Savandurga has been on my radar for a long time. It is the largest monolithic rock in Asia, and located inside a reserve forest. Sounds intriguing, right?
Savandurga is 50 km from our place, and takes around an hour to reach.
We stopped for breakfast at Shri Guru Kotureshwara Dosa Point in Nelamangala. Their Open Dosa and Onion butter Dosa was quite good.
This was followed by an hour long ride through greenery, vacant roads, rocks strewn around, and intermediate drizzles. The last stretch of the ride takes you through a reserve forest area, and the greenery and cool temperature adds to the beauty of the trip.
The first view of this massive monolithic rock was memorable, as we saw it at a distance, with a lily pond in front.
The Savandurga hill is also known as Savina Durga or Fort of Death because, Tipu Sultan used to drop many of his prisoners from here as a punishment. It comprises of 2 hills- Kari Gudda and Bili Gudda. The complete trek will take 2.5 – 3 hours one way
The incline of Savandurga is steep from the beginning. There are no steps or handholds , which makes it much more challenging.
We could reach only till the first level of trek which was the walls of the ruined fort
The view was amazing and worth the effort. The view from the top of the hill is even more mesmerizing.
At the base of the hill, there is a temple behind which the trek trail starts.
Please note that there is no cover available and it becomes very hot during summer. But it is slippery in monsoon. If you are planning to go for the complete trek, it is best to start early morning.
This was a wonderful bike ride and I’ll recommend it for anyone who lives near Bangalore and wants to go on a date with Asia’s largest monolith.
On Our Toes 
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