Madhugiri Fort ... A Deceptive yet pleasant Climb

After about two months after the jumbo Trek in Sahyadri's , I was eager to trek somewhere and decided to explore Madhugiri Fort , a trek organised by BAT (Bangalore Adventures group).                               

Madhugiri is a small town about 120 kms from Bangalore & about 44 km from Tumkur. & here this Madhugiri Fort (Kote) is situated.  This fort i.e. Madhugiri Hill or Madhugiri Betta is 2nd largest monolithic in Asia with a height of 3930 ft  ( Largest being the  Savandurga (4022ft)) and provides for a very good adventurous climb to the top.  It is said  to be build around 1678 during the reign of Raja Hera Gowda (as per google :-) ) , but is in a very  dilapidated state today due to negligence.

We were arond 14 people , gathered early morning near Majestic & started towards Madhugiri around 6AM , in three cars , via NH-4 Tumkur route.  As usual it happens in trekking, we all strangers started to get to know each as we started to chit-chat.  

Around 8, we stopped for breakfaat  at hotel 'Brindavan' on the highway & also had introduction round.  Lunch was packed here itself, as its difficult to any other decent hotel till Madhugiri. While having breakfast, one of the trek mate , Shashank shared his inspiring story of weight loss , through disciplined diet/routine. :-)

One need to take right turn after reaching  'Dobaspet',  to head towards Madhugiri via Korategere. (Alternatively you can go till Tumkur & then take right to drive to Madhugiri). We reached Madhugiri around 10 , the fort entrance is near to bus stand only. 

        

    

As we had 1st glance of the fort, it looked magnificent & beautiful , which added to our excitement of climb.  

There are many ruins of old structures/warehouses , entrances etc..which you can see till top.  The defensive wall which surrounds the fort ,is still in quite good condition.   

As you climb up, you will pass through multiple Entrances in regular intervals. Enjoying beautiful surroundings of Madhugiri town & nearby hills , we crossed few entrances.  

 

After that, climb become little bit steep & can be difficult for beginners in trekking.   There are iron railings at some places for support , but otherwise you need to rely on your own balancing & climbing skills :-)

It is so deceptive that, when you see next entrance from below , you will feel that is the top, but as you reach there, you realize there is still more to trek..  Thankfully sun was not much harsh, & there was wind to energize us. May be after crossing about 10+ entrances , finally we reached the top. 

 

There are remains of ancient temple & few water/grain storage structures... still pleasant to see & it was more than other hills nearby Bangalore , where you will hardly find only couple of small temples or nothing at top.  As it was already about 1pm , everyone was super hungry & so immediately had lunch. Again Shashank entertained us with his singing skills & then we started to climb down around 1:30.  Descend was relatively easy , still need to take care ; as at many places its exposing to steep fall. 

        

As we neared towards the base & thought that trek is over,  our leader Srinivas told us about the climax part of trek , & it was to explore one underground warehouse.  It is well hidden under bushes & had very small space to enter , it was small that you need to literally lie down & get yourself pushed into. But once you enter , you will be amazed to see the huge hall of approx  60X20 feets , having huge rock pillars. Looked like it was used for storing purposes.  After spending some time there, we came out of that mysterious underground hall & reached base around 3:30. 

As we had completely consumed all water we had carried, got our thirst satiated & freshened up in nearby eatery shop & also settled the expenses etc.. & then drove back to Bangalore...

Below are some of unique observations I could make about Madhugiri , compared to other hills around Bangalore..

- Though fort remains neglected, you have plenty of old structures to admire , instead of boring plain climb on rocky mountain.

- Though it is very near to town & it was weekend , still it was not crowded as such.

- There are No vendors along the way & top , of food/water... so no monkey menace.

Overall I would say ,  it is must visit historical & adventurous getaway , on weekend.

               

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