Agumbe

About:

Agumbe, a small village located in Karnataka for all those who wish to find peace with nature in the western ghats. It is known to be the wettest region in Karnataka receiving highest rainfall. The tiny village is much known for its beautiful sunset and the trek opportunities it offer. It is also famous for its glorious sunsets and travelers on the highway from Shimoga to Udupi or Mangalore. This was the town where the classic serial "Malgudi days" was filmed. A number of trekking trails are available from Agumbe.
This place receives the highest rainfall in the state. Post monsoon is the most beautiful time to visit, never mind the leeches.

Agumbe is a village located in the Shimoga district in the state of Karnataka, Agumbe is among the places in India that receive very heavy rainfall earning it the sobriquet, "Cherrapunji of the South". It is also the home of the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station, the only permanent rainforest research station in India. The renowned herpetologist, Romulus Whitaker called Agumbe the capital of King Cobra. n area near Agumbe has been converted into a protected area for Medicinal Plants to help in their conservation.

Since 2005, Naxalite activity has been observed near Agumbe and hence, a lot of Karnataka State Police personnel have been deployed and checkposts created in all intersections. This however has not hindered visitors from visiting the region to enjoy the natural beauty of Agumbe and it surroundings.

Location info:

Climate/Weather:

Min - 5 deg C
Max - 32 deg C

History:

Interesting things to do:

Water Rafting, Trekking, Camping, Sunset View, rainforest experience, Wildlife
Camping at Kundadri hills on a full moon night is an experience worth taking as one can view both the sun and the moon in the celestial game.

Prime Attractions:

Sunset Points:
Agumbe has a sunset point which receives lot of visitors. On a clear day, one can see the sun setting over the Arabian Sea though the sea is at quite a distance from Agumbe.

Waterfalls

• Achakanya Falls:
  Achakanya Falls is a petite waterfall on the way to Hosanagara near Aralsuruli. The Sharavathi River takes an amazing jump of 6.10 m to form this brilliant falls. Achakanya Falls is just four kms away from the Shivalinga.
• OnakiAbbi Falls:
  This is another waterfall near Agumbe. In the Kannada language, "Onake" means a pounding stick which is used to pound grains in villages.
• Barkana falls:
  Barkana Falls is the 10th highest waterfall in India with a height of 850 ft/259 mts. It is formed by the Seeta River.
• Jogigundi falls:
  Jogigundi is an easy place to get to, and leeches are confined only to the last 500 mts of the hike. During rainy season the falls are beautiful and loud. In other seasons one can swim in the pool below the falls.
• Kunchikal Falls
  Kunchikal Falls is the highest waterfall in India and ranks 116th in the list of highest waterfalls in the world.[4] Its total height is 1493 ft/455 mts. It is formed by the Varahi river. 

Rainfall
Agumbe receives the second highest annual rainfall in India, next only to Cherrapunji (or the nearby Mawsynram). It receives a mean annual rainfall of 7640 mm. The absolute maximum rainfall recorded in Agumbe in a single month is 4508 mm (in August 1946).

Rich Wildlife:
Mandagadee Bird Sanctuary:
Mandagadee Natural Bird Sanctuary lies on the banks of the river Tunga 32 kilometers northeast of Thirthahalli. Variety of migratory birds take refuge here during the months of July and October.
Being a part of Malnad and Western Ghats, Agumbe and its surroundings are rich in biodiversity. It is adjacent to one of the last surviving lowland rainforests in the Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary and the Kudremukh National Park.[2] Many new species of flora and fauna are found in this region. Agumbe lends its name to the following species which were discovered here:

Selenops agumbensis: A spider of genus Selenops
Tarenna agumbensis: A shrub
Drosophila agumbensis: A species of small fly
Irenopsis agumbensis: A fungus
Hygroaster agumbensis: A fungus
Dactylaria agumbensis: A fungus
Other species discovered around Agumbe include:

Caudalejeunea pluriplicata: A liverwort plant.
Notothylas dissecta: A plant of type Hornwort earlier found only in Central America, was discovered in Asia for the first time in Agumbe.[8]
Cyclotoma alleni:A beetle discovered in Agumbe.

King Cobra as the flagship species.

Temples and Pilgrim destination in Augmbe:

Shivalinga:
The holy source Ambutheertha lies down the river Sharavathi 16 kilometer North West of Thirthahalli town. This is where a Shivalinga is installed.

Shringeri temple:
Shringeri temple is really an exception with extremely neat granite rock temple on banks of river Tunga. It resembles ancient Hoysala architectures. Climbing down the steps in temple one may reach straight to river. Bus service is available from Shirngeri to Udipi, Shimoga and Bangalore.

 Lakes:

• Kote kere  Lakes:
• Kabbina kere Lakes:
• Forest Check Post Lakes:

Mobile range info:

How to reach?

Bangalore to Agumbe:
People travelling from Bangalore should reach the city Shimoga first. The distance between Bangalore and Shimoga is 280Kms. There are two ways to reach Shimoga from Bangalore.

First one is to proceed towards Tumkur (70 Kms from Bangalore on National Highway 4) and take diversion towards Tiptur (60 Kms from Tumkur) and continue towards Arsikere (35Kms from Tiptur), Kadur (50 Kms from Arsikere), Birur ( 15 Kms from Kadur), Tarikere (25 Kms from Birur), Bhadravati (20 Kms from Tarikere) and reach Shimoga (15Kms from Bhadravati).

The second way is to proceed towards Channarayapatna (145Kms from Bangalore on National Highway 48). Take deviation to right at this place to travel towards Arsikere, Kadur, Birur, Tarikere, Bhadravati and reach Shimoga.

After reaching Shimoga city, proceed towards South-West to reach Thirthahalli (60Kms from Shimoga) and then Agumbe (30Kms from Thirthahalli). Agumbe is 90Kms from Shimoga.

Hassan & Chikmagalur to Agumbe:  People travelling in Hassan and Chikmagalur districts can include Agumbe in their trip plan. They can make Hassan as the centre place and travel towards Chikmagalur and cover the visiting places. Make sure to reach this place around 5.00pm to view the sunset.

Agumbe is near the town of Thirthahalli which lies on the National Highway NH-13. From the state capital of Bangalore, Agumbe can be reached by taking NH-4 till Tumkur, then NH-206 till Shimoga and then NH-13 to Thirthahalli (a total distance of about 380 km.). Udupi on Konkan Railway is the nearest railhead. Nearest airport is Mangalore.
It can also be reached from B'lore via Hassan ~ Belur ~ Chikkamagalore ~ Shringeri ~ Agumbe.
Distance from prominent places around:

• Bangalore – 378 kms
• Shimoga – 95 kms
• Udupi – 55 kms
• Mangalore – 102 kms
• Sringeri – 26 kms
• Hornadu – 55 kms
• Kollur – 85 kms

Udupi -   60km
Shimoga - 90km
Udupi railway Enquiry: 91 820 2531810, Udupi railway Reservation: 91 820 2531809

By Air -Mangalore - 135km
Mangalore Airport Phone: 91 - 824 - 2752433
Mangalore (115 kms) , Bangalore (385 kms)

Sringeri - 23kms
Manipal - 55km
Kollur - 60km
Shimoga - 90km
Bangalore - 365km

Nearest Visiting places:

The 4-km shortcut from the waterfalls back to Agumbe passes through thick forests and is strongly recommended.

Nearest Petrol Pump:

Tour Guide

Most of weblogs about this place recommend taking a guide to Narshima parvat or Narasimhaparvata and Mr. Raghavendra Pai[Phone No.: 08181-233023 / 233025], often offers to help trekkers as guide.

Trekking info :

Permission for trekking must be obtained from the Forest Department. Contact DFO, Shimoga Division, or Range Forest Officer, Megaravalli, Agumbe Range. You can go for an exciting trek to Narasimha Parvatha. The best season for a trek is between December and March.
Trek the local fame, Narasimha Parvatha. You can also opt for a trek to Nisha gundi, or to Barkana falls. An upstream trek from Onaki Abbi during one of the drier seasons is remarkably scenic. Try to arrange for a local guide who'll help with the trek routes, and it's advisable because the jungle is dense.

Tips & Suggestions:

These thick forests are home to leeches round the year. The locals recommend coconut oil mixed with crushed tobacco leaves as a preventive measure. This place has problem with some extremist group creating voilence and hence police permission is required and with valid passport or other identification proofs this could be easily obtained.

Help Line/Phone Number:

Malgudi Days