This is an ancient cave temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, located beside a waterfall and surrounded by the dense forest of the Western Ghats.

The unique, remote setting makes it one of the special temples of Lord Shiva, enhanced by the waterfall that flows over it.

Locals believe the Pandavas built this temple during their period of exile.

Where it is located

Located close to Aralagodu village, about 40 km from Jog Falls or Bhatkal town, along the road between them. It can be found on Maps.

How to reach

By Road 🚘- Bangalore to Bheemeshwar is around 440 km via Shivmogga-Talaguppa-Jog falls. There is no direct buses to this place and It is located between Jog falls and Bhatkal road, So we can reach Jog falls or Bhatkal town first. Many KSRTC or Private buses are available to reach Jog Falls/Bhatkal from all the cities of Karnataka. Many buses run between Jog falls and Bhatkal, so you have to get down at Bheemeshwar bus stop.

Or If your planning by car, Follow google maps to reach Bheemeshwar bus stop. From this Bus stop the temple is still 2 km far, Its a Muddy road. 1 km Down hill and 1 km Up hill drive. If your car is 4x4 or if you have good 😎 driving skill, you can drive this 2 km stretch till the foot of the Temple.

For 🏍 Bikers its a adventure ride. Go for it.😎

NOTE: This Temple is available on Google maps & easy to navigate.

By Train 🚊– No direct trains available for this place, nearest railway station is Talaguppa/Bhatkal. Talaguppa is 50 km from Bheemeshwar.

By Air ✈️- Nearest airport is Mangalore, Bheemeshwar is 180 km.

Best time to visit

Summer ☀️- Feb to May: Hot Weather, Waterfalls will be dried out, But we can enjoy the greenery of forest and pleasant climate.

Rainy 🌧- June to September: This will be good for people who love to explore the place in rain, as this place receive rain continuously in monsoon. But be aware of leeches little bit. A small stream which flows next to muddy road is awesome to experience forest mountain fresh water. But driving on Muddy road is a challenging task.

Winter ☁️- October to January: Best time to visit, fully covered with fog, full stretch of waterfalls and peaceful climate. Ultimate drive experience.

Accommodation

There is no accommodation facility at the temple. Nearest town is Jog falls/Bhatkal as said, But there are many Home stays or Resorts on the few km circle, Google search is the best option to find one.

Temple timings

On normal days temple open at 10 am and closes at 12 pm-1 pm. On Special festival occasions timings varies. A priest stays near to the temple comes everyday and make Pooja around 11 am.

Food

There are no hotels/stalls near the temple, Plan your diet 😁 accordingly.

Special Attractions

While walking on the Muddy road, you can see a beautiful waterfalls far away from you on the middle of mountain, Absolutely no idea about this waterfalls and very difficult to reach this place, As locals say it is bit difficult to reach but am planning to visit on my next visit, and will provide more information.

Precautions

As said the last 2 km adventure drive is too risky and we have to be very care full. But walking on this path is the most beautiful experience of nature and human.

These photos are old and taken with a phone. I will add camera and drone photos when I visit this place again.

“I found far more answers in the woods than I ever did in the city”

— Mary Davis

TRAVEL PLAN

Bheemeshwara is near Jog Falls, Shivamogga, and Bhatkal in Udupi.

Detailed travel plans for the Jog Falls and Udupi tour, with various options, are explained on the Guide page as 2 different destinations.

Check the link below for more information.

Jog Falls

Udupi

Keep this divine place clean | Safe drive

My Travel Story to Bheemeshwara…

This tour happened on 2019 post monsoon, I think September or October.

The route plan was Bangalore - Sigandhur - Bheemeshwara - Kollur - Sringeri - Horanadu - Dharmasthala - Kukke - Bisle - Bangalore in just 2 days, 😎

The same route plan I have explained in the Guide page.

we were only 3 guys, Myself, Kiran & Vishwa. on my legendary car Ford IKON.

After leaving Friday around 7pm, we reached Sigandur by 3.30am, We got fresh on the cold drizzling weather by taking bath from cold water only,,, hot blood age,, nothing happened,, just kidding,, it was freezing cold,, fu*k,,, ahhhhhh,,,, 🥶, still we made it,, and Sigandur temple opens at 4am only for first pooja and visitors are allowed for Darshana, trust me it's really the great Darshana at that time,, no crowd,, first pooja,, cold weather,, complete fresh mind and fresh mood,,, everything fresh and cherish at that moment,,

After darshan we headed towards "Shri Bheemeshwara Temple & Waterfalls" which is 50km from here and complete forest and village road, amazing driving experience during morning fog and cold breeze,, we didn't had any breakfast,

we reached the deviation..

"Bheemeshawara Bus Stop" on the Bhatakal - Siddapur - Sorabha highway,, you can find this place in Google maps easily, we reached around 7am,, it was drizzling and it was our first time to this place,, we were thinking what to do,, because form this deviation further 2km is the temple and road looks muddy and downhill,,

I told we go by walk,, car mag get stuck in mud and it's wet everywhere,, but my friends were so fuc*ing lazy,, they told,, let's go Baba, yours's is legend Ikon,, nothing will happen,,,

..the moment they said LEGEND,, 🥰

I was happy and decided to go by car only, without knowing what could be the circumstances, as that time there was no one to ask how is the road condition,,, so we started,,,

beginning was just the down hill,, after few meters few curves, rocks, slugs and more downfall leading to the stream, it was going smooth and from the stream,, after crossing over by small bridge,, the roads were really bad,, complete muddy puddle road,, no chance to go 2 wheel drive,,

if bike it would be possible or for 4x4 it's a awesome drive,,,

but our case not possible,,, we parked there near by the stream, and we walked further 1.5km,,, during summer it's easy to drive over,, but in rainy season it's difficult,,

We reached temple around 8am,, it's an amazing place,, 🫠, just by the name itself,, the waterfalls is right next to the temple only,,, in the middle of the forest,, cold breeze,, birds chirping, waterfall sound,, a glimpse of forest vibe,, overall it's an amazing place,,, note part is this waterfall will be alive during monsoon season only,, if we visit during summer,, there will not be much water,, so better plan post monsoon for safer side,, additionally it's really an offbeat place,,,

We waited till 9am,, the priest arrived and did some pooja,,, we cannot get into waterfall to take bath or take play,, it's sacred and also very slippery,, very less space to stand,,, but we can enjoy the water stream as I said earlier on the way,,, after darshan and small prasadha,, we headed back, where our car was parked,, between this time it rained for 15min heavily,,, we didn't notice or thought about anything about how to get back to main road in car in that muddy slippery road,, coming down was easy,, but now it's up,,, nkn,,,

it was 500m only,, 4 curves,, almost 30-45degrees steep,, drizzling,, muddy road,, sometime big granite rocks resting on the road itself,, rock itself is a road,, 🤬,, we made the first curve,, awesome,, by the moment we came 2nd curve,, car was coming back,, 🤯,, front tire was almost muddy,, it was resting on rock,, i came down and started climbing again,, ,, ahahaha,,, failed,,, my friends tried to hold form back and put stones to read wheel and tried with half clutch and move,,, couldn't help,, 🥴,, I came down again to 1st curve place,, we came up with some strategy to fill those water streaming small paths with stones and drive in that route,,

,,guess what,, 😈

after 30min of struggle,, it worked,, in one straight drive,,, i crossed 3rd, 2nd curve,,, last curve was ok ok,, not much deal,, our entire dress was mud,, my green IKON was looking like complete brownish dirt car,, yet,, finally we reached main road,,, frustrated,, tired,,, no breakfast,, full mud,, shoes gone,, hungry,,, and all these was nothing in front of those memories with friends in that drizzling,, getting out of that struggle,, fun,, teasing,, missed to mention Leeches kisses,,, ufff,,, overall,,, it's awesome..

Kindly visit this place and keep clean,, as I said, post monsoon is good.