Table of Contents
1. Agumbe – Shimoga
Agumbe is village located in Karnataka in the Shimoga district. This district is also called the ‘Cherrapunji of South India’. This region gets the highest rainfall in the South and the 2nd highest in the whole of India. Agumbe is surrounded by Western Ghats and has many waterfalls.
This hill station has a ‘unique’ beauty and can be termed as an ‘enriching’ experience. Besides relaxing and soaking up the greenery, you can also plan on trekking here. This is the only lowland rainforests to have survived. Agumbe was the setting for Malgudi, a fictional town in ‘Malgudi Days’.
You find some medicinal plants that are rare here. These include Listsaea, Myristica, Garcinia, Eugenia, Diospyros, and a lot more. This has a nickname ‘Hasiru Honnu’. This means that green is gold.
Agumbe has the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station as it has a wide number of flora and the rainforests. This is the oldest weather station of India that monitors exclusively any changes made in these areas.
Agumbe is also termed as the ‘Cobra Capital’ due to the number of cobras found here. Visitors throng here as this is considered as an offbeat destination in the lap of Mother Nature.
2. Jog Falls
Jog Falls is a waterfall on Sharavati River. This is located in the Western Ghats, Karnataka. This is the 2nd highest plunge waterfall in India. This is one of the most favored attractions of the tourists. Jog Falls drops around 850 ft (253 m) in only a single fall. The flow of these falls is restricted before monsoon due to the Linganamakki Dam Construction. This is a hydroelectricity plant close by. To enjoy the falls to the fullest it is advisable to take a trip during the monsoons.
From the city of Shimoga, driving to Jog falls takes around 2 hours. This seasonal waterfall, also called the Joga falls or Gerosappa falls, is broken into segments – Raja, followed by Roarer, Rocket and finally, Rani. These are named in accordance with specific characteristics of the stream. Roarer is a violent and strong current gushing to meet the Raja stream, Raja is the unbroken stream, Rocket tends to flow down I different jets and Rani is the ‘quiet’ stream falling in foam.
Jog Falls is considered ‘unique’ as the water thunders down and loses contact with the rocks. This makes it the ‘tallest’ untiered waterfall in the whole of India.
Visitors are not allowed to reach the bottom of these waterfalls in the rainy season as this can be risky. They can stay in the gallery and enjoy the view.
The nearest airport to the Jog Falls is the Hubli airport, which is 133 kilometers away from these falls.
3. Kodachadri Hills
Kodachadri is one of the peaks in the Western Ghts, situated around 115 kms away from the town of Shimoga. This is full of flora and fauna and thus is one of the best places to visit for all ‘nature lovers’.
Kallu was a home to Adi Mookambika. This lies at the Kodachadri base. Adi Mookambika ended the life of Mookasura, a demon. The other places to list out for your visit are Arisinagudi Waterfalls and the Agastya Teertha Waterfalls.
This famous tourist spot by those who loved to trek lacked proper facilities, but that has been looked into by the government and is open to all tourists.
