PAYANIGA » Trek

I Was Here: Chembra Peak

Prashanth — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 06:38:46 +0000

Lean period continues for me. Not much options other than armchair travelling, pondering over my good old travel days and browsing through my photo archive.

Photo: En route Chembra peak, Wayanad captured during my visit in Dec 2006.

Dawn and Dusk at Kodachadri

Prashanth — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 18:18:13 +0000

I camped at Kodachadri peak last December. I managed myself to be at the top well in time & also managed to get up early to witness sunset & sunrise at the peak. Hereare few photos which I took during that time.

To be honest, both sunset & sunrise weren’t that great for me. I didn’t get to enjoy it. May be beacuase of the huge crowd. There were atleast 150-200 people on the peak to witness the sight. I need to go there again when not many people around!
Well, detailed trek log to follow soon. :)

Trek to Parvathamalai

Prashanth — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 16:57:00 +0000

Most of my travels are limited to Karnataka and when I came to know that there is trekking plan in Tamilnadu, I jumped in. Parvathamalai, a pilgrimage near Polur in Thiruvannamalai district of Tamilnadu was our destination. Since it takes 4 to 5 hours to climb up, we left Bangalore on Saturday morning to reach Thiruvannamalai by noon. After visiting & roaming around the Shiva temple, we started towards Parvathamalai. It was past 2 in the afternoon when we started climbing.

Parvathamalai is more of a pilgrimage than a trekking spot. We saw pilgrims of all age – from as young as 3-4 years to as old as 70-75 years – climbing up & down the hill en route our trek. There is a temple of Shiva at the top, which the hill is approximately 3500 ft above sea level & is in Thiruvannamalai district of Tamilnadu. There are two routes to reach the peak – one from village Thenmathimagalam which is lengthy but easier and the other from Kadaladi village which is shorter but steep. We took the latter for both climbing up & down.

The path from Kadaladi village starts off like a jeep track and soon narrows down to path where one has to walk one behind the other. Most part of the hill is shrubs with trees scattered all around. That means you can be under a shadow only now and then. The shrubs in the initial stretch were dry & full of thorns. Three fourth of the hill is a steady climb and can be covered without much fuss. The final part is the steep climb on rocks, which is not so difficult if you are there on a bright sunny day. But that will be challenging if you have to climb that stretch after Sun has gone done in the west, with a surprise drizzles making the rocks completely slippery.

We reached the top around 7.30, after the tough final climb. Apart from the visit to the temple & packed dinner which we carried, it was just talking, talking & talking till we slept. Coming down the hill was easier, thanks to gravitational force. We took little over 2 hours to reach Kadaladi. A nice bath in cold water was refreshing before we boarded the vehicle back to Bangalore.

Few things to keep in mind, if you are planning to vist the place and/or stay overnight at the peak – there is no water available at the peak. Every drop of water – be it for drinking or any other purpose has to be carried along. It’s better to carry food, though food is provided at the temple. Reason, most of the devotees climb the hill without bringing food. Last, but most important, please don’t litter.

Photo Credits – Srik. I lost all the photos of the trip as the memory card of my camera got corrupted.

Best part of the trek

Prashanth — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 13:06:00 +0000

Just back from Sharavathi valley after a two day adventerous exploratory trek, from Kanoor to Nagavalli. Though Kanoor – Doctor mane (Doctor’s house) – Kanoor Kote (Kanoor Fort) is a known explored trek path, we kept Kanoor as starting point and end point Nagavalli via Doctor’s house & decided to explore a new route with the help of Ganapati of Sharavathi Adventure Trails.

If you ask me which was the best moment of the trek, it’s very difficult to pick one from the below list –

Traveling in a luggage carrier for 10+ KMs after a bus journey of 10 hours
Getting scratched by thorns as we trek. And you look ahead to find no path, all you can see is thorny bushes
You reach stream after 4 hours of trek or rather say exploration, and jump into it immedeatly
Lunch is ready & served, you are hungry, but you can’t eat because it’s steaming hot :)
Everyone volunteers to help for preparing dinner. Menu: Chapathis, Rice, Sambar & Moong dal Kheer (hesaru bELe paayasa)
No lights around and you have moonlight dinner
After a sumptuous dinner, you go on a night trek for a KM
And to top it all, journey of 40KMs sitting/lying down on the bus top
You duck/bend every time when someone shouts to avoid tree branches & electric wires

Virupapura: A tale from Ramayana

Prashanth — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:58:00 +0000

Virupapura hillock & the stone mantapa
Virupapura, one of the few places that I have visited countless number of times, is a tiny village which has a story linked to Ramayana. Situated around 75 KMs from Bangalore and a stone’s throw way from my native, the place gets the name from Rama. Previously known as Virupakshapura and along with the time, name got changed to Virupapura.

Shivagange as seen from the hill-top
Main reason for me to visit this place repeatedly is the small hillock to the north east of the village & the panoramic view it offers from the top. My usual routine used to be – climb up the hill which doesn’t take more than 15-20 minutes, reach the lone stone mantapa, sit & ponder for hours.

Temple of Lord Siddarameshwara
Link to Ramayana � As per the local stories, when Ravana kidnapped Sita, Rama & Lakshamana in search of her reached this place. And Rama built a temple of Lord Shiva (called as Siddarameshwara temple by villagers) here on the hillock. And there are plenty Custard Apple trees (Sitaphala or Sita�s fruit).

Present sorry state of the hillock
I visited the place after a long gap of 8-9 years. And I could see lot of changes. One main change that bothered me was stone-quarrying. Almost 25-30% of the hillock is missing when compared to old days. Take another 3-4 years, that good old small hillock which inspired me into treks and hikes will disappear forever. It�s hard to digest but that�s the sad truth.

How to reach there –

B’lore – Nelamangala – NH48 – Marur handpost – turn left – Kudur – Sugganahalli – turn left – Virupapura

Or B’lore – Nelamangala – NH48 – Tippasandra handpost – Sankigatta – Mayasandra (my native village :) – Virupapura.

Distnace approx 75 to 80 KMs

Update: Republished as photos were missing :)
Update 2: added route details

A Visit to Mallalli Falls

Prashanth — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:45:00 +0000

Previous: Kumara Parvatha

We woke up to witness a beautiful & peaceful morning. Rain God was in a good mood & we were spared from getting drenched. We repacked our backpacks, thanked our hosts & started back towards Beedalli. We were bit late to reach the place & we missed the bus again. Luckily a jeep was available and owner of the jeep agreed to take us to Mallalli falls & then drop us at Somavarpet.

To reach Mallalli falls, one has to take a deviation at Hanchinalli. Hanchinalli comes 2 KMs before Beedalli when travelling from Somavarpet towards Beedalli. From Hanchinalli it’s a bumpy jeep track for 2 to 3 KMs. And then a walk for almost a kilometer. It was completely misty even at 11 in the morning. End of wonderful walk brought us to the view point which gives us a majestic view of the falls. Though we had lots of time, we decided not to go down to the foot of the falls as it was very slippery on the rocks.

We spent a quality time over there enjoying the roaring waterfalls. And then headed back home. A jeep journey till Somavarpet, a quick lunch & then back to Bangalore by bus. End of another wonderful weekend & still Kumara Parvatha peak unconquered.

Waterfalls of Karnataka:

Kumara Parvatha – Unfinished task

Prashanth — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 14:00:00 +0000

My third visit to Western Ghats in less than two months period. First one to Sharavathi valley & next one to Kudremukha range. This time we were heading towards Kumara Parvatha or Pushpagiri, which marks as a boundary to Kodagu (Coorg) & Dakshina Kannada districts of Karnataka. But this time we started on a wrong foot.

Our plan was to start trek from Somawarapet side, camp near the summit on day one & then get down towards Kukke Subrahmanya on day two. But instead of booking bus tickets to Somawarapet, we landed in Virajpet on that Saturday morning at 4.15 AM. From Virajpet we changed two busses to reach Somawarapet via Madikeri. By the time we reached Somawarapet, the only direct bus to take us to starting point had already left. After breakfast at Somawarapet, we took a bus till Kannahalli Katte & the conductor of the bus arranged for a jeep to take us to Beedahalli or Beedalli – trek starting point.

It was cloudy & started drizzling when we started our trek. Initial 3 KMs is along well laid road till the village ‘Heggade Mane’. There is a temple in Heggade Mane where one can pitch camp there. We were still discussion our options whether to go ahead to the peak or camp near the temple as it was already 2 PM. Finally we decided to trek further. After getting permission from the forest office (a small one room office further down from the temple), we marched ahead. As it was monsoon, there were plenty of water streams which we had to cross during our ascent. With every step, leeches started attacking us. Initial half an hour we stopped here and there to rub tobacco leaves & snuff powder to get rid of them. And later we got tired of it & let them suck our blood.

Race began between us & the Sun. Initial stretch from the forest office is a gradual gradient. We moved quickly through the thick forest. Sunlight was a rare commodity as it was cloudy & rain pouring. After two and half hours of trek rain gave away & we were halfway to the peak. At 5, we stopped for lunch. By the time we finished lunch, it started raining again. That�s when we had to take the hard decision � of turning back. We decided to return to Heggade mane & camp instead of trying to pitch tents in the dark on a windy, rainy night & donate half of our blood to leeches.

It was around 7 by the time we reached Heggade mane & spent the night at priest�s house. Slowly one by one drifted to sleep with determination of hiking Kumara Parvatha post monsoon & plans of visiting Mallalli waterfalls next day. It�s time for me to complete this unfinished task :)

Next: A visit to Mallalli Falls

A Short Trek to Achalu Betta

Prashanth — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 06:15:00 +0000

The story dates back to Aug 2006, when I came across some nice photos of this small hillock Achalu betta (or Achchalu) on DKM’s blog. Collected information from DKM on how to reach the place & four of us started in a car. It was nice drive on the country-side & we took our own time to reach the place. We had a small pit-stop en-route near a village where SJ got busy shooting birds. Rest of us had a nice time talking to the village kids who were helping their parents in the farm. And then we packed breakfast at Kanakapura & proceeded towards Achalu.

Achalu is a small sleepy village just 15 KMs after Kanakapura. Just as we enter the village, there is a small pond; but there was no water when we were there. TO reach the foot of the hill one need to cross the village along a narrow lane. When we asked an elderly villager for directions, he called a small kid to show us the way. Two of his friends joined him and they were our guides for the whole day.

We parked the car at the foot of the hill. Finished our breakfast & started the climb. To reach the peak it takes around 1.5 to 2 hours. Achalu betta is a rocky hill covered mostly of shrubs. There is a Muneshwara temple & a Nandi statue at the top & hilltop offers a panoramic view of the landscape. On the way up, we stopped many times for taking snaps & spent an hour at the top listening to the stories told by our little guides about the village & festival that happens every year at the top.

Getting down was easier & took less time. Bid adieu to the three musketeers & in less than 2 hours time we were back stuck in a traffic jam in Bangalore.

Digest: Kuduremukha trek

Prashanth — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 12:06:00 +0000

Kuduremukha (or Kudremukha) trek log links consolidated –

Basarikal gate to Mullodi on day one
Somavathi falls @ Mullodi
To Kuduremukha peak on day two
General info on Kuduremukha trek
Some random photos & more photos

Kuduremukha: General Information

Prashanth — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 11:55:00 +0000

Previous: To Kudremukha peak

Some general information on Kuduremukha -

Kuduremukha in Kannada means horse (kudure) face (Mukha). And is approximately 350KM from Bangalore.
Kuduremkha peak is at 1892 meters above sea level.
Route (that we took): Bangalore – Kunigal – Hassan – Mudigere – Kottigehara – Kalasa – Kuduremukha.
Refer Karnataka wilderness tourism website for detailed information on different trekking routes within Kuduremukha National Park range. And also for contact details to get permissions for the treks
In case you want to stay at Mullodi at Sathish’s place, call him up & inform before reaching the place – 08263-249595.
Nearby places of interest: Horanadu, Kalasa, Sringeri

And here is the same trek story in Shashank’s (fellow trekker) words

To Kuduremukha peak

Prashanth — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 10:25:00 +0000

<< Prev | Beginning of the trek

Kuduremukha peakThe day started early. It was cold. After finishing our daily chores, we started our hike to Kuduremukha peak around 6.30AM. Initial stretch is an easy one, almost flat & no gradients. We walked one behind the other on the path chatting continously, stopping for photos here and there. Landscape around us was amazing & breathtaking. We reached Lobo house (Lobo mane) by 8. The peak was clearly visible from that place. A quick break & refreshments, we continued.

View from Onti maraThough it’s referred as Lobo house, there 4 houses close by which were constructed by one Mr. Lobo during pre-independence era. When we reached third house someone noticed a guava tree next to the house. End result, we spent almost half an hour there. And when we continued from there, not even a single fruit was there on the tree :). From there on the route gets tougher and the group of 10 got split into smaller ones depending on the speed. We passed through sholas & the grass covered slopes slowly and reached ‘Onti mara’ (the lonely tree) by 9.45. And that’s where I got a chance to see a Male Sambar. ‘Onti mara’ is a lonely jamun fruit tree en route KM peak. There are no any trees nearby at that altitude. We three were the first to arrive, rest of the gang was way behind, tree was full of jamun fruits. And by the time everyone arrived we had plenty of fruits. Once everyone arrived at the scene & after breakfast, we continued our mission & ate some more of Jamun fruit.

After a long break we started from ‘Onti mara’. Path from there onwards is much steeper & again the group got split into smaller ones. Next stop was near a small stream in a shola. Though it was summer, water was trickling down and the water was refreshing & cold. Another long break there & we moved ahead, along the zig-zag path, inching towards the peak. When it was more than 2KMs to the summit, we were greeted by blood sucking insects bigger than house flies in size. They attacked us in huge numbers, we had tough time with them. As we moved towards the summit, cool breeze & clouds welcomed us.

Reached the peak by 1PM & it was completely misty. It was an amazing sight sitting at that height and watching clouds play hide & seek. We spent a good one & half hours there – lunch, lazed around, listened to some philosophical speeches, dozed. By 2.30, we repacked & started home. Trekking down was faster and by 4PM, few of us were near ‘Onti mara’ while resting of the gang was coming slowly behind. We feasted again on the jamun fruits & continued. With the help of gravitational force, we moved down quickly and to our surprise we found a mango tree near Lobo house. We had somehow missed this while trekking up. It was time for us to show our skills at throwing stones at the fruits – end result 3 mangoes, one each for us :)

While rest of the gang were still behind, we reached Mullodi village by 5.30Pm and headed straight to Somavathi falls to have a dip. Another round of slipping & sliding, a refreshing bath and we came to Sathish’s house. We did a phone-booking for a jeep to transport us back to Basarikallu gate where our vehicle was waiting. 13 (including jeep driver) of us with 2 tents, 5 sleeping bags, 6 sleeping mats & 11 backpacks – stuffed into a single jeep. It was fun drive back on a bumpy road & took us half an hour. Our vehicle was waiting, we dumped our luggages & headed straight to the nearby hotel. Wonderful dinner – Dosas, rice, sambar, curd, tea, bananas. And we started back to Bangalore. The end of an amazing trek.

Kuduremukha: Somavathi falls

Prashanth — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 12:14:00 +0000

<< Prev | Beginning of the trek | Next >>

Somavathi falls is a very small but dangerous waterfall near Mullodi village. The falls is not more than 8 or 10ft height but very slippery. Each one of us who got under the water slipped at least once. Though it was fun, one fell down and gave back a piece of his teeth to the nature. We sat down under the water slipping & sliding, waiting for turns while others were slipping & sliding.

A late lunch of chappathis & teplas after a refreshing bath. And then we spent a quality time listening to gurgling water, bird songs (especially the long whistle of Malabar Whistling-thrush. We came back refreshed & recharged to Sathish’s house (home-stay) where we stayed for the night. We played disk throwing & cricket till dark. And then it was round of leg-pulling & general chit-chat. After a nice dinner, we slipped into our sleeping bags & a sound sleep.

In case you are not interested in trekking & just want to have a dip in Somavathi falls, you can hire a jeep from Samse village to Mullodi. Have fun and come back same day. Or else, you can stay at Sathish’s place which is a non-commercial homestay. Sathish’s family are very hospitable & friendly. If you plan to stay there, you can call Sathisha & make arrangements in advance – 08263 249595.

Continued – trek to peak