Sakleshpur Coffee and Cardamom Hills

A planter shows you coffee under silver oak shade, pepper vines and the low cardamom plants, and how each is picked and dried. Tasting included. From December the coffee bushes may carry red cherries.

A star shaped fort built by Tipu Sultan in 1792, about 250 steps up from the highway. On a clear day you look west over the Ghats. Open until about 6 PM, no entry fee as per Karnataka Tourism.

A small Shiva temple on a hilltop, about 35 km from town, with wide views over coffee country. The last stretch is steep and rough. If it is too rough for the car, you walk up the steps, about 30 to 40 minutes. Open about 6 AM to 5 PM.

A small forest waterfall, also called Abbi falls, about 5 km from Hanbal down a short off road track. It flows best from August to December and can be thin by March. Do not get into the pool when the water is high.

On a clear day you see three ranges: Kumara Parvatha, Pushpagiri and Dodda Betta. The last stretch is narrow and slow through forest, and phones lose signal, so we leave by 3 PM to be back before dark.

A 160 year old French built church left behind when the Hemavathi dam came up. In winter it often stands in the water, in summer you can walk right up to it. Free.