Hike to Bheema Bakasura/Kailashgiri betta

My best friend Akshata and I had a spontaneous call one evening, at almost midnight, and we decided to do a one day hike the following morning. After going through a list of places, we decided to head to Kaiwara to hike the Bheema Bakasura Betta.

The betta is in the town of Kaiwara. Kaiwara is in the Chikkabalapura district of Karnataka. The town has a huge mythological significance and it is believed that the Pandavas from the Mahabharata lived here during their exile.

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How did Bheema Bakasura Betta get its name?

There are many legends associated with the name of Bheema Bakasura Betta. One of them is that the name was given as Bheem is believed to have slayed Bakasura on this hill.

The hill is also known as Kailashgiri betta among the locals. It is opposite to the Amaranarayana Swamy temple.

How to reach base of Bheema Bakasura hill?

As I mentioned earlier in the post, the Bheema Bakasura hill is in the town of Kaiwara. And Kaiwara is around 70 kilometres (2 hours) from the Bangalore city.

Road – The best and easiest way to reach is by driving or taking an outstation cab from Bangalore via Hosakote. And hence, we took an Ola Outstation cab which cost us about INR 2000.

Public transport – Reaching Kaiwara via a bus is a very difficult mode of transport and is extremely time-consuming. There are buses that run from JP Nagar and Electronics City in Bangalore to Kaiwara. However, transportation can be very complicated as the buses have to be changed at various stops. I would not suggest going to Kaiwara by public transport if you are visiting the town only for one day.

Details of the hike

Best time to visit

The best time to visit Bheema Bakasura Betta is from the month of January till April and from August till November. These months are pleasant and are not too hot.

Trekking agency

There is no trekking agency that takes people to trek the Bheema Bakasura hill. So, we did this trek by ourselves. This hill can be easily hiked as it has proper well-laid steps to the temple and few boulders to reach the peak. Even though I suggest that this trek be done by ourselves, I would still not suggest this trek for a solo trekking place.

Logistics of the trek

Below are the logistics of the hike:

• Distance from Bangalore: 70 kilometres
• Distance of hike: 500 steps one way (2.4 kilometres in total)
• Grade: Easy
• Time taken to reach the peak: 1 hour
• Path: There are well-laid steps to reach the temple and then some boulders to reach the peak. The temple is almost at the peak.

Important Information

• Wear comfortable and sturdy shoes. Even though most of the path is steps, the last part of the trek is climbing over the boulders. So a good pair of shoes makes a lot of difference for the trek.
• Always carry an extra pair of socks. I usually carry an extra pair in the bag as sometimes while trekking, we do suffer from blisters. And during these times, it is best to change the worn socks with a fresh pair.
• Carry sufficient water to the peak. Even though this trek is not difficult, it is best to keep ourselves hydrated and carry sufficient water during the trek.
• There are shops at the base of the hill. So one can purchase water, snacks, and chocolates. And do carry some of the chocolates and snacks to the top so you can have them once you reach the peak.
• Be careful of the monkeys during the climb, especially if you are carrying a backpack or a packet. The monkeys are not scared of humans and they do approach you if you are carrying a bag or a plastic packet. But if you have a stick in your hand and confront them (DO not harm them in any way), just confront them with a loud noise and they do go away.
• DO NOT litter the hill. Carry your garbage with you and dispose it properly at a garbage bin. I cannot stress enough about this. Please respect nature and do not throw your rubbish anywhere on the hill or path.
• There are other places of interest in Kaiwara. Some of them are Amaranarayana Swamy Temple and Aranya Narayana Temple. Unfortunately, we did not visit any of these temples as we did not have a lot of time at hand.

Itinerary

The below itinerary is what my friend and I followed:

8 AM – We were picked by our cab driver and we started towards Hosakote.

There are plenty of restaurants/breakfast joints/darshinis on the way so we had our breakfast in one of those darshinis.

10:30 AM – We reached the base of the hill. And we started climbing towards the peak.

11:30 AM – With a medium pace of 4 kilometres per hour, we reached the peak.

12:00 PM – We started our descend.

1:00 PM – We reached the base of the hill and started our journey towards Bangalore.

Is it safe for solo female travelers?

I would say No. It is not safe for solo female travelers. That is because even though this hill has more people going to the peak than other hills, I did not see too many females or families attempting the trek. The crowd that accompanied us during the trek were the locals and mostly male. So I would definitely stay away from trekking this hill alone.

Also, as a practice it is always best to have a trekking buddy for unexpected situations.

Closing Notes

The Bheema Bakasura Betta is a very chilled out hill to trek over the weekend. It is very easy to climb as there are many steps going to the top and one can take as much time as they wish to trek this hill. There are many shops at the base because of which the food is taken care of too. I would suggest attempting this trek when you want to have a relaxed weekend with a bit of exercise.

Gallery

Also read

• One day hikes in India
• Hikes around Bangalore

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