This is the beautiful temple of Champakadama Swamy, which is situated just before the Bannerghatta National Park, on the outskirts of Bangalore.

Located just 30 kilometers from Bangalore,  the path to the Champakadama Swamy Temple is easy to find, When you come to the Bannerghatta Circle (this is where you either take a left and head towards Anekal or drive right to Bannerghatta ), take the road to the national park.Just before you reach the national park, take the road to the right which is a winding tarred patch. It will lead you to the Champakadama Swamy Temple. A series of steps cut on boulders will lead you upto the temple. The history of the temple dates back to 12th century. Inscriptions found here point to the fact that the structure was built in 1257 AD. You can an inscription to this effect as soon as you enter the temple.This temple is called Champakadama Swamy as it was the practice to give the deity Champaka or Sampige flowers regularly. There is an idol of Goddess Lakshmi in the same temple.After having yummy rice and sambar as prasadam for lunch , I headed towards Narasimha swamy temple.

The temple is constructed in Dravidian style and it is believed to have been constructed during the Hoysala period. The temple welcomes you with a beautiful but huge Gopura.The temple has beautiful images of Vishnu with his two consorts Sri devi and Bhoo devi. Just behind the temple is the Lakshminarasimha or Narasimha Temple.

It is located on a hill which is called Vahnigiri. The view from the top of this hill is something to be experienced.  The path to the top of the hill is a zig zag and there are steel railings which can be used for support. The temple closes by 12 p.m., during  Dhanurmasa. 

Two kilometers from here is the famous Suvarnamukhi pond or Kalyani. The water in this Kalyani is believed to have curative powers. Locals will tell you that a dip here will cure you of  several diseases.

This is the place where  Emperor Janamejaya took bathe and prayed after which he was released from sarpa dosha or the curse of the snake. He also got a golden body after he had bathed in this pod. Hence, it is called Suvarnamukhi. He then consecrated the idol of  Champakadhama Swamy.

The Pushkarini, Kalyani or pond is emptied once an year so that the rock at the bottom, which is engraved with the image of  Anjaneya, maybe worshipped. After worship, water is once again let into the pond.

You can start your trek to the overhanging hill either from the Champakadhama Swamy Temple or from Kalkare, a small village. The path will lead you to Suvarnamukhi Hill.

There is also a stream called Suvarna Mukhi which flows from the range of hills inside BannerghattaNational Park. One has to trek inside after reaching the park and this requires special permission from the Forest Department.

The entire area is surrounded by thick forests and it affords a once in a lifetime opportunity of the beautiful landscape. What makes this  more appealing is that it is accessible only on foot, although one can motor up to the national park. The terrain, at several places, is rough and it is regularly interspersed with bushes, boulders and small hillocks. The area is home to more than 50 different species of birds and is frequented by herds of elephants, mainly during winter and at the onset of summer.Thought it was 1 PM, I could still hear the sounds of variety of birds which was really surprising but could not catch them through my camera.The locals will show you places where a variety of medicinal plants and herbs can be found. The history of Suvarnamukhi is not very clear and it is still shrouded in mystery. However, local legend states that Bannerghatta and surrounding areas were part of Dandakaranya forests in which Rama wandered about with Seetha and Lakashmana.There is also a maze of  pebbles and stones spread over a vast area depicting various complex themes. Several miniature houses using stones brought by pilgrims have also been built in the belief that their wishes would be granted here.

The beautiful Suvarnamukhi stream, which is tropical, meanders through these hills. In summers, the stream reduces to a trickle and in several years it has run dry.The dry deciduous vegetation is home to a variety of birds and small animals. By the time i reached back, it was 1.30 PM and made my way to Banerghatta National park for the wild life for the wild life safari.

It was time for another trek and  time decided to visit Kudremukha and trek Kurijal and Gangdikal peak which is in Kudremukha Range. Myself,Vishwanath,Manjunath,Anand Verma, Meghana and Dharukesh started off from Bangalore at 10.30 PM and reached Kudremukha forest office at 6.00 AM.We had tea and moved to Bhagavathi nature camp at 7.00 PM.

We refreshed in a small tent and took a small walk in the park. Hot upma and tea was ready for us in the kitchen ! It was yummy ! After having breakfast, we stated to trek Kurinjal Peak at 9.00 AM along with the forest guide.The weather was really supporting us but the leeches were sucking our blood throughout the trek.

 Buy 11.30 we trekked three forth of the route and were able to see the peak.The scenery was beautiful and the view was amazing ! We rested for a while and the photo shoot began ! We were waiting for the clouds and fog to clear and luckily weather favored us.What a spectacular view it was stunning . All were so happy for that our hard core walk paid off !

 We reached the peak by 1.00 PM and had chapathis and chati on the peak itself.We were about to leave and there you go,RAINS ! It started to rain so heavily and we got totally drenched within no time. There was a small tower house just below the peak, we had to wear out jackets and raincoats and start the trek again.We had no time to even look back .

. All that we did was walk,walk and walk,….Finally we reached the starting point back again at 3.15 PM.We had to walk till the camp area in the rain and everyone were totally wet inspite of all the wear and care.We shifted to dormitory  and had our tea and snacks(avalakki ) ! It was followed by small chats.The forest guide took us to Lakya dam and a place where we could find Kurinjal flowers !

 We reached back the camp at 6.30 PM and moved to kitchen to have dinner at 7.30 PM.Rice, Sambar,and beetroot salad was served hot along with curd and banana! We hit the bed by 9.00 PM and woke up at 6.30 AM.

It was time for Gangdikal trek ! Vishwanath sir prepared avalakki for us. After having the breakfast, we left Bhagavathi nature camp at 7.45 PM and started to trek.This treak really had beautiful view than Kurinjal trek.It was hard too.With great difficulty we managed to reach the peak by 11.00 AM . After  taking few snaps and enjoying the view, we trekked back and reached the camp at 1.30 PM.

We had to quickly get ready, pack our clothes and move to Hornadu for the lunch.We reached the temple at 2.30 PM, had the darshana and ate temple lunch.We left Hornadu and reached kalasa at 3.30 PM.After having a coffee break at my home, we left to Bangalore at 4.00 PM and reached Bangalore at 10.30 PM.It was really a very good trek with a hell lot of new informations and new experiences .Thanks to Vishwanath and Summiters for the organizing the trek.