Trek to Udedurgam fort

Udedurgam is a lesser-known fort hill near Hosur. Is it one of the twelve forts that constituted Baramahal (Parts of Hosur, Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri districts)

I came to know about this fort from Dhiraj’s blog. My previous treks to this area were to the fort hills of Rayakottai and Ratnagiri. Though Udedurgam was on my bucket list for a long time, I could not find an opportunity to hike to this place. My friend Arjun had come for a holiday from the UK and had time for a day trip from Bengaluru. I suggested Udedurgam, and we hatched a plan.

Drive to Udedurgam village

The drive from Bengaluru was uneventful. We had breakfast at a hotel in Attibele, bypassed Hosur as suggested by Google Maps and reached Udedurgam village. As the road condition deteriorated, we decided to park the car and walk the remaining distance. The villagers were friendly and eagerly provided directions. The language was not an issue as most people spoke Kannada.

It had rained a lot in recent days. The stream flowing across the road was a testimony to that. Else, it is a dry region for most of the year.

Trek

Very soon, we reached the base of the hill. The entrance or the gateway indicated the remains of the fort. As we climbed higher, the views became better and better. The weather was pleasant, and we were in good spirits. It took the edge off from tiredness resulting from the steep path.

We reached the first landmark, a small temple of Hanuman. The path continued further to the middle section of the fort. Here, we found some remains of the structures. Water sources were abundant. Having climbed the steep section, we relaxed a bit, enjoying the scenery.

The last section of the climb was steep, but I brought us to the top of the fort. Apart from dilapidated walls, two temples were the only remaining part of the fort dedicated to Hanuman and Shiva.

We spent a long time exploring the area on the top and relaxing. Our previous trip was in 2009 when we trekked from Ettina Bhuja to Ombattu Gudda. That was long ago, and we had a lot of topics to discuss and catch up on various matters!!

Information and tips

• Udedurgam is about 100 km from Bengaluru. Google Maps accurately navigates to this place.
• It takes about an hour to climb up at a general pace. There are no sections that require rock climbing.
• The nearest place to have food is Hosur.