Date of Travel: 19-20 November 2016
Time taken: 6 hours from bangalore
cost: hotel cost 3000 per night, food nominal charge, no entry charge
Granary |
THE PLANNING
The plan was to start early at 5 am on Saturday towards GandiKota with an intermediate break at lepakshi followed by Belum Caves. We surprisingly did manage to be ready sharp at 5. My kid seemed happy about getting up in the early hour, a good Omen of things to come. We were driving a TUV- Mahindra so we were not afraid of any potholes as we heard many stretches of AP State highways were being worked on. We took the outer ring road to reach the airport and then the NH-44 going towards Nandi hills. We covered good ground and had crossed Nandi hills in about one and half hour.Water Pond |
To read about first stop read the blog Part 1 - Lepakshi: Hidden Gem Part I or for full transcript read Weekend drive : Lepakshi, Gandikota and Belum Caves
As we continued on the stretch a fort wall came in the picture with a board confirming that it was our destination of GandiKota. No one was there to tell where to go next so we followed some car to enter the fort, it is a stony patch of road which continues till back side of the wall via a small establishment of people. Because of morning domestic animals like hen, dogs were all marching ahead of us and we were trying not to hit any of them.
As we continued on the same path the mountain cliff started showing in the background. It’s a small walk of 500 meters but still be careful as it is made of stone only. Once you enter the cliff region you know you are entering a different world with all stone lying on each other as if someone has chiseled them and put them on top of each other to create a huge castle of sorts, that too all in red the same stone which has been used to make Red Fort maybe.
Way to Gorge viewpoint |
Gandikota Gorge view |
WHERE TO EAT AND STAY
Now one word of caution here, the only hotel for the stay here is an APTDC Haritha hotel which is situated next to GandiKota fort but before booking it please ensure you have everything with you as for miles there is no shop. A better option could be staying at Kadapa which is the nearest town and has many options for stay and food.
Oh and yes they have ATMs which finally gave cash without any lines (For people who are unaware India is undergoing demonetization and all existing cash are null and void). As compared to metro cities there was no rush in front of ATM here and we merrily took out money from an SBI ATM. We stayed in Haritha Kadapa which was a basic hotel with average service but good food and dirt price liquor. Beat this Smirnoff listed price was 35 Rs along with Royal stag for 30 ml. The place in itself is very big with huge lawns and neat rooms.
Tips:
1. Take good amount of food with you as you will find nothing on long stretch.
2. Carry your sun lotion, shades or umbrella if coming in afternoon as the stone becomes very hot
3. Best time to come is early morning to see the Sunrise
4. If you want to stay in Haritha Gandikota do booking at least a month in advance on aptdc official website.
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