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Meenakshipura KRS Backwaters: Where the road meets the ripple
The villages dotted along the banks of the KRS Backwaters are lush green, teeming with agriculture, thanks to a robust irrigation channel. In hindsight, though it has relocated a good amount of the populace, the dam and the water in the catchment area have helped them with agriculture nonetheless. The landscape on the periphery of these waters is shaped by history, sustained by water, and cherished by those who visit and live nearby. There are scores of unexplored places scattered alongside these backwaters that make for a serene escape dotted with viewpoints, ancient temples, and lush green villages.
One such hamlet is Meenakshipura, which is not very far from Mysore. With the early onset of Monsoon this year, we have been getting good evening thundershowers as part of pre-monsoon showers. Two days of rain and the mornings are cool, making it ideal for a morning ride. A deviation to the right on the road towards K.R. Nagara takes one through the country roads away from the urbanisation and the hubbub of the traffic on the main highways. The crisp and cool air was fresh, with nothing but green fields and the open blue sky to accompany me. The early morning saw no one in the fields. Just as I spotted the backwaters, I stopped to enjoy the landscape. Numerous birds flitting among trees, and a medley of their melodious clamour, with the high-pitched cry of peacock (searching for a mate) the loudest, was the only sound heard in the otherwise quiet and tranquil surroundings.
Slowly, the locals began to appear, tending to their fields. A kind and amiable old lady who met me where I was enjoying the vast expanse of water and immersed in the melodious tunes of the birds invited to her village. She claimed the view was far more stupendous from her village than what was in front of me. With this, she went on about her routine. After contemplating whether to go on the broken tar road or not, I decided to give it a shot. The last few hundred metres are broken asphalt (at some places, but mostly) gravel and finally just sand and grass on the banks of the backwaters.
I almost always talk to the locals and check with them if it is okay to venture further in order to not intrude into their space and lives without their acknowledgement. This is more important if the place is isolated and they don't see many travellers or outsiders coming there. Invariably, they will be very welcoming and excited to have a new company. More so when it is a solo woman riding a motorcycle. There was a small building with the Tourism Department logo equipped with toilets, but I am not sure if it is operational.
Where the Cauvery River Spreads Its Wings: Explore the scenic KRS Backwaters, a serene escape dotted with viewpoints, ancient temples, and lush green villages near Mysuru.