Bahubali Cycling

Bahubali

About Bahubali...
   Bahubali is situated near Hatkanangale dist : Kolhapur and is a sacred Jain pilgrimage centre. It is famous for the Bahubali statue and the  boarding school.

Ride start time 5:30 a.m.

Ride distance around 70 KM

Starting the journey from Sangli stand and proceeding through ankali bridge you can choose between two routes. One is through Sangli Kolhapur road via Hatkanangale and the second one is through the bypass road via Danoli. You can also go through one route and come from the second route. We started through Danoli route. The pleasant climate in the morning takes off your riding tiredness (if any..) Before and after danoli you will  get to see the farms small mountains with green and yellow coverage of marigold,crops and trees. The road is nice with no potholes. Here's a chance to attend maximum speed of your bicycle but I recommend to enjoy the nature instead of speed. After all,we do cycling you forget the the tiredness of "speedy" world....After about 10 kilometres from Danoli comes Kumbhoj. Padma Vibhushan Karmveer Bhaurao Patil , a renowned social worker and founder of the vast"Rayat Shikshan Sanstha".
    .  Then comes Bahubali. A steep  cement road takes you to the Bahubali temple premises and the mountain base. You can park your bicycles at the base and then proceed to the temple. Washing your feet takes of your tiredness and seeing the Bahubali statue makes your ride and day satisfied. A few stairs take you to the statue , where you can meditate and feel the inner peace and satisfaction. There are also cement models of various Jain shrines   located all over India. These models give you feeling of visiting the respective place. These models are more than 25 years old in the pre internet era helpful for the people who couldn't visit the respective places all India.

      Then you can proceed to the mountain temple.The mountain has about 300 stairs.You can climb half of the mountain through off road  if you go through one route. Or else you can climb through the stairs on the other side . The stairs are of stone and well built and are from so many years. The students of the ashram and the sportsmen from nearby villages climb up this mountain almost every day. At the top there are four to five Jain temples along with an ancient Shree Durga temple. There is a built cement gallery or a courtyard on the top which gives you the view of all the area
     The smoke coming from villages,the view of  vehicles,the chirping of birds , the feeling of cold breeze and the ringing of temple bells is all felt and seen from the top. This is the perfect spot to sit down and close your eyes to attain maximum satisfaction and offer prayers to the 'Almighty'.
     From there you pass through an old cave like stone building which is cool to an open space garden. Here there are slides and swings for children and nice sitting arrangements to breathe in and relax with the fresh air. Lot of people from near by, come here with their tiffins and snacks and enjoy in the garden with their families and friends. From here you get a view of the mountain range near Alte and Wadgaon. Returning from there you will see a well too.
      After getting down from the hill you have options for breakfast and tea near ashram or else you will get it at Hatkanangale.
       Also you have other routes to return either through Danoli or through Ashta.
        Bahubali route overall is a well mix of trekking and cycling as well .