Udupi 60 Kms north of Mangalore is the seat of Lord Krishna, considered to be one of the holiest places for pilgrimage in southern India. Here there is a holy temple of Sri Krishna and this is the birthplace of Sri Madhwacharya, founder of Dwaita Philosophy and one of the three great Acharyas, he is reputed to have discovered the idol of Shri Krishna from a ship, which he saved miraculously from the clutches of fatal storm breeding on the sea at Malpe. One day when he was performing his morning prayers on the Malpe shore, he found that a ship sailing in the sea, was in danger owing to rough weather, Sri Madhwacharya with his divine power was able to control the rough weather. 

MALPE BEACH

Here are bunch of photos of St Marys Island, taken by my photographer-friend Nagesh who has roamed this coastline since his childhood (and who is, incidentally, shooting Indias first fully digitally shot movie). Since they are such lovely snaps, I decided to let the story follow the photos.

As I wrote something ago if karnataka gets its act together, it has everything going for it to emerge as Indias top tourism destination. Here is more proof.

St Marys island is a little slip of land about 30 minutes out into the sea from Malpe beach in Udupi. As you can see in the photos, God certainly let loose on this one; it is gorgeous and I can say this with the certainty of someone who has seen a fair number of beaches and islands across the world. The island is full of crystallised basalt rock, a unique rock formation found in very few places in the world, the most notable being the Giant's causeway in Northern Ireland.. And, the sea between the island and the long curve of the beach at Malpe is placid and gentle (or at least looks that way).

MURDESHWARA

Murudeshwara Temple and Raja Gopura: This temple is built on the Kanduka Hill which is surrounded on three sides by the waters of the Arebian sea. It is a temple dedicated to the Lord Shiva, and a 20-storied Gopura  is constructed at the temple. Two life-size elephants in concrete stand guard at the steps leading to the temple. The entire temple and temple complex, including the 249 feet tall Raja Gopura, which is considered the tallest gopura in the world, The temple is entirely modernised with exception of the Sanctum Sanctorum which is still dark and retains its composure.

 The Main deity is Sri Mridesa Linga, also called Murudeswara. The linga is believed to be a piece of the original Atma Linga and is about 2feet below ground level. The devotees performing special sevas like Abhisheka, Rudrabhisheka, Rathotsava etc. can view the deity by standing before the threshold of the Sanctum and the Lingam is illuminated by oil lamps held close by the priests. The Lingam is essentially a rough rock inside a hollowed spot in the ground. Entry into the Sanctum is banned for all devotees.

KAPU BEACH

Unexplored beauties of the nature. The whiteness and calmness seen at the Kaun is simple great. Kaup is perfect holiday station as the greenery and local fauna is astounding. The foremost attraction of Kaup is ruins of fort and an old lighthouse that is almost 100 ft high.
 

Location and Accessibility - Kaup is just 12 km away from the main city nearby Udupi. Also, buses and taxis are available all the time. However, it is not far from the railways station and airports.

KARKALA

Vibrant in activities and dynamic in environment, Karkala, a historical town and pilgrim center for Jains and Hindus is a peaceful Udipi district in Karnataka. Its name is derived from the Kannada word karikallu which means black stones.

Karkala is a tranquil town very well known for the Jain Basadis and the gigantic monolithic statue of Bahubali, which stands majestically in the heart of the city. Another main attraction here is the huge Chaturmukha Basti, a wonderful site. Karkala is a center of bubbling activity where agility and dedication combine to take a remarkable form. The visitors will be over whelmed with young zealous sculptors etching beautiful figures and bringing life to stones.

Karkala is a tranquil town very well known for the Jain Basadis and the gigantic monolithic statue of Bahubali, which stands majestically in the heart of the city. Another main attraction here is the huge Chaturmukha Basti, a wonderful site. Karkala is a center of bubbling activity where agility and dedication combine to take a remarkable form. The visitors will be over whelmed with young zealous sculptors etching beautiful figures and bringing life to stones.

MANIPAL ENDPOINT

Heard about the Western Ghats? Its runs parallel to the western coast of our country, keeping in it lap one of the most beautiful scenic places. Now who needs to go to Switzerland and Kashmir when you have your mini heaven here itself. Manipal also falls in the Western Ghats giving rise to beautiful natural places.

At one end of Manipal lies a deserted place famously known as End Point. Well I feel short of words while explaining the naturalistic beauty of this place. Just imagine yourself standing on the top of the plateau on which Manipal is founded. A beautiful river runs below the hilly area. Trekking down the place is very very exciting, encountering all sorts of plants and going through the areas of dense vegetation down the plane.

JOG FALLS

Jog Falls : Created by the Sharavathi River falling from a height of 253 m (830 ft) is the highest plunge waterfalls in Indias Located in Shimogha District of Karnataka state, these segmented falls are a major tourest attration It is also called by alternative names of Gerusoppe falls, Gersoppa Falls and Jogada Gundi

The Raja Falls peacefully streams down; the Rani Falls follows a winding path, the Rover Falls bursts out of a rocky stretch, while the Rocket Falls gushes out in high speed remaining true to its name. The natural beauty and the forestry around add to the beauty of the falls and create a picture of natural abundance. Jog Falls is formed by the Sharavathi River, gushing down from a height of 253 meters. The river originates at Ambuthirtha in Thirthahalli taluk, flows north-west through the Western Ghats forming the Jog Falls before joining the Arabian Sea at Honavar.

COORG

Kodagu : is an administrative distric in Karnataka state in southern India It is also known by its anglicised former name of Coorg. It occupies an area of 4,102 square kilometres (1,584 sq mi) of land in the Western Gharts of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 548,561, with some 13.74% of the population residing in the district's urban centres.

Much of the district is cultivated: characteristically and historically, paddy fields are found on the valley floors, with agroforestry in the surrounding hills. Ginger crops and meadows can also be found in the valley. The most common plantation crop is cofee especially Coffia robustra variety. Kodagu is the first coffee production region in India. The Coffia arambaka variety is also grown in some parts of southern and western Kodagu, the historical area of coffee production. The coffee agro-forestry systems of Kodagu are one of the richest [agroforest] in the world, with about 270 species of shaded trees inventoried (see publications of CAFNET project). But the trend is now to replace the native shade trees by exotic ones In those coffee agro-forests are also cultivated spices like black papper , cardamon, vanilla. Coorg is also famous for its forest honey.

PILLIKULLA

Pilikula literally means Tiger's lake. In Tulu language "pili" means tiger and "kula" means lake. In olden days, tigers used to come to this lake to drink water. Henceforth, this lake came to be known as Pilikula.

The Mangalore City Corporation has developed this area and it has now become the hot spot for people who are looking for scenic beauty & peace. Pilikula has a huge lake & beautifully laid gardens encircling the entire lake. One can see swans & ducks moving around in the lake & sometimes they even move into the gardens. Boating facilities are available in the lake. One can either use pedaling boats (mostly preferred by couples) or bigger boats carry about 10 to 15 persons.

PANAMBUR BEACH

Panambur (Tulu Kannada: ಪಣಂಬೂರು ) is the site of New Mangalore Port. It is located in Dakshina kannada (formerly SouthCanara) district of Karnataka state,India, north of the Gurupura river. The name Panambur is derived from 'Panam' which means Money and 'Ur' which means place or village in Tulu Language There is a Nandeshwara temple in Panambur. The sea port is near to Surathkal  railway station on the Mumbai- Manglore railway route. There is a beautiful beach on the shore of the Arabian Sea at Tanniru Bhavi to the south of sea port at Panambur.Gurupura River is to the south of Panambur.Many factories are located at Panambur including Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers and Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited.

New Mangalore Port Trust operates the deep-water, all-weather port at Panambur, Manglore in Karnataka state. It is the only major port of karnataka and is currently the ninth largest port in India

GOKARNATHA TEMPLE

This is the wiki page for Gokanatheshwara temple as requested by Kensplanet  But do not place the temple image you had placed here on that page. It is not a good quality image of the temple. In fact the temple is in the background, what is in the foreground is the temple tank with a statue of Shiva. I would prefer if you had an image that showed the front view of the temple during day time, or a tripod steadied night image.--

An important temple in Mangalore, Kudroli Gokarnath Temple, built in 1912, is one of the main attractions of Mangalore. Sri Gokarnanatheshwara temple is a unique temple built by Sri Narayana Guru, the saint and social reformer from Kerala, and is the only one in Karnataka by Guru. The reformist Narayana Guru installed this temple for the Billava community, who were prohibited the entry to other temples.

KARKALA CHURCH;

Attur is situated along the outskirts of Karkal and is very well known for the Church that is believed to have healing powers. Also the Patron Saint Lawrence believed to have the powers to intercede with God.Every year in January people from all walks of life regardless of religion and from all over the country pays a visit to offer their prayers. And this year was no exception, people who visited during the peak period were heard remarking that this year may have far exceeded previous years.

The Attur church has an interesting history attached to it dating back to 1790. Christians residing around this parish were taken prisoners by then ruler Tippu Sultan and taken to Mysore but not before he destroyed the existent church. Once the prisoners gained independence they returned back to Karkal and built another church near Nakre. As the church became old and unusable, the parishioners went looking for a suitable place to build a new church.

MYSORE