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Photograph by H. Satish, A.R.P.S, M.F.I.A.P.

Kudremukh Mountain Range
(95 km from Chikmagalur)

For over two thousand years, sailors on the Arabian Sea were said to have recognised the coastline—and thereby their bearings—by the distinctive shape of a mountain peak.

The important landmark for ancient mariners, standing 1894 metres above sea level, was Kudremukh, or Horse Head, from which the surrounding chain of hills took its name. Other peaks in the Chikmagalur stretch of the Western Ghats include Mullayyanagiri (1925m), Baba Budangiri (1894m), Kalhatgiri (1876m), Gangamoola (1454m), Oddinagudda (1526m), Maithvigudda (1661m), Lakke Parvata (1421m), Kanchikal Durga (1220m) and Sakunagiri (1418m).


Two views of Baba Budangiri

Like most ranges within the Western Ghats, Kudremukh is filled with lush forests, rivers, streams, waterfalls and a rich variety of flora and fauna. The Kudremukh National Park is a protected area sheltering animals like the tiger, leopard, wild dog, jackal, lion-tailed macaque, common langur, sloth bear, gaur, sambar, spotted deer, barking deer, Malabar giant squirrel, giant flying squirrel, porcupine and mongoose and about 195 species of birds. There are 13 trekking routes inside the park and the anti-poaching camps on the way are useful as camping sites.

The three main rivers that flow through the region—the Tunga, the Bhadra and the Netravati—originate at a point in the Bhagawathi forest. A shrine to the Goddess Bhagawathi has been built at this sacred meeting place. This is also the location of a cave containing a 1.8 metre-high Varaha image.

Kudremukh is a mining town, with rich deposits of high-grade iron-ore. Interestingly, the Karnataka region was a centre of production of sophisticated steel as far back as 2000 years ago. In the Arab world, China and Europe, this steel was known as wootz, derived from the Kannada word ukku.