matanga hill

Climb the hill in the dark at about 4:30 am and wait at the top of the beautiful Hill for the light to appear and along comes the view clear as far as you can see..

The climb up Matanga Hill is at times narrow and steep with little to hold on to. Going down a bit more anxiety provoking. The view from the top is spectacular especially in the late afternoon light.

This has multiple accesses - one close to Ediru basavanna (opp to Virupaksha temple) and another one near Achutaraya temple. You can get a panoramic view of entire Hampi from the top. Don't ever miss this. The trek to the top takes about 45 mins (average) and is very much manageable by families with kids.

The sun-set is a must. But be careful going on top. Get down on your knees to climb. Try to stick to the right hand side where there are big steps, avoid climbing the boulder into which steps have been made.

It was Rakhi Purnima (a particular full moon night) day on 12th August 2014.Earlier in the morning, we had done a bird watching hike on Matanga Hill with a very good naturalist/ ornithologis/ photographer gentleman named Mr. Samad Kottur. The joy of chatting with somebody so familiar with the Hampi landscape and the joy of identifying rare birds like the Yellow throated Bulbul and the Grey Bellied Cuckoo, and the common, colour changing and territorial Rock Agamas, was still doing magic with our minds. And standing on Matanga Hill, when you scan for the first time the splendour of the ruins of Sule Bazar and Achyutrai Temple, you have to wonder how often in life have you seen something so wondrous?Sufficiently enamoured by the joys and beauty of Matanga Hill, and noting that this night was a supermoon night (when the earth is 30,000 miles closer to earth than average) where the moon iss supposed to be 14% bigger and 30% brighter than the average full moon night, I took the decision to attempt an evening tryst with Matanga Hill. Earlier in the morning, Mr kottur told us of the fauna that one gets around Matanga Hill - sloth bears, an ocassional leopard and snakes of the type of cobras, Russel's vipers and pythons - was a tad concerned about safety in the dark when we have to climb down.Our guest house owner Ravi was circumspect about our safety. But Ishaq, a local, who often looks after the night safety of the guest house and also runs the neighbouring bicycle rental shop, was willing to accompany us to make sure about the paths and the terrain. He also decided to take along Jumbo, a much loved dog in Hampi village with some German Shepherd streak running in his veins. Jumbo's history is that he belonged to a restaurant owner who lost his restaurant to the bulldozers in the cleansing of Hampi Bazar. Several kind-hearted establishment owners of Hampi village, whose businesses were still intact following the cleansing, decided to communally adopt Jumbo. You can see Jumbo in several of these establishments in the village. Ishaq and Ravi loved Jumbo, and Jumbo responded very well to Ishaq's commands. Jumbo is very young and alert. He would be our watch out for a leopard, or a bear, or snakes, for the rest of the time.Around quarter to 5 in the afternoon, onwards and upwards towards the temple on top of Matanga Hill - our group of 5 (including Ishaq) `plus' Jumbo - don't know what Jumbo was thinking, but he was loving every moment. Did you know that you can spot ancient sentry posts on Matanga Hill as you climb? By quarter past five, we were on top of Matanga Hill. There were at least 20 other tourists there at this time. Stunning views from here - the shimmering river, the Virupaksha and Krishna temple and so many other temples across the vista, the Achyutrai and Sule Bazar ruins, the different shades of green from the banana plantations and the paddy fields, the coconut trees, the boulders, the occasional screech from the peacocks, Hampi village, and the drifting temple sounds from the distance - mesmeric stuff. But there was some cloud cover (not too thick) - will the supermoon be visible as it rises? Darkness was setting in by quarter to six, and apart from the six of us, everybody else had started their descent. The view was still spectacular with the lights twinkling into the twilight- a coll breeze was blowing, and there was increasing worry on my wife's face whether we should stay any longer. But I pushed waiting for the full moon to rise until quarter past seven - by this time things were very dark indeed - and the moon was behind the weak clouds. Now my group (including Ishaq) persuaded me start our descent and i had to call off our wait.Jumbo came to his own on this descent as we took a second route (on Ishaq's suggestion), shorter but more difficult - all of us had torches. I was loving every moment - at least once or twice me and my wife slipped (nothing serious) - and ishaq would lead the way. Jumbo would position himself sometimes alongside Ishaq and sometimes just behind all of us - always alert,always trying to sense movements.This alternative route brought us directly onto Sule Bazar - it is very different walking along these long lost ancient shops and buildings in the darkness - eerie, and even more beautiful than daytime. There was no other soul anywhere in the vicinity. Ishaq, next, took us along the banks of the river, along a route I had not seen before, through ancient walkways and buildings, with the river murmuring away - the river had strong current during those days in Hampi - and again, not a soul in sight. and finally, back to Hampi village by eight pm.Brilliant, absolutely brilliant! Thanks Jumbo! Thanks Ishaq!Later around 10pm, the moon was up but it was still sifting through the clouds. I set an alarm on my phone to wake up 3am next morning, this time to see the reflection of the supermoon on the Tungabhadra waters. By this time, it was nearly above the river - when it is nearly vertically overhead, the supermoon doe not look that unusually big. The street dogs chased me away in the stillness of the night.Revisited the ghats (2 minutes walk from Ravi's place) near Viraupaksha temple at around six am - lot of devotees bathing this early morning (well, Raksha Bandhan full moon) - the moon set in the next half an hour.

Great view from Matanga hill, esp of Achutaraya temple .Just feel like sitiing on the top forever. Just make sure u got good footwear while climbing up , as certain spots are a bit tricky and slippery.

Not too bad a climb at all and easy to find just walk towards the hill and you will find the path. Just have good non slip shoes and be careful of the steep bits. So beautiful and doesn't take too long to go up. Maybe 20 mins. Lush :-)

The sunrise point was the only thing left as part of our itinerary in Hampi. We decided to take the plunge on our last day in spite of being dead tired. The struggle that we went through of going through the mighty boulders to reach the top in pitch dark was a stepping stone that seemed insignificant when we reached the top to witness one of the most beautiful spots in Hampi.A guide helped us and another family at 5.30am to climb the Matanga Hills, known for its scenic sunrise. After the challenging trek we finally reached a spot a little before than the main spot and decided to halt there itself. What a brilliant decision it was!Away from the chaos of the few people at the top and the constant camera-clicking, we found solace and peace in this quaint little space of boulders. It was like our private area.An hour passed by and we did not mind the combination of the cold winds along with the faint heat of the sun on the gigantic rocks that enamored us.Also, with no one in sight we could do anything that we want so we decided to dance! Voila, what a trek and sunrise it was. While aligning down, it was comparatively easier as there was natural light all around us. We entered on a scared note without knowing what to look for and exited as confident rock climbers after witnessing the magnificent view of the sun. A Sunday morning, well spent!

Its a long trek through the boulders, but after around 30 minutes of trek, we reach the top, there are ruins of a temple at the top, on which you can climb and have a 360 view of the Hampi and nearby areas.

We walked up the Matanga Hill and the sunset view from the top was breathtaking ! It is a bit of a difficult climb, not suitable for seniors or very small children. My 8 year old did it with ease. Totally worth it !