Beeravara Betta is a hillock that is situated about 45 Kms from Bangalore and is an ideal picnic spot and a great place to relax and to become one with Mother Nature.
Beeravara is the place where you have to whisper so that you are not too loud for others’ ears. It is a very quiet place and hope it remains so.
Driving directions:
* Get onto the old Madras Road to NH7. After a 23-km-drive you will reach Nelamangala. Signal (no need to go inside Nelamangala).
* Turn left here on the Mangalore/ Hassan road. There is a big sign board and Karnataka tourism board here. This is also the road for Belur/ Shravanabelagola.
* Continue on this road for about 15 kms. You will see many villages on either sides. After you spot a small hill with a smaller temple on top, keep looking onto your left for a small temple of Bisilumaramma.
* Enquire here and take left. (I read from a blog that there used to be fairly large signboard to the left which reads ‘Beeravara - 1 km’ This is no longer there as the Mangalore road is being widened)
* Go inside for a few metres until you see a small rock pillar installed on a platform to the left and a small temple on the right. There is a rough path leading to the left till the base of the hill.
At the top of the hill is a small temple dedicated to Lord Lakshmi Ranganatha. You can spot children playing at the foot of the hills. You can reach the top via a steep flight of steps. When we went, construction activities were ongoing and we had to climb via the edges which became more difficult as the height increased. So, we abandoned the idea and returned, after a few pictures though.
We searched for alternate routes to the top though the construction workers said that there weren’t any. We took a tour around the base of the hillock and found a track going behind the hill into an open area resembling forest. We could see goats and cows grazing. We turned around and tried rappelling without any proper gear though. Ram and Satish slid down and it was fun clicking them doing this. One of the masons took interest in us and came down the hill and climbed up the hill barefoot, using his hands for the support. When we tried, we weren’t even a single step ahead. After a few more attempts, the idea of climbing the hill was dropped. We started exploring the arena for an equally interesting place. A few metres behind the hill was a jack tree which was almost picture perfect and had the coolest breeze in its shade. This vast area and the breeze instantly relaxed us.
There were a few boulders nearby and we went up a big rock which had an amazing shade at the top thanks to the trees on top. The top portion was flat and the view from here was awesome, if not more. You get to see lush green in all directions and could hear the traffic noise from the highway. The NH should be a few hundred metres away from this boulder. Though Satish complained that this noise disturbed him a bit, I was happy that we were closer to humanity and not lost in a jungle.
There was nothing much to do there, but nothing more was needed also. We sat down and started talking as we hadn’t packed any games with us. Three of us were there and each had the same experience of peace and serenity on top of this place. We regained our childhood watching a cow walking along with a crane. Whenever the cow got ahead of the crane, she would fly to catch up with the cow. They looked like friends on the way to their school. Soon an old woman came and tied the cow to the nearby bush. The crane went around her and was providing companionship to the cow and entertainment to us.Now and then, there were one or two dogs that would come to the foot-hill and stare at us. Thankfully, they never barked or did not venture up and left us to ourselves.
At lunchtime, we went around looking for a place to spread the picnic basket. We drove into the village and could see the small houses and school. There were boulders, grave tombs spread out everywhere. After a 15 minute search, we decided to return to our campJ This time when we carried the bags of food, plate, water and bedsheet, the workers looked at us with a big question mark on their face. It was a simple lunch, but tasted great thanks to the surroundings and our internal peace. We rested our backs for a while and were yapping. Those were meaningless talks but I could feel the calmness in each of us. When an old woman interrupted us for some water, we were only happy to see another human being there. She had come with her goats that were busy grazing and soon we could hear her speaking to another woman at the foot of the hill. These discussions went on for 2 hours or more amidst the chirping of birds, bleating of goats and cows in addition the whistling winds.
There was no trekking, adventure or rock climbing. Still, we were satisfied with our picnic spot.
Believe me that becoming one with nature is not very difficult here. Rest here for a while and forget any worry and erase every tension out of your mind.
It might not be a very good idea to come here in summer.
This is what I had read about the hill temple, by SRINIDHI RAGHAVENDRA L V:
“After a little distance, the stairs pass through a cave-like passageway for about 20 feet before reaching the top. It is a marvellous creation of Nature, the path giving way to a cave passage with sunlight streaming into it from the other end. The top of the hill is a small squarish plateau about 50 sq ft in area.
The temple is a small stone structure with beautiful Hoysala style square pillars. You can see a pair of large footprints, believed to be of Lord Hanuman, right in front. Inside, is a strikingly beautiful image of Lakshmi Rangantha Swamy made of shiny black granite carved on a pillar, which is about five ft tall. A pair of glittering brass eyes with stones encased appear as though the lord is staring outside. The other parts of the face are also well defined and adorned with brass ornaments.
Worship is performed only on Saturdays and special days.
The annual jatre or the fair is held on Rathasapthami day here. “
(copying the info as the DeccanHerald page link doesn’t open)
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