Chikmagalur district
Chikmagalur taluk
The district headquarters taluk, and the reason most people come. Coffee estates start at the edge of town and climb straight into the Chandra Drona range — Mullayanagiri, Baba Budangiri, Seethalayyanagiri — so the highest ground in Karnataka is a forty-minute drive from a bus stand. This is where Indian coffee began: Baba Budan is said to have carried seven beans back from Mocha in the 1600s and planted them on the hill that now carries his name.
13 places to visit
- Mullayanagiri, Karnataka's highest peak
- Baba Budangiri and the Datta Peetha
- The first coffee planted in India
- Muthodi, the tiger reserve's nearest range
Open the full map · boundaries Nayvik, CC BY-SA 3.0
PeakMullayanagiri
The highest point in Karnataka, wrapped in cloud
PeakBaba Budangiri
A shared shrine on a ridge of coffee legend
Seethalayyanagiri
The green shoulder below Mullayanagiri, with a Shiva shrine and a view over both valleys.
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
WildlifeBhadra Wildlife Sanctuary (Muthodi)
A tiger reserve in the coffee hills
PeakDeviramma Betta
The third summit of the Chandra Drona range, and an 800-year-old hill goddess.
WaterfallManikyadhara Falls
A sacred spray on the Baba Budangiri slopes
TempleVeeranarayana Temple, Belavadi
A rare three-shrine Hoysala temple
TempleKodandarama Temple, Hiremagalur
The town temple where Sita stands on Rama's right — an arrangement you will not find elsewhere.
HeritageCoffee Museum, Chikmagalur
The bean's journey, from Baba Budan to your cup
LakeHirekolale Lake
A mirror for the Mullayanagiri range
LakeGalikere
A small hill tarn on the Baba Budangiri ridge — the windy lake, and usually empty.
What to eat in Chikmagalur
- Filter coffee from the estates around town — stone-ground, drunk in a steel tumbler
- Akki rotti with coconut chutney at any Malnad mess before a hill drive
- Kadubu — steamed rice dumplings, sweet with jaggery or savoury with jackfruit
- Bamboo shoot (kanile) palya in the monsoon months, when the shoots are young
Getting around
Everything in this taluk is a day trip from town. The Mullayanagiri–Baba Budangiri loop is a single narrow road with a forest checkpost; go early, and do not attempt it in a low-clearance car after heavy rain.