Seethalayyanagiri
The green shoulder below Mullayanagiri, with a Shiva shrine and a view over both valleys.
Seethalayyanagiri is the hill you pass on the way to Mullayanagiri, and most people drive straight by it. That is a mistake. At about 1,524 m it is only a short climb from the road, the grass is deep and wildflowers and ground orchids come up through it after the rain. A small Shiva temple and a mutt sit near the top, and because the ridge is open on both sides you get the Chandra Drona range on one hand and the plains falling away on the other.
What to do here
- Walk up to the Shiva temple from the parking area
- Sit out sunrise on the open grass slope
- Look for ground orchids and balsam after the monsoon
- Combine it with Mullayanagiri and Baba Budangiri in one loop
It is the easiest of the three big Chandra Drona summits to reach, which makes it the one to pick if you are travelling with children or with anyone who cannot manage Mullayanagiri's stairs.
History
The shrine here is tied to the Sitalayya lineage of ascetics who kept the hill, and it has been a stop for pilgrims walking the Baba Budangiri–Mullayanagiri ridge for generations, long before the road was cut.
Travel tips
Park on the road and walk — the last stretch is not worth driving. There is no shop, no water and no toilet on the hill, so carry what you need up from town. Mist can close the whole ridge in within minutes between June and September.
Please note
Do: take your rubbish back down with you; the forest staff do not clear this hill. Do: keep to the worn path — the grass slope is fragile and erodes fast where people cut corners. Don't: play music or fly drones near the shrine. Don't: light fires or camp; neither is permitted on the ridge.
Stay nearby
Places to stay around Seethalayyanagiri
PremiumTC Resort TRV, Chikmagalur
Mullayanagiri · 12.5 km from town
PremiumTC Resort SLV, Chikmagalur
Chikmagalur Town · 9.9 km from town
PremiumTC Resort GLV, Chikmagalur
Chikmagalur Town · 4.4 km from town
PremiumTC Resort BND, Chikmagalur
Chikmagalur Town · 11.2 km from town
Combine your trip
Places near Seethalayyanagiri
LakeHirekolale Lake
A mirror for the Mullayanagiri range
Kavikal Gandi Viewpoint
The horseshoe gorge on the Mullayanagiri–Baba Budangiri road — fifty steps up, and the whole range in front of you.
WaterfallJhari Falls (Buttermilk Falls)
A white sheet of water off a granite face
PeakBaba Budangiri
A shared shrine on a ridge of coffee legend