Horaginabetta, Horagina bette, Horagina betta

Horaginabetta

Photographs:  Sumitra Shilpa, Chethan Agasthya
Trek Leads: Raja Raju

Trek Group: Bangalore Trekking Club

Trek Grade: Moderate

Terrain:  Rocky, Grassy
EveryTrail Map: Horaginabetta

So you’ve got a giant pot belly that you blame on beer and chicken, are ready to blast the TV if it plays another ‘Get Idea’ commercial, and wonder what could be more to a weekend than meeting those same old cronies for yet another hangover-guaranteed booze session? Try shifting gears and setting off on a day trek, because there could not be a more interesting and fun way for some serious fat burning (2000 calories for six hours to be precise)!  

It was Horaginabette this long weekend, a feisty hill that stands across the Nandi Hill, in the Chikabalapur District 60 kilometers from bangalore (Logistics and Details below). The sight of twenty six odd IT professionals bundled into a stuffy BMTC bus with an ill-tempered kannada-swearing bus conductor was definitely a DSLR moment, that had to pass un-captured. 

And here is the dainty group of perfect strangers!  Photographs courtesy the talented babe Sumitra Shilpa, who is reeling under the head-on collision with yours truly in the picture below, in a bid to beat the camera timer. :-)

This writeup should begin as my trek did…with the gruesome tale of the Tippu Drop.  Although filled with disbelief, I could almost imagine Tippu standing as I did at the foot of Horagina beta for ‘a good view’, as his condemned criminals were pushed from atop Nandi Hills.  Did their screams make him giggle?  And then Sharath, my gory story teller, continued with the added tale of criminals suffocating in overcrowded jail cells.  Some kings just need better hobbies, I say!

View of Nandi from Horaginabetta

The trek took quite the exploratory turn, with newly appointed Trek Leader Raja loosing his way.  The group found itself trudging through bushes, scaling new rocks and blazing new trails.  By the end of it all, people actually began suggesting that trek leaders take to amnesia more frequently for this kind of fun! 

With around six kilometres in six hours, moderately steep climbs and a diverse terrain ranging from rocky to grassy, you will break quite the sweat.  Trails were often enveloped by giant grasslands on either side, giving a mini-forest trek effect, and the occasional itchy plant variants triggered a hilarious frenzy of scratching in all half-pant/half-sleeved trekkers by descent.

  Water shortage struck the group by summit leading to some interesting consequences. And the irresistible stream of fried goodies worsened the situation.  So the three watermelons that hitchhiked in secret rucksacks were the sexy item numbers of the day, and a bottle of melted ice struck poetry in many a heart.  Here you shall see how to mathematically divide 3 watermelons into 26!


Travelling from Bangalore:
Majestic Terminus 3, Platform 12, Chikabalapur Bus.  

Stop: Karahalli Cross.  If your bus doesn't go there, then get down at Devanahalli Stop take an auto to Karahalli Cross.  

Points to remember

1. Carry at least four liters of water.    
2. Carry juicy fruits, like oranges, watermelons and cucumbers.  
3. Wear full-sleeved clothing

And here are a few more pics.  With twenty people struggling to pose on a tiny rock, varieties of pushups and mock murder, this group was a creative photographers dream bunch.  Check out some of these crazies...