the journey continues…

This ancient temple of Shri Lord Ranganatha Swamy is located in Magadi which is around 50km from Bangalore.The temple was built during the period of King Cholas and further developed by the kings of Vijayanagara Empire.Gopuram of the temple is in Dravidian style while inside the idol is in standing posture which is Vijayanagara Empire style.

Lord Ranganatha is in standing posture with 3 arms holding shanka,chakra,gada and the other one in abhaya hasta (Asdsuring hand).
Usually the idol of Lord Ranganatha would be in reclining position.But here it is in standing posture.The priest said, originally it is the idol of Lord Venkateshwara and the elevated place were the temple is located is called Tirumale.
During the period of Tippu Sulatan,mughals started destroying many hindu temples.To save this temple,they called Venkateshwara as Ranganatha, as Tippu Sultan was faithful to his god RanganathaSwamy at Srirangapattana.
One more interesting idol inside is Beleyo Ranga( Growing Ranga) which is a small idol of Ranganatha in reclining position.

We visited in a family group with food,water etc.Had a nice darshanam,food and spent a whole day.Ideal place for family outing.You can also visit other near by places like TG Halli,SavanaDurga etc.I came across this link which was interesting.

Gopalaswamy Betta is one among my favorite spots.The place is in Chamarajanagar District of Karantaka which is 90km from Mysore .There is a motor-able road all the way to the top of the hill.

Hill has a very old Venugopala Swamy Temple.
The roof of the Gharbhagudi of the temple has snow or dew drops that you can touch and feel. Also we can see snow on the god’s statue.Its very surprising that only the temple’s inside part and god’s statue has snow and no where else.”Hima” means snow or ice in kannada.So it is popularly know as Himavat Gopalaswamy Betta.

The peak is covered with mist almost all the months of the year and it is one among the highest peaks in Karnataka.The entire hill is covered with green grass and gives a scenic view.

Its a good spot for trekking also. Bangalore Mountaineering Club organizes trekking to GopalaSwamy Betta regularly.No food is available on top.If you are starting from Bangalore then start early as you are not allowed to stay on the top beyond 5:30 in the evening.A very quite and calm, hangout place for family and friends for a weekend.

Word of Caution Please note the last comment on this post which says its no more safe to do trekking or picnicking here due to tiger attacks.

MekeDatu, a weekend gateway ,is around 100km from Bangalore.You need to take the Kanakapura road from Bangalore.At Kanakpura, you can see a Sign board indicating that Mekedatu is 35 Kms from there. Clear directions are provided from Kanakpura to reach Mekedatu.

First we visited the chuchi falls which comes on the way to Mekedatu.
Its a small waterfall sorrounded by rocks.

Next stop is Sangam.Sangam is the confluence of Rivers Cauvery, Arkavathi and another mythical river which is no longer visible.When we went, water levels were very low.We had nice time in the water playing and taking bath.You need to take a bus from Sangam to Mekedatu which is app. 6km from here.

Meke means Goat in kannada and Datu means Cross…There is very narrow channel through which river cauvery flows and even a goat can cross it..so its called Mekedatu .

Whole trip takes a entire day so if you want spend time leisurely you should start early from Bangalore.There is no arrangement for food anywhere so you need to pack the food in advance.
Best time to visit is from august to december.