Ettina Bhuja
The ox's shoulder — a 1,300 m rock nose over the Charmadi valley, and the district's best half-day climb.
Ettina Bhuja means the ox's shoulder, and from the valley the profile is exactly that. It stands at about 1,300 m in the Mudigere range of the Charmadi ridge, and the walk up from the base takes roughly three to four hours through estate land, shola and finally open grass. The summit is a narrow rock shoulder with an almost 360-degree view; on a clear winter morning the cloud sits below you in the valley towards Shishila.
What to do here
- Climb to the shoulder for the valley view
- Start before dawn for the cloud inversion
- Look for hornbills and giant squirrels in the shola on the climb
It is the most rewarding single-day summit in Mudigere taluk, and the introduction most trekkers get to the Charmadi ridge before attempting Amedikallu or the Bandaje traverse.
History
The peak sits in the belt of grassland-and-shola country that the Charmadi ridge villages have grazed and farmed for generations; the trekking route is a herders' path formalised by use.
Travel tips
Approached from the Charmadi side via Shishila or from Mudigere; about 85–95 km from Chikmagalur town depending on the route. Three to four hours up, two down. Carry all your water — there is none on the route in the dry months.
Please note
Do: take a local guide. The trail crosses private estate land and forks more than once. Do: wear proper shoes; the last section is loose rock on grass. Do: carry salt for leeches between June and September. Don't: attempt the summit rock in wind or rain — it is exposed and there is nothing to hold. Don't: camp on the summit; it is not allowed and there is no water.
Combine your trip
Places near Ettina Bhuja
Amedikallu
The hard one on the Charmadi ridge — steeper than Ettina Bhuja, rockier at the top, and far quieter.
Jenukallu Gudda
Honey-rock hill — named for the wild hives on its cliffs, and they are still there.
HeritageKottigehara
The junction town where the plateau ends and Charmadi begins — coffee, cardamom and the last fuel pump.
Bandaje Arbi Traverse
Two days from Sunkasale over Ballalarayana Durga and down past the falls to Ujire — the finest walk in these hills.