It was a long time since Subbu, Krishna and me had gone together on a trek. The last time was in December when we trekked to Shingani Gudda and Udaya Parvatha. We managed to get a Sunday for ourselves. When I looked at the places that could fit into a day plan, Handi Gundi, a small hill near Ramanagara looked promising.
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| From the top of Handi Gundi |
Driving to the base of the hill was simple. Handi Gundi is seen from Bengaluru-Mysuru highway just before Ramanagara. At the deviation to Basavapura, we exited the highway, crossed the railway line and reached the village. The locals guided us to reach the base. We parked our vehicle near a temple and started walking.
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| Handi Gundi betta |
The initial path was not clear. The locals asked us to go in a particular direction which we followed. The area was rocky and steep. We walked in the general direction of the peak.
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| Initial stretch |
As we climbed up, the surroundings opened up. The hills nearby and Ramanagara town was now visible. The new layouts announcing that the area was “developed” were seen!! But the view on the other side was hill was greener with some small lakes. The recent rains had made the area green.
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| On the “greener” side |
Unlike many hills near Bengaluru, Handi Gundi had lot of greenery. At midway, we just stopped and relaxed for some time enjoying the scenery. It was pristine and beautiful. It looks like there were no visitors in recent times.
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| The last stretch |
The path though visible sometimes was not clear. We just had to climb up looking at the direction. It was not difficult as the hill itself was not very large and chances of missing were slim.
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| From the top of Handi Gundi |
After walking for about 45 minutes, we had reached the top. A lone pole indicated that we had reached the highest point on the hill. The total elevation gain was about 800 feet. A simple but a beautiful trek.
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| Subbu looking at Ramanagara town |
On top of the peak was a flat land and we spent nearly an hour relaxing and chitchatting. The Bengaluru-Mysuru highway and railway line was visible. Few trains passed as we just relaxed on the hill. The Ramanagara town looked big from the hill.
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| View from the top |
While getting down we took a different path. Anyway, there was no defined route in that place. The climbing down was faster and within 30 minutes we were back at the temple. And we were back in Bengaluru for our lunch!!
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| Cactus flower on the hill |
Steps Together
Very glad to know about this place. Thanks for sharing this informative post.. Keep traveling..
D.Nambiar
Wow!! What views of Ramanagara and the rocks of Ramanagara. I've passed that way so many times and only seen those rocks from the highway.
This post of yours makes me want to see more. 🙂
Beautiful!!
Prashanth M
Looks like an easy hike. Can this be done with kids? If yes, it's an ideal place for picnic-adventure combo 🙂
Sonesh
Picnic is exciting but request not to litter the place as many does
aravindgj
Ranjani and Thilak,
Thanks for your comment. Went through your blog. It is very nice!!
D.Nambiar,
Thanks for your comment.
Prashnath,
Yes. it is an easy climb. A good place for kids to start trekking!!
Unknown
Can people do night trek here? I mean is it allowed in this place.
Vikesh
In which month did you do the trekking as i guess the greenery depends on that a lot?
aravindgj
It was in the month of August.
theperennialpassengers
Hi, do you need forest department permission for this trek?
aravindgj
When we went, no permissions were required. But recently, some of my friends encountered forest department people during the trek who created problem. So, the rules are hazy. Better to check with locals before starting the climb.
theperennialpassengers
Okay, thanks so much for the info!