A Bicycle ride to a nearby hilltop - Budanagudda

Long distance cycling has always been a dream of mine. It still is 😀. It requires physical as well as mental strength. This ride was a part of my training.

What would be a better way of testing one's physical and mental strength, than riding a category 4 climb? (For a noob cyclist 😉)

This article is about my ride to "Budanagudda" a small hill on Hubli - Kalghatagi highway.

The Ride

• Cycle: BTWIN myBike Single Speed
• Distance: 44.2km
• Moving time: 2hr 41min
• Total Elevation Gain: 675m

The Budanagudda Temple

Budanagudda is a hill on Hubli - Kalghatagi Highway (2km from Chalmatti Cross.)
I was scouting segment explore on Strava when I found this place called "Budangudda." Had planned a ride on the coming Sunday. But, the opportunity came unexpectedly.

The unexpected moment:
One fine afternoon at about 1 pm, the electric supply was interrupted. So, decided to utilize this free time and visit this place. Moreover, it was a weekday meaning fewer people 😍

Budangudda is a small hill. The elevation difference is about 98m in a span of 1.7 km. On strava, the climb is classified as category 4 climb.

This is my first attempt to ride a category 4 climb.

The Route

Would it be fun to ride a cycle on a road with a lot of trucks and busses? Probably not! The heavy traffic forced me to take the long country road instead. The country roads were calm and peaceful to ride.

Route Map:

Packed snickers and H2O. Did a quick inspection of the bicycle and started the journey at 2:00 pm.

the road conditions

• Hubli Airport to Kanvihonnapur: Nice tarmac road. This is where I train daily.
• Kanvihonnapur to Chalmatti cross(1.5 km after Dhumvad): Tarmac road, Mostly downhill and with less traffic.
• Chalmatii cross to Budanagudda: Uphill, patchy road, and zero traffic.
• Budanagudda to Achatageri (via Khalgatagi Hubli highway): As expected there was traffic. Took me around 30min to cross 5km. Had to get down the cycle, give way to the busses and trucks every single time. I hated these 30min. 😠
• Anchatageri to Hubli Airport: Again a concrete, country road. Peaceful and calm to ride.

There is nothing much to explain about the ride, so I will let the photos do the job from here ... 

Photo: The Gate to Budanagudda hill

Photo: Start of  Budanagudda climb

Oh did I forget to mention? I took two breaks to reach the top of the hill. And during the second break, I was lying on the road, tired and thinking of quitting. I wondered how hard a category 1 climb would be?

Here are some more pics ...

The last few meters

Reached the top

More photos from the top:

Dry lake :(

Another View

180 degree Panorama 

Stairs to the top

myBike at the top of hill

We often neglect the nearby places and go to explore the world. 

We should spend some time exploring the nearby places. I never knew this beautiful belt of hills existed just 15 km from my home.

For many, it might be a small ride, surely not for me. Especially for a person who would be tired after a 5 km ride. I will talk about the benefits of cycling that I experienced in another post.

Happy that I didn't quit, It gave me a boost in confidence. Follow me on Instagram at @vasantvp

About Budanagudda

I would prefer to share a wiki link rather than writing an 'About Section.' Unfortunately, this place is not on the wiki.

There is a belt of hills at 17km from Hubli. One peak among the belt of hills is known as Budanagudda. "Gudda" means Hill in local Kannada language(Budana-Gudda). On the peak is a Basaveshwar Temple, a deity of the Hindu community.

The peak offers the best scenic view in Hubballi - Dharwad. Every Hublian needs to come here to witness sunrise/sunset.

Important Note: The area comes under the forest department. As per the instructions, the main gate opens at 8 am and closes at 5 pm. But there is a small gate which will be open, read travel tips for more info.

Travel Tips

• A piece of advice, if you hate crowd then don't visit on a full moon day.
• If you are planning to enjoy sunrise/sunset here, then do yourself a favor. Take two-wheeler. The hill is a part of forest protected area and hence is open for public from morning 8 am to 5 pm. But there is a small gate through which you can access the hill any time(at your own risk). Though, I wouldn't suggest that you stay here after 6.30 pm. It could be risky. 
• Also, there are stairs.

That's it, folks!