ONE DAY TRIP FROM BANGALORE | BHOGA NANDEESWARA TEMPLE - SKANDAGIRI

At a distance of 54 km from Bangalore City Railway Station, 6.5 km from Chikkaballapur, 9.5 km from Nandi Hills, Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple situated in Nandi village is a grand temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. This temple is a great specimen of South Indian temple architecture. It is one of the best temples near Bangalore and also one of the best one day trip near Bangalore.

Originally built in 9th century by Nolamba dynasty, the temple received great contributions from the rulers of Ganga, Chola, Rashtrakuta, Hoysala & Vijayanagara dynasties. The temple boasts wonderful architecture and great sculptures. The large temple complex has a vast open area in front of the wonderful gateway. The main enclosure has three shrines dedicate to Lord Shiva known as Bhoga Nandeeshwara, Arunachaleswara and Ardhanareewara (also known as Uma Maheshwara) along with several other shrines on the rear side of the temple. The large mandapa .....

At a distance of 61 km from Bangalore City Junction and 5 km from Chikballapur, Skandagiri is an ancient mountain fortress lies at an altitude of about 1350 m. It is geographically located close to Nandi HIlls. This is among the best places for trekking near Bangalore especially famous for night treks, camping and bird watching.

Skandagiri is also known as Kalavara Durga. It has an ancient dilapidated fort that belonged to a local king and was later concurred and used by Tipu Sultan. After Tipu's downfall, the fort was ignored and laid in ruins. Today one can only see parts of the fort wall in some places.

The Skandagiri trek is a moderately difficult trek. There are two routes to reach the base of the hill. One is from Chikballapur town and the other as a detour from the road that leads to Nandi Hills. The trek starts from the Papagni Temple at the foot of the hill. This steep and fantastic trek through a maze of dense shrub is highly interesting. There are six series of .....