Trip to Harishankar, Orissa


Harishankar is a place of mythological and historical importance situated some 70 kms from Khariar town. Well, I knew this for a long time. But, it wasn’t until a chance phone call from my college friend Debananda that I actually thought of visiting the place.
So, on the morning of 22nd August, 2009, I set out for this place using a myriad of transport means; a Maruti Van, Hero Honda Glamour and finally the “Gyarah No. ki Bus”-my legs. My friend Debananda had an even more hectic journey-90 kms, 4 buses, and 6 hours. All these because of bad roads common in this part of the state.

But, finally when we reached Harishankar, all this pain was simply absorbed by the tranquil surroundings. Nestled at the foot of the famous Gandhamardhana Hills, it houses the temple of Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. The Ramayana mentions that when Lord Rama and his brother Lakshmana were deeply injured in battle, Lord Hanuman, brought the Gandhamardhana hills from the Himalayan range as it was having lot of medicinal plants and herbs.However,he dropped it here on his way back.

We started with a darshan of the temple deities and continued on a small trek up the jungle path. On our way back from the mountain trek, we immersed ourselves at the slippery waterfall. The water was really cool and refreshing.
If one follows the jungle track, it is possible to reach Nrusinghanath on the other side of the mountain. Well, I definitely plan to trek the mountain from Harishankar to Nrusinghanath one day. But, that is for another day.

How to reach there?
Its about 70 kms from Bolangir Town which is 330 kms from Bhubaneswar.
Its about 70 kms from Khariar Town which is 180 kms from Raipur.

Nature shots

These Photos were taken near Muniguda,Orissa,India on the Raipur-Vizag train line.

The rainy season can create a real change of scene with cloud covered mountains, mist covered valleys and a sky covered with amazing patterns of clouds.

Srisailam Trip

The mountain criss-crossed with roads The small waterfalls
The river Krishna

The Harpin bend in the Ghats

The road snaking through the jungle

At the entrance to the Temple town

Trip to Srisailam :-
Srisailam-one of the 12 Jyotirlings of the country finally beckoned me, after spending some 1.5 years in Hyderabad.The wise say you don’t visit a holy place unless God calls you there. I have no idea on this, but I was there.

On 8th March,2009, me and my cousin set out on my beast (Pulsar 220) at 2.30 PM.The odd time was due to my brother having to attend office and then join me.Negotiating the city ie Charminar and Chandrayaanguta itself took 45 minutes and we were finally on the Srisailam road.The entire 225 km stretch is a decent piece of tarmac but peppered with pot holes here and there.One can maintain healthy 70-90 Km/Hr speeds.After some 120 odd kms, and 4 turns from the main highway, we finally hit the Ghats( The Nallamalai Hills).From then onwards ,it was all scenic beauty and a pleasant drive through the jungle road.The hairpin bends, the blind turns and the dense foliage on both sides will simply blow you away.One word of caution though; turn on your headlights and keep honking at each turn.

We finally reached the temple town at 7.30 PM after crossing the magnificient dam over river Krishna.Checked into a hotel, freshened up and finally had a darshan of the presiding deities(Lord Mallikarjuna Swami and Goddess Bhramaramba Devi). The unique feature of this kshetram is the combination of Jyothirlingam and Mahasakthi in one campus, which is very rare and only one of its kind.Had a good night’s sleep.

We started on our way back at 11 AM.Thats when trouble started.The ghat roads were even more beautiful in the daytime.So, carried away by the sheer driving pleasure we were getting, we missed a crucial turn and drove all of 45 kms extra.Asked the locals and they told us we were on our way to Nagarjunasagar, but, forgot to tell us the distance ahead.
So, finally after 140 kms and 3 hours of detour, we were back at Srisailam dam.Had lunch at a road side dhaba and were on our way back.But, the deadly sun took a toll of our bodies.Finally, reached Hyderabad at 7 PM.The entire trip took 590 kms including 360 kms and 8 hours of continuous driving on day 2.

Nighoj near Ahmednagar

Trip To Nighoj Near Ahmednagar:

On 13th November, 2007,me and my friend Sahaji set out on my bike to Nighoj.Well, looks like 13th was my lucky day.The previous day,we saw this amazing formations of rocks in a Marathi news paper clipping.So, we decided to see it for ourselves.

So, we started from Ahmednagar on my Hero Honda Ambition on the State Highway number 27 towards Pune.After crossing Supe village and 5 kms before Sirur town,we took a right turn towards Parmer village.After crossing Parmer ,we reached a sleepy village called Malganga.From there, after following some dirt trails, we reached this place called Nighoj.

There, we saw a majestic sight.The river Ghod, over the centuries, has created some beautiful formations on the rocks. There are lot of small caves which has been formed in the rocks.In short; a nice place to spend some quiet time.Summer is the right time to visit this place as you can see the potholes quite clearly.There is also a temple of Goddess Malaganga on the river bank.

After some 2 hours of sightseeing, we had our lunch and ganne ka juice at the road side dhaba.Then,we were on our way back to Ahmednagar.

Vizag Trip

View of Vizag from the ropeway

View from Kailasgiri

R. K Beach

Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati atop Kailasgiri

Tide waves at R.K. Beach

The Vizag Trip:

On the night of 16th November,2008,I boarded the NZB-VSK express from Secundrabad.Slept nicely on my 3rd AC berth after some general chatting with co-passengers.After finishing my morning ablutions,enquired about ‘places to visit’ from my co-passengers.Finally armed with lot of information, got down at the station and deposited my luggage at the cloak room.I had 5 hours to go before my next train.So, I decided, I might as well see something of the place.
Took the city bus and got down at the Famous Ramakrishna Beach (R.K Beach for the commoners).One can also take the autos.However, bargaining is mandatory if you want to get a decent deal.
R.K is a decent stretch of sand along the marine drive of Vizag.It is flanked by the dockyard and the Kailasgiri on either sides.You have a lighthouse,a submarine museum and various marine articles on the stretch.A personal vehicle will be a great idea to have a detailed view.
Owing to paucity of time, took some hurried photographs of the place and jumped onto a shared auto to Kailasgiri.
There are three ways to kailasgiri from the base point:the ropeway,the steps and the roads.I took the faster ropeway.Kailasgiri situated on a hill top offers a bird’s eye view of the city.It has two big idols of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, besides having numerous parks,eating joints,vantage viewing points and hold your breath, a Rail ride.

As soon as I reached the top,it started raining heavily.Suddenly, the entire area was covered with mist.It dashed my hopes of seeing any spectacular view of the city.But, I did manage to capture some mist covered views.Then I took the ropeway ride to the base point.Dashed to the station on an auto, in time to catch my next train.
I hope to back in Vizag sometime next year on my Pulsar 220 to have a detailed stay.

Tourist places -Orissa -Nuapada District

check out the bright sun and the tiny moon .Photo taken at 12 noon

Cloud action at Mahulkot Village near Khariar town

The picture above is of Kotamal village near Khariar in Nuapada District.

The focus here is tourist places in Nuapara and Kalahandi District.

Nearest Airport-Raipur.

Nearest Rail Head-Kantabanji.

A/C rooms available at Khariar or Kantabanji.(These places are 180 kms from Raipur)

Naldurg Fort ,Near Sholapur in Maharastra

Bird's eye view of the dam and fort from Upli Buruj










Two canons atop Upli Buruj-the highest point at Naldurg fort.

The river Boru forming a lake inside the fort.

Trip to Naldurg:

No trips for the last 3 months had made me feel suffocated in the city of the Nawabs.So, on the night of 24th October ,2008,I decided to go to Naldurg the following morning.Having decided so, I went to the nearest petrol bunk and filled my stead-Pulsar 220 to the brim.I also checked out the route on google maps.It was fairly simple ;follow the Hyderabad –Mumbai NH9 .It passes through BHEL nagar-Patancheru-Sangareddi-Zahirabad-Homnabad-Umarga and finally Naldurg.

Got up early in the moring, at 4.45 AM to be precise.Strangely, I had never got up this early during my engineering days.Sheer will power I believe.

By 6.00 AM, I was there at Cyber Towers, the meeting point of my riding group-The Highway Nawabs.But,I found no one there.Maybe some miscommunication.

Not to let this one deter me, I decided to ride alone.My 220 started devouring the highway mile by mile.Armed with only a thin jacket,it was difficult to battle the sudden morning chill.The oncoming cold wind blast at 135 Km/Hr made life even worse.But, the adrenalin rush due to the high speed kept telling the mind to keep going.Finally, after 1.5 hrs and 100 odd kms, I decided to have break at a roadside dhaba.The hot Puris and alu sabzi did wonders to the battered body and my mind.

After a 0.5 hr break, I decided to move on. Now, the weather had thawed a bit and it was much more fun driving.I reached Naldurg at 10.30 Am after a brief petrol filling session at Umerga-4.5 hrs,260 Km.

Naldurg,said to be the biggest fort in Maharashtra, was built by King Nala in AD 1300 .The walls of the fort are visible from quite a distance on the highway.The river Boru forms a lake inside the fort because of the walls of the fort on 3 sides.One of the fort’s wall acts as a dam from which the 2 water channels Nar and Madi flow.They look like a waterfall when viewed from the other end.The dam and the Pani Mahal was constructed by King Ibrahim Adil Shah II in AD 1613.

After few photo sessions and a lunch at Umerga, I was on my way back.Midway, I found my group members having a break by the roadside. I Joined them and finally reached Hyderabad by 6.00 pm. Total distance 520 kms in a single day