A Day out in Jaladhama

I had been wanting to write this from a long time. Better late than never :-)

This is away from the conventional travel posts ( the likes of places, road-reviews et al). Nonetheless the experience is the same :-)

If you are looking for a quick break from the usual routine life, then Jaladhama is a nice option to explore.

Getting there is pretty simple. Its at a distance of 120 odd kms from Bangalore. There are 2 routes to this place.

1) Take the Kanakapura road till Malavalli. From here, take a diversion going on the Malavalli-Kollegal road and thereon follow the sign boards to Talakad.

This road here is narrow and not good at places.

2) Take the 6-lane Bangalore-Mysore road till Maddur. Immediately, after crossing the town of Maddur, a deviation to the left leads to the village of Malavalli and on to Talakad.

This is a suggested route. From Maddur onwards, you veer off the 6-lane highway and enter state road till Malavalli. Though this is a longer route, the presence of good roads compensates for the distance.

The distance can be covered within 2 hrs (if its a bus , it takes 3 hrs).

Jaladhama a Riverside Resort is ideally located on the quiet section on the banks of Kaveri and Kappila river. To get to the resort, one has to ferry across the river. A short ride takes one across to the entrance of the resort

Just as any resort, this one also provides a host of facilities in terms of indoor and outdoor activities. If there is a larger crowd, then there are corporate activites arranged.

Apart from the normal resort offerings, @ Jaladhama one can explore few other options.

1) Canoeing

An interesting option. There are 2 types of canoe’s available, 8-seater, 2 seater.

8-seater is a nice exercise for team work to get the canoe to move , turn right, turn left and to go straight :-) . The physics of canoeing is explained by the boatman (for the lack of a better term) before you commence the ride. The lake is a huge one and its quite interesting to navigate the canoe around.

2-seater canoe is fun in a different way. This is much easier to navigate as compared to the 2-seater (obvious isnt it?). To makethe boat go straight, one person rows on the left side and the other rows on the right side. To make it turn left, both row the oar on the right side and so on. pretty interesting and once you figure this logic, the ride becomes an effortless one and you can start to concentrate on other stuff :-)

2) Water scooter ride

Fancy the idea of skimming the waters at high speed? Then, this is for you. You can take a ride on this scooter to cover a larger area of the lake. At a time, one person can ride this scooter, since this is a 2 seater (like a scooter) and the second person is always fixed. He is the one who handles the controls. You can ride in the front holding on to the handle bar. From afar, it will look like you are at the controls, guiding the scooter through the water. :-). The scooter ride costs 200 per head.

3) Pedal Boats

This needs no introduction. Every lake has this type of boat. As long as you have the energy and enthu to pedal around, you are most welcome :-)

Accomodation

In case you want to spend a leisure time over the weekend , there is an option of staying in Jaladhama. There are cottages available. More info on the reservations etc @ http://www.jaladhama.net/

Food stops en route

Food options are aplenty when you take the Mysore road. This time around we happened to stop by at a new place rather than the usual Kamat Lokaruchi or Kadu Mane. This place is a pretty small one, and it specialises in Thatte idli (Flat idli, if I were to literally translate).

This is served with a scoop of butter and a variety of chutneys. Its served hot and melts in the mouth. This place is called Shivadarshan Thatte idli center. The next time you drive on Mysore road, keep an eye out for this place.

Adios

K