Gandikota and Belum Caves - January 2018

When the Gandikota and Belum Caves trip was announced a few months back by Tattva Adventures , I knew I was doing it for sure. A chance sharing by a trekker friend about “The Grand Canyon of India” and “the largest and longest cave system open to the public on the Indian subcontinent” made this a must attend event.

The trip began as always with the unavoidable yet irresistible train travel with the fun loving Tattva Tribe. It hardly matters that  there are always people whom you meet with for the first time. The ‘connect’ is almost instant ☺☺☺ .  After the eagerly looked forward to  Dumb Charades and other games what followed was an early lunch cum dinner consisting of a mind boggling variety of delicacies to gorge on.

An eventful night with more games and an early morning  wake up call from a group of  fellow travelers (‘devotees’ ) only added to the excitement quotient of the trip further.

Alighting at the immaculately maintained Tadipatri Railway Station 

and a quick authentic South Indian Breakfast 

later all were geared to descend into and explore the Belum Caves.

A comedy of errors happened with our group waiting (im)patiently 

for the local Guide whose number was unavailable  and when we finally decided to descend into the Caves without him

 , we found him waiting for us at the very beginning of the Caves, and the reason . .  .of course no telephone network !!!!

The beauty of the Belum Caves made all the traveling and waiting worthwhile. Discovered in the 19th century by a British Surveyor and later on in the 20th century a group of Germans explored and mapped these caves. A total of 3.5km has been explored and only 1.5km of these caves are open to the tourists. These limestone caves have been carved due to an erosion by an underground river resulting in tunnels of giant proportions & smooth walls. Also one is greeted by a giant, beautiful and serene statue of Buddha at the entrance of these caves.

The Belum Caves is the largest and longest cave system open to the public on the Indian subcontinent, known for its speleothems, such as stalactite and stalagmite formations. I was reminded of the Enid Blyton example of childhood that Stalactites hold tight to the ceiling and Stalagmites might one day reach up and touch the stalactites. The Belum Caves had long passages, galleries and spacious caverns.  Because of the Monsoon only part of the caves was open for viewing and the depth of how far we could descend and what we could see was around 120 feet below ground level.

This natural underground cave system was formed apparently over the course of tens of thousands of years by the constant flow of underground water. Intricate patterns in the limestone walls and ceilings and a natural Air Conditioner had us awestruck. After a sufficiently long sojourn at the Caves, we ascended to the ground level and proceeded towards Gandikota. Few hours later we checked into the sprawling and picturesque one and only  Government  Resort .

Lengthy session of music, dance and more music was on the agenda interspersed with tea, random snacks and dinner.

 Sunday morning after breakfast we eagerly proceeded towards the Gandikota Fort and Temple ruins and Canyon. 

There are several other attractions in and near the village that allure visitors, the most special being the ancient, magnificent Gandikota fort that sits majestically on top of the gorge. Apart from the unmatched beauty of the gorge, the mystical charm of this fort makes a visit to this village all the more exciting for history lovers and adventure seekers.

The ruins of the temples of the Vijayanagara era had me wondering about the original grandeur of the place . No wonder this place has got the tag of  'Mini Hampi'. There were ample photo ops within the temple complex. 

We regretfully left behind this magnificent example of Man’s creation and proceeded to soak in the larger Nature’s creation.  We eagerly rushed towards the spectacular gorge formed by river Pennar that cuts through the Erramala hills. This handsome piece of Nature’s architecture has come to be known as the Hidden Grand Canyon of India by travelers who visit it and get bewitched by its beauty. No words and photos can do justice to the beauty of the Canyon.

On our return back from the Gandikota we stopped by at the ruins of the Ranganathananda temple which has some amazing carvings depicting the Dasa Avatharams of Lord Vishnu. The Vaishnavite influence in the Temple sculpture was very evident.

 Mention also has to be made of the Mosque, the pool and the granary within the township which the Fort housed.

We returned back to the Resort only because our return tickets were booked !!!

After a lazy lunch it was a couple of hours drive to good old familiar Tadpatri Station . 

Next day morning led to more games and it was a tired but happy bunch of travelers... nay friends that dispersed with promises to meet soon for another adventure . It never ceases to amaze me on the experiences that we as travelers are fortunate to have on weekends just because of our inclination to explore and go a little bit beyond our comfort zones. 

Thank you Jaal and Sai and Team Tattva Adventures for another memorable trip.