Located 180 km from Bangalore, this paradise originates as a small stream in the highlands of Karnataka and gathers momentum as the land drops in elevation. It becomes larger as various tributaries feed into it on the way down.

At Hogenakal, the Cauvery, now a large river, drops into the low elevation of Tamil Nadu and creates numerous waterfalls as the water cuts through the rocky terrain. The river then spreads out over a wide area of sandy beaches and flows through a straight but narrow ravine near Salem where the Mettur Dam creates a 60 sq km lake called Stanley Reservoir.

Get Ahead reader Ravindra Prasad, project manager with an IT company in Bangalore shares some of his experiences during a weekend trip to Hogenakal.

Text: Ravindra Prasad

Photographs: Prasanna Belkale