After visiting a couple of archelogical places we wanted to relax and enjoy the nature. Hence we decided to visit Markonahalli dam which is about 100 km from Bangalore. This is a calm and quite place to spend the weekend, especially for all the nature lovers. We spent about 90 minutes sitting on the bench seeing the water and hearing chirping of birds. On the other side of the dam, there is a beautiful park and kids play area. This Dam is built across the river Shimsha by Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV under the guidance of Sir M. Visweswaraiah.
The speciallity about this dam is it shows exemplary work of Sir M. Vishweshwaraiah.
Siphon systems are created to flush out the excess water. As per the dam official, this is Asia's first Siphon dam. This is a must visit place for civil/mechanical students for its engineering marvel. Here water is sucked into the pipe from the small openings due to air pressure difference and pushed into the well which is approximately 90 feet. One can see the turbine like structure inside through which the water flows. This is done to control the flow of water. When it crosses the danger mark, crest gate will be opened manually with the help of motor. In case of power problem they have a handle to open. As per the official, during monsoon season when the dam is full, this will look like the turbine is rotating. In reality, it is not the case. We were lucky to see this before the dam was full.
For food you need to travel approximately 2 km from this place. The first restaurant you see when you touch Bangalore Tumkur highway when returning to Bangalore is Adyar Ananda Bhavan.
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