About Sharavathi river after Jog falls
You can see an interesting phenomenon in Sharavathi river after Jog falls. The villages on the right side of the river are better connected than their counterparts on the left bank. The National Highway running between Jog falls and Honnavar provides good connectivity for the people on the right bank of the river. The only bridge after Jog falls is at Honnavar where the river joins the sea. Naturally, the villages on the left bank are more isolated and harder to reach.
The area between Jog falls and Gersoppa is under Sharavathi wildlife sanctuary where there is no way to cross the river. The Gersoppa dam is off-limits to the general public. The river after Gersoppa becomes wide and flows at a slower rate as it is almost at the sea level. Ferry services run at many places on this stretch.
My earlier visits to this area were to Chaturmukha Basadi which I had reached while trekking from Kanoor Kote, and Haigunda, a small and a nice island on Sharavathi river. I had crossed to the other side using boats on both these occasions. Recently, a lot of developments have taken place. A bridge has been constructed near Gersoppa dam, and Haigunda has a pedestrian bridge. The recent addition is a hanging bridge near Upponi connecting the two sides of the river. Apparently, this place has become a tourist spot.
Recently, I was in this area with my cousins. We were at a viewpoint from where we could watch the Sharvathi valley. We planned to see the sunset, but we had reached very early. When I searched for the places nearby, this bridge attracted my attention. It looked like a nice place to visit. Immediately, we set out for the hanging bridge.
Our visit to the hanging bridge
The place was hard to miss, thanks to the many shops that had spurted in the area to cater to the needs of the tourists. We found that many people stop for some time, go over the bridge, take some photos and selfies.
Like others, we also spent time in photographing on the bridge. We saw that the other side was more peaceful. Most people just walked for a short distance on the bridge, took photos and left. The other side of the river was practically left free for us. As we walked on the bridge, we observed that it was a busy route as many people crossed on bikes. Since the bridge was narrow, we had to watch out for the two-wheelers.
These two wheelers were a big irritant. But I also realized that it was locals who need to be irritated by tourists like us who were obstructing their movement!! The bridge was built for them.
Since we visited the bridge in the evening, we waited till sunset. It was a great view.
If you are driving on the Jogfalls-Honnavar highway, it is a decent place to spend few minutes. By the way, information on the hanging bridge across Sharavathi backwaters can be found here.
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