorg was very special, it was happening after years of dreaming and a few cancelled plans as well. We were 3 friends, one from Bangalore and us from Chennai, driving down to Coorg from Mysore. We had booked ourselves for 3 nights at a homestay- CoorgHallimane, in Kushal nagar. As we reached, we discovered the place was quaint, quiet and perfect. They have about 8 rooms in the main building and a few cottages scattered around, and we got to stay in one of those. On opening the window all we saw were mountains on one side and green fields on the other. There was also a swimming pool in the homestay with a small mushroom style fountain in the center. What fun we had playing around in it unwinding after the long drive to Coorg. 

We dint have any set agenda, but knew there were a few places we would visit for sure. Talacauvery was one of them. It is a good 4500 ft above sea level, and this the where the River Cauvery is born. It is said that the river disappears underground before surfacing again at Naga theertha near Bhagamandala.  Infact, Bhagamandala, about 8kms ahead of Talacauvery is where one witnesses the confluence of three rivers, Cauvery, Sujyothi and Kanike.  

During the drive from Madikeri, cloudy skies and mist was all we saw outside. There was the occasional light drizzle sneaking in through the window.  Drizzle turned to rains and it kept up with us through the journey. We had reached Talacauvery as rains lashed away. We braved the rain and walked on, freezing and soaked to the bone, looking for hot tea or any sign of shelter. The only thing we had were the akki rotis and chutney that the staff had insisted we carry along when we left the homestay. What a godsend it was, especially since we had been on the road long and not had a bite since morning.   

We were so glad to have chosen a Homestay in Coorg instead of a resort, as this experience was so much more homely and comfortable...   And like many destinations there are many Coorg Homestays that one is spoilt for choice..!!

 Rain did subside as we walked towards the shrine and the big tank near the Gundike, where I noticed many visitors taking a quick dip. From there, it was up another set of stairs to visit the temple of Lord Agasthyeshwara [Lord Shiva] and Lord Ganesha.

Taking shelter from the rain, we walked along the mandap surrounding the temple, when towards the end I thought I saw a flight of stairs leading to heaven. Well, that’s what I thought till my friend brought me to down to reality. Those steps were to go up Brahmagiri Hill, from where one got a panoramic view of Talacauvery and the city beyond. A lady passing by told us the story of how a special yagna was performed by the Saptha Maharishis up in the hills. Had it not been for the rain, we would have made our way up there.  What an experience this had been. On the drive back to Kushal nagar to the homestay, there was silence in the car, with all of us still lost in the beauty of Talacauvery.

Cauvery on the go.. Coorg Part 3

Since we dint have any fixed agenda and were taking each day as it came, today was the day to head to Talacauvery in the Brahmagiri hills and it was decided we werent gonna do anything else, since that trip was bound to take almost all day...

 

When i mentioned Coorg at home, gramma and mom pounced on me - "You have to go Talacauvery, must make a trip... say you will " :).. All i told them was "I shall see"...:)

After having breakfast, and clicking a few pictures of the mushroom waterfall and other sights around the homestay, we piled into the car and began the journey... It was about 80kms or more and so we knew we had a long drive ahead... Thanks to Apar's itouch and our incessant yakking, time flew.. There were the occasional bouts of silence, when A jr would try to get us to behave..hehe.. and then those moments when we saw something interesting, stopped the car to take pictures or just savor the scenery... Filled gas enroute, bought some water and biscuits and off we went...

The air outside was chill, it was drizzling quite heavily and we could see mist taking over the skies, slowly covering the streets as well.. After a point, we could barely see the road... it was a winding path and i guess since Kr had been there before, he knew where he was headed... The scenes that accompanied us during the drive was beautiful.. words fail to do justice... 

After a while, Bhagamandala [it is where the 3 rivers merge-Cauvery with Kanike and Sujoythi ] came in view, but we rode on, deciding to visit Talacauvery 1st..Another 8-9kms took us to Talacauvery [predominantly Ghat roads] ... Heavy drizzle, chill in the air and mist was all that greeted us.. A few kilometers after leaving Hallimane we realised we'd left the big umbrella back in the room.. Luckily Kr had a smaller one in the car. Apar n A jr had raincoats [smart people na!!], Kr bot a plastic cap, and we both managed to share the umbrella, not that it made much of a diff.. we were soaked and freezing... :) But it was good fun!! 

Reached the entrance, took off our shoes, left them safely tucked away under a bench and made our up the steps leading to the tank from where Cauvery is said to rise... There is a bigger tank in front of the shrine, where we saw some visitors taking a quick dip... They then joined the queue in visiting the main shrine... 

A few steps above are the temples for Lord Shiva, Brahma, Vishnu and Ganesha, made a quick visit to all of them before taking a look at the steep steps that led to Brahmagiri hills before making the descent back to the car.  Had it not rained, we would have made the 

climb up the hills.. maybe next time!! 

When we reached Bhagamandala, it was about 1, and the temple was shut.. sat in the car, took in the view, clicked a few pictures and got going to Madikeri for lunch...

but not before stoppping at a small store on the side of the road to buy some Coffee[amazing coffee, shall buy more next time around], and spices.. 

Lunch was at this restaurant, bang opp the Madikeri Fort... [ i have this habit, i see a place and then i get back home/room and try reading about it... to see what all it has, history etc..., this is when i discovered that the Madikeri fort houses a temple, chapel, prison and a small museum] ..

As we were sitting for Lunch, Kr called me and took me to the rear window at the place... What i saw had me stumped...The Omkareshwara temple, in all its glory... What a sight i must say!! That was another place we wanted to visit but was closed ...Built by Lingarajendra in 1820, the temple has both Islamic and Gothic style of architecture. The bars of the windows here are made of Panchaloha and an alphabet lim has been placed in between the bars.. There is also a small temple tank in the premise.. ..

Day was wearing on, and after a bit of driving around Madikeri [ true reason being the search for an ATM] :-)

Nisargadhama, a forest resort by the Cauvery river [about 28kms from Madikeri] comes enroute to Kushal nagar ...  We also saw a board to a spa nearby.infact we'd been seeing quite a few Spa ads along the way.... Apar n i were getting tempted and curious. ;o) ..

As we drove on, we were greeted by 2 giants sauntering on the road, guess they were headed back to their adobe- Dubare... 

Grooving to random music, chit chatting absolute nonsense, we were in high spirits as we reached Hallimane... There was one more day, but we just wanted to laze and soak in the lovely weather and relaxed atmosphere...

 the one on right was our cottage..

 Ok.. shall finish in next post.. its getting too long!! :)

Kodava land, here we come- Coorg Part 1

Where: Coorg


When: 30th Sep to 4th Oct


Who: 3 absolutely wacko souls and one 4yr old~!!

Coorg [or Kodagu] a destination that had been on my “To visit” list was finally going to happen. After wee bit of planning, the journey began on 30th Sep night for us all – 3 1/2souls looking forward to a fun filled weekend.. The plan was Apar, A Jr and I shall head to Mysore from Chennai, Kr will join us there and we head towards Coorg. Kr was the only one who’d traveled to Coorg earlier, so he was our guide as well.  Reached Mysore on 1st Oct around 7.30am, headed to Dasaprakash for a hot cup of coffee and breakfast before heading to Hotel Ginger to freshen up.



Digression alert - Hotel Ginger is a lovely hotel, very chic and modern. The lobby house a Café Coffee Day and an Offbeat store [where you can pick up quirky T shirts]. There are trolleys to move your baggage around, good fun~!! Anyways, we spent a few hours here, lazing about and surprising Apar with her B’day cake.

As we hit the road towards Coorg, the sights that greeted us enroute were breathtaking… Dark clouds, green fields, bright colored homes. List is endless!! Took us over 2hrs, and finally we found the homestay we were booked into– Coorg Hallimane.. It is right next to Veerabhoomi Resorts, a tourist village in Kushal Nagar.

Okay, back to our journey. We reached around 2ish, requested the kitchen to bring us some basic meal - daal, rice, roti. Food was served piping hot, and was quite HOT as well [read - mouth burning, sweat dripping spicy, so we pleaded with them to tone down the spice quotient, which they very sweetly did] :)

The place is serene, hidden amidst hills, with nothing around.. open space like never before that welcomed us with cool breeze and gentle drizzle. The cottage was roomy, spacious and had all that we could hope for. The entire place was done up quite well - rustic wooden theme that started with the door and went on till the window panes, TV table and flooring.. The rooms in the main building each had a individual theme- absolutely beautiful..

There were also some ducks, hen, chicken scampering about.. Not to forget a cage of beautiful colorful birds.. A Jr and infact all of us had fun going Ooh aah at all of them, and clicking pics left right and center!! :D

That noon, we pretty much just lazed about and settled in..Walked around, exploring the area, and since we were the only guests then it was good fun having all that space just to ourselves...

....What else did we do? well, wait for that.... :)