Chikkamagaluru is a city located in the Chikkamagaluru district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Located in the foothills of the Mullayanagiri range, the city with its favorable climate and coffee estates attracts tourists from around the state.
Chikmagalur or Chikkamagaluru is a district in the state of Karnataka. Coffee was first cultivated in India in Chikmagalur. The mountains in Chikmagalur which are a part of the Western Ghats are the source of rivers like Tunga and Bhadra. Mullayanagiri, which is the highest peak in Karnataka is located in the district. It is also a tourist's paradise containing hill stations like Kemmanagundi and Kudremukh and waterfalls like Manikyadhara, Hebbe, Kallathigiri. Chikmagalur district has a rich history as is seen in the Hoysala temple at Amrithapura. Wildlife enthusiasts would be interested in the Kudremukh National Park and Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary present in this district. Keresanthe Sri Mahalakshmi Temple Keresanthe Kadur (tq) is a religious center for devotes.
Geography and Climate
Chikmagalur is situated in the Malenadu region of Karnataka in the Deccan plateau in the foothills of the Western Ghats. It is situated at an elevation of 1,090 metres (3,580 ft) above mean sea level. The Yagachi River has its source near the town and flows in the south-easterly direction before uniting with the Kaveri river. Chikmagalur generally has a moderate to cool climate. The temperature of the city varies from 11-20 °C during winter to 25-32 °C during summer.
Chikmagalur district attracts many tourists especially from India due its scenic locations and nearby hill stations such as Baba Budan giri, Kudremukha, Mullayanagiri, Kalasa, Koppa, Sringeri, Jayapura and Mudigere.
Tourist spots
Hill stations
An example of the scenery en route to Kemmangundi.
Kemmangundi: 55 kilometres (34 mi) north from Chikmagalur town is Kemmangundi. Lingadahalli is the junction point to go for Kemmangundi, a scenic hill station on the Baba Budan Giri range of hills. Kemmangundi is also known as K.R. Hills after the Wodeyar King, Krishnaraja Wodeyar, who had made it his favourite summer camp. Kemmangundi, at a height of 1,434 meters, is surrounded by thick forests and a salubrious climate throughout the year. It is surrounded by the Baba Budan Giri range and blessed with silver cascades of mountain streams and lush vegetation. Its beautifully laid out ornamental gardens and enchanting mountain and valley views are a treat to the eye. Spectacular sunsets are a must see from various locations in the district, even from the Raj Bhavan. For the adventurous, Kemmangundi offers many peaks to scale and intricate jungle paths to explore. This place has a beautiful rose garden and other attractions. There is a place called Z-point at about 10 minutes walk from this main place which gives a nice aerial view of the Shola grass lands of the Western Ghats.
Kudremukh and Kudremukh National Park: 95 km southwest of Chikmagalur town is Kudremukh range (in Kannada Kudure = horse and mukha = face), so named because of the unique shape of the Kudremukh peak. Overlooking the Arabian Sea, the broad hills are chained to one another with deep valley & steep precipices. Situated at 1,894.3 meters above sea level, Kudremukh is rich in iron ore deposits. The Kudremukh Iron Ore Company conducts mining operations, benefaction and transportation of the ore as slurry through pipelines to the port at Panambur near Mangalore.
Mullayanagiri: Mullayanagiri is part of the Baba Budan Giri Hill Ranges here. It stands 1930 meters tall and is the tallest peak in Karnataka. Its height is famous mostly for watching sunsets from. It is 16 km from Chikmagalur town. Driving to Mullayanagiri is worth taking a risk. On the way is Sitalayanagiri where the water in the Shiva temple neither increases nor decreases. The road to Mullayanagiri is very narrow with a views from steep cliffs. Driving to the peak is not possible and includes a trek up the hill from the halfway point. There is a temple on top of the hill. From the topmost point of the hill the Arabian Sea is visible on clear days. The small hillock in the temple compound is the highest point in Karnataka. The narrow road to the temple makes two way traffic impossible. It is a great trekking spot in Karnataka.
Datta Peeta also known as Baba Budan Giri: To the north of Chikmagalur town is the Baba Budan Giri Range or Chandra Drona Parvatha as it was known in the ancient times, which has one of the highest mountain peaks between the Himalayas and the Nilgiris. The peak takes its name from the Muslim saint, Baba Budan, who resided here more than 150 years ago.
Deviramma Betta and Temple - Deviramma is a popular deity in the region. Many Deiviramma temples are present in the region. The one present on the peak of Deviramma hill close to Baba Budan Giri is popular. Devirammana Betta is one of the three major hills in the range. The Hill is very steep and pointed. Temple is open only on the first day of Diwali festival time. Laks of people trek to this temple [Access point may vary!]. At Bindiga, a new temple of Deviramma is built, which is located at the foothill, 18 km north of Chikmagalur town, easily accessed by car. This temple is nice and location is serene with a background of three majestic peaks of western ghats, viz., Mullayanagiri, Baba Budan giri and Deviramma hills.
Waterfalls and lakes
Hebbe Falls, near Kemmannugundi
Manikyadhara Falls is a waterfall near the famous pilgrim centre Baba Budan Giri Dattatreya Peetha where water spills down like small pearls giving the visitors a memorable shower bath.
Kallathigiri Falls: Just 10 km from Kemmangundi is Kallahathigiri falls. Water cascades down from the top of the Chandra Drona hill from a height of 122 meters amidst fascinating scenery. There is an old Veerabhadra temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, constructed in a gap between rocks. This temple can be approached after crossing the waterfall.
Hebbe Falls: This beautiful waterfall is over 10 km from the famous hill station, Kemmangundi. Here water streams down from a height of 168 meters in two stages to form Dodda Hebbe (Big Falls) and Chikka Hebbe (Small Falls).
Shanti Falls: This is a beautiful waterfall on the way to Z-Point in Kemmangundi.
Hanumana Gundi Falls: Located 32 km (20 mi) from Kalasa and 79 km (49 mi) from Mangalore, it has an elevation of 996 m (3,268 ft). The waterfall has water falling onto Natural rock formations from a height of 72 ft (22 m).
Kadambi Falls: This is a waterfall located in the Kudremukh National Park.
Sirimane Falls: This is a waterfall located about 14 km from Sringeri town.
Hirekolale lake:Near Chikmagalur town.
Ayyenkere lake: Located 20 km from Chikmagalur.
Sagir Ahmed/Dabdabe Falls: This waterfall is located on the way to Bababudangiri.
Sagir Ahmed or Dabdabe falls which is located in Chikmagalur district of Karnataka
Temple towns
Annapoorneshwari Temple, Horanadu.jpg
Sringeri: 90 km west of Chikmagalur town is Sringeri situated on the banks of Tunga, a Vedic Peetha established by Sri Adi Shankara, the exponent of the Advaita philosophy in the 9th century A.D. It is famous for Vidyashankara Temple originally constructed by the Hoysalas and later completed by the founders of the Vijayanagar Empire and Sharada temple, an early 20th. century addition. In the Vidya Shankara shrine, there are 12 zodiac pillars, which are so constructed that the rays of the sun fall on the pillar corresponding to the month.
Horanadu: Horanadu is 100 km southwest of Chikmagalur and has an ancient Annapoorneshwari Temple, which has been renovated recently. With the installation of the new image of Adi Shakti, now the temple is called Adi-Shaktyatmaka Shri Annapoorneshwari. The place attracts lots of pilgrims who are provided free boarding and lodging by the temple.
Kalasa: Kalasa is 92 km southwest of Chikmagalur and situated on the banks of the river Bhadra. It is surrounded by lofty hills of the Western Ghats and is looked upon as one of the pancha-kshetras on the banks of the Bhadra. Close by are the pancha theerthas, the five sacred ponds. On a small hillock here is the Kalaseshwara temple in dedicated to Ishwara, with a Kshetrapala shrine of soap stone in Hoysala style nearby. The Madhawacharya bande, a large boulder at one of the theerthas here, is supposed to have been placed by Shri Madhawacharya the founder of the Dvaita school of philosophy. A statue of this acharya is carved on the upper portion of the rock.
Narasimharajapura: The Simhanagadde Jwalamalini Temple is located at the Simhanagadde town near Narasimharajapura in Chikmagalur district. This is one of the important Jain temples in Karnataka state. The temple houses an attractive black colored idol of Goddess Jwalamalini as the main deity. The history of this idol dates back to the period around 15th and 16th century. The temple has a very spacious hall and a sanctoum sanctorum. This temple attracts huge number of devotees in India as well as foreign countries. The temple was renovated in 1994. Shri Kshetra Simhanagadde is famous for the Atishaya (place of miracles) of Jwalamalini Devi – Yakshini (guardian spirit) of the 8th Tirthankara, Shri Bhagwan Chandraprabhu in Jainism.
Someshwara Temple, Sompur - 10 km east of Lakkavalli dam; 4 km north-west of Rangenahalli. 12th century temple, being renovated; one of the 5 major pilgrimage centres along Bhadra River
Amritapura: 67 km north of Chikmagalur, Amrithapura is known for the Amriteshwara temple built in 1196 A.D by Amriteshwara Dandanayaka, a general of the Hoysala ruler Veera Ballala II. Delicacy of touch, originality of design and fine features have made this temple one of the notable structures of the Hoysala period.
Guru Dattatreya Bababudanswamy Darga: Situated on the Baba Budan Giri is the Inam Dattatreya Peetha venerated by the Hindus and the Muslims alike. A laterite cave here is believed to have been sanctified by the residence of Dattatreya Swami as well as Hazrat Dada Hayat Mir Khalander. The worship here is conducted by a fakir and the annual jatra or urs is attended by both Hindus and Muslims with great fervors.
Kodanda Ramaswamy Temple, Hiremagalur
Belavadi: Located 29 km southeast of Chikmagalur town on the Chikmagalur–Javagal road and 10 km north west of Halebidu, Belavadi is famous for Ornate temple of Veeranarayana. Belavadi is also famous for the temple of 'Udbhava Ganapathi'.
Sri Channakeshava & Sri Siddeshwara Temple, SH57, Marle – [12th century temple; located close to Belavadi road]
Ukkadagathri Ajjayya Swami, Hampapura - 5 km north east of Chikmagalur town
Ayyanakere - vast ancient lake surrounded by hills and few ancient temples in the vicinity
Deviramma Temple, Bindiga - newly built temple; nice location; well maintained; serene
Nirvanaswamy Temple, Mavinahalli
Seethālayanagiri Temple, Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary, Pandaravalli [en route to Mulayangiri]
Sri Markandeshwara Temple, Khandya – 10 km north-east of Balehonnur
Sri Durgaparameshwari Temple, Melpal 12 km from Balehonnur.
vinayaka temple,Ropeline
Sri Mahalakshmi temple Keresanthe. keresanthe kadur tq .58 km far from district headquarter, keresanthe Sri lakkamma temple .
Other points of interest
Rathnagiri Bore, Chikmagalur [garden area in the northern suburban area]
Coffee Museum - located in Dasarahalli, Chikmagalur,
Wildlife
Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary: Occupying 495 km². of Wildlife Sanctuary and Project Tiger Reserve, this region is an important watershed of the Tungabhadra river. The huge reservoir here is the main water supply to several districts in the rain shadow regions of south Karnataka. The forests here are rich in Bamboo and birds species unique to both the Malabar and Sahyadri ranges.
Kudremukh National Park: The Kudremukh National Park (latitudinal range 13°01'00" to 13°29'17" N, longitudinal range 75°00'55' to 75°25'00" E) is the largest declared Wildlife Protected Area (600 km²) of a tropical wet evergreen type of forest in the Western Ghats. The Western Ghats is one of the twenty-five hot spots identified for bio-diversity conservation in the world. Kudremukh National Park comes under the Global Tiger Conservation Priority-I, under the format developed jointly by Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and World Wide Fund-USA.
Transport
Road
Chikmagalur district is known for not well maintained roads. The poor state of the roads has hampered development of this district to some extent; more so because of the absence of even a good rail network in this district. The total length of roads in this district is 7264 km. There are only three National Highways that pass through this district. The National Highway NH-13 (Solapur to Mangalore) passes through the towns of Koppa and Sringeri, the National Highway NH-206 (Bangalore to Honnavar) passes through the towns of Kadur, Birur and Tarikere and NH-173 passes through Mudigere - Kottigehara connecting Mangaluru via charmadi ghat. There is a proposal to upgrade the existing state highways Tarikere-Belur, Sringeri-Hassan to national highway status.
Rail
Chikmagalur, Kadur and Tarikere taluks have railway lines passing through them. The total length of railway line passing through the district is 136 Birur is the main big Junction of Chikmagalur District. A new railway line connecting Chikmagalur to the main Hubli–Bangalore trunk line was newly inaugurated and the commencment of the new line connecting Chikmagalur to the Bangalore–Mangalore trunk line has already been started.
Air
Chikmagalur district has a small airport near Gowdanahalli village about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Chikmagalur town. Its suitable for small charted planes. Airports at Mangalore and Bangalore can be used as an alternative.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chikmagalur_district
