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| Bhai at Nidagal Fort |
Place: Nidagal betta trek
Distance: 200kms x 2 = 400kms
Directions: Bangalore > Dobbaspete > Madhugiri > Pavagada > Nidagal
Krew: Anwar (Bhai), Karthik (Sp)
Bikes: Pulsar
Previous Visit: Minchukallu Betta Trek
Budget: Rs 600/head (Petrol = 800/2, Breakfast = 100/2, Lunch = 300/2)
IN LESS THAN 50 WORDS:
Nidagal Betta is one of the true tests of a seasoned trekker from Bangalore. The trek itself is a true grind to the skies, beautiful nonetheless, but the hillock is 200km away, and the ride to the place and ride back is always an evergreen grind and tests not only your stamina and body, but also your mental ability. We will always love you, Nidagal :)
INTRO & PLAN:
Ok, we had covered 14 treks in the past 15 weeks, and this one would make it 15 treks in 16 weeks. So, it would feel great but had to be done in middle of a week. Bhai was in Punjab for a week and he was arriving later night like 1am to this place. When asked a confirmation, a simple "ofcourse, we will go" kind of set the tone for this entire trip. We had to be back at office the next day, so some amount of surgical striking was required.
TIME: 22:00 (25/8/2017)
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| Sippy at the summit of Nidagal |
ASSEMBLE & LEAVE:
Yeah, I was up at 03:00, did a few push-ups and pull-ups, stretched out a little, and went and spoke to the bike for a while. Then took her for a spin, got her refueled and sat on the footpath waiting for Bhai's arrival. Once Bhai arrived, we left Bangalore.
TIME: 05:15
RIDE 1: (Bangalore – Dobbaspete – Madhugiri – Pavagada - Nidagal)
This was a 200km on a now well-known road. Since it was a really long journey, we decided to pull over once every 50-60km, whether we needed rest / not. Mostly, we needed it. So, as we left Bangalore, we could feel the winter slowly depart from the city. The air was cool, but not freezing cold like earlier. We cruised along a super smooth place discussing about Indian independence fights to reach our favourite breakfast spot on this route for some yummy breakfast.
TIME: 06:45
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| Idli and Rice Bath at Tejashree hotel |
After a warm greeting with the couple who run the hotel, we decided to hit two rounds of breakfast, not knowing when our next meal for the day would be. We were sure it would be a long day on the road, and we would have to rely on light talks, silence, and, most importantly, keeping awake.
After a good breakfast, we took blessings from the couple and took off. The ride was a smooth one, as we cruised past Channarayanadurga, we spoke about Bhai's birthday. At about hitting a 100km mark, we pulled over just before Madhugiri for a well-deserved stretch rest.
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| This is yet the start. |
After a good stretch, we took a good 10min break. As we continued further, we winked at Midigeshi, remembering the crazy trek a few months back. Then we zoomed past the lion-shaped fort of Madakasira Fort, and we pulled over for a second stop, the odometer read 150km.
After stretching again for about 10-15 minutes, we continued to the town of Pavagada. Post this was new territory for the 2025-26 era. Last time we had breached this was back in 2017, when we had visited Nidagal betta for the first ascent.
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| Start of the trek - base of the hillock |
The last stretch runs through villages and around the Pavagada fort. It was a beautiful ride, asking for directions from the locals, we made it to the base of this. The hillock looked massive and was winking at us with a smile; we had one bottle of water. Knowing the trek is a pure, never-ending climb to the skies, we awakened the lizard's spirit within us and were ready to start the trek.
TIME: 10:00
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| Beautiful trails at Nidagal betta trek |
NIDAGAL BETTA TREK:
Nidagal betta, as said earlier, is a true test of a serious hiker around Bangalore. The trek grinds the core YOU. A few other treks that come close to this are Kabbaladurga and Madhugiri. We took about an hour of intense climb which sapped our energies pretty hard.
Like always, have divided this long trek into three stages:
- i) Initial Stretch – to the first fort wall
- ii) Middle Stretch – to the settlement
- iii) Final Stretch – to the summit
i) Initial Stretch: (To the first fort wall)
Alright, this is the easiest stretch; the trail is quite clear. The initial path consists of smooth, slippery, but well-laid steps. Since this trek was post winter, the dried leaves are something you have to watch out for, as it makes it slippery when you least expect them to be.
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| Initial trial is clear, but tricky |
ii) Middle Stretch: (To the settlement)
The stretch is a never-ending grind, trust me on this. The trail again is quite clear, but runs through quite serene fort walls and suddenly opens up. The whole climb was spooky, as we were the only two humans on the entire hillock, and any movement would suddenly make us completely attentive and alert.
The sun was up and bright, making us sweat quite a bit. We had almost run out of water and took a couple of breaks to reset, and absorb nature at the same time. Finally after a long grueling enjoyable grind, we reached the layouts.
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| The beautiful mid-riff stretch |
iii) Final Stretch: (To the summit)
We spotted the layouts in the middle stretch, then we were drained, then we also spotted a narrow trail that ran beautifully amidst tall grasses. And we took a call to summit the hillock and then explore the layouts on our way back. The last stretch is pretty tricky with a lot more mud and loose stones. And after a long grind, we were at the top.
TIME: 11:00
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| Tall grasses lead to the top of Nidagal |
TOP:
As we reached the top of Nidagal, we were exhausted, owing to the low water and dehydration. But we still had the spirits very high and explored the place. Saying, a very happy hi to the Nandi that rests at the top. We sat and tried reading the writings on a tablet that is left at the top. We crashed for about 30 minutes, listening to the wind and taking a power nap. We could feel our bodies rejuvenate at a slow rate. With not much shade at the top, we woke up after a good half an hour, with no water, we decided to head back as we had a long way to go back.
TIME: 11:30
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| Bhai trying to decode the tablet |
DESCENT:
The descent was tiring. With no water, we felt dehydrated to the bone. We kept the lizard's spirit somehow awake as we needed it to cover the tricky final stretch. The descent on this hillock is tricky, as it is filled with gravel, mud and dried leaves. It is like, every step is asking you to slip and fall haha.
Once we reached the layouts, we went around and explored it. And then with the zombie mode on, we began descending. We met a group of monkey's residing on a tree, all staring down on us. But looking at our states, even they were smiling. With sweat pouring down our faces, we took one step at a time cautiously and grinded the rest of the descent to reach the base of the hillock.
TIME: 12:30
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| Done but drained. |
RIDE 2: (Nidagal – Pavagada – Madhugiri – Dobbaspete – Bangalore)
The ride back was again very surgical. We first went to the first village we could spot a few taps outside the home, asking permission from an aunty we drank water and filled up our water bottles. They were laughing at how we were enjoying drinking water, and to be honest, we laughed at ourselves and enjoyed it as much. Thanking them from the bottom of the heart, we took off with some life in our bodies.
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| Bhai lost in the beautiful layouts |
We rode a good 40-50km, feeling refreshed after the hydration and reached the outskirts of Madakasira for the first stop. Stretching a little and practising a little, age old wisdom of truck drivers, we continued further to reach the same exact stop at Madhugiri. After which we rode until Dobbaspete, by this time, the body was showing signs of fatigue.
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| View from the summit of Nidagal |
We cruised along the Tumkur road, which was massively flooded with traffic. We pulled over at our regular Whity dhaba for a well-deserved beer and a light lunch at 4PM. After spending about 1 to 1.5 hours at the dhaba, we rode back and reached home.
TIME: 18:00
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| Almost at end, tired? |
CONCLUSION:
“Alright, this was the true test again I repeat for the third time in this article. A 400km ride and a grinder of a trek pushed our bodies to the limit. And the hillock really felt spooky, as we were the only two. Felt really good that we could pull it off, cheers!!“
KREW:
Bhai: Coming back at 1am and starting at 4am, this requires nothing short of mental strength. Bhai with his recent exploration into Punjab, kept the ride alive with all the independence stories. Thanks!
Sippy: Riding 400km, climbing a freaking huge mountain, proud of the steep spine and iron bum :)
Until next time, Cia \m/
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| Aunty water please. |
"Young riders pick a destination, Old school pick a direction \m/."
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