Sringeri-Horanadu trip

15th -17th October 2010
Tripmeter reading: 863Km

Amma had been wanting to visit Sringeri again, and more specifically the Vageeshwari temple there for some time. The Dasara holiday was an opportune moment, and we planned for a trip.

We booked ourselves in advance in the Hotel Advaith Lancer, a wise move considering the rush due to the holiday. The Advaith lancer is the only hotel in Sringeri, and the only other place to stay are the rooms at the Sringeri Mutt and some lodges.

The plan was to depart as early as possible on 15th , in order to avoid the rush hour and reach early, and wonder of wonders, we managed to leave by 7.30 A.M. The early start came to naught however, as there was a mega traffic jam near the Yeshwanthpur, and we were stuck there till 9.30 AM, managing to reach Nelamangala only by 10.15, after a quick breakfast at the New Agarwal Bhavan. We debated on the route , eventually opting for Tumkur-Tiptur-Araskiere-Chikamagalur , as opposed to Hassan-Chikmagalur. This was not a wise choice as we later realized, as this road is not well maintained.

We finally reached Chikamagalur at 3PM, and went straight to Mayura for a quick lunch. The Mayura seems to be the only decent vegetarian hotel in Chikamagalur, and has a South Indian Thali, which we duly partook of.

The route from Chikamagalur (Chikamagalur-Aldur-Balehonnur-Jayapura-Sringeri), while quite bumpy in patches,is extremely scenic, and we managed to reach our destination by 6.30 PM. The Hotel is just outside town and is located on the banks of the Tunga, and our room overlooked the river, providing one of the most beautiful vistas we had ever seen from any hotel room.

After a quick wash, we left for the mutt. There were not too many devotees, and Sonu enjoyed herself running around in the vast open spaces around the Shardamba temple.

The temple premises were lit for the occasion of Dasara, and we were treated to the mellifluous sax of Kadri Gopal performing live in the mutt premises. We then had the famous Sringeri mutt prasadam (dinner), with Kadri as a fellow diner. I am amazed at the logistics of it all, with thousands of devotees fed every afternoon and night every day. Paradoxically, this mutt is every socialists and communists dream, as there is not one single hungry person in Sringeri.

The next morning, we came to the temple early to beat the rush again, and were fortunate enough to have a very peaceful darshan. We were also lucky to be able to see the current Jagadguru of the mutt visiting the many temples in the mutt premises for pooje as part of the Dasara festivities. ETV was covering the event live, and I guess some devotees viewing the proceedings from the comfort of their homes would have chanced to see us live on TV!

A quick breakfast at the hotel Guruprasad followed. This is a simple restaurant that lies just outside the mutt entrance and offers basic south Indian stuff.

We then moved to Horanadu , the site of the Annapoorneshwari temple. The drive from Sringeri to Horanadu is one of the most scenic stretches I have ever driven on. The road winds through magnificient coffee , areca and tea (yes tea in chikamagalur district!)estates, and is dotted with many waterfalls on the way.

We were in Horanadu by 1.30, and after quick darshan, duly had the prasadam (lunch). The unique feature of this temple is that the focus is on feeding each and every devotee, to the extent that the food is given more of a priority than darshan of the diety ( this being the Annapoorneshwari-Hindu Goddess of nourishment after all!) . The food was quite elaborate, with a dessert of Payasa as well!

On the way back, we took a detour to Hariharapura. This place also has an old and venerated Sri Mutt dedicated to Sharada. The mutt is very quaint and is on the banks of the Tunga.

We were up early on 17th morning and proceeded straight to Kigga, some 10KM from Sringeri. This place was the abode of the rishi Rishyasringa , mentioned in both the Ramayana and Mahabharata. The area was called Sringagiri, which was modified over time to the present Sringeri.

There is a very interesting story associated with the temple and the Rishi, and the temple priest duly narrated to us. The temple is very beautiful and is a must visit for anyone visiting Sringeri.

We then proceeded to the Sirimane falls , 5 KM away from Kigga.

This is a small but very beautiful falls, with a motorable road almost right to the base of the falls. Never one to miss an opportunity, yours truly immediately jumped for a dip in the falls, a very enjoyable experience.


We were back in Sringeri at 10AM and after a quick brekkie at Hotel Guruprasad, were back in the mutt for one last darshan. This being the final day of Dasara and a sunday there was a huge crowd of devotees inside(almost 30 times the previous day).

A quick last darshan at the Vageeshewari temple , and we were back at the hotel for some rest before leaving back towards Bangalore.

The return trip was quite uneventful, with a couple of highlights. The Masala Dosa at Hotel mayura, where we stopped for a late luch was out of this world, and can hold its own against any famous joint in Bangalore. The other highlight was the NICE road connectivity to our part of town. Scarred by the traffic jam, we decided to take the NICE road from Tumkur road. There is now an exit right in Hoskerehalli near PESIT, and we were ale to do the 35 KM from Tumkur Road to Hoskerehalli in under 20 minutes.

Pawan S Rao