More than just the selfie point , Trek amidst nature !! Monkeys !! Panoramic views !!
The first thing that pops up when you search "Avalabetta" is the famous selfie point , but there is more to this trek than the selfie point... Read on to know more !!
The Drive:
A beautiful drive of about 2 hours from Bangalore amidst hills. The route is pretty much the same as to GudiBande. Most of the drive is on Devanahalli Highway , just a few kms drive through the village. Drive through Devanahalli Highway is always enjoyable with wide lanes and driving amidst hills and as you enter the village from NH44 , the roads had an avenue of trees on either side , creating a magical canopy over the road with the sunlight streaming in between the trees ! Marigold fields ! herds of sheep !
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The Trek:
With a lot of crowd headed towards Nandi Hills , Avalabetta is a good option for nature lovers and also for those who wish to have a quite trek.
On arriving at the foothill , there was ample of parking space available , unlike mentioned in many reviews , we did not face any trouble with parking here.
One can trek on the long route by taking the concrete road or the short route taking the stairs paved with beautiful stones all along. The trek is about 2 kms uphill. People usually state Avalabetta is overrated destination , this is because we expect something at the peak and get disappointed but Avalabetta is all about enjoying your trek and be one with nature !! When you set this expectation right you are sure to enjoy this experience :)
We have done a couple of treks on hills nearby to Bangalore but the one we felt very close to nature was here , its more like you are walking through a Jungle. We made friends with a small boy who sells butter milk , he mentioned he had seen bears and tigers in the jungle , We are not very sure whether to believe it or not but it did give a beautiful experience of walking in a Jungle , enjoying the breeze , sound of leafs rustling , birds chirping and fresh air which is not intoxicated as in the city !!!
The Army of Monkeys:
Yeah , this place is infested with Monkeys !!! as we waited on the side of the road almost an army of 50 monkeys walked in an orderly fashion towards the peak !!! They seem to be very observant and attack only if you have something edible in your hands but apart from that if you dont bother them , they seem to be busy with their own business.
The Selfie Point ???
On reaching what looked like the end of the trial we saw a temple of "Lord Lakshmi Narasimha" and the priests house next to the temple.
The deity is considered to be very sacred and auspicious , the whole trek felt a bit deserted with only a bunch of youngsters but to our surprise the temple was crowded with villagers who had come from the nearby villages to make offerings to the deity.
On taking a right from the temple , the trek leads to the famous selfie point , on reaching here we realized it was locked up for good with grills and a security guard. We understood the rock was falling apart and was not anymore safe for people to climb up there , fun is good but not at the cost of ones life. Anyways the panoramic view from up here is really enjoyable.
On taking a left from the temple , a small hike lead to another temple of "Goddess Lakshmi" which was also crowded with the villagers from the nearby villages. As we sat outside , my sister tried to open a pack of cakes when the monkeys tried to attack and snatch the food !! yeah beware of the notorious monkeys.
The walk down the trial was relatively easy as always !! the kid we had made friends with was requesting us to buy some custard apples from him and his mother , every time we go on treks we tend to buy fresh produce from the local villagers or the farmers so we did buy some really good fruits from him :)
The Pitstop:
There seemed to be a waterfall nearby to Avalabetta but on inquiry with the forest official,
we got to know there was very little water :( better luck next time with that , so we decided
to drive back home.
Stopped at"Godavari delights" for a sumptuous Andhra meal , it had become a regular pit stop for us when we drive on this route. We stop here for lunch and also buy some artifacts from the handicrafts store next to the restaurant.
It was an eventful day , tiring yet a beautiful trek :) It was great trek except for one thing that people are being inconsiderate and throwing around so much plastic ruining the place !!
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