Having finished lunch at Hassan, we didn't go to hotel that was booked for us. Instead we continued on NH48 towards Sakaleshpur for our next place - Manjarabad fort.
It is on a hillock beside NH48 at a distance of 7 km from Sakaleshpur towards Mangalore. There is a village by name Donigal where trucks stop for a cup of hot coffee. The path adjacent to these shops, rather canteens, leads to Manjarabad fort. The fort was constructed by Tippu Sultan, then king of Mysore. Started in 1785, it took 7 years to complete.
Primarily, the star-shaped fort was constructed as part of defense strategy to see British Army from Mangalore. Also, it was used to store ammonium, horses, and a secret tunnel to Srirangapatna, capital of Tippu Sultan. However the tunnel is closed now. There were lot of chambers and we were told they were used to house horses, used as kitchens, bathrooms apart from storing war weapons. In the middle of the fort, there is a well/pond with 'plus' shaped stairs leading to it, which was the source of water back then.
It was drizzling when we went and we drenched. However we didn't quite feel it since our minds were filled by the spectacular view of western ghats the fort was providing.
This is Manjarabad fort from Google Maps, satellite view
After about an hour, we got back to our car and returned to Hassan.
Hassan Trip Loc 1 - Shravanabelagola
2 comments:
Such a beautiful place and the top view is so good!
Saru
@Saru, Thanks. Unfortunately, to look from top view really, one needs to rent a chopper!
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