Hike to Kethanahalli Falls aka Vivekananda Falls, Chikkaballapur District

12 November 2022

While well marked low pressure was on rampage mode in TamilNadu, it created freezing weather in Bangalore with Sun barely making out. Consistent drizzles rendered city weather lousy. The city MET department measured 22C maximum which is kind of unusual nipping weather. The vagaries of weather is unpredictable. Our plan was to hike Kethanahalli falls near chikkaballapura today but the unusual weather threatened to thwart it. It is difficult to break the inertia during overwhelmingly chilly, gloomy and drizzly weather. However, we made our mind firm and decided go for it!

Kethanahalli falls has been recently in news by the explorers as one of the best weekend getaway near Bangalore. Perhaps unprecedented rains in Chikkaballapura region from past 3 years would have rejuvenated the waterfall. The vigorous monsoon spells would have given rebirth to this forgotten beauty. The name Kethanahalli falls is derived from the village nearby. The waterfall is also known as Vivekananda falls but the reason behind it is unknown. Perhaps the secluded, serene and divine location gives it name as our divine monk Swami Vivekananda. Being separated from civilization, lying in middle of dense forest, the place is also ideal for meditation. Let me give you a preview of this place!

We started drive around 10:40AM and sailed along the Hyderabad highway for an hour. From Hyderabad highway, we took deviation as indicated by maps. The roads were not in good condition. At some places, there were monster potholes and at some places, the concrete roads were not enough to negotiate opposing four wheelers. The village road just before deviation were under construction and perhaps stalled from long time. The ballast was strewed all along rendering the road skiddy. But there were positives as well! We cut to through grape and colourful flower plantations spread throughout the route. The gloomy weather was offset by nature all along route.

Finally, we reached the village around 12PM. There was confusion as which deviation to take (see route section for details). One of villager clearly guided us to take the deviation right after village which leads to parking lot. The mud road is narrow which means hardly two cars can pass simultaneously in opposite direction. At few places, its hard even for single way car drive. It was 1km of bumpy drive on mud road which led us to unofficial parking lot. One of the villager claiming to be owner of parking property collects Rs.50/- and we had to give inevitably shelled out without arguing. Here are some views from nearby.

It was mesmerizing to behold the beauty of nature surrounding the parking lot. The cloud kissed mighty hills, the lush green farm lands and cool breeze, what is more needed to welcome to nature's kingdom. That awesomeness of road cutting through the hills was stunning sight to behold! I was engrossed in nature gazing for a while before we embarked the trek. One can experience both countryside and hillside vibes together. Those infinitely woven mountains, farmland nestled between hills were treat to  eyes.

Amidst the drizzle, we began our hike. The initial trail is flat but as hike progresses, the trail gets bit complicated. The trail later is sort of downhill and uphill. Magnitude of stress was thawed by plenitude of nature beauty. Some part of trail is collapsed owing to heavy rains in recent past!

The waterfall is clearly visible just few minutes from the outset of trail. That impression of beauty gravitates you to reach the finishing lane despite challenging trails at times. Do you see the white spot in picture? That is the waterfall! Note, this was just beginning, there is almost 1+ km to trek further!

But for now, its a distant dream which will manifest once trek pans out!

The final patch is steep downhill to reach waterfall. At many places, trail is collapsed and negotiating the path was turning difficult. Few trail will make your hair stand on the end. We walked slowly over the trail which seemed slippery or risky to handle. At places, the boulders need to be crossed which was challenge amidst rain. Fortunately, barring initial trouble, the rain gods did not bother us thereafter. It was incredible experience amidst the cloud kissed hills and overcast chilly weather. The chillness vanished after arduous hike. Couple of cascades which look like tiny waterfalls are refreshers amidst the hike to ward off fatigue and perspiration! Do watch video to feel the coolness of cascades!

The jungle is dense and perhaps may host wild animals like bear or leopard. So I suggest not too hike in small numbers. Better to group minimum 4 people and plan the visit. The trail is rugged at places and narrow at some. The uneven strewn rocks makes it difficult at times to hike. It may be risky to negotiate boulders when it rains. Lot of attention is needed so that you don't twist ankle.

The last part is upheaval uphill task. An abrupt steep mountain coupled with troublesome slippery path makes it difficult to balance unless you have good shoes. That last trail was damn steep (perhaps 60 degrees). One faulty move, would land you in trouble.

 The trail later gets flat and the first close sight of waterfall greets you! What a wonderful nature. All our stress and confusion vanished.

The down-trek further for few meters led us to base of falls. That was energetic and soothing. Aha! We finally pulled it off and its time now to explore.

The waterfall is surrounded by dense jungles and vibrant hills. The plunge was relatively powerful. Enthusiastic swimmers were engaged in enjoying the energetic massage standing beneath the waterfall. The pond at the base of  waterfall is not deep. Hence it is possible for non-swimmers too to try and get near the plunge point (Just my assumption. Discretion is needed). There is also second plunge following main waterfall. Not sure if this can be reached from primary. It seems to be risky. But one can view the second waterfall part of the primary cascade while hiking.

Before concluding, I hiked to top of waterfall and took few pictures. Even this viewpoint is worth the hike and scenes are breathtaking. It is possible to clearly view plunge from top. More clips in our video at the end. Do wa

Lets dive into few technical details of waterfall. This a cascade waterfall. There are tiny cascades atop waterfall which dives into the pool through primary plunge. Actually there is also a fork which is narrow one besides the primary plunge. The water from primary plunge flows into stream which again forks into secondary plunge. One of the secondary plunge is stronger but difficult to reach. The other fork is tiny and can be viewed after a brief walk over the rocky surface. We can distantly view second cascade from the trail.

After successful visit, the mind was calm and rebooted. That happiness was clearly seen on our return journey. We took only 40mins during return path and hardly felt exhausted.

Conclusion:

Despite the trudge and soggy weather, Kethanahalli Waterfall was worth visiting. Just few meters into the hike, the waterfall becomes clearly visible. The waterfall was palpable when we viewed it from distance. We almost felt as we made it. The sight of waterfall from distance can anyone lure to cross all the hurdles & pain to view it tangibly. Fortuitously, the weather barring initial light rains, did not bother throughout the trek & stay. We felt that weather positively joined hands with us to relish the natural beauty! Moreover, I always believe that the nature hikes are most rewarding regardless of minor hurdles. They unwind your soul and burn bad calories!

Route:

Here is map to reach the private parking arena: https://goo.gl/maps/1mPB8gfTSk3xGvcG9

The one shown by google maps was steep mud road from road level and we hesitated to take that path. Finally the decision was to seek help of villagers than guessing the right path.

We asked 3 villagers about the deviation to take. First villager said he is not aware of falls. "Illi yenadru falls idya sir. Nange gothirlilla!" (Is there any falls nearby Sir, even I was not aware!) he uttered in Kannada. I was startled for a moment if we reached right place. Then with further inquiry,  I came to know that he is native of Chikkaballapura and not village. Sigh of relief!

One of bike group was also on the way to falls but they too were not aware of right path. We inquired  second villager who clearly guided us to take deviation near crusher factory. Innocent guy was asking if are going to Jog Falls, that was humorous. Villagers term falls as Jog falls generally. So not be confused. On further drive, the person near crusher factory said to take nearby deviation. Unfortunately, on reaching deviation, we realized that it was only possible for two wheeler to drive through the road. Negotiating small road was not possible in four wheeler.

Inevitable, we decided to take the one shown by Google maps. Before that decided to ask final time with villagers. The tractor driver was the one who guided us to take deviation right after village nearby water-tank meant for cattle (perhaps). "Ooru aagida takshna ondu neerina thotti ide. Alle pakka iro road alli 1km hogi parking jaaga siguthe" (Just after village, there is a road beside water tank. Take that road to reach parking lot), he guided positively. This deviation is just before the one shown by google maps. I had seen that deviation initially which was right after village boundary. We reversed path again and drove through the mud road as indicated by 3rd villager. This was the right path eventually! While driving on this road, we frequently inquired villagers to ascertain that we were on right path. 1km drive, we reached parking area and thus clearing initial hurdle.

From main road, its around 1km drive along mud road. If you get lost, have below picture handy. There are couple of tanks (perhaps for cattle) as reference points.

I got information that the trail near crusher factory is the best. You need to park vehicle on roadside and later walk over the trail for 2km. This trail seems to be flat and not strenuous. If you are biker, then you can reduce the walk distance to perhaps 1-1.5km. But I am not sure if you can feel the trek vibes or even enjoy intermittent cascades. If you are OK with strenuous hike, then take the one I have mentioned above!

Few take away from our hike:

Start early. Do not wait till mid-day. The forest is relatively dense and hence plan to return by noon or max by 4PM

Unlike the waterfalls of Western Ghats (like Arashinagundi) which remains in twilight zone till you reach closer, this waterfall exposes shortly while strolling through trail. The trail is not flat but mix of downhill and uphill. The uphill at times is steep and slippery.

It is around 1.5kms trek (measured with smart watch). This is the path in google maps if you are planning by car.

Forest guards may enter surprisingly and warn or disallow you. They created confusion in our minds as well while return, but we clearly said that we had no idea. They say that the area is owned by forest department and parking lot is not owned by farmer. Ironically, farm land is situated near by parking area. How did reserve forest allow farming activities?

Wear a good pair of shoes including for children also. It helps in wet weather, slippery mud along trail and smooth rock surfaces near waterfall

Visit just after winter sets in. Avoid thunderstorm days when weather pattern is unpredictable. It can pour cats & dogs. Contrastingly, the waterfall may not have much glory if the region did not receive copious rains during monsoon season. You may end up in trouble in former case or disappointment in latter case. Watch MET news before travelling. 

Couple of cascades en-route to waterfall are manageable. But the torrents may be unbearable if it rains heavily. Avoid days close to heavy rainfall. Again watch out for rainfall reports from MET department

Most importantly, do not litter please. This is a remote area and no administration would take responsibility to clean the area.

Here is a short video from our visit