The Monsoon Magic- magnificent Jog and mesmerizing Murudeshwar
This
Independence day gifted us a freedom to travel to our hearts’ content in the
monsoon, for a vacation starved Rams family! I jumped up in joy when my hubby
proposed a trip to the western ghats in Uttara Karnataka, to celebrate our
wedding anniversary in advance,! Deprived of a well deserved excursion for
quite some time, I was indeed looking forward to the short odyssey. Google came
to my rescue assisting in the booking of travel, stay and sightseeing and the
itinerary was finalized from the cool comforts of my home! Everything seemed to
fall in its place and the countdown to the D-day had begun with yours truly,
the unskilled packer, stuffing all and sundry into two large suitcases much to
the chagrin of the ads whose idea of a vacation was only a backpack! From salt
for the leeches, to loosen their vice like grips on our soft bodies to sneakers
and jackets to protect us from the rains, the luggage was full and I had the
final say!
The free ride on the
Uber cab was a delight to start our picnic with and we had embarked well ahead
of the departure time of the bus. But the snarling peak hour traffic of
Bengaluru was driving us insane. The only solace was to think of the sojourn to
bliss and be one among nature! I had almost given up on reaching the travels’
office in time but the cabbie who got
the whiff of the situation due to my grumbling and ranting, stepped on the gas
and manoeuvred adroitly through the rain filled pot holed by lanes to reach the terminal on time and we avoided
the trauma of seeing the rear of the glistening blue bus!
Snugly reclining in the push back seats, heaving a collective sigh of
relief, we were off and in less than an hour stopped for dinner at a road side
eatery with an ambience that was truly inviting. The “pure veg” tag was the
icing on the cake and we enjoyed the steaming hot idis and vadas dunked in sambar
and chutney.
The onward seven hour journey to Sagar, a lovely district of Shivamogga
town in Malnad region of Karnataka was uneventful as darkness had engulfed the
picturesque greenery of the country side. As dawn broke the darkness of the silent
night, I was overjoyed to see the rain soaked ghat road towards Sagar. Yes, the
monsoon magic had begun in full earnest and my heart was beating faster. I
turned the clock back 30 years to reminisce the Geography class in school when
Sukumari madam was explaining about Gersoppa falls and Linganamakki dam across the Shravati river. How I had
longed then to see India’s second largest segmented plunge and the moment of
euphoria had arrived.
The hotel Pavithra Residency was decent and the family suite was large,
neat and comfortable. Refreshed and raring to go after a warm bath and with a
nice breakfast of masala dosai , we embarked on our sightseeing tour in a taxi.
The 30 minute drive across lush green carpets of paddy fields with
swaying coconut trees fringed at the borders and winding snake roads was
captivating. As we neared the gorgeous bluff, the skies opened up and the rain
came down in torrents. We could hear the rush and roar of the Jog but the mist
and clouds completely covered the falls. Within minutes the rain stopped lifting the veil of mist and lo and behold, Raja,
Rani, Roarer and Rocket thundered down magnificently and I was spell bound by
nature’s bounty. A sheer fall of 800 feet of river Shravati into the ravines,
the froth and foam pumping up my adrenalin!
The next couple of hours was absolute delight and a great photo op (sans
selfies and groupfies) with different combinations and I am privileged to share
those moments of bliss with my dear readers. My heart ached to bid goodbye to
the opulence of nature but we had to
move on to the next destination, the Ikkeri Aghoreshwara temple built by the
Keladi chiefs and has been taken over by the ASI.
Then came Keladi with a
temple and a museum developed by Kuvempu university which boasted of age old
artefacts. Linganamakki reservoir was next on our agenda but despite the dam
being almost full, the sluice gates were not opened denying us the opportunity
of seeing a torrent of water gushing out!
Honnemaradu, the island atop a hillock overlooking the Linganamakki dam
was enchanting. After the whirlwind two day sojourn to Sagar and its
surroundings, we boarded the KSRTC to take us to Honnavar, the port city on the
Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats was a treat to the eyes with dime a dozen hair
pin bends on NH 17 interspersed with water falls en route. Copious rains , exotic
scenery and salubrious climate made our 100km journey gratifying and pleasant!
World’s second largest statue of Lord Shiva with a towering Raja
Gopura was a sight to behold when we
reached the coastal town of Murudeshwar in Bhatkal.
For the etymology and
legend about the temple please visit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murudeshwara
The
distinct air of the sea with the colourful fishing boats moored at the shore
and the waves crashing into the temple is mesmerizing. The grandeur of the
statue is enhanced by the breathtaking view of the Arabian Sea with its long
coastline stretching as far as the eyes could see! High speed elevators took us
to the 18th floor of the Raja Gopura
and the view from the top was
spectacular. I am bereft of adjectives and the English language seems to be
poor to describe the panoramic spectacle where nature blends with perfect
harmony with religion and spirituality. The imposing Shiva statue sitting cheek
by jowl with the sea is forever etched in my memory! The beaches on the shore
were balms for our weary but happy feet and the day culminated with the sunset.
A hearty dinner at Kamat’s brought the curtains down on our jaunt.
The luxury coach from Honnavar brought us back to our domain , traversing through the Ghats one more time, briefly pausing at Jog and then heading to Bengaluru via Shivamogga . The mirthful, magnetic, marvellous, monsoon magic had come to an end bringing home rejuvenated bodies and souls with lots of memories and a pet leech! (We are yet to name it!)
