About Coorg
Kodagu – or Coorg - lies on the eastern slope of the Western Ghats. It is a hilly district; the lowest elevation is 900m above sea-level.
The principal river is the Kaveri River (Cauvery), which rises at Talakaveri on the eastern side of the Western Ghats, and with its tributaries drains the greater part of Kodagu.
Madikeri
Tucked in the lap of cloud-wreathed hills, in this small town, having an enchanting dream line creation around it, could be enjoyed by walk also. Madikeri
receives rain from June to September. Upto January in winter, where one can indeed imagine being in "Swiss town" with mist covered seductive charm of Madikeri.
Raja's Seat
Overlooking a deep valley is the delightful garden, the main spot of attraction. The Raja's seat is so called because the Raja's of Kodagu spent their evenings at this vintage point watching spectacular sunsets. The lovely flowers in full bloom and the fascinating view of the winding roads makes the visit a memorable one.
Fort Palace
The palace is built in European style with secret underground routes. Now a stone structure of tortoise stands as a witness to it.
There is also a unique museum with memories of ancient antiques like weapons, idols, canon etc. adds more attraction to this place. A Ganesha temple also adds attention.
Talacauvery
The worshipping Goddess of Kodagu is Mother Cauvery. The birth place of Sacred River, Cauvery, Talacauvery is one of the main pilgrim centres of Karnataka. A 48 Km drive from Madikeri stands Talacauvery at the foot of "Brahmagiri Hills". Here emerges river Cauvery and gushes her way through Karnataka and Tamilnadu, sanctifying lakhs of hectares of land around her, ending her 760 km journey at Poompuhar in Tamilnadu to join Bay of Bengal.
The Auspicious day 'Tula Sankrama' falls on October 17th every year, where the holy cauvery appears by a sudden upsurge of water in the 'Kundike' - the pond, while the pilgrims take a holy dip. There is no separate worshiping idol for Goddess Cauvery. The pooja is performed for the holy water in the holy 'Kundike". In Talacauvery stands the "Shiva Linga" installed by Sage Agasthaya. About 300 steps leads to the top of Brahmagiri Hill where the exquisite view of mother nature can be experienced.
Omkareshwara Temple
This was built in 1820 by Lingarajendra the then ruling King to ward off the evil caused by "Brahma Rakshasas". The Shiva Linga is said to be brought from the holy place "Kaashi".
This temple has an unusual architectural combination of 'Indo-Sarsenic' Style.
Nearby is the holy tank. Regular poojas are performed in the temple for the different deities like Lord Subrahmanya and Ganesha.
Abbi Falls
A thrilling 8
kilometers drive through forests and coffee plantations leads to the most popular attraction and picnic spot - the Abbi Falls.
The gushing sound and the beauty of the falls can be experienced from the hanging bridge. Engagingly beautiful in summer, an awesome sight is seen during monsoon. Bathing in deep water, and swimming is not very safe.
Gadduge
Dominating the skyline
are the Gadduge or three tombs with their Islamic style building domes
and minarets with gold coating built in Indo Sarsenic style, The entrance
to each tomb has Carvings of Hindu Deities.
The Central largest tomb
more ornate than the other two, contains the graves of Virarajenda
and his wife Mahadevi Amma. The medium sized tomb is of Lingarajendra
and the simplest tomb contains the grave of Rudrappa Virarajendra's
Guru. A bird's eye view of Madikeri can be had from here.
Nagarahole
A game sanctuary
also known as "Rajiv Gandhi National Park" is 98 kms away from Madikeri, 90 kms from Mysore and 46 kms from Gonikoppa, extend to 647 Sq. Kilometres. An excellent opportunity to witness wild animals of different kinds, from the majestic elephant to the Deer, Tiger, Cheetha, jackal etc. The forest comprises of valuable wealth like the teak, rosewood, sandal wood trees etc.
Harangi Dam
A dam built across
the tributary of Kaveri with a length of 2775 ft. and 174 ft height.
A real picnic spot with the back water gushing out and with a Cauvery
temple nearby. A travel of just 8 kms from Kushalnagar.
Golden Temple
A recently built "Namdrolling Monastery" a world famous Tibetan Golden temple a toast to the eyes is in Bylakoppa
also the second largest Tibetans settlement in India, just 6 kms away from Kushalnagar. Three majestic Gold coated 40 feet hight idols of Buddha & Padmasambhava, Amitayush Statue inside the temple, which is also called as Padma Sambava is the main attraction. worthwhile to visit
.