Vinayak Hegde

It has been a string of long weekends (I could get used to this ). On a whim my friends and I decided to go to Karwar on the Northern part of the Karnataka coast. It was organized by the Bangalore Mountaineering Club. We left on Friday night via Tumkur to Jog Falls. The road to Jog Falls was not good and we could not get much sleep on the overnight journey. Finally on Saturday morning we reached the Jog Falls. I was disappointed to see that there was not much water in the river (due to less rain in the region and a dam upstream) and the waterfall was almost dry. They now have stairs which go to the bottom of the waterfall (about 1600 odd steps). We did walk down to the base of the waterfall, but it was hot and humid all the way down with the sun beating down on us all the time.

We then left for Karwar and checked into a hotel near the beach. In the evening we went to the beach but it started to rain. But after the sunset, the rain subsided and we did get some good photos. On the way back we had a whole array of delicious seafood (oysters, mussels, prawns and crab amongst others) at Amruth Restaurant. The food was fantastic and very cheap as compared to Bangalore or other coastal cities.

The next day we tried out various kinds of aquasports such as canoeing, rafting, coracling and kayaking. I saw some islands from the shore and started kayaking towards them. The water was fairly calm and I was enjoying the kayaking and negotiating the waves fairly easily (they get higher as you go more into the sea) but the people from whom we had rented the boats were not confident that I could come back as people do not venture so far into the sea usually. So they sent the boat to look for me and I had to return on the launch. I almost managed to reach the island (just 200m away from the island’s coast). The island itself was about 7 kms off the beach shore. Later when I turned back, I realized that I had ventured so far into the sea as I could not see the coast but could see a few fishing boats. It was about mid-afternoon and we just spent rest of our afternoon floating in the sea with our lifejackets on. It was time well spent.

Later after going to the hotel in the evening, we went to the far side of the beach as the sea had become rough and it was tougher to do the banana boat ride in the sea. While awaiting for the our turn for the banana ride, I got to take some photos of fishermen returning with their daily catch. We found that there were some exotic fish they had caught such as the the Kopra (the large fish with the mouth wide open) and the sting rays.

I tried to take pictures of the Banana ride while sitting on bow of the launch pulling the inflated banana boat but it was extremely difficult as the waves were hitting the fast launch and causing it to jump in the air. Also there was a danger of the camera getting wet due to the splashing water. Nevertheless I did get a few photos but not as good as expected. The Banana ride was eventful as we kept falling in the sea ensuring good laughs for the bystanders . Later in the evening we went to the Amruth restaurant again to hog on seafood, this time with a larger crowd before catching the bus back to Bangalore. Karwar is a good 2 day trip from Bangalore if you like a good beach and great seafood. I felt it was much better and cheaper than the over-hyped and crowded Goa coast just a few kilometers up north from Karwar.

I and a bunch of friends decided to go on a day trip to Lepakshi at the last minute. Lepakshi is a temple town, north of Bangalore just across the border in Andhra Pradesh at a distance of about 120 kms. You can reach it by going via Doddaballapur – Gauribidanur – Hindupur route or take the NH7 towards Anantapur and then take the internal road from the Kodikonda checkpost at the Andhra border. We took the latter route. We left early at about 7.30am and stopped at Kamat’s Hotel on the way for breakfast. All along the way as we approached Chikkaballapur we saw vineyards growing grapes.

The diversion from the Kodikonda checkpost (on the left if you are coming from Bangalore) towards Lepaksi is unmarked and so hard to find. The road is narrow and just better than a dust road. Lepaski is about 10 kms down this road. Most people are familiar with the word ‘Lepakshi’ as it is the name of the handicrafts division of Andhra Pradesh Government. For example you can find Lepakshi Handicrafts stores allover Hyderabad and other major cities of Andhra Pradesh.

The Virabhadraswamy Temple complex in Lepaksi with it’s principal shrine dedicated to Shiva is of the Vijaynagar times and style. It’s contruction in 1538 AD is attributed to Virupanna – A noble man and merchant prince of the times. The Natyamandapa (Dancehall) supported on 70 pillars is the centre of attraction – the central group having life size forms of dancing shiva, brahma, nandi, tumbhara, rambha and other gods and other celestial playing on the drum, veena and other instruments in accompaniment. The Virabhadraswamy temple ceiling is covered is with murals which depict various scenes from the scriptures. I have made a composite from 8 images of a mural which can be seen here. A little farther down the road from the temple you can see a large Nandi Bull carved from a single monolithic rock. You can see the complete photoset on Flickr.

Jodhpur is a trading town right in the heart of Rajasthan. The famous Mehrangarh fort stands on a hill rising majestically and towering over the city. The other places worth seeing in the city are Jaswant Thada – The cenotaph of Maharaja Jaswant Singh II and Umaid Bhawan Palace – which has been converted now into a luxury hotel.

This photo is of a kid who was dancing and singing near the gates of the Mehrangarh fort. It was hot and dry in the afternoon when I took this photo and the kid did not want to dance. His mom pushed him to dance though, which made him angry. I managed to capture his candid mood in this photograph. More technical details about the photo at my photoblog (click on Image Info).

Continuing my Ladakh Photograph series with another photo. This photo was taken along the south-western bank of the Pangong Tso (pronounced with a silent T – Tso means Lake in Ladakhi). Part of the lake lies in China (Aksai Chin). You will need a inner-line permit (easily obtainable with the help of a local travel agent) to visit. If you are on a budget or are constrained by time you will have to choose between visiting one of the two major lakes in Ladakh – Pangong Tso and Tso moriri. Camping on the shores of Pangong Tso by night is an amazing experience because of the extremely clear skies.

To take this photo I put it my camera very close to the waters of the Pangong Tso to get a better wideangle shot. I have used this extremely well for shooting water-bodies. More technical details about the photo at my photoblog (click on Image Info).

The view from the top of Namgyal Palace which towers over the small town of Leh in Ladakh. Leh is very small but very welcoming place. The city market is just two streets wide with several old charming shops on either side with several antiques shops. The climb to the top of hill on which Namgyal Palace sits, is steep and tiring but the views are rewarding. One of the striking things you will soon notice about of the ladakhi landscapes are the contrasts in the landscapes around you. This photo shows that well.