Elgandal Fort

Reach: 30min ride on a service auto from Karimnagar

Grade: Very Easy. A lot can be done in and around the fort.

Notes: Situated on the banks of Manair river, the fort offers pleasing view of the country-side, the water reserve of the manair dam and the depleting small hills around. There is a lot of illegal and legal mining for granite around the area which is levelling off these beautiful hills. Nevertheless, the fort has many passages and routes around. The best though is the teen-minar on the top which is a very beautiful climb. A pradakshina around the lake is pleasant and beautiful. You can take a raft and have fun around the lake. There are a lots of bears residing at the rear of the fort but comes forward in the night. If you want to experience the wild, it should be ok to make a Tree Stand there by bribing the localites. Do carry some crackers then in case of an emergency. You will surely be able to hear some rumbling and if you are lucky, there may be enough light to see the bear - so, it is advisable to go there on full-moon days and stay over-night by crook. Some rocks there have interesting bouldering problems.

The fort is maintained by the state government with the help of the localites. This is a simple trek but the most interesting part of it are the possibilites around the lake - rafting, fishing, bear-watching, rock climbing etc.

Antarvedi

Route: Via Narsapur(NS) in West Godavari. Trains and buses are available upto Narsapur/Palakollu from where a lot of service autos are available to Antarvedi. You'll have to cross R. Godavari on the small boats available at all times.

Grade: Medium. Will test your patience but will reward heavily for it. It is important to enjoy the trek or else you'll feel too much strain.

Notes: Start from Antarvedi beach to the south-west, reaching the confluence of the southern patch of Godavari with the sea. Have a boat ride to the Anna-Chellella Deevi - Anna aka brother: Bay of Bengal and Chellelu aka Sister: R. Godavari meet here, so it is call the Anna-Chellella Deevi. You can spend some time there and then come back to the shore. Walk towards the light-house which opens at around 12 Noon. Enjoy the scenery from the top.

Then walk North-east for a 30kms untouched single stretch of beach to reach the next confluence point near Karavaka village. You may not find any transport from here, so it is also advisable to stop a few km ahead where you can see some human habitation. A 2km walk into the civilization will get you to a road from where autos are available. Get back to Rajole bus station from there which is well connected to all towns nearby and Hyderabad.

The sunrise is extremely beautiful, specially when the color of the sea turns into a brilliant gold. It is easy and beautiful to have a night-walk in the area. Avoid full-moon and no-moon days very strictly. Inform the local police station before moving ahead, which should be a small formality of writing a letter with your details and showing some ID proof that you are Indian nationals. The challenge of the trek is to carry enough water and manage food properly. The lesser the weight of your bag, the greater the fun. This trek can also be done of a bicycle with ease. Don't forget to greet the millions of crabs en-route. They are shy and quick - try catching them.

Ahobilam

Reach: via Nandyal, Kurnool district by bus, or car. Good roads are available.

Stay: Harita (govt. resort) is available and a couple of guest houses. Call AP tourism dept. to make the required booking. The stay is usually at Lower Ahobilam but there are some cottages at Upper Ahobilam. Food is provided freely at the annadaana satram at upper Ahobilam.

Religious Importance: The place is filled with the stories of Ugra-Narasimha Swamy, an avatar of Vishnu, who is believed to have come through a unique flat rock-face at the top of an 800m hill to rescue his beloved devotee and spent some time in that forest before vanishing into the cave. Ahobilam is also known in myth as the point where the tail of Adisesha ends, with the head in Tirumala hills.
Notes: This is an important part of Nallamala forest. Filled with multiple cascades over 3 perennial streams, Upper Ahobilam also boasts of 3 beautiful waterfalls in the vicinity. Most likely, there will be more waterfalls if we can go to the source of the river about 10km upstream.

There are a total of 9 temples here, of which 5 are around the main temple of Ahobila Swamy. Noting that they are still in caves or on rock ledges, these must be tribal temples which are modernized a bit. So, the temples here are not old but the myth may or may not be. All these small temples are recently constructed.

Starting at the Upper Ahobila temple with the bamboo sticks available at Rs2-3 rent, following the stream beside the main temple towards Jwala Narasimha Swamy temple, you'll reach a point from where a rock path leads uphill towards a flat rock patch 800m high. This is the route to Ugrastambham or in short Ugra as the locals call it. This trek is slippery, slightly risky and not for kids although they can do it with much ease. No guide is required. Start early in the morning and reach the top before it gets hot and enjoy the wonderful scenery of the Nallamala forest range from the top of Ugra.

Get down to Jwala and enjoy the beautiful waterfall there. Monkeys here are a menace - watch out. Do not eat outside or leave your bags unattended. Even chappals and shoes might be stolen or thrown off into the valley - be careful. The waterfall here makes small rainbows with the sunlight right infront of us and on a good rainy day, this will look like a mirror. You'll have to walk under the waterfall for about 10m to get to Jwala. Railings are placed here. Almost everyone other than old people can reach Jwala.

After visiting Jwala, walk towards Prahlada Padi and cover the two temples en-route. The waterfall at Prahlada padi, the rock formations and the small cave are beautiful. We had a lot of fun in this untouched clear water here which splits on the rock here into many streams. It is my favorite place in the trek. It'd be a nice idea to camp here, if possible. Some temples here close before 12 Noon. So, it is best to start the trek by 6 AM and finish by 12 Noon. After that, there is a way to get back straight to the Ahobilaswamy temple, the trek base.

The trek to Pavana is pleasant. You'll have to climb hundreds of steps to reach the top from where it is a simple 3 km walk to the beautiful temple. This temple can be reached by road by a travel of about 10 km I guess. The path is particularly beautiful in the rainy season when there are many streams passing by. It takes about 4hrs to go and return by the same path. There is nothing special about the temple except the serene location.

As we get back, the waterfall near Ahobila swamy temple which is actually a continuation of the same waterfall from Prahladapadi or Padi in short, is also one to enjoy.

Three other temples are situated in between the lower and upper Ahobila temples. Of these, the Bhargava temple is beautiful with the small lake nearby. An easy walk of about 1hr will take you there without a problem. Being a secluded village in the forest, night sky is clear and beautiful here. All directions can be obtained from locallers once you get there. You don't need a guide at any point - just feel free to ask fellow trekkers/devotees.

This is a very good one day busy trek or a relaxed two-day trek as you can plan it out. Take time to enjoy the forest and the sceneries around. Carry some food and water to Ugra, and spend some time there - it is worth every bit of the walk and travel.