Trip to South-West Karnataka

A Trip to Mangalore
Bounded by the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, Mangalore is in the southwestern part of Karnataka. So here is how a trip to Mangalore can be made interesting. A trip to Mangalore is sure to have a good trekking expedition. So plan for that as well.

Kukke Subramanya Temple: You can start of you journey to Mangalore or South-West Karnataka by going to “Subramanya”, know for the famous “Kukke Subramanya Temple” (Snake god). The train stops at Subramanya junction and you will find good number of jeeps/ buses that will take you to Subramanya junction. Don’t try to stay within the village as it’s very difficult to get good food out there. Hotels near Subramanya temple are excellent. You can take a quick bath either in the river or hotels near the temple. It’s a beautiful temple and the place is filled with religious air. For the adventurous folks out there, there is a beautiful trekking spot in Subramanya called – “ Kumara Parvatha”.
Kumara Parvatha Trekking: You can ask for Kumara Parvatha near the temple. A small way just before the temple leads to a road which in turn leads to the starting point of the exciting trek. Its important to carry sufficient water, lemon, fruits, biscuits, bread etc for the trek. The plan has to be to reach the top before sunset, stay there the whole night, watch sun rise and then come back. Plan for food, tent and water accordingly.
The first stage of the trek goes through forest and the path is very steep. You tend to get tired pretty quickly because of the luggage that you might be carrying. Slowing the forests opens into grass covered lands and you will soon be walking between 2 hills (crossing from one to the other).

After 3 hours or so you will reach a spot called “Battara Mane”. This is a small farm land managed and run by Narayana Bhat and family. This is the stopover point for the trek and is also used for the night stay usually during the return journey as the trek can not be completed in a single day due to its toughness and distance. The Bhatt family provide trekkers with night shelter, water and plain vegetarian meal on request at a nominal price. Trekkers need to use their own sleeping bags though. PH No:+91-9448647947
From bhattara mane the path is little flatter for about 1-1.5 km and consists of going over small hills. stage for the trekkers need to register with a forest office check post.There are two observations platforms between the bhattara mane and the mantapa.The ascent from here is gradual and the mountain face is covered with thick green grass. This stage culminates near the top of the mountain which is covered with thick forest.
So if you start at around 10 AM in the morning, you can reach Battara Mane by 1:30 or 2:00 PM. You can have lunch there, take rest for sometime and then start your trip to the top. You can have all the fun at the top and enjoy the evening there at the top.
Mangalore: Once you are back from trekking, you can refresh yourself and take a bus or cab to Mangalore. There are good numbers of hotels in Mangalore. It will take 3 hours to reach Mangalore and once you have settled down in a hotel room in Mangalore, you can relax by going around to nearby temples, churches. There is a beautiful beach in Mangalore called – Pannambur Beach.
The scenary is excellent and you can also have a ride into the sea in the fishermen’s boat. Believe me it’s amazing and safe (you will be wearing life jacket). The food is excellent is Mangalore. Apart from all this there is Pilikulla Nisarga Dhama, which consists of water theme park, zoo and river side boating. You can try to explore this area as well. The most interesting place to visit in Mangalore is “Pabbas Ice Cream Parlour”. There are lots of varieties of ice creams and believe me they are far better and cheaper than corner shop or Baskin Robbins. The best ice cream parlourI have had so far (though this might be close to a ice cream parlour in Payyannur).
With 2 days of relaxation in Mangalore, you can give a visit to nearby Udipi.
Udupi: You can easily find a good place to stay near Udupi bus stand. The food is excellent here. Don’t miss to have the masala dosas of Udupi. You can take on a bus to St.Mary’s island from Udupi bus stand. The island is beautiful and a must visit place. The tickets are cheap and the boat ride is also beautiful. You will also find Malpe beach nearby. After the ride to St.Mary’s island, you can relax at Malpe beach & trying some water sports.
There are many more beautiful beaches and trekking spots in the Western Ghats which you can try out if you have a long vacation. But these are the must see spots if you are planning for a 4- 5 day vacation.
Enjoy!!!