Trip To Badami - Part 3 (Exploring Aihole Pattadakal and Mahakuta)

Day Three 12th September 2016

Today we have plenty of time so first decided to cover Aihole, Pattadakal and Mahakuta, front office staff of the lodge is very friendly and he provided the sketch of these places.

Badami City

Farmer buying the agriculture related items

Houses at Badami

First took Banashankari Road and headed towards Aihole is just 35kms from Badami. Here I would like to mention one thing, if we compare the Badami with Hampi it will give you entirely different experience. Hampi is cleanest city but Temples of Badami and Aihole located between middle of the congested city, the tourism site are maintained properly but out side it is not, pigs, dogs,  cattle were freely roaming on galies and elders are washing clothes children are playing and all day today activities are going at the road.

Near Cave Temple

Gadag Road

Banshankari is located at the outskirt of the Badami,  Town from there we took diversion and headed towards Aihole. KSRTC was playing regular buses between these two cities most of them are Etchers. 

Kubota Mini Tractor

Decorated Sonalika

Jowar

Way to Aihole

The superb road goes through the villages, and villagers are using road not only for their travel purpose they put their agricultral products on road to drain on the sun. First we directly went to the last point i.e Aihole around 1100hrs reached there and start to explore the beauty of Aihole.

Village view

Road under construction works

Agro work in progress

Onion

Sheep and got

Sunflower

Taking rest

Narrow Roads inside Aihole

Dugra Temple Complex

Well maintained Garden

Aihole is famous for Chalukya's architecture with about 125 stone temples dating from 5th Century. Three are so many temple complex was there.Dugra temple complex, Lad Khan Temple, Ambigera Gudi Complex, Rachi Temple, Huchchimalli Temple complex, Ravanapadi rock cut temple, Rock cut Jain Basadi etc. are very interesting. Archeological department runs a small Museum inside the temple complex.

Kalyani

Carvings on pillars of Durga Temple

Museum

We started to explore from Durga Temple complex, it was neatly maintain and beutiful large Pushkarani (Tank) also built inside the complex, carvings on pillar are really great. Thease temples are photogenic and  It is apsidal in plan, along the lines of a Buddhist chaitya, a high moulded adisthana and a tower – curvilinear shikhara. A pillared corridor runs around the temple, enveloping the shrine, the mukhamantapa and the sabhamantapa. All through the temple, there are beautiful carvings. The temple appears to be of the late 7th or early 8th century.

Aihole Town

After visiting the Durga temple complex decided to explore the outer skirt of Aihole, there are many Hindu and Jain temple, cave temples are built around the the city. It was already around 1300hrs so we have approached a small hotel and filled our stomach with rice bath and started explore the rest of the places.

 Rice Bath

Kalyani

One of the Cave Temple

Many Cave Temples built around Aihole

Inside the temple

Carvings

These are enough to explain the rich history of Aihole

After visiting these temples we have went top of the hill from there one can see the areal view of the Aihole. At the top of the hill a small fort was built from here one can get whole view of Aihole town and all temple complex were visible from here. The roads which goes in front of the Huchchamalli temple, Mallikarjuna Temple leads to the fort. 

Children carrying water

Way to the fort

Steps 

View from the steps

View from the Top (Fort)

After visiting fort headed towards our next destination i.e Pattadakal which is located between Aihole and Badami, just 14km from Aihole. 

KSRTC

Around 1500hrs reached Pattadakal, parked bike outside the temple complex and started exploring. Pattadakal or Pattadakallu is a village famous for Hindu and Jain temples built by Chalukya's of Badami.

Pattadakal Complex

Compared to the Aihole, Pattadakal is well maintained and it also comes under UNESCO inscribed World Heritage Site. 

Old Nandi capt behind the temple

New Nandi

After Spending an hour inside the temple complex came out, as soon as came out lady's who was selling the hot Jowar roti and butter milk surrounded us to sell the meal. There are many small hotel also built in front of the complex. We went one of such a hotel to try the taste of Jowar Roti.

Tasty Hot Jowar Roti

The tasty hot Jowar Roti was served with Curd, Pickle, Methi (Fenugreek) leaves, Radish, Subzi and Peanut Chutney Powder. Our next destination was Mahakuta group of temples which is on  the way to Badami.

Sunflower field behind the hotel

On the way

Entrance

Around 1700hrs reached at Mahakuta. It is an Important temple for Hundus. It was built by Chalukya's of Badami in 6th or 7th Century.

Its also known as Dakshina Kashi

A natural mountain spring flows inside the temple,  a small Kalyani is built inside the temple it is called as Shiva/Vishnu Pushkarini, it gets water from this stream. Before dipping in the Kalyani one has to take bath at Kashi theertha located at outside.

Kashi Theertha

Puskarani

 Temple

Outside view

Temple post

Temple Car

Car Street

Guava Fruit vendor

Decorated Tafe Tractor

Check the sound system built inside

After visiting the temple and eating the sweet Guava's  😁😁 went back to Badami. It was around 1830hrs, so we have decided to just wander around the Boothanatha temple and took inner road. Unfortunately it was Monday weekly fair at Badami, everything is available in it. Once you enter inside the fair its impossible to turn back following picture will explain you the reason.

Crowded Monday Fair

So we continued on same road with half clutch messing with peoples, carts, cycles, Mopeds, Cows, Vendors, at last after half an hour able to escape from the fair and reached hotel. At night took a decent dinner and gone to bed.

Continued

Trip To Badami - Part 2 (Dharwad to Badami)

Day Three 12th September 2016

Third day plan was just traveling to Badami and covering the Aihole, Pattadakla and Mahakuta, so we had plenty of time at 0515hrs vacate the hotel and headed towards Badami Via Nargund, roads were empty we are purely depend up on GPS but due to poor signal it started to  hang out, at last by the held of local people manage to reach Nargunda road and headed towards Badami.

Morning View

Some More Pictures

Fields on both side of plain road

Small pound at side of the field

 Road condition also not good rough patches all over the road thankfully there was no potholes. So carefully ride on headlight beam, once sunrise then there is no problem, traffic also very less few trucks which are coming from opposite direction and most of them are  Andhra Pradesh registered.

Morning view

Sunrise

Once sunrise, started  to enjoy the scenery, the road condition also improved, the plain straight road goes between the agricultural fields. Its really pleasure to eyes. On the way found a small shrub  like plants grown on one of  the fields, it also contains pink colour flower on it, while looking closely found that it was cotton crop and the black soil supports well to grow cotton.

Sunrise reflection in a pond

Cotton plants

Flower

My Green bull

Shepherds family

Sun Flower fields

The black soil of this area is very rich, rain fall in this reagio is lowest in Karnataka but these rich black soil able to keep moisture and help to cultivate Cotton, sunflower, Jower, Maize, Wheat etc.

Plain straight road

Sunrise

Drained canal

Small Ayyappa Swamy Temple built on the way

Fields

On the way a think saw a tower  made out of single pole and it contains so many stay wires, locals does not have the clue for what purpose it was used for. Traffic was very less some local Two wheeler and Indica taxi's, Bolero Pick ups, trucks, tractors and KSRTC's are playing around the road. One interesting thing I have saw here was almost every village contains one HP Fuel pump, it was not such a large pump with all facilities but a small pump which contains two fuel dispenser's one for Petrol and another for Diesel.

A unknown Tower found on the way

Acre's of fields

On the way crossed small water canal which is built for the irrigation purpose which helps to cultivate crops, but it was drained. While reach near Nargund met a Shepherd family, who is living in tented house in the fields. While talking to them they said they are belongs to some village which is just 3 to 4km far from the field and they put tent houses on the field with the permission of farmers and live here for 2 to 3 months. The sheep's are best weed eater it helps them farmer to get off the unwanted vegetation on the fields and also Sheep pops is good for the soil which helps to the farmer to grow better crops.

Bull phosing

After two three months they will move towards another location. Apart from Sheep they also maintain a small fleet of horses which is useful to them to carry goods and take a ride. They were very keen to know about my Cell phone GPS when I showed it to them they are very happy and called it as INTERNET.. .

Windmill Towers near Nargund

Shepard's family

First sign of the Nargund town was line of Windmill placed on top of the hill, one can spot it from far, Nargund is a small town of Gadag District. Literally Naragunda means hill of jackals.  At around 0800hrs reached there and took breakfast. Still I can remember the taste of Hot Poori Sagu and Idly's.  

Breakfast at Nargund

Horse

After the breakfast headed towards Badami which is our destination, from here we took Vijayapura (Formerly known as Bijapur) road and after few kilometer took diversion towards Badami.  When we reached near Badami we can clearly spot the Geographical changes, colour of the soil  changed from black to red. On the way just took our motorcycles into empty field to take some photographs and continued.

Farmers bathing their bulls

Way to Badami

Temple Cart Near Badami

Red Soil

The road goes between many small villages, entire village life is different from other part of Karnataka. Totally very enjoyable, villagers are very friendly and gives right information. Just before the railway crossing there is a Badami Sugar Factory built. mostly now a days it was not functioning.

Me

Karthik

Badami Sugar Factory

Railway over bridge under construction

At around 1000hrs reached Badami and find out a good lodge just opposite to the KSRTC Bus Stand and put our luggage into the room and planed to explore Aihole Pttadakal and Mahakuta.

Railway crossing

Welcome to Badami the land of Chalukya's

Badami Town

Continued