Travelog – Jog Falls & Karwar (Uttara Kannada)

With the inspiration of Narasimha Parvatha Travelog, I thought of writing travelogs for the remaining group trips and here is an attempt to recall my memories from our Jog Falls & Karwar (Uttara Kannada) trip done in 2007.

We thought of planning a trip for the long weekend of 2007 New Year. Since it was my last trip as a bachelor, I was very keen to make it a memorable trip. All participants have agreed on spending 4 full days and I have started planning the trip.

Starting from our Goa trip in 2005, I have developed special interest on waterfalls. While gathering some information about famous waterfalls in India, I learned about Jog Falls, which is the highest waterfall in India with a height of 829 feet. It is also one of the four best waterfalls in India appeared on special postal stamps released by Indian Govt (other three being Athirapally Falls from Kerala, Kempty Falls from Uttaranchal and Kakolat Falls from Bihar) - http://www.indiapost.gov.in/images/Stamp-Rel112.gif. I immediately started gathering more information on Jog Falls.

While searching the surroundings of Jog falls, I came to know that there are many wonderful waterfalls in Uttara Kannada district and most of them are little close to Jog Falls (which is located in Shimoga district). I thought of proposing a waterfall oriented trip by including all the important waterfalls from Uttara Kannada along with Jog Falls. However, we felt it would be boring to just keep visiting waterfalls for 4 continuous days and decided to mix it with other important places around. We thought including a beach destination would add more spice to the trip as it was New Year weekend. Deepak & others proposed that we should spend Dec 31^st night in a beach destination and visit all waterfalls before that! I started working towards identifying the best beach destinations around Jog Falls and then Karwar came into the picture. Karwar is a beach town and headquarters of Uttara Kannada district. There were two reasons to include Karwar in the trip. First one being the Devbagh Beach, a wonderful beach island near Karwar which also offers Snorkeling. Second reason is the Om Beach near Gokarna (50 Kms from Karwar) which is one of the best beaches in India with breathtaking landscape.

Though Jog Falls is close to the town of Sagar in Shimoga, I preferred Sirsi as our base station for the first two days to visit all waterfalls. Jog Falls is 65 Kms from Sirsi, but all other waterfalls we shortlisted are within the range of 30-50 Kms from Sirsi. Karwar was identified as the base for remaining two days of the trip. Apart from the regular participants (Deepak, Radhani & Chaitu & Rakesh), we also received confirmation from Ravi (our college mate & my close friend) & Ratnakar (Rakesh’s classmate and our close friend as well). Santosh missed this trip.

Travelog - Narasimha Parvatha Trek

Our last trip was to Jog Falls & Karwar (Karnataka) in Jan 2007, which was also my last trip as bachelor. It's been more than 3 years and we thought of regrouping with an offbeat destination. I learned about few trekking destinations these days and I was very keen to do a trip with overnight stay on the peaks. We thought of choosing a place which is close to Bangalore and can be visited over a weekend. I started gathering more info on Karnataka trekking destinations and shortlisted Narasimha Parvatha, which is close to Agumbe. Though there are few other interesting destinations, Narasimha Parvatha is unique because the entry and exit points of the trek are different. We can also visit Sirimane falls as part of the trip along with famous Sringeri temple. I think no other destination can offer such variations. The difficulty level is above moderate and there was also a forest rest house on the peak where the trekkers can camp (we were not sure whether the rest house was functional, when the trip was planned). Also, we were planning the trip in beginning of summer and I learned that most of the first day trek runs through thick forest and we can escape from the heat.

I have never been on trekking and except Deepak, all others were new to trekking as well. However, Deepak has instantly confirmed his availability followed by Chaitu, Radhani, Rakesh & of late, Nattu. Radhani has also invited Sandeep, his IISc classmate. As usual, Santosh did not confirm and he needed time to "think", so we lost hope and started our preparations for the trip.

We have finalized Apr 2nd, 2010 as start date of the trip from Bangalore. As usual, I had to take the responsibility of driving the preparations but this time, Deepak, Radhani & Chaitu had to play major roles as the trip was planned from Bangalore and I was in Hyderabad.

Quick info on Narasimha Parvatha:

At a distance of 18 Kms from Sringeri, 20 Kms from Agumbe & 65 Kms from Udupi, Narasimha Parvatha is an excellent destination for trekking. It is situated at an altitude of 3780 feet.

Most common trekking route starts from Malandur (6 Kms from Agumbe) and ends at Kigga (10 Kms from Sringeri) with overnight stay on Narasimha Parvatha. Malandur can be reached by private vehicle from Agumbe (walking takes 1.5 hrs). From Malandur, the trek distance to the peak is about 14 Kms via Barkana Falls (6-7 Hrs trek). Camping is allowed on the peak. Kigga is about 8 Kms from Narasimha Parvatha and takes about 3 Hrs (Sirimane Falls can be visited during this trek with 1-2 Hrs extra effort). Water filling can be done at Barkana Falls.

Trekking this route is little difficult through thick forest & there are no sign boards enroute. It is very important to hire a guide to trek Narasimha Parvatha (can be hired at Malandur).

Agumbe is 45 Kms from Udupi, 88 Kms from Shimoga & 92 Kms from Mangalore. Udupi & Shimoga are nearest train stations. Agumbe is connected by daily bus with Bangalore (346 Kms - via Tumkur & Kadur).

Sringeri is 70 Kms from Udupi, 92 Kms from Shimoga & 96 Kms from Mangalore. Udupi & Shimoga are nearest train stations. Sringeri is connected by daily bus with Bangalore (341 Kms - via Hassan & Chikmagalur).

The duration of Narasimha Parvatha trek is 2 days and 1 night with overnight stay on the peak. Sunrise from the peak is awesome and must see!