Cycling loop around Bangalore

Late one friday evening it struck me that there are lots of places Bangalore roughly 50 to 100 kms away. I spent some time playing with google maps to create a loop.

It would give an outsider from Bangalore a good look at the scenic beauty that includes lakes, hills, forts, forest areas & sanctuaries as well as the hiking areas.



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Starting off from Hoskote ,head to Chintamani. Just before Chintamani is Kaivara betta ,a wonderful hiking place. From there the road winds south to Kolar . Antargange is a little hillock very close to Kolar town, there is a little deer sanctuary here.

The route then turns south west to Malur and thence to Hosur. From Hosur, a state highway leads to Thalli, situated in the backyard of the Bannerghatta forest, a great place to see elephants. The road from Thalli to Harohalli via Maralwadi is very scenic. It has a few small climbs, the Mavuttur dam on the road side as well as the ever popular hiking hotspot Rangaswami betta . The route hits Kanakapura road at Harohalli and proceeds south on the highway till Kanakapura. From Kanakapura, a right turn leads to Ramnagar. This route has a lot of hillocks, B M Betta to start with . The road surface is quite good all the way till Ramnagar. In Ramnagar , take the road that leads to Magadi. This part of the route is my personal favourite, good road surfaces as well as the scrub jungle of the Savanadurga state forest.

After passing Savanadurga , the route cuts across the highway to Mangalore on the route to Dobbaspet. The distinctive spike of granite known as Shivagange is seen even from Savandurga. Its a short hike to the top although there are too many people (and worshippers) on weekends.


Cutting across the NH-4 at Dobbaspet, head to the Devarayanadurga. There is road to the top of this hill, and from there there is panoramic view of the Devarayanadurga state forest . A short ride away is Madhugiri, a sharp conical hill with 7 dwaras from ancient times . The Maidanahalli blackbuck sanctuary is very close.


From madhugiri, the route heads east will the start point, Chintamani. On the way is Nandi hills as well as Kalavarahalli (which has 'shot to fame' of late and is very crowded on weekends).

The better part of this loop is that is avoids the main highways out of Bangalore and sticks to the state highways. While the roads are not always great, it is definitely safer.



Accomodation options: There are a few Kamat restaurants on the highway which offer dorm acco (of the 'cheap and best' variety). There is one in Dobbaspet, and one near Kolar. However, one should be able to camp out near Thalli/ Savanadurga /Siddarabetta . There are also plenty of big towns for 'propah' accomodation.