Nature and wilderness - Kabini and all around !

About the destination

Kabini - what else other than Tiger sighting! Yes, Tiger sighting plus there are other places to see as well. Kabini forests themselves are quite fascinating and many other wildlife. We also made it a good trip by adding a few beautiful destinations by the river Cauvery.

Trip Plan

Trip members: Karthik, Sathish Raja, Lokesh
Trip date:  27, 28 July 2019
Trip Plan : Chennai - Kabini (Dhommanakatte) - Kutta - Srimangala - Kutta - HD Kote - Talakkad - Shivanasamudra - Mekedatu

We started the trip by car from Tambaram by 9 PM on Friday evening after having dinner. The route we took was Tambaram - Ambur - Hosur - Kanakapura Road - Handpost - Dhommanakatte.

Day-1 -  The morning safari at Kabini

We reached the Dhommanakatte post at 5:25 AM. Looks like the bus safari mode has changed recently, giving more options and timings for tourists. The safari is one on a bus and tickets for safari can be bought 1 hour before the safari timings. One needs to be mindful of the crowd that would queue on the weekend/appropriate seasons. Tickets are issued at morning 5:30 AM for the first safari. The timings are as below.

Weekends and Government holidays:

• Rates
• Rs.350 per adult, Rs.175 per child
• Timings
• 6:00 AM to 7:30 AM, 7:30 AM to 9:00 AM
• 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM, 4:30 PM to 6 PM

Weekdays:

• Rates
• Rs.500 per adult, Rs.250 per child

We cited a tiger, thousands of spotted deer, Indian gaurs in the safari. The tiger was laying down by the pathway in the forests in Zone A. The tiger roamed in the front of the bus and slipped away into the forest. Photography was a challenge for the lack of enough light in the early morning.

Mongoose

A Repeat of Safari

We did the second safari immediately - at 07:30 AM as well as the safari bus had not started by the time we came back and tickets were available as well. The second safari was luckier as we cited Tiger again, this walked by the bus we went. Again, we saw various wildlife, like spotted deer, mongoose, colorful birds - woodpeckers, kingfishers, and peafowls.

After satisfactory safaris, we had breakfast nearby at Tasty Hotel - Kerala food - vegetarian and non-veg food was quite good. Aapams, oothappams, Pooris, and gravies.

Kabini Lake

Post breakfast, we planned to go to Irupu falls and do rafting at Srimangala. First, we visited the Kabini lake near the Kabini Lake View Resort. The massive lake is a treat to watch from many points in Kabini. We walked down to touch the water and enjoy the chillness.

We started the drive towards Srimangala via - Tholpetty - Kutta - Srimangala. The whole route was absolutely beautiful in the monsoons. The curvy clean roads and the lush bright green surroundings are an absolute treat from nature. 

River Rafting and Body Surfing at Srimangala

We reached Srimangala around 11:30. One has to reach to T.Settigere - around 1 km from Srimangala. Rafting happens on the Barapole river - a rocky segment which is ideal for lots of fun. The rafting charge was Rs.800 per person and it went for around 40 minutes. The rafting stream had 4 rapids - a couple of them are class 2 and a couple of them are class 3. After the debriefing and safety aspects, we started the ride.

This rafting requires quite a bit of pedaling as the river is narrow and water is less compared to bigger rivers like Ganges or Beas if you have done rafting in those places. The rapids Good morning and Grasshopper were good, to begin with, while Wicked witch and Big bang are very good. The Big bang was absolutely fun as there was a freefall followed by a bigger dip of water and ensuring a great experience! We also did body surfing for 10 minutes - safe with helmet and jackets. Looking back into the river after the 4th rapid was absolute fun :).

We did not take any photographs for Rs.1400 that were offered for. Hence, it is etched in our memories. If you like to see it ... experience it :)

Irupu Falls

It was almost 2 PM when we had our lunch at Ayyappa mess at Srimangala. The meals were ok. We then reached Irupu falls by 3 PM. The falls in monsoon were running full-on steam and the white milk-like flow was fantastic to see. I missed taking a dip on the chill waters while others did so. We spent around 45 minutes in the falls - followed by heavy rains for some time.

The plan was to ride across Nagarhole sanctuary towards Hunsur checkpost via the Kutta checkpost. The checkpost would not permit vehicles after 6 PM. We ensured we stick to the time and entered around 5:45. The ride was quite memorable with pleasant views all around in the forest. We cited few Indian gaurs, peacocks, spotted deer all along the route.

We reached HD Kote around 8 PM. We had booked rooms at Hotel Royal Inn - the rooms are quite spacious, clean and nice mattresses. The hotel is just opposite to Heggadadevankote Bus Station. We had some local snacks around in the breezy-moist evening and spent time around. We had dinner at a local restaurant - Sumi - parottas and gravies.

Enroute HD Kote

Day-2 

What else - One more safari!

The day started around 4 AM; reached the Dhommanakatte post at 5:30 for the morning safari. Unlike Saturday morning, it was quite crowded and we got our tickets on the third bus for the morning. We got to see an elephant, deers, peacock, mongoose in this safari.

We returned back at 7:45 from the safari and slot for the second safari was closed. We had breakfast and proceeded towards Taraka Dam. People are allowed inside the Taraka Dam, however, the view around is nice. Greens all around and the massive storage, who does not like to see it! We also stopped across Marigold fields and captured those moments.

The Fresh Itinerary

We returned to the room, checked out, had lunch at Hotel Sumi, and planned our trip back to Chennai. Yeah .. planned based on the time and importance of what we want to see! We decided to do one at a time - Talakad to take a dip in the bustling Cauvery river.

Talakad

We reached Talakad Cauvery basin point in 2 hours from HD Kote. The place was quite crowded, yet the mighty Cauvery river was accommodating as much as one needs! We spent around 20 minutes in the water, freshened up, and never want to leave the waters! 

Sivanasamudra

Next spot - Sivanasamudra - we reached the Barachukki Waterfalls Viewpoint in 1 hour from Talakad. The route was blessed with dark clouds, a pleasant breeze, and curvy roads all along. Sunday evening is expected to attract any tourist, nonetheless in the monsoons! As we entered the area through the Wesley bridge, the dark clouds started to pour heavily. We stayed back in the car in the parking area patiently till the clouds took a break. The grand view of the falls was just in front of us. The waterfalls almost looked like being in full brink. We spent around 15 - 20 minutes hearing the roaring sound of waters and the sprawling view beneath. We enjoyed hot Madhur vadas, bhajjis before we left the place.

It was 5 PM then, and the final spot we planned was Mekedatu. The Google maps said the place shall be closed by the time we reach, still, we decided to go ahead. We did so and were the last car allowed inside at 6:15 PM luckily - covering a distance of 89 km. We took the route of - Barachukki Waterfalls - Malavalli - Halaguru - Sathanuru - Take right - reach Kanakapura - Sangham road and then Mekedatu. The 3-4 steep hairpin bends were a fun otherwise a low range ghat road to reach Mekadatu.

Mekadatu

Mekadatu is similar to Hogennakal - rocky plains and sprawling water all around. Coracle rides are available; however, as we went late, we could not make it. We spent hardly 10 minutes before the security guards, secured the place. 

We did spend some time in a spot en route at an unnamed viewpoint. Almost, every tourist stopped by to take photographs and spend time relaxed. The panoramic view was quite exhilarating.

Started back to Chennai around 7 PM from Mekadatu - had a mediocre dinner at Hotel Prashant in Bangalore; and reached Chennai by 2:30 AM!