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Hogenakal Falls is a beautiful water falls
in the neighboring state of Tamilnadu, is a good Picnic spot and also its water is
supposed to have curative powers. This beautiful, quiet waterfall is 25 km from Dharmapuri
and 180 km from Bangalore towards Salem. Here the Cauvery River enters the plains and the
river dashing against the rocks is a great sight. Hogenakkal is a riverside spa where,
according to its devotees, good health can be had for the asking. The sound of the
Cauvery, roaring between rocky banks, is a constant presence in most places in Hogenakkal.
The river, here flows through a |
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wooded valley, splitting and merging and
splitting again around rocks, and little islands with towering trees, and boulder-strewn
out crops, which are covered only when the river is in spate with the rains of the
monsoon. People cross the current-rippled waters in circular basket boats covered in
buffalo hide or plastic.
These boats are not nearly as flimsy as they look and their design has remained unchanged
for thousands of years, though the plastic covering is a recent development. A causeway
joins some of the islands, serving the malishkarans, the masseurs, and their patients.
Armed with oils, powder and knowledge of the fourteen massage points in the human body;
they seat their clients on slabs of rock and get to work. After which their customers must
be sluiced down in the bathing cubicles, standing under cascades of flowing Cauvery water.
A boat ride through the turbulent waters of the river to the base of roaring falls is the
highlight of any Hogenakkal trip. The water under your frail craft explodes with power,
tossing you from side to side, threatening to swamp and capsize you. And all the while
those beautiful falls hurl torrents of fury, bellowing, spraying you with their anger,
overwhelming your senses, drowning all through. It is a spectacular, nerve-tingling
experience, which one can hardly forget. The spot is particularly impressive in
July-August. A huge weekly fair is held in the nearby village of Pennagaram. This
picturesque picnic spot is about 183 km. from Bangalore via Dharmapuri. The Kaveri River
falls here at several places at varying heights. There is a guesthouse belonging to the
Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation. |
