Matanga Hill, Hampi, Karnataka India

There is another hilltop which is very famous in Hampi. It is the Matanga Hill. As soon as I heard this that this hilltop gets one of the best sunrise views in India, I immediately decided to go there to try and capture the beauty. The travel guide in the hotel told us that we got to start by 4.30 am to reach the Matanga hilltop in time for the sunrise. As suggested we started from Hospet at 4.30 am and reached the foothills of the Matanga hill by 5.00 am. Although the sign boards were so clear with the route to the Matanga hill, we had to use our mobile torches as it was way too dark than expected. Unfortunately due to the darkness we missed the route completely and went to the backside of the hill. We settled there thinking that it was the sunrise spot. We were sitting there for 20 mins only to find later that the light was coming from behind. As soon as we saw this, we knew we were not at the right spot. We decided to climb up the other way and check if there is any movement of people. Luckily one of my friends spotted a couple of foreigners climbing the hill from the other side. 

Probably Matunga Hill is the most talked about hill in Hampi. Let it be its central location, the oversold sunset/sunrise view or the myths associated with it, this hill commands a special attraction. Being at the centre of Hampi, and also the highest point, Matanga hilltop is the best spot to get an aerial view of Hampi and it’s environs.

If you trace the foothill in a clockwise direction, the road that ends at the Hampi bus station runs along the eastern side of the hill. At the northwest the east end of Hampi Bazaar terminates.  Most visitors prefers to stay in Hospet during their visit to Hampi as it satisfies the accommodation, food and road connectivity needs, but we preferred to stay in Anegundi a small and quite village on the banks of Tungabhadra.  From Anegundi we crossed the Tungabhadra River (at Talarikatta) in the small motor boat, to reach the Vittala Temple.  The short ride took 5 minutes and costed Rupees 10 per person (boat service available from morning 7 a.m. to evening 6 p.m.).  After spending an hour at Vittala Temple, a short walk took us to King’s balance, where one could see 12 Foot granite pillars with pair of stone rings to accommodate large scales. Here the kings of Vijayanagara on certain occasions, used to weigh himself with gold and precious stones, and distributed them to the priests. Going further, we reached Purandradasar Mandapam which is located at the banks of Tungabhadra overseeing the Anjandri Hill, where we had our first break. Sitting in the mandapam with cold river water flowing over our feet felt like heaven for the next 30 minutes. Finally we crossed few more small temples to reach the Achyutaraya Temple, which is also known as Tiruvengalanatha temple, located at the foot of the Matanga Hill.