Baobab tree of Devadurga

Here's another discovery by Vijay Menon, my explorer friend during his trip of the northeastern districts of Karnataka. This tree is situated in the outskirts of Devadurga, a historical town in Raichur district.

I had visited Devadurga in Nov 2013. It was a brief stop, we had seen only the ruins of fort like walls in the town. We could not make it to the ruins on the hill that day. During those years, I was ignorant about the ancient Baobab trees in India, maybe I only knew about Savanur and Bijapur. Between then and now, I learned about the existing trees, happened to see a few trees for real and a few other through my friends' eyes. I thank Vijay for his discovery and also for letting me post his pictures here.

Incidentally this Baobab (Adonsonia digitata) is mentioned under 'places of interest' page of Raichur district website. As per the page, situated on the grounds of Government College, is about 500 years old, and it's 45' wide and 40' high.

That's Vijay with Baobab of Devadurga. Vijay was concerned about it's future because people are quite ignorant about this rare tree. My prayers and wishes that the tree is not harmed, and town municipality declares it as a living heritage so that it remains protected.

Baobab is originally from the African continent. Between XIV and XVII Centuries CE, groups of Sufi ascetics traveling from Africa to India carried Baobab seeds & saplings with them and planted them wherever they camped for long periods. Baobabs, though a rare tree in our country, thousands of trees are said to have survived in the western parts i.e. Goa, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh. Baobabs made their way interior regions i.e. the Deccan plateau and even down south to Tamil Nadu. For the reader's benefit, below is a list of known Baobab trees of India-

1. Hilltop Nightclub, Vagator, Goa
2. Cabo Raj Bhavan, Dona Paula, Goa
3. Quepem, Goa
4. Bamboo Motels, Goa
5. next to Yogapur mosque, Bijapur
6. Mahalakshmi Gudi premises, Martur, Kalburgi district
7. Dodda Hunashe Matha, Savanur, Karnataka
8. Near the aquarium in Lalbagh Botanical Garden, Bengaluru
9. Purana Qilla, Golconda Fort, Hyderabad, Telangana
10. Attapur, Hyderabad
11. Vansthalipuram, Hyderabad, Telangana
12. near Chappel Road, Hyderabad, Telangana
13. Ranganath temple at Nanakramguda, Hyderabad, Telangana
14. Shivalaya on Balachandruni Guttalu, Nalagonda, Telangana
15. Uppal in Chengicherla Reserve Forests, Hyderabad, Telangana
16. Nellore, Andhrapradesh
17. Theosophist Society Gardens, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
18. The American College campus, Madurai, TN
19. Chinmaya Vidyalaya's campus at Ilanthope, Rajapalayam, TN
20. Mangaliawas near Ajmer, Rajasthan
21. Vadodara, Gujarat
22. Dayapur, Gujarat
23. Kutch, Gujarat
24. Bhanagar, Gujarat
25. Baroda, Gujarat
26. Victoria Garden, Sukharamnagar, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
27. Mulund, Mumbai, Maharashtra
28. Byculla zoo, Mumbai, Maharashtra
29. inside Shirala fort, Maharashtra
30. Revdanda-Murud road near Korlai, Maharastra
31. Tilak road and Ghokale road, Pune, Maharastra
32. near Aurangabad, Maharashtra
33. opposite Mandvi Darwaza at Vasai Fort, Maharastra
34. Nana Fadnavis Wada premises, Menawali, Maharashtra
35. Mandavgad or Mandu, Madhya Pradesh
36. near Ganga-Yamuna Sangam, on the left bank of the Ganga, Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh
37. Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park, Bihar

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What to see in Raichur District?

When you look at the four north-eastern districts of Karnataka, it looks like a neat stack.. Raichur, Yadgir, Kalburgi and Bidar. Raichur's southern and northern borders run along two great rivers Tungabhadra and Krishna. So Raichur was known as Doab meaning 'land between two rivers'. The district is mostly black soil plains with scattered hills. Raichur is known for its thermal power station, paddy fields & rice mills, gold mine and a special variety of granite. Raichur's history can be easily traced back to Neolithic times. Mudgal and its surrounding area are known prehistoric sites. Archaeologists have found several prehistoric artifacts on Maski hill.  Then there's Emperor Ashoka's inscription at Maski - the edict of peace - which is an indication that this land was pert of the great Mauryan empire. Then it was ruled by Satavahanas Vakatakas, Kadambas, Chalukys, Kalachuris, Kakatiyas, Vijayanagara, Bahamani and finally the Nizam of Hyderabad.

Coming to the name Raichur is the anglecized version of Rayachooru. There are many stories about how the name came into being. One of them goes like this.. A chieftain on witnessing a spectacle of a rabbit turning on a dog that pursued it and tearing the dog into pieces. The chieftain thought the spot was special and fit for a fort and constructed one naming it as Naichur which connoted the idea of the dog being torn to pieces. The present name, Raichur, is said to be have derived from that Naichur. Another story is that the name originated from combining the word Rai meaning stone in Telugu with Ooru meaning town. The product was Rajooru which becomes Rayachooru over time. Well, there are other stories about the name's origin but do check out this write-up on origin of the name Raichur. During Bahamani rule, Rayachooru had been reamed as Ferozenagar which was never accepted and reverted to its original name. When Karnataka state was formed, Raichur district came into being with Raichur city as its headquarters.

Here's what Raichur offers for tourists:

Raichur fort, Cooling towers of RTPS, Manik Prabhu temple
and Navarang Darwaza

Sentry post at Manvi fort, Kallur Mahalaxmi, view of river Krishna from
Jaladurga fort and Ahokan inscription at Maski

Ruins of Mukkunda fort, tower at Roudkunda fort,
Deity of Tryambakeshwara temple of Kavital and Watagal hill

1. Raichur fort - The modern city has grown around the ancient citadel which had two rings of fortification. The outer fortifications has five gateways- Naurangi Darwaza on the north, Kati Darwaza on the east, Khandak Darwaza on the south, Doddi Darwaza on the south-east and Mecca Darwaza on the west. The inner fort has two gateways- Sailani Darwaza on the west and Sikandari Darwaza on the east. The core of the fort is the fortified hill.
2. Mavina Kere - The largest water-body of Raichur is also known by the name Aam Talab is situated south-west of the hill fort. It was constructed during the rule of Kakatiya queen Rudramma Devi of Warangal in 1294 CE.
3. Navarang Darwaza - one of the five gates of Raichur fort is a protected monument. Within the premises is a collection of ancient stone sculptures.
4. Usukina Hanumappa Gudi - Usuku means sand in Kannada. This shrine dedicated to Hanuman was once surrounded by sand. However now its stone slabs instead of sand.
5. Manik Prabhu Gudi - This is an old temple situated on a hillock on the city outskirts. Manik Prabhu is a saint of XIX Century. People believe that he was the fourth incarnation of Lord Dattatreya who was born in 1817 and attained Samadhi in 1865. He was contemporary of Shirdi Baba and Akkalkot Swami Maharaj.
6. Agriculture University - The vast campus of the university is situated on the western side of the city. Those driving in from Dharwad side have to pass by the campus.
7. Jami Masjid, Raichur - This is the largest mosque in Raichur city.
8. Ek-Minar-ki-Masjid - An mosque with one minar built in the Persian style during Bahamani rule. The minar is 13' in diameter and 65' high. It has a winding staircase leading to its top. In April 2016 during a road widening operation an adjoining building was demolished, the damaged walls revealed pillars and beams with images of Hindu Gods and motifs. Samples of the ancient rubble were sent for examination and confirmed to be rubble from destroyed Hindu temples of Hoysala period.
9. Maliabad fort - This fort situated 6 kilometers south of Rayachooru dates back to Kakatiyan times. It was known as Mallayyabanda which later transformed to Maliabad when Muslim rulers took over. The fort is built on a rocky hillock and the adjoining plain land. The fort has two rings of fortification, the outer ring is relatively older while the inner ring is built of finely dressed massive granite blocks. On the hillock is said to be a Kannada inscription dating back to Hoysala or Vijayanagara times. Within the fort is a Goshala which produces medicine out of Gomutra (cow's urine) which is used for treating many diseases.
10. Raichur Thermal Power Station - As you drive from Raichur to river Krishna, you will see the massive cooling towers and chimneys of RTPS. River Krishna supplies water to this is a coal powered electricity generation plant. The plant is operated by the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited. The power station consisting of 8 power generating units was commissioned between 1985 and 2010. About 40% of power generated in Karantaka is contributed by RTPS. Tourists might be allowed into the plant but high level permissions would be required. The township for RTPS employees is called Shaktinagar.
11. Sri Sugureshwara Temple, Devsugur - is an ancient shrine dedicated to Lord Veerabhadra. Locally the god is called by the name Sugureshwara, This spot is about 20 kilometers north of Raichur and right besides RTPS township.
12. Naradagadde - is an island in river Krishna situated about 38 kilometers northeast of Raichur city. Legend says that Lord Narada performed penance on this island. The nearest land villages are Boodidipadu (Budidipad) which is in Karnataka state and Nettempadu which is on Telangana side. On the eastern tip of the island is a shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva. On the western side of Naradagadde is another island called Kurugadde.
13. Kurugadde - is an island in river Krishna situated about 35 kilometers northeast of Raichur city. This island is about 5.7 kilometers long and half kilometer at its widest point. On the island is a village called Kuruvapura and agricultural plots. On the western tip of the island is a temple dedicated to Sripada Srivallabha. The nearest land village is Atkur.
14. Manvi fort - is on the smallest of three hillocks situated south of Manvi town. The fort is in complete ruins. Within the fort is a Dargah. On the largest of the hillocks, is an ancient shrine dedicated to Sri Mallikarjuna. Also Manvi is known for numerous fairs held at temples deducted to Hindu gods like Kareyamma, Yellamma, Mahamalleshappa and Sanjeevaraya.
15. Mahalaxmi Devastana and Markandeshwara Gudi - these two temples are at Kallur village. The village is situated to a boulder heap hillock which is an identified prehistoric site. The town was fortified long time back but hardly anything remains of the fort today. The village is popular for Sri Mahalaxmi Devastana. Though not popular Sri Markandeshwara Gudi is an ancient temple probably built during Chalukyan times.
16. Panchamukhi Anjaneya Devasthana - is an ancient cave shrine dedicated to Lord Hanuman situated near Gandhal village, about 40 kms south of Raichur. Gandhal village is situated close to left bank of river Tungabhadra and on the opposite bank is popular Hindu pilgrim center Mantralaya - the resting place of Madhwa saint Sri Raghavendra. Road distance between Gandhal and Mantralaya is about 20 kilometers. Legend says that Sri performed a 12 year penance at the cave, as a result Lord Hanuman appeared in the form with five heads. Hence the name Pancha-Mukhi Anjaneya. There are two routes to reach Gandhal- 1. Raichur to Gandhal and 2. Manvi - Neermanvi - Gorbal - Gandhal (about 12 kms on Manvi to Raichur road, turn right towards Gorbal).
17. Ashoka's edict of Maski - Of the nine edicts discovered in Karnataka one is located on the slopes of Maski hill. The edict is a protected monument but tourists are allowed to see the site. Maski hill is an identified prehistoric site. In August 2012, few human skeletons were discovered along with ancient pottery. The ancient graveyard was found close to the stone inscription of Ashoka. Also, close to the edict, just behind Devanam Priya College is a mound with stone etchings of animals is believed to be of Chola period.
18. Mudgal fort - Built on a rock hill and the neighboring plain land, Mudgal fort was a formidable fort during its hey days. Mudgal was an outpost of Kakatiya kingdom in XIV Century. In the XVI Century it was part of Vijayanagara empire before Bahamanis took over. The fort has two entrances-one in north and the other on the eastern side. The southern part of the fort is defended naturally by hillocks and steep rock faces while a moat runs along the northern perimeter. Bastions and turrets are strategically placed on the rampart walls. On the rocky hillock is a tower known as Bala Hisar, probably used as a command post. Near the Bala Hisar is a rock shelter in which prehistoric paintings are found - this is evidence that Mudgal's history goes back to Neolithic times. Also, in the shelter is a rare rock which sounds like a metallic bell. In fact within the fort are two bell rocks. Coming back to the fort, there are at least 5 to 6 slabs with Kannada inscription probably of Vijayanagara times. Its a historic spot one must see.
19. Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, Mudgal - The Sacred Heart of Jesus Church is said to be established during the reign of Ibrahim Adil Shah. The original structure was built around 1557; later it was demolished and the present day building was built in 1971.
20. Piklihala - is a village 5 kilometers south of Mudgal. Piklihala is an identified Neolithic site.
21. Jaladurga fort - is one of the few island forts of Karnataka. The fort stands on the western tip of a 8 km long island created by river Krishna. The fort is surrounded by chasms and its natural defense is water hence the name Jaladurga. Close by, downstream is another island with a small fort on it.
22. Mukkunda fort - is in Mukkunda village situated on left bank of river Tungabhadra in Sindhanur taluk. It is about 30 kms from Sindhanur. In this village are three historical monuments - a small fort atop a rock formation and ancient temples dedicated to Murari, Somalingeshwara and Bheeralingeshwara. The fort could be built during 16th Century CE. Also, there is Dargah of Gaddikhader Wali situated on the island in Tungabhadra.
23. Roudkunda fort - is in Roudkunda village in Sindhanur taluk. To the west of the village are two hillocks which are identified as Neolithic sites. Artifacts were found on the hills and the valley between them. On one of the hillocks is a small fort built during 16th century CE.
24. Devadurga fort - is situated in the village of the same name. The fort main fort is on a hillock besides the village and within the village is a smaller fort like structure housing a palace within. Devadurga village is known for availability of talc.
25. Kotekal fort - is an ancient fort situated on a hillock close to Kotekal village. The fort ruins are visible from the state highway connecting Raichur and Lingsugur.
26. Tryambakeshwara temple of Kavital - Kavital is a small village situated off Raichur - Lingsugur highway. The ancient temple probably of Chalukyan times is known for its deity - three Lingas on one pedestal - it is said this is the only one such shrine in India.
27. Watagal hill - is a huge naturally formed boulder heap. In the aerial view it looks a tadpole. The name Watagal could be derived by the Kannada phrase Wattida Kallu which means heap of stones. Ont this hill are ruins of a fort. Also the hill is identified as a prehistoric archaeological site. This hill is situated off Raichur - Lingsugur highway.
28. Mudval - is a village 8 kilometers north of Maski. It is an identified Neolithic site where gold crushers and iron slag was found.
29. Gurugunta - is a town in Lingsugur taluk known for Gurugunta Samsthana of Naiks who were related to rulers of Kankagiri and Shorapur.
30. Kadlur - is considered as a sacred place. The village is situated close to Krishna-Bhima Sangama. According to an inscription found at Chikalparvi, Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara had visited this pilgrim center.

You may also want to learn about other districts of Karnataka-

1. Bagalkot district
2. Ballari district
3. Belagavi district
4. Bidar district
5. Bijapur district
6. Chitradurga district
7. Dharwad district
8. Davangere district
9. Gadag district
10. Gulbarga district
11. Haveri district
12. Kolar district
13. Koppal district
14. Tumkur district
15. Vijayanagara district
16. Yadgiri district

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Manik Prabhu Temple and Usukina Hanumappana Gudi, Raichur

December 2012

Raichur was our base 3 days during our tour of Raichur and Yadgir districts. We visited several forts near Raichur including Maliabad fort. A e-friend from Raichur had mailed me about Usukina Hanumappa temple, though it was on our list time did not permit a visit. When I heard about the temple I had imagined that Hanuman's temple would be surrounded by sand. Usuku means sand in North Karnataka Kannada, its southern counterpart is 'Maralu'. I kept wondering if the temple was surrounded by sand or if the deity itself was made of sand. I'have to wait for another year.. another day..

July 8, 2016

After a short vacation at Dharwad, Pushpa and I were driving back to Hyderabad. We made good time, we were on the outskirts of Raichur city by noon. It was a spontaneous decision to skip the bypass road and enter the city.. plan was to visit Usukina Hanumappa and lunch at Shivayyana Khanawali. We passed by Raichur Agri University.. entered the city, drove on the bridge and took right... in general direction of the Manik Prabhu Gudi and Usukina Hanumappa . We found our way through the unfamiliar parts of Raichur.. passed by LVD College.. one straight road to Manik Prabhu Gudi.. The temple stairway seems like its stretched a pair of hands.. welcome!

This old temple is situated on the city outskirts, on a hillock. Manik Prabhu was a saint of XIX Century CE. People believe he is the fourth incarnation of Lord Dattatreya. Sources mention that he was born in 1817 and attained Samadhi at the age of 48 years that's in 1865. He was contemporary of Shirdi Baba and Akkalkot Swami Maharaj.

The temple has a peaceful ambience. The whitewashed stone structure, the arched gateway and the Neem tree creates a serene atmosphere. The temple entrance was manned by a teenage boy who seemed physically challenged. Visitors have to enter name and phone number in a register.. there's a school inside for disabled children hence this system of monitoring visitors.

The gateway opens to a wide courtyard. At the center is an ancient temple. We did not get to see the deity as such. My friend had mentioned there's an underground passage leading into the temple. I missed checking it out.

The temple premises is kept clean and tidy. Care-takers have done their duty well :) Around this courtyard are several small rooms of the school. There were students dressed in white listening to their teachers. Lucky for them to be learning in this peaceful place.. unlike the schools located in busy localities of metros.

This seems like a house of the administrator of this temple and institution. The structure must be a hundred and fifty years old.. Liked its twin stairways and the three arches.

This is not the only temple of Manik Prabhu. The other temple is at Hunmabad in Bidar district. That temple premises is huge and it runs an educational institution which is popular in that region.

We learn that Hanuman temple is about a kilometer from Manik Prabhu temple however the dirt road was not fit for a car. We drove about half kilometer, the path was really bad now, bikes can go but nor a car. We walked rest of the way.. here's the temple, sadly the gate were locked.

We looked through the gates... the temple is not as I'd imagined.. no sand here. It seems these tiles were laid recently.. probably it was all sand before. In fact when we walked down, the soil seemed little sandy. Also, opposite the temple is a small lake, not much of water though.

Well, we found the temple but could not see Hanumappa, it not time yet :( I researched and found an image of the deity.. Usukina Hanumappa.

One last look at the temple.. hoping to come back again and get a darshan of Usukina Hanumappa.

We drove back into the city, we took a different route.. the narrow streets of old Raichur. Close to the fort we passed by the Ek Minar Masjid. Less than a year ago, I'd seen a picture of the mosque on social media. The picture clearly showed a temple existed there upon which this mosque was raised. Well, this is nothing new in North Karnataka districts. There are several places where you can clearly see demolished temple parts used in mosque walls and steps.

We were hungry know, managed to reach Shivayyana Khanawali on time, We were the second customers of the day. had a satisfying lunch :) From Shivayya we learned that the bridge across river Krishna was closed for repairs. The alternate route would be Raichur-Gadwal-NH44. If not for my friend here, we would have driven towards Shaktinagar and back.. saved us 45 kms of distance and time.

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Mudgal Fort's North Gate

Dec 25, 20154
My first visit to Mudgal fort. Starting from the eastern gate, we spent close to 4 hours exploring the formidable fort. The fort is built on a rocky hillock and the neighbouring plains. The rock hill itself is a prehistoric site; we discovered a natural rock shelter with a small painting and musical stones. The fort was originally built by Hindu rulers and later occupied by Muslim rulers. Having spent hours under the blazing sun and heat radiating rocks, we were exhausted. We just wanted a shady place, sit and have lunch in peace. We lunched our guides. They suggested us we check out the northern gate as well but we were in a rush to reach Jaladurga..

Jan 23 2016

One of the routes connecting Hyderabad and Dharwad passes through Mudgal. For today's drive, we'd taken this road and stopped by Mudgal fort's northern gate. Sun was blazing down fiercely (definitely hotter than Dec 26 2015). Pushpa decided to sit in the car; I ventured out with my camera. The North gate itself has two entrances- one facing east and other facing west. The gateway is complex, has a zig-zag path to slow down enemy entry. Here's the smaller east facing gate.

Map of Mudgal fort showing Eastern and Northern gates.

View of the inner gateway trough the eastern door. In through the gateway and turn right to see north door. Thsi gate is called as Fateh Darwaza.

This stairway next to the inner gateway takes us to a turret.

A damages cannon sits atop. This was the cannon our guide Shah Rukh wanted us to see.

Here's the broken remains of a cannon which probably was 18 feet long originally. I remember seeing a similar cannons at Raichur fort summit but that's in pretty good shape.

Originally a moat surrounded the perimeter on plain land. Even to this eastern part of the moat has water. View of the moat from the northern gateway.

Another view of the inner gateway.

Close to the northern door on the wall is this engraving- lion leaping at an elephant.

These walls are close to 800 years old and standing to this day. Cheers to the engineers, stone dressers and masons of that period.


Fateh Darwaza coordinates: 16.0140715N 76.4350337E

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Ruins of Navalkal, Hirehanagi and Kotekal forts

Dec 25 2013 and
While travelling on the road between Raichur and Mudgal, we passed through several villages; of them a handful of them had some historical structures visible from the road. This road connects two important historical places- Raichur and Mudgal; their histories go back to prehistoric times. So the road connecting them should have stop overs for travelers and especially for ruler's convenience there would be smaller forts in between.

The first one is Navalkal village; its icon being a big rock formation. I'm yet to find what it's name means.. whatever it is it ends with kal ~ stone.  From the rock's top right portion, one can imagine a bull's face.

I'd ventured into the village to get a closer look at the fortifications. Here's a small temple, probably dedicated to female deity.

Here are the fort walls. It looks small from here but I guess it would be quite spacious inside. I did not go any further lest I disrupted the agenda of the day.

As we proceed further towards Mudgal, we passed through a village named Hirehanagi. The name literally means 'big comb.' The village is situated next to a hillock on which is ruins of a bastion and walls. Seems like a small fort existed here which is in complete ruins now.

Further down the road is Watagal, the hill which looks like a tadpole from air seems like a heap of stones when seen from ground level. Its my guess that the name could be derived from the Kannada phrase "Wattidada Kallu" (heap of stones) which turned into one word Watagal. On this hill are ruins of several bastions which indicates this hill was a fort once.

Next is Kotekal fort which is located on a hillock. The name Kotekal literally means 'fort stones'. This fort is small compared to Watagal but definitely big in comparison with Navalkal and Hirehanagi. I did not venture into the hill instead took few pictures from the state highway. Here'e the general view from south. This face of the hill is naturally covered with heaps of stones making it a barrier. However you can see a line of wall built over the heap of boulders.

Closer look of the walls. These guys were expert builders indeed.

Two of the bastions are fairly well preserved.

This one seems like the highest point of Kotekal fort.

Here's a rough map showing locations of these 3 forts along with other forts of this region. See the beauty of this place- 3 major rivers of Karnataka flow here. Tungabhadra, Krishna and Bhima. Bhima merges into Krishna and further east near Kurnool Tungabhadra merges into Krishna.

In this area held between rivers, there are 10 known forts and surely few unknown ones too.

• Navalkal fort coordinates: 16°9'51.4292''N 76°58'12.3679''E
• Hirehanagi fort coordinates: 16°7'11.6209''N 76°50'58.497''E
• Kotekal fort  Coordinates: 16°6'24"N   76°41'35"E

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Watagal Basavanna Gudi

Watagal hill is tadpole shaped when seen from air. Watagal hill is located in the black soil plains of Raichur district. The hill resembles a heap of boulders, there's no similar hill in the vicinity, the next nearest such a hill is at Anegundi in Koppal district. Watagal hill is a natural fort; it has a clearing on the top which can be approached by a narrow path. Watagal is a known to be a prehistoric site. Neolithic grey ware, Brahmagiri fabric and Jorwe fabric has been found during archaeological excavations here. Watagal, in the surrounding area is known for its Basaveshwara Gudi, a shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva's mount Basava ~ Nandi. The temple is situated close to the hill's western tip, on the northern side.

January 23, 2016
After finishing our tour of Watagal hill. Pushpa and I bid bye to our guide Mahantesh. He suggested us to stop at Basavanna temple, said its a nice peaceful place. We said we will. The dirt road towards the temple was lined with a row of trees.. each of the trees' trunks and branches are twisted and ribbed.. as though they are very aged.

The twisted trees avenue. In north Karnataka, usually in temples where annual fairs are held, trees can be seen. The purpose of planting trees is obvious.. to provide shelter for visitors. In olden days, kings built stone shelters and wells; in the recent past years trees are the cheaper and easier alternate.

I did not take many pictures of the temple; the camera was with Pushpa who decided to stay outside and explore the surroundings. A bunch of kids from the village had followed us from the village were her company. Here's a short video of the temple..

This an open temple with the main shrine being a Neem tree. The shrine is protected by a fabricated metal cage and at its entrance is a metal art work.. Shiva Linga flanked by a pair of Basavanna.

The deity is Lord Shiva's mount Basavnna. The main deity is embedded in Neem tree trunk. My guess is that this shrine is in memory of a pair of bulls. In most parts of India, in the farming community, bulls are considered as family members. Today things are different but years ago bulls were no different from humans in farmers homes. In North Karnataka, when a bull died it was given a proper burial, just like a human being. So my guess is this shrine is a tomb of pair of bulls.

Close view of the main deity..

While I was at temple, Pushpa was busy taking pictures of the kids, here are few of them. This boy was the first one we met, as we spoke two more joined in, three close friends. This boy testing his strength.. trying to lift a gundu. Every village has such stones which were used by kusti jatti.. the wrestlers.

The three thick friends posing in front of the temple's theru.

The three boys' noise attracted more of their friends. A motley bunch! Check out the legs.. don't know which limb belongs to who :)

The kids were getting noisier with every passing minute,  was too much for Pushpa, Time to leave, we were hungry and tired. The nearest place for lunch was Lingsugur which was 30 minutes drive.

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Watagal hill and fort

Watgal was spotted on Wikimapia some time in 2012. The hill viewed from air looked like a tadpole.. an elliptical head and a tail. Its another boulder hill heap hill just like Rishimukha Betta of Anegundi. Another interesting thing about it is the natural fort on the hill top.. just like Onake Kindi, again near Anegundi. With little research, I learnt that Watgal was a confirmed prehistoric site.

December 25, 2012
I was touring parts of Raichur, Maski being the most important destination of the day. While travelling from Raichur we turned off at Kavital towards to Maski. Before moving on I would like to mention that Kavital, a barely known village, has the historic Tryambakeshwara Gudi, it's deity a Shivalinga is one of it's type. Though Watagal was barely 4 kms from Kavital we missed it. Probably it wasn't destined for the day.

January 23, 2016
We were driving from Hyderabad to Dharwad; instead of Koppal-Gadag-Hubli route we decided to take Lingsugur-Mudgal-Ron-Navalgund route. It was around 11 when we reached Watagal. As usual, I stopped and spoke to people and found a guide :) So Mahantesh would be our guide to show Watagal hill. I suggested Pushpa to stay back because of the sunny condition but she protested and joined. Good spirit! We drove through the village and parked it near a temple, under a small Neem tree. From there the hill's base was about 250 meters. These white colored boulders are natural.. our guide confirmed when I asked about them. Another person from the village joined us out of curiosity..

Initially it was a dirt and rock path which gave away to a only boulder path, As you see rocks have been positioned carefully to create a level path. The path we are treading on is clearly seen in the aerial view. That's Mahantesh leading us..

As we walked I asked how the name Watgal got formed. gal ~ kal ~ stone. What about Wat? While our guides weren't sure what to say Pushpa pitched in Watgal could have been Wattidakal originally. Wattidakal means 'heap of boulders.' Makes sense.. isn't it?

Among this heap of boulders, a plant managed to  grow into a tree. That's the strength of plant life.

The gradient wasn't steep, so our climb wasn't strenous but we had to be alert with every step and careful not to trip over. Here's a boulder with a pit.. unsure if its natural or man-made. Probably a combination of both. The pit would fill when it rained and probably the water remained for months together.. The pit's mouth was about 2 feet across. Boulder looks like a shark's snout with a toohless mouth.

Now we are close to the hill top. In the top-middle you can see a bastion.. this indicates the hill was a fort too. Like I mentioned earlier, this is a natural fort. Close by we saw a stone with a polished face. Must be an ancient tool, may be from Neolithic times.

So we reached the hill top, now are standing on ground made of dirt. Here's a looking rock-formation with shelter fit for animals like leopards, bears and even hyenas.

Looking back towards the white-boulder strewn gentle slope of the hill top plateau. My guess is these rocks are kind of granite, probably related to Mudgal granite.

This is the clearing that can be seen in the aerial view which was inhabited long time back. Ruins of stone structures can be seen here. Also here's a shrine. It seems local people offer silver eyes to this standing stone deity for their wishes to become true.

Remains of a water tank made of stones and mortar. This could be built around 500 years ago.

We move further up to a bastion in ruins. We manage to clamber on to the top.. looking around 360 degrees.

Our guides were telling there's another ancient shrine on this hill deep inside a rock-shelter; only one person from Watagal is said to have seen it. Who knows what lies beneath these heap of stones. Yes, talking about stones.. hundreds of thousands of years ago this would have been a single rock which fragmented over the years. You can see several stones with matching edges which proves that stones disintegrate over time. What was once a monolith today is a heap of boulders and with passing time these stones will disintegrate further and become dirt.

Looking towards west..

On exploring the clearing we decided to turn back towards the way we came. Our plan was to climb towards another shrine. This shrine can be seen from the village, its painted in white lime. This climb was difficult.. reminded me of my adventure at Kappagallu.. the dolerite dyke of Hiregudda.

Some of the spots were quite dangerous. One missed step or slip would end with broken bones for sure. Pushpa was quite brave.. she never once spoke of giving up or turning back. We reached the shrine and next to it is another sentry point of the fort. That's where I'm standing now and looking down..

The clearing as seen from the bastion.

The descent was slower, we has to be very careful while negotiating tricky parts.

We made it back safely to the boulder path. Our guides were really nice to us, patient and caring. We pause our trek for a picture. Mahantesh's lungi is actually very stylish.. a rare shade of blue suits the garment.

A close look at the southern bastion. Its not easily reachable to humans, hence its preserved well. The boulder in the foreground with two niches is different from other stones.. it seems Mudgal granite. How did it get mixed up in this pile?

Back at the village, we thank our friends and prepare to leave. Mahantesh suggests us to visit Basaveshwara temple another ancient shrine dedicated to Shiva's mount Basava. I made note of postal address to send some pictures and said bye to our friends.

Here's one bastion at ground level. Looks like a fort wall was present here long time back, probably the walls' stones are part of houses' foundations now.

We head towards Watagal Basaveshwara Gudi.

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