Tapteshwara Betta

On the 24th of June, I decided to visit Tapteshwara betta again. Last time, I had missed the cave temple. The trek is very interesting. The villagers have fixed chains and ladders to climb up the boulders and reach the cave temple and the summit. My trekker-friends Shreyas and Venkat wished to join me. Shreyas invited his friend Monica as well. So, it was four of us driving towards Kaiwara on a beautiful Saturday morning. 

I parked my car at the village and we walked to the temple by the pond. Last time, I had missed the left turn to reach the cave. This time, I was careful to find the deviation. The white dog that I had seen last time came running towards me. Now she has a puppy too. The two showed us the way. 

After taking a left turn midway, we reached a rock, where we had to slide sideways or crawl. There were centipedes everywhere on the rock, so, we had to be careful. 

We then reached a risky boulder crossing. A ladder and some chains are tied to the boulder to help us cross. But a slip could take you all the way down. We had to be very careful here. 

Another ladder took us to the tree covered area. The cave is barely visible from below due to the trees. 

To reach the cave, we had to climb a rock using the roots of a tree that had grown over it. Inside the cave, two shiva lingas sit, looking at the village below. 

There were several monkeys. They watched us climb up the ladder and some imitated us. The dogs made sure that the monkeys did not get closer to us, to snatch away our bags. But they somehow caught hold of Shreyas's socks. I reached right in time to save his shoe. Some monkeys lazily sat watching our circus with ladders and chains. 

On our way back, the puppy was exhausted. She was also scared of the heights and struggled to follow us back. So, I carried her till the base. 

It is a challenging trek but that is what makes it interesting. The team was energetic and like-minded. 

As this location is not yet commercialised, I refrain from giving  further details about it. If you are eager to find out, I am sure you shall find ways to locate it; just as I did. 

Checkout my vlog on this trek: