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| Mutturayaswamy Gudi Betta Trek, Ramanagara |
- Place: Mutturayaswamy Betta Trek
- Difficulty: Easy.
- Distance: 55 km x 2 = 110 km.
- Directions: Bangalore > Bidadi > Ramanagara > Achalu > Muthurayaswamy betta.
- Krew: Madhu (Simha), Datta (Dattu), Gundachar (Gunda), Karthik (Sp).
- Bikes: Xpulse, Pulsar.
- Previous Visit: Maharajakadai Fort Trek.
- Budget: Rs 221/head (Petrol = 484/4; Breakfast = 400/4)
IN LESS THAN 50 WORDS:
Alright, Mutturayaswamy betta trek is an easy one with two levels of fortifications. The hill does offer some gradient, but yeah, it is fun to navigate. The trek should be more considered for the views it offers, and it is a perfect pick before you tackle other mammoths like Kabbaladurga in the region - very similar rock profile.
And this marked 42 weeks, 43 treks, ~9.5 months, non-stop, since Oct 12th, 2025. This was our 31st trek in 30 weeks for 2026, with 28 first ascents. :)
INTRO & PLAN:
Well, the Grand TN expedition was in full roar (Rayakottai, Anchetty Durgam, Ratnagiri Malaikottai, Udedurgam, Mallapadi, Jagadevi Fort, Thattakal Fort, Ankushagiri, Periyamalai , Virabhadra Fort, Maharajakadai Fort Trek).
Then, to keep this week simple, Dattu and I decided to hit one hillock near Ramanagara. Madhu said that he is willing to join. It was Madhu who kept the club active alongside me in 2024, so always a green card holder :)
Then came the wild card, Gunda, who had got his new trek shoes, called me and told me that he wanted to test them as well. Now, I was confused; we usually hit a hillock with a max of 3 people, keeping it lean. Now it was as though all sleeper cells had been activated all at once, haha :)
To welcome Gunda's new shoes, the whole destination was flipped, and Muthurayaswamy betta was chosen as it offers a steep gradient but with good grip. Hence, perfect for the test.
TIME: 20:00 (17 July, 2026)
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| All sleeper cells activated for this one :) |
ASSEMBLE & LEAVE:
Yeah, I was up by 02:30, stretched out a little, listening to some slow doom metal. Gunda and Madhu had not met, but both lived in KR Puram. The assembly point was set at Bidadi. (When there are more people, it makes sense to keep the start point 30- 50 km outside the city)
I left my home at 04:30 for Mahalakshmi layout, picked up Dattu, and we both headed to Bidadi and reached our regular hotel. In a matter of 15 minutes, Madhu and Gunda also arrived. After a formal introduction and some banter, we decided to have some breakfast :)
TIME: 06:30
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| Shivsagar Bidadi Tatte Idly :) |
RIDE 1: (Bangalore > Ramanagara > Mutturayaswamy betta)
During breakfast, we recollected old trips and had some jovial banter over the breakfast table. It was the time when frequencies had to be matched for a good day. And it was not difficult as all vibed easily. Post Bidadi, it was hardly a 25 km ride. And with the strict NO GOOGLE MAPS rule, we took a slightly longer route, but a familiar one. The reason? - we wanted to say a big HI to Achalu Betta :)
Post Achalu, the route turned really scenic, with the fresh air from the fields hitting our nostrils hard and the sighting of multiple hillocks lifting our moods. Then, we took some interior routes which led through farms and canals, and finally we spotted the hill :)
TIME: 07:45
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| Mutturayaswamy trek begins |
MUTTURAYASWAMY TREK
ASCENT:
Well, this trek is a mini grinder. The hillock offers some gradient, but the grip is very good. So, it is perfect for beginners to test their calf strength and technical climbing skills. We took about 25-30 minutes to ascend, but as always, time does not matter on hillocks like these. Enjoy the view and take your time. Like always, I have divided the ascent into the following sections. LETS GO \m/
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| The initial trail |
Phase 1: The Initial Trail
The initial trail consists of a few steps. Not sure why these steps were made; maybe a psychological boost or the king's mestri started the work and was fired midway haha, you never know. But true to our spirit, we abandoned the steps to take the natural skin of the rock. Need to feel the hill as she is, not through steps.
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| The grind begins |
Phase 2: The Grinder
Now, the real test of the trek begins. Steep but hard-gripping rock. It becomes all about the stamina and your calf muscles. Calm, calculated steps, reading the cracks on the rocks is a skill that has to be put on the maximum here. We took turns leading here, one from the front and one from the back and rotated to pull this one off flawlessly. When we took the friendly banter resumed, we asked Dattu which is the previous hill we climbed with Gunda (Thalavadi Betta Trek), after a lot of thought, Dattu spurted out "Tadiandamol betta" hahaha. Love these guys! For this endurance monster, who has navigated the most treacherous terrains as a morning walk, names DO NOT MATTER.
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| Final summit push :) |
Phase 3: The Flat lands and Summit Push
After the grinder, we hit a flat land. Here we rested for 5 minutes before seeing another grinding section to the summit. Gunda's shoes were doing its part excellently, but he confessed that his calf needed some work. I said an ice-cold beer post their trek would solve everything ;)
The rock again offered excellent grip; now the mental test had to be resumed. I asked Dattu to name 7 hillocks that we had done earlier. He started off with some impressive naming: Cheluvanarayana Swamy betta, Thalavadi betta, Savandurga, Makalidurga, Narasimhaswamy betta, Kunagalu betta. Then he asked if he had done Kabbaladurga, we burst out laughing. I explained he had treated that as a morning walk, leaving everybody behind panting in agony. So another was added to the list, and Dattu had passed with flying colours and so had we, as we made it to the top.
TIME: 08:15
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| The summit rest :) |
TOP:
The skies looked gloomy. The winds had picked up. Felt really nice and welcoming. We removed our jackets, which weighed a ton like Goku's. Felt the wind to its wholeness. Then we rehydrated and did a quick reconnaissance of the place. A lot of hillocks could be spotted around; we played the guessing game for some time and then just crashed. A 30-minute deep sleep on top of the mountain felt very refreshing and great :) Madhu had packed an apple, and eating it felt really good. Post which we rehydrated and before the rains came down, we decided to head back down :)
TIME: 09:00
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| Choose your own gradients. |
DESCENT:
The descent was a straightforward one, but had to be done cautiously. No matter how experienced you are, the descent always is dangerous. Most of the mountaineering accidents occur during the descent. Hence, again we took turns and rotated the order based on the dynamics of the group to keep the banter flowing. The gradient selection was left to the individual as it would help them read the mountain on their own terms. Gunda's shoes were pulling things well, and he was executing the descent with much more confidence. And well, Madhu and Dattu had got into their own zone and never wanted to return to the base haha :) It was a fun 30-minute descent.
TIME: 09:30
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| Had to drag others to base; they never wanted to return back :) |
RIDE 2: Mutturayaswamy betta > Ramanagara > Bangalore)
As we reached the bikes, we looked back at the hillock, thanked her for providing a playspace and also, more importantly, for LETTING US GO BACK. The ride back was basically a retrace of our route to the place. It was a smooth 55km ride back to Bangalore. We directly headed into our regular bar for some ice-cold beers. The sitting continued for 2 hours; the banter continued. After a nice session, we pulled over at our regular hotel for some solid "Mudhe Oota". Felt great; from here we split. Gunda and Madhu headed back home towards KR Puram. And Dattu and I rode through some merciless rain; loved every bit of it. Like the saying goes, "If you do not ride in rain, you do not ride".
TIME: 15:00
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| Wish us luck for the 52/52 :) |
CONCLUSION:
Well, this was such a light, banter-filled chapter. And having the majority of sleeper cells assemble felt really good. And the last-minute change of the hillock paid dividends massively. All thanks to Gunda's new shoes haha. Mutturayaswamy betta is a perfect hillock for testing your rock-reading ability, offering some great views. To be done preferably early in the morning before rains.
Past 42 weeks, we have pulled off 43 treks, ~8600 kms in total, ~9.5 months, non-stop. The Flame lives on \m/
KREW:
Sippy: Hammered himself, and felt really good to pull this one off with a krew of four. With 43 done, lets go towards 52/52 on the FLYING NIMBUS.
Until next time, Ta-da Cia \m/
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| Picking conversation with a tree :) |
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