Kudremukha Trek

Travel is an addiction and I have to have my dose of it every now and then. It was April 2013 and I desperately needed a respite from the hustle and bustle of city life. And as happens all the time I started planning a trip. I wanted to exert myself and the 15 km trek to the Kudremukha peak and 15 km downhill really titillated my travel buds. I instantly did some research on the place as I usually do and everything fell into place all by itself.

I fixed the journey date and booked the bus tickets and my travel partners followed commands.

There was no direct bus from Bangalore to Kudremukha. The nearest bus station was Kalasa which was about 311 kms from Bangalore and about 22.5 kms from Kudremukha.

So on 26th April we reached Majestic at around 8.30 pm. Abhisek could not join us due to some last minute official commitment. So it was the three of us this time around; myself, Joga and Debanjan.

We had dinner at our all-time favorite eatery in Majestic, “National Restaurant”. Our patriotism (not the food as you might have been guessing) takes us there every time.

After some real hard time trying to register directions thrown at us in Kannada we reached the exact spot from where buses to Kalasa leave. And after another gruesome ten minutes we were finally able to firmly settle our asses in the bus that was supposed to take us to Kalasa.

The road condition was good. The ride wasn’t all that bumpy.

We reached Kalasa the next morning at around 7 am. We had tea and biscuits from a nearby tea shop and enquired the teashop owner regarding how to reach Kudremukha. We do that all the time. He said that local buses ply every one hour and the bus stand was right opposite his shop. Aha! Bliss.

At around 7.40 am we got the bus to Kudremukha. It was an enchanting ride along the winding trail and ample eye soothing green outside the window.

After about half an hour we reached Kudremukha.

We had to take the trekking permission from Kudremukha tourism office which was like 2 minutes’ walk from the bus stop. And another ecstatic moment. It was almost around 9.30 am when we got the permission (which costed us 250 rupees each, guide separate) in our hands. And then we had to go all the way to Mullodhi which was the base of the trek. Joga wasn’t really for it. We gave into Joga’s ardent pleas and postponed the trek to next day. Instead we decided to go to Hanumangundi falls which was like 40 minutes ride from Kudremukha.

And like the last travel update I will not describe the place but let the picture do it all.

And after coming back to Kudremukha we were like hungry wolves ready to devour anything that our hands would lay on. We had tea, biscuits and cakes from a local tea shop and enquired about  non-veg eateries nearby. He told us to go to Kalasa if we were in real need of chicken and fish. We were in real need. Nothing could be more real than our love for good food.

We went to Kalasa and the first thing that our eyes met was a non-veg restaurant (Raj restaurant) with pictures of succulent fish and tender chicken just near the bus-stand. We gorged on fish fries and chicken kebabs. The price was quite reasonable. After our tummies had no more complains we started with our hotel hunting. It wasn't difficult to find one. Just nearby was "Chandan Lodge" which looked pretty decent. The charges were 600 rupees/ night for a double bed room. Good enough.

Next day we started early. We reached Balagal by bus which took us around 15 minutes. From there we went to Mullodhi by auto which charged us 200 rupees. There are jeeps available but they charge around 600 rupees but since we were three in number auto seemed a better option. The auto dropped us at Mullodhi from where our guide, Rajesh took over. The auto driver had called Rajesh earlier to be our guide and he had agreed.

So we started our trek. Some 2 kms away we saw home stays. We asked Rajesh about the charges. He said they costed around 600/person/day. To that he added that his home is a home stay too and the charges were 500/person/day.

After a 15 km walk through forests and steep inclines we reached the Kudremukha peak. It was tiring to say the least. Joga cursed us heavily every time he was able to take some breath. It was his first trek and for a first timer I would not suggest this trek. The route is not difficult but the distance to the peak does the trick. You need to be a regular trekker to cover 15 kms to reach the top.

While coming down we faced a hail storm. And it made the ascend difficult but made our experience all the more enriching and of course burnt a hole in my pocket (my camera went for a permanent holiday). Rajesh took us to his house, offered us towels to dry ourselves up and served us coffee. He lit fire for us. He had a brother and mother at home. All of them were so humble and welcoming. The other went on incessantly ln Kannada. What I could figure out was that she was asking us to visit them again. The atmosphere at Rajesh's house made up for all the sweat we had shed, all the trouble we had taken. Such experiences  are treasures in the chest called 'life'.

The rain made the hilly roads slippery ande no vehicle was ready to come to Mullodhi. So we had to walk all the way down. I could not dare to look at Joga's face. He was pissed off to the extent of planning our funeral. However a localite whom we met midway helped us out. He called his friend who was a auto driver who agreed to take us to Kalasa. He charged us 150 rupees which was like the best that could have happene. When we reached Kalasa it was 5.30 pm and we were drenched to our skin. We desperately needed to change bt we had already checked out in the morning. But Debanjan took the responsibility to talk to the hostel authorities and request them to give us the keys for some 30 mins and he was able to manage them. Some of the few things he successfully accomplished.

Myself

Rolling hills

Forest trails

Fallen Legend - Joga

Cloud nine

Stretches of Savanna grasslands

Rajesh's home

After leaving the hotel room we had dinner and waited for our bus to arrive.
At around 10.30 pm we boarded our bus back to Bangalore and ended another trek and another handful of memories got added to my travel diary.

All in Alibaug....

3rd December, 2011.... I am on my way to discovering the outskirts of Maharashtra with Kulasekaran, the official photographer and dear friend and 'chuddy buddy' Sandeep ..... we start at about 5.30am.... take our first halt at Birla mandir where photography is prohibited..... and drive all the way to ford Zanzeer at murud..... on our way we are forced to stop at the breathtaking view of the fort from the top.... and the mud red mountains surrounding it......

Myself in the car on the way to Zanzeer

The view of the fort from a distance

A different perspective

The hills at the back drop

And after reaching the destination we leave our car behind and set on our way to the Zanzeer fort on a sailing boat powered by wind...... We were accompanied by a bunch of unruly school kids and hell...I felt like the teenage days were back....

While on the shore the camera could not stop clicking

The overview of the fort from the sailing boat

The sail captured up close

A monochrome shot of a sailing boat

On reaching we  get access to the age old history of the Moguls through the entrance of the fort and what awaits us is the 'meetha pani ka talab'..(the lake of sweet water).... We chuck the idea of taking a guide and set off to create our own history....:)

The historic rubble....

The meetha talab

A different perspective

No not love birds but love flowers yeah....

The overlooking hills

Lost in nature

 As we discover the 22 acres spread ford we fall in love with the architecture...... the cannons, the parabola shaped windows, the broad doorways.... each and every  minute details fascinate us...... We get in sync with the archival atmosphere... but completely loathe the weekend crowd......

And Mumbai never fails to cast the Bollywood spell...:)

Parabola window

From our way to Alibaug from Zanzeer fort the 'kalakaar' in Kulasekaran spotted the hoards of birds in the shores which looked like speckles of white dots.....'Akshi' beach was our next halt..... the water was sparkling blue.... and the birds were a starling white...and a brown horse made my day......

 And finally we reach Alibaug..... before hitting the beach we take a full packed Chinese lunch...... and then for proper digestion we do all kinda exercises..:D.... row row row your boat.....

That's Sandeep trying out some thing innovative....

And the jet skiing..... loved it..... thanks to Kulasekaran and Sandeep to pursue me on.... it was an experience altogether....

Kulasekaran in excited state...

And Kulasekaran in ground state.....

And the final destination of the trip.....Kashid beach....the sea here took away the witness of my ups and downs for the past ten years....ven the stigmas of your mind is gone you feel light, u feel free... and so they state it correctly.....the sea takes away but gives away something in return.....the sea here took away the lie I have been believing all these years..... but gave me freedom... gave me the strength to fight away shackled thoughts.... we had great time in the water..... 

And then all drenched we get into our car and start back to IIT... on our way we stop at a road side hotel and have tea.... and by 10.30 pm we are back to our so-called-home... the exotica of 3.12.2011 is over literally but will be afresh in mah mind forever....