Aug 24th, 2025

When I decided to visit Harohalli lake in North Bangalore on one of my bird photography jaunts, I realised that there was sufficient potential for error in getting there, since there is another lake by the same name in the village of Harohalli in the Ramanagara district just 50 km away from Bangalore, which our ‘friendly, mischievous’ Google is happy to throw up.

To add to my bewilderment, another lake called Herohalli showed up in my online search. And then to top the confusion, Google maps indicated 2 names Harohalli and Gantiganahalli for the same lake!

Anyway to cut the tale of puzzlement short, the friends whom I accompany on these trips, seemed to know exactly which lake to head to and thus began our birding session one early Sunday morning at Harohalli Lake, Yelahanka, Bangalore Urban district, Karnataka, India

Fear not, I will provide the accurate Google link at the end of this post but for now, come with me as I take you through a visual exploration of whatever I found at this lake.

Map from Google

Harohalli Lake – 

Framed by multiple High rise apartments that line the periphery, this lake nevertheless does manage to retain a scenic beauty of sorts, mostly due to the good work of restoration achieved by community involvement and also the construction of a neat and paved track around its perimeter.

Spread over around 74 acres (some sources say 90 acres), this lake also has a couple islands within, which are densely wooded thus making it conducive for large number of birds to nest and perch.

The lake is home to diverse birdlife, both migratory as well as resident.

The track around the lake is said to be around  3+ km.

One can walk all around or choose various vantage points to stop, spot and photograph the birds.

A paved walking and jogging track, a cycling dirt track alongside, helpfully placed benches at frequent intervals, a watchman’s cabin at the gate, washroom facilities for both genders (not sparkling clean but manageable), fruit trees like the Singapore cherry, jamun, papaya, etc, an outdoor ‘gym’ with some basic fitness equipment for people to use and a generally well maintained environment, make this park a popular choice for people in the locality to visit on a daily basis.

A short video glimpse – 

Coming soon

Birds of Harohalli lake –

Over 180 species of birds, both resident and migratory, have been recorded at this lake.

My birds – 

When we visited, our tally included Baya weavers, drongos, red whiskered bulbuls, lapwings, pelicans, spotted doves, babblers, ashy prinias, lapwings, cormorants, darters, egrets, coots, brahminy kites, kingfishers, painted storks, lesser whistling ducks, herons and so on.

My favorite was a Common hawk cuckoo which sat atop a pole and posed unflinchingly for a very generous duration.

Timings – 

The timings displayed at the entrance say 5 am to 9 am and 4 pm to 7 pm. The watchman does an efficient job of monitoring this.

Additional information –

2 wheelers are parked at the main gate itself and cars have an informal parking facility on the street which is diagonally opposite the gate.

We stopped for breakfast on the way back at Udupi Aatithya 3.5 km away on Doddaballapura main road. The food was ok though not outstanding.

Getting there – 

Google pin to the spot that we went to –

https://maps.app.goo.gl/5UFDTBppZbnoP6Qo8 

Please Note –

This was a personal trip and my narration is based on the inputs I received from various sources as well as my own experiences.

For more pictures see My Facebook – Harohalli Lake

Also catch me on My Facebook, My Facebook page, My X and My Instagram

Before venturing, please check what birds have been recently sighted. There are a few websites like eBird which provide regional and current statistics.

I would really appreciate your feedback and comments in the comment box below.

Aug 24th, 2025