Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Trek at Chembra Peak
Riding my cycle this Sunday morning (6am ) I was enjoying the cool air and green freshness of grass in IJIPURA(one of the GREEN places in Bangalore ).It had rained the night before and the air was filled with scent of wet mud and sun hide beneath the horizon.It was a perfect start to the day..but some thing was weighing me down ..ahh!! I know my ego was bruised .......
I wondered what went wrong !!!I had a great start to my journey.
On our way to Sultan Batheri , our bus had halted near Bandipur Forest Reserve ( there is a supreme court ruling not allowing night traffic in Bandipur from 9pm to 6am)
we had reached Bandipur by 3.30 am and had to wait till 6.00 am before we could proceed towards Waynad .At 5.30 am my sleep broke to the noises of monkeys and peacocks.
It was still dark outside ...i decided to get down from the bus ( for obvious reasons ) .Feeling the fresh cool air in my lungs I found myself in total calmness.I looked up into the sky and was amazed.Billions and billions of stars were shinning ever so brightly ,i felt as though i could pluck some of them .It felt as if the roof of a house had be embedded with billions of diamonds .i could even see the fail trail of the andromeda galaxy ( i really couldnt belive it but its true)
For once i wondered of the possibility of sneaking into the forest ans settling down there ;-) ...
Me , badri and Vineeth(Badri's Bro) had decided to scale one of the most exciting but straineous trekking peaks "CHEMBRA Peak " in Waynad,
As always we were again late to start for the trek and started our trek at 11.45 am with the sun warming up the terrain.The ideal time is 8.00 AM(at max) and this trek usually takes 4- 6 hrs both sides combined.I must confess the trekker inside us had a very big EGO .
"4-6 hrs ? damn easy piece of cake ...." I thought
We took a ride to the starting point of the trek ,after getting the permission for the trek although the officer advised that 11.45 am is not a good time to trek.We were constrained by the time limit of 6am-2pm.
VOLA!!!! We began our trek.We also had a guide with us( it is compulsory ) and while we were in shoes and sweat bands he was just wearing slippers ;-() !!
The initial part of the trek was quiet smooth but after we reached the watch tower at the bottom of the peak,
the route started becoming steep.Huffing and puffing we kept going on our ascent and kept taking 2 min breaks.It was tiring but our EGO egged us on "...hey its just a piece of cake
u did Yelagiri ...u are a expert trekker(hehehe) ... u can do this one tooo ....." yee yee!!! The guide was climbing as though he was climbing small stairs ..we were not able to keep up with him both in pace and distance .... but the scenic beauty of the hill surrounded by Tea Estate and shade from the trees gave us enough spirit to keep going ...
The guide was moving too fast for us and in trying to catchup we were pushing our self faster there by loosing precious energy reserves.One thing i learnt from this trip was in such strenuous
treks "slow and steady" is the best option ... but ours ego was at stake
" slow? ..... for this peak? ...no ....never .....its easy ..it cant be tough ... we are a trek experts (...what a crap ;-) )!!! ......"
Gulping in more air ..our lungs started burning in pain ...thighs aching and screaming for a break .
And then ,as a first causality vineeth became very very tired and decided to take a longer break.To start with we decided that Vineeth will stay put at a shady place where we took a small break and he would join us again when we return back from peak ...we gave him some water and food reserves ....and continued our ascend ,with one member less ( ;-) ).
Most of the climb was steep and we were frequently taking 2 min breaks ...but again the guide was climbing up fast and we again tried to keep pace with him ( instead we could have told him to slow down ...this was a big mistake )On the way we inquired about a perinneal lake that
was supposed to be near the peak and were told that we would come across some where in the middle ...) middle ...? We haven't even covered half of the distance.
As we kept ascending the scenic beauty surrounding us gave much needed coolness to our eyes .... the mountain was covered with beautiful blanket of green and pinkish and velvet blanket of
shrubs and grass ... the clouds looked a bit closer and with their shadows running on the peaks it seemed like the mountains were dancing with the clouds .
The greenery and the altitude altogether took us to a different world ....away from chaos to calmness ....."THIS IS LIFE .." I said to my self ...
But oucch !!! i felt pinch in my legs .... we have been trekking for an hour now and with each quick step we were becoming more and more exhausted ....
And then the second causality ;-) badri decided to take a longer break ... with the sun beating behind and we ascending at faster pace we inadvertently were wasting our energy and getting exhausted in the process of keeping up with the pace of the guide ...
I left some more food and water with badri and headed for the summit assault ;-) (although i must say i had my doubts about that ..)
After a brief climb the trek eased out
Howww!! we had reached the lake.It was a beautiful heart shaped lake.
For some strange reason the guide thought of returning back ....
WHAT !!!why return back after coming so far ....
he showed me the peak and ..it defiantly didn't look pleasant ... we had three more peaks to scale before we could reach the final peak .... What the heck ...lets do it i said .... frowning he said "OKK SAAARR " .After taking a few bites from candy bar and washing my dry throat with water I set for the ascend again .The first of the peaks was near the pond ... but the ascend was steeper than before.After climbing a few rocky paths i took a few min break ....I wanted to be immerse into the beauty of the place .....the breeze brought with it smell of grass and fresh air .... I thought I would be more than happy to settle on this mountain ..so calm .. so surreal so very natural ....
I took another look at the peak ... the peak was covered with clouds and it was as if it was enticing me to go 4 it .... being on the top of mountain among clouds would be a EXILLARATING experince ... i thought......a few deep breaths and we again began towards the peak .As we reached closer to the first peak i again took a break much to the irritation of the guide .
I took 4-5 such breaks and could see the guide getting irritated and impatient ... after one such breaks the guide started cribbing .."let go back ...we have to be back by 2 pm ....the officer will scold me ...blah blaah .."
After giving a thought i didn't wanted to spoil my mood getting into argument with the guide( I should have ...2nd mistake )I that moment of tiredness and exhaustion i did the mistake of agreeing to go back ....(if only i had known how bad my ego would get hurt ;-) )
After a few snaps and rest we trekked our way back ..we reached the lake again and i had a small BATHING session (of course with clothes on ) and started back ...as we started we saw Badri and vineet climbing and nearing us ....they seemed to be more energetic now ,guess the break had re-energized them ...we went back to the lake again ....and again upon enquiring about going for the top .. the guide starting cribbing again" 2'o clock saar ...."
We decide to skip the peak and trek back ... with clouds still hovering over the peak my heart was screaming at me to go 4 it while my brain was preparing me for descend .....
With a very heavy heart and a bruised ego we headed back ....
While descending all three of us had our shares of slipping and falling but it was fun ..for we would slip on lush grasses and it would be like slipping on a sofa we would be rebounded by the dense grass and shrubs ....
Reaching the bottom and waiting for the auto to take us back ...i felt gloom descend upon me ...."why didn't i go for it" ....the sight of the clouds laden peak kept coming in front of me ...no matter what argument i tried to give .. i couldnt convince myslef ....This was one of the most beautiful and most challengin treeks i have ever been but not scaling the peak was like a flop show..
Taking a morning bus from Kalpetta to Bangalore ...looking outside the window ..with cool air crashing into my face i promised myself to go for the peak again ...within next 3 months ...I would defiantly have to increase my capacity and work more on my fitness.....
I cant but help reiterating the poem
"There is pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society where none intrudes,
By the deep sea and the music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but Nature more."
— Lord Byron
For pics click below
==============
--------------------
HOW TO REACH
==============
There are several buses running from Bangalore to Kalpetta/Sultan Bateri .For Chempara peak one has to reach "Kalpetta". From kalpetta one has to reach the VSS office at chembra towers at meppadi.There the fee for trekking is Rs 500 for upto 10 persons .So even if u are single or a group of 10 you pay the same Rs 500.Make sure to keep the permission receipt throughout.
From here the trekk starting point is 5 kms so it is advisable to take an auto or vehicle till that place.The office as well as the start point is inside a Tea estate so we have concreate road till the base of the mountain.One would have to pay some thing to the guide at the end of the trek(Rs 50 would be good enough) Usually one can haggle with guides and explore more and stay al bit longer at the top .(Anyways rules are only for those who want to follow them ;-) )
No cigaretts or alcohols are allowed ...although i did find some cigarette stubs ....
Those interestd in camping can enquire about it in the office.When we enquired about it different people were giving us different answers ...like one said its not allowed while our trek guide said it is allowed beside the lake .... so its ur shot whom to follow ;-)
For coming back to Bangalore one needs to go to the KSRTC garage (there are two bus stands in Sultan Bathery )
I wondered what went wrong !!!I had a great start to my journey.
On our way to Sultan Batheri , our bus had halted near Bandipur Forest Reserve ( there is a supreme court ruling not allowing night traffic in Bandipur from 9pm to 6am)
we had reached Bandipur by 3.30 am and had to wait till 6.00 am before we could proceed towards Waynad .At 5.30 am my sleep broke to the noises of monkeys and peacocks.
It was still dark outside ...i decided to get down from the bus ( for obvious reasons ) .Feeling the fresh cool air in my lungs I found myself in total calmness.I looked up into the sky and was amazed.Billions and billions of stars were shinning ever so brightly ,i felt as though i could pluck some of them .It felt as if the roof of a house had be embedded with billions of diamonds .i could even see the fail trail of the andromeda galaxy ( i really couldnt belive it but its true)
For once i wondered of the possibility of sneaking into the forest ans settling down there ;-) ...
Me , badri and Vineeth(Badri's Bro) had decided to scale one of the most exciting but straineous trekking peaks "CHEMBRA Peak " in Waynad,
As always we were again late to start for the trek and started our trek at 11.45 am with the sun warming up the terrain.The ideal time is 8.00 AM(at max) and this trek usually takes 4- 6 hrs both sides combined.I must confess the trekker inside us had a very big EGO .
"4-6 hrs ? damn easy piece of cake ...." I thought
We took a ride to the starting point of the trek ,after getting the permission for the trek although the officer advised that 11.45 am is not a good time to trek.We were constrained by the time limit of 6am-2pm.
VOLA!!!! We began our trek.We also had a guide with us( it is compulsory ) and while we were in shoes and sweat bands he was just wearing slippers ;-() !!
The initial part of the trek was quiet smooth but after we reached the watch tower at the bottom of the peak,
the route started becoming steep.Huffing and puffing we kept going on our ascent and kept taking 2 min breaks.It was tiring but our EGO egged us on "...hey its just a piece of cake
u did Yelagiri ...u are a expert trekker(hehehe) ... u can do this one tooo ....." yee yee!!! The guide was climbing as though he was climbing small stairs ..we were not able to keep up with him both in pace and distance .... but the scenic beauty of the hill surrounded by Tea Estate and shade from the trees gave us enough spirit to keep going ...
The guide was moving too fast for us and in trying to catchup we were pushing our self faster there by loosing precious energy reserves.One thing i learnt from this trip was in such strenuous
treks "slow and steady" is the best option ... but ours ego was at stake
" slow? ..... for this peak? ...no ....never .....its easy ..it cant be tough ... we are a trek experts (...what a crap ;-) )!!! ......"
Gulping in more air ..our lungs started burning in pain ...thighs aching and screaming for a break .
And then ,as a first causality vineeth became very very tired and decided to take a longer break.To start with we decided that Vineeth will stay put at a shady place where we took a small break and he would join us again when we return back from peak ...we gave him some water and food reserves ....and continued our ascend ,with one member less ( ;-) ).
Most of the climb was steep and we were frequently taking 2 min breaks ...but again the guide was climbing up fast and we again tried to keep pace with him ( instead we could have told him to slow down ...this was a big mistake )On the way we inquired about a perinneal lake that
was supposed to be near the peak and were told that we would come across some where in the middle ...) middle ...? We haven't even covered half of the distance.
As we kept ascending the scenic beauty surrounding us gave much needed coolness to our eyes .... the mountain was covered with beautiful blanket of green and pinkish and velvet blanket of
shrubs and grass ... the clouds looked a bit closer and with their shadows running on the peaks it seemed like the mountains were dancing with the clouds .
The greenery and the altitude altogether took us to a different world ....away from chaos to calmness ....."THIS IS LIFE .." I said to my self ...
But oucch !!! i felt pinch in my legs .... we have been trekking for an hour now and with each quick step we were becoming more and more exhausted ....
And then the second causality ;-) badri decided to take a longer break ... with the sun beating behind and we ascending at faster pace we inadvertently were wasting our energy and getting exhausted in the process of keeping up with the pace of the guide ...
I left some more food and water with badri and headed for the summit assault ;-) (although i must say i had my doubts about that ..)
After a brief climb the trek eased out
Howww!! we had reached the lake.It was a beautiful heart shaped lake.
For some strange reason the guide thought of returning back ....
WHAT !!!why return back after coming so far ....
he showed me the peak and ..it defiantly didn't look pleasant ... we had three more peaks to scale before we could reach the final peak .... What the heck ...lets do it i said .... frowning he said "OKK SAAARR " .After taking a few bites from candy bar and washing my dry throat with water I set for the ascend again .The first of the peaks was near the pond ... but the ascend was steeper than before.After climbing a few rocky paths i took a few min break ....I wanted to be immerse into the beauty of the place .....the breeze brought with it smell of grass and fresh air .... I thought I would be more than happy to settle on this mountain ..so calm .. so surreal so very natural ....
I took another look at the peak ... the peak was covered with clouds and it was as if it was enticing me to go 4 it .... being on the top of mountain among clouds would be a EXILLARATING experince ... i thought......a few deep breaths and we again began towards the peak .As we reached closer to the first peak i again took a break much to the irritation of the guide .
I took 4-5 such breaks and could see the guide getting irritated and impatient ... after one such breaks the guide started cribbing .."let go back ...we have to be back by 2 pm ....the officer will scold me ...blah blaah .."
After giving a thought i didn't wanted to spoil my mood getting into argument with the guide( I should have ...2nd mistake )I that moment of tiredness and exhaustion i did the mistake of agreeing to go back ....(if only i had known how bad my ego would get hurt ;-) )
After a few snaps and rest we trekked our way back ..we reached the lake again and i had a small BATHING session (of course with clothes on ) and started back ...as we started we saw Badri and vineet climbing and nearing us ....they seemed to be more energetic now ,guess the break had re-energized them ...we went back to the lake again ....and again upon enquiring about going for the top .. the guide starting cribbing again" 2'o clock saar ...."
We decide to skip the peak and trek back ... with clouds still hovering over the peak my heart was screaming at me to go 4 it while my brain was preparing me for descend .....
With a very heavy heart and a bruised ego we headed back ....
While descending all three of us had our shares of slipping and falling but it was fun ..for we would slip on lush grasses and it would be like slipping on a sofa we would be rebounded by the dense grass and shrubs ....
Reaching the bottom and waiting for the auto to take us back ...i felt gloom descend upon me ...."why didn't i go for it" ....the sight of the clouds laden peak kept coming in front of me ...no matter what argument i tried to give .. i couldnt convince myslef ....This was one of the most beautiful and most challengin treeks i have ever been but not scaling the peak was like a flop show..
Taking a morning bus from Kalpetta to Bangalore ...looking outside the window ..with cool air crashing into my face i promised myself to go for the peak again ...within next 3 months ...I would defiantly have to increase my capacity and work more on my fitness.....
I cant but help reiterating the poem
"There is pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society where none intrudes,
By the deep sea and the music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but Nature more."
— Lord Byron
For pics click below
==============
 |
| Waynad |
--------------------
HOW TO REACH
==============
There are several buses running from Bangalore to Kalpetta/Sultan Bateri .For Chempara peak one has to reach "Kalpetta". From kalpetta one has to reach the VSS office at chembra towers at meppadi.There the fee for trekking is Rs 500 for upto 10 persons .So even if u are single or a group of 10 you pay the same Rs 500.Make sure to keep the permission receipt throughout.
From here the trekk starting point is 5 kms so it is advisable to take an auto or vehicle till that place.The office as well as the start point is inside a Tea estate so we have concreate road till the base of the mountain.One would have to pay some thing to the guide at the end of the trek(Rs 50 would be good enough) Usually one can haggle with guides and explore more and stay al bit longer at the top .(Anyways rules are only for those who want to follow them ;-) )
No cigaretts or alcohols are allowed ...although i did find some cigarette stubs ....
Those interestd in camping can enquire about it in the office.When we enquired about it different people were giving us different answers ...like one said its not allowed while our trek guide said it is allowed beside the lake .... so its ur shot whom to follow ;-)
For coming back to Bangalore one needs to go to the KSRTC garage (there are two bus stands in Sultan Bathery )
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Yelagiri Trekk
This was one of my more memorable trips for a couple of reasons
1) We took a train instead of bus to reach the destination (there by gaining on time and speed )
2) Trekking was the only thing we wanted to do ..( I love trekking in the woods )
The Journey
============
We had to catch the 6.30 am "Lalbagh express" from Bangalore station.Our destination was "Jolarpettai" and from there a one hour ride to "Yelagiri" hills.
It was great to get up early in morning and (4.30 am ;-) ) and reach the station on time(around 5.30 am)
This train has no sleeper seats ( its a 6 hr journey to chennai ).. but one needed to reserve tickets in advance to get a confirmed seat.
The journey was quiet comfortable although I close my eyes as soon as the train left Bangalore station and opened just before we reached Jolarpettai ) .From there we got a direct bus to Yelagiri hills at 9.15 am.
A couple of things i observed in the bus
a) therez always a seat reserved for the conductor (who most often than not insists that no one occupies it )
b) the bus fare are very very low( thats a hallmark in tamilnadu ) like for a 40 km trip to yelagiri we were charged Rs 8 per head.
Yelagiri Hills
============
We got down at the "punganoor lake" which is also called Yelagiri lake.
This is at the central point in the city.
We figured we would have to go to "Mangalam"(3-4 km from this point ) and then from Mangalam have a 4 km trek to "swamy malay" hill top(Our destination).
We could have taken a bus to Mangalam but heck we have come here to trek so we decided to hike our way to the place.
The road was quiet empty and we were surrounded by small hillocks.Though it was sunny and quiet warm but the weather was quiet cool (Yellagiri is a hill station)
We found many trek paths but we weren't sure were they would lead and since we didn't know the place well ( we didn't know from where the trek to swami malay starts or in that case where is swamy malay hill ) we decided to be honest and stick to the road.
We kept on walking walking and walking with very few folks comming out on the road.
In fact we reached Mangalam village and kept on walking until ,seeing the surroundings badri got a doubt if we were indeed on the right path.
It was 10.30 am ,almost 1 1/2 hr of hike , we decided to check with one of the locals about SWAMI MALAY.
We were quite shaken to know that we had already missed the trekk starting point + we would have to have enough water with ourselves.
Each of us had one ...that would be enough we thought ...and retracked some portion of our hike to reach the starting point of the trekk
The Beginning
==========
The sun was beating down on us but luckily we have the breeze to keep us high.
We were quiet tired when we reached the beginning of the path but decided to carry on.
Our destination was a small mobile tower at top of a hill.
Here u could see a faint image of the tower on the left side of the cloud( try zooming the image)
Easy damn easy ..it would take 30-40 min to reach there and be back ..I thought.We decided even if we couldn't find a trek path we would go for a direct SUMMIT ASSAULT (Aka Mount Everest)
We recharged ourselves with few gulps of water and some candy bars (Kit-kat to be precise ).The breeze was not very stiff but enough to refresh us and being surrounded by hills from all the sides enthuised the adventurer within us.
Set Sail !!!! We began our trek.
The TREK
==========
The watch showed 11.00 am .Still lots of time ..i thought.
On the way we found a weird tree with a cave like opening in its trunk.
Inquisitively i went inside it to find the whole tree quiet hollow and a strem of spiders ( not the fat one the lean ones )rushing towards me ;-)Now i didnt want any of those crazy thing to get inside my shirt or pant( for obvious reasons ;-) ) We jumped out the trunk and continued on our way to the summit.
It was a very exhilarating trek and when ever we had to choose between two path divergence we choose the one that took us higher ....Latter we found out we took a totally new path and kind of unexplore way ( YE!!! WE discovered a new path ;-) )
Making our way thru the shrubs and rocks we came accross a small village.There were wierd figures draw on the rocks ...and also a temple dedicade to the Snake Lord.
Dang!!! I always wanted to hold a King Cobra in the wild( thats one of the items in my bucket list ;-) ) .Will this be my lucky day i thought ;-) ... not sure badri had the same enthu about that though ;-)
The trekk path itself was a mix of stright paths and steps
We kept marking our paths on our way just in case we get lost we could have some way to retrack our way back.
As we treked thru the steps the breeze brought with it melodies from parrots and koyal(Eudynamys Scolopacea).Probably they were excited on seeing new visitors.
Hop Hop a black goat jumped in front of us and gave us a wierd stare....like "what kind of species are they ".....it kept maay maayiing ;-) signaling its folks some where in the woods.We race towards it and it immediatly vanished in the bushes.
Phew!! its gone we thought.Who would want to mess with a goat that too in this wood.As soon as we crossed a few more steps the goat jumped back behind us and again gave us that "WHO THE HELL ..." stare .We were getting quiet tired from climbing the steps and thought the best would be to ignore it.
I looked at my watch .It was 12.30 am. What!! i thought we could have finished our trek by 111.40 am but we are still going on and on and on.
no sign of the end of steps nor of the tower......"Shall we go back" ..i thought nooo!! having come so far no point going back.
since we had to catch a bus back to Jolarpetti at 400 pm and also since we didn't know where /what /how we can get the bus form Yelagiri we decided that no matter what we would go one for another 30 min and at 1.pm we would turn back.
we rested for some time ...gulped in more water and finished up our food reserves ...OK!!no more breaks for another 30 min .... At least lets try to reach as close as possible to the summit..
we started climbing the endless stairs again.
Sanke or bear i was in no mood to look out for them.
The view was getting amazing and i knew we were moving towards the top but how far ....?
My whole of the shirt was soaked with sweat and now due ot the sweat i was felling more thirsty and hungry.
I knew the return jurney would be quick but a bit risky as one wrong foot on the steep would hurrle me down into the bushes...Anyways thats the headache when
we retun Now we must reach the top .....else how will i ever have a go at mount everest ( this is alos one of the items in my bucket list ;-) )
Then all of sudden the steps stopped and ended on a huge rock ....wherez the further path ? we jumped over the rock and look around.
BINGO!!! a wonderful wonderful view of the landscape greeted us up.Words could not explain it.we saw three layes of hills one after another and in between the hill
on which we were and adjacent hill there was a deep gorge filled in mist .The trees with colorful leave were dancing to the symphony of the bird's chirps.
The cool breeze crashed into our warm and sweaty faces so as to wipe out any tiredness and invite us to join the celebration.
It was as if the breeze was inviting me to fly ....and there we saw our destination ...rigt in front of us... the mobile tower as if saying .."U got mee "
Benath it was a small temple dedicated to lord shiva.
We went inside the temple( it was cave like ) and after offering our obeyance the priest guided us to a near by view point ... a samll ladder on top of a big rock
We climebd this ladder ( this wasnt easy the ladder is not placed properly ) and our view broadened .The vast view of trees on covering the hills as if they were hiding some thing .
We rested for some time on the rocks and enjoyed the absoulte solitude and calmness ....there was a deep connection between us and the forest deep below... for a moment
.Any ways after a well deserved rest we started our jouney back
The Descent
============
The descent was quicker and easy though it was quiet dangerous at some places.The time was 1.30 pm and we were getting thirsty.With no more water left ,we thought of buying some water bottles at the village.We reached the base of the hill by 2.00 pm and franatically searched for any shops or kiosks for water ... but alas no one had water.Upon asking the local we were told that there was a bus for Jolarpet at 3.00pm for a near by point (1-2 km ) ...we decided to walk to that point and hope fully we would find some shop that sold water bottles.
We walked and walked and found a couple of kiosks .But Water was not there.
We reached the point from where we could board the bus ..it was 2.45 pm and we were still looking for drinking water.Badri notice a "YELAGIRI SUPER MARKET ".
Atlast !!! we though a super market SHOULD have water bottles or atleast some cool drink or juice.
We entered the super market( it was a very small room...donno why it was called a super market).The fellow inside said" Sorry saar water bottle ,cool drinks ella "
aghrrrr!!!! how do people cope up with this .... i thought.With no other option we waited for the bus near a kiosk beneath a tree still thirsty.
The WORLD'S BEST COFFEE
======================
Thirsty and tired we waited for the bus to arrive.It was 3.15 pm now.No sign of the bus and we were becoming more tired just waiting for the bus.A small kid was playing with a bottle
of water and i felt very pained when he just threww the water away on the ground ;-) .....
None of the kiosks were even serving Tea ...I was quiet desparte to get some liquid into my dry mouth ...and then it happened....An oldlady entered into the kiosk with a can of milk and gave coffee to a couple of local guys ....Dang!!!!we asked for 2 cups of Tea but Tea wasnt there in the menu ...so we agreed to have coffee ...
and believe me folks that was the best coffee I ever had or will ever have.... i mean it wasnt so much about the quality of the coffee but the milk and coffee was like an oasis in a barren hot desert.temporarily i went into a temporary trance ;-) enjoying every sip that i took.I went for another cup of coffee ,totally refreshed.
The bus atlas arrived at 4.00 pm.
We hopped into the bus ..reached jolarpetti by 5.15 pm and caught the "Lalbagh Express" to Bangalore at 6.55 pm.We reached Bangalore by 9.19 pm and by 11.00 pm we were
back in our rooms tired but fully excited and mesmerized by the whole trip.We crashed into our beds for a wonderful lazy and deep sleep.
For pics
1) We took a train instead of bus to reach the destination (there by gaining on time and speed )
2) Trekking was the only thing we wanted to do ..( I love trekking in the woods )
The Journey
============
We had to catch the 6.30 am "Lalbagh express" from Bangalore station.Our destination was "Jolarpettai" and from there a one hour ride to "Yelagiri" hills.
It was great to get up early in morning and (4.30 am ;-) ) and reach the station on time(around 5.30 am)
This train has no sleeper seats ( its a 6 hr journey to chennai ).. but one needed to reserve tickets in advance to get a confirmed seat.
The journey was quiet comfortable although I close my eyes as soon as the train left Bangalore station and opened just before we reached Jolarpettai ) .From there we got a direct bus to Yelagiri hills at 9.15 am.
A couple of things i observed in the bus
a) therez always a seat reserved for the conductor (who most often than not insists that no one occupies it )
b) the bus fare are very very low( thats a hallmark in tamilnadu ) like for a 40 km trip to yelagiri we were charged Rs 8 per head.
Yelagiri Hills
============
We got down at the "punganoor lake" which is also called Yelagiri lake.
This is at the central point in the city.
We figured we would have to go to "Mangalam"(3-4 km from this point ) and then from Mangalam have a 4 km trek to "swamy malay" hill top(Our destination).
We could have taken a bus to Mangalam but heck we have come here to trek so we decided to hike our way to the place.
The road was quiet empty and we were surrounded by small hillocks.Though it was sunny and quiet warm but the weather was quiet cool (Yellagiri is a hill station)
We found many trek paths but we weren't sure were they would lead and since we didn't know the place well ( we didn't know from where the trek to swami malay starts or in that case where is swamy malay hill ) we decided to be honest and stick to the road.
We kept on walking walking and walking with very few folks comming out on the road.
In fact we reached Mangalam village and kept on walking until ,seeing the surroundings badri got a doubt if we were indeed on the right path.
It was 10.30 am ,almost 1 1/2 hr of hike , we decided to check with one of the locals about SWAMI MALAY.
We were quite shaken to know that we had already missed the trekk starting point + we would have to have enough water with ourselves.
Each of us had one ...that would be enough we thought ...and retracked some portion of our hike to reach the starting point of the trekk
The Beginning
==========
The sun was beating down on us but luckily we have the breeze to keep us high.
We were quiet tired when we reached the beginning of the path but decided to carry on.
Our destination was a small mobile tower at top of a hill.
Here u could see a faint image of the tower on the left side of the cloud( try zooming the image)Easy damn easy ..it would take 30-40 min to reach there and be back ..I thought.We decided even if we couldn't find a trek path we would go for a direct SUMMIT ASSAULT (Aka Mount Everest)
We recharged ourselves with few gulps of water and some candy bars (Kit-kat to be precise ).The breeze was not very stiff but enough to refresh us and being surrounded by hills from all the sides enthuised the adventurer within us.
Set Sail !!!! We began our trek.
The TREK
==========
The watch showed 11.00 am .Still lots of time ..i thought.
On the way we found a weird tree with a cave like opening in its trunk.
Inquisitively i went inside it to find the whole tree quiet hollow and a strem of spiders ( not the fat one the lean ones )rushing towards me ;-)Now i didnt want any of those crazy thing to get inside my shirt or pant( for obvious reasons ;-) ) We jumped out the trunk and continued on our way to the summit.
It was a very exhilarating trek and when ever we had to choose between two path divergence we choose the one that took us higher ....Latter we found out we took a totally new path and kind of unexplore way ( YE!!! WE discovered a new path ;-) )
Making our way thru the shrubs and rocks we came accross a small village.There were wierd figures draw on the rocks ...and also a temple dedicade to the Snake Lord.
Dang!!! I always wanted to hold a King Cobra in the wild( thats one of the items in my bucket list ;-) ) .Will this be my lucky day i thought ;-) ... not sure badri had the same enthu about that though ;-)
The trekk path itself was a mix of stright paths and steps
We kept marking our paths on our way just in case we get lost we could have some way to retrack our way back.
As we treked thru the steps the breeze brought with it melodies from parrots and koyal(Eudynamys Scolopacea).Probably they were excited on seeing new visitors.
Hop Hop a black goat jumped in front of us and gave us a wierd stare....like "what kind of species are they ".....it kept maay maayiing ;-) signaling its folks some where in the woods.We race towards it and it immediatly vanished in the bushes.
Phew!! its gone we thought.Who would want to mess with a goat that too in this wood.As soon as we crossed a few more steps the goat jumped back behind us and again gave us that "WHO THE HELL ..." stare .We were getting quiet tired from climbing the steps and thought the best would be to ignore it.
I looked at my watch .It was 12.30 am. What!! i thought we could have finished our trek by 111.40 am but we are still going on and on and on.
no sign of the end of steps nor of the tower......"Shall we go back" ..i thought nooo!! having come so far no point going back.
since we had to catch a bus back to Jolarpetti at 400 pm and also since we didn't know where /what /how we can get the bus form Yelagiri we decided that no matter what we would go one for another 30 min and at 1.pm we would turn back.
we rested for some time ...gulped in more water and finished up our food reserves ...OK!!no more breaks for another 30 min .... At least lets try to reach as close as possible to the summit..
we started climbing the endless stairs again.
Sanke or bear i was in no mood to look out for them.
The view was getting amazing and i knew we were moving towards the top but how far ....?
My whole of the shirt was soaked with sweat and now due ot the sweat i was felling more thirsty and hungry.
I knew the return jurney would be quick but a bit risky as one wrong foot on the steep would hurrle me down into the bushes...Anyways thats the headache when
we retun Now we must reach the top .....else how will i ever have a go at mount everest ( this is alos one of the items in my bucket list ;-) )
Then all of sudden the steps stopped and ended on a huge rock ....wherez the further path ? we jumped over the rock and look around.
BINGO!!! a wonderful wonderful view of the landscape greeted us up.Words could not explain it.we saw three layes of hills one after another and in between the hill
on which we were and adjacent hill there was a deep gorge filled in mist .The trees with colorful leave were dancing to the symphony of the bird's chirps.
The cool breeze crashed into our warm and sweaty faces so as to wipe out any tiredness and invite us to join the celebration.
It was as if the breeze was inviting me to fly ....and there we saw our destination ...rigt in front of us... the mobile tower as if saying .."U got mee "
Benath it was a small temple dedicated to lord shiva.
We went inside the temple( it was cave like ) and after offering our obeyance the priest guided us to a near by view point ... a samll ladder on top of a big rock
We climebd this ladder ( this wasnt easy the ladder is not placed properly ) and our view broadened .The vast view of trees on covering the hills as if they were hiding some thing .
We rested for some time on the rocks and enjoyed the absoulte solitude and calmness ....there was a deep connection between us and the forest deep below... for a moment
.Any ways after a well deserved rest we started our jouney back
The Descent
============
The descent was quicker and easy though it was quiet dangerous at some places.The time was 1.30 pm and we were getting thirsty.With no more water left ,we thought of buying some water bottles at the village.We reached the base of the hill by 2.00 pm and franatically searched for any shops or kiosks for water ... but alas no one had water.Upon asking the local we were told that there was a bus for Jolarpet at 3.00pm for a near by point (1-2 km ) ...we decided to walk to that point and hope fully we would find some shop that sold water bottles.
We walked and walked and found a couple of kiosks .But Water was not there.
We reached the point from where we could board the bus ..it was 2.45 pm and we were still looking for drinking water.Badri notice a "YELAGIRI SUPER MARKET ".
Atlast !!! we though a super market SHOULD have water bottles or atleast some cool drink or juice.
We entered the super market( it was a very small room...donno why it was called a super market).The fellow inside said" Sorry saar water bottle ,cool drinks ella "
aghrrrr!!!! how do people cope up with this .... i thought.With no other option we waited for the bus near a kiosk beneath a tree still thirsty.
The WORLD'S BEST COFFEE
======================
Thirsty and tired we waited for the bus to arrive.It was 3.15 pm now.No sign of the bus and we were becoming more tired just waiting for the bus.A small kid was playing with a bottle
of water and i felt very pained when he just threww the water away on the ground ;-) .....
None of the kiosks were even serving Tea ...I was quiet desparte to get some liquid into my dry mouth ...and then it happened....An oldlady entered into the kiosk with a can of milk and gave coffee to a couple of local guys ....Dang!!!!we asked for 2 cups of Tea but Tea wasnt there in the menu ...so we agreed to have coffee ...
and believe me folks that was the best coffee I ever had or will ever have.... i mean it wasnt so much about the quality of the coffee but the milk and coffee was like an oasis in a barren hot desert.temporarily i went into a temporary trance ;-) enjoying every sip that i took.I went for another cup of coffee ,totally refreshed.
The bus atlas arrived at 4.00 pm.
We hopped into the bus ..reached jolarpetti by 5.15 pm and caught the "Lalbagh Express" to Bangalore at 6.55 pm.We reached Bangalore by 9.19 pm and by 11.00 pm we were
back in our rooms tired but fully excited and mesmerized by the whole trip.We crashed into our beds for a wonderful lazy and deep sleep.
For pics
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