After much planning and speculation and of course the stabs (is anyone feeling guilty out there?!), we decided on this beautiful destination. Well, we considering Ooty (which was ditched due to financial constraintsL ) and Wayanad (which is considered a little unsafe) too but finally, Coorg it was! Sab, Shish and Prarth did most of the planning, contacting the hotels for acco et al (since the rest of us had to “study” for our last exam- Marketing Management).
The happiness was evident on our faces when we boarded the bus to Mangalore, with each of us quivering with excitement! We got off at the main bus stand and boarded a bus to Madikeri. We were off at last! Well, for the remaining part of the journey, I slept blissfully, thanks to my wonderful ability to be able to sleep anywhere regardless of the noise and the confusion! But of what I heard, Sab and Sonal had a wonderful time gossiping throughout! The next thing I remember is Ro waking me up at 2 saying “Madikeri is here”. We hopped off the bus and instantly froze! Boy, was it cold! Thanks to a kind soul who was awake at that hour, we managed to get to the hotel and into our rooms. I don’t remember anything after that except taking a pic and posing for one! The first two in a long stream of pics!
The next morning, we woke up at 6:30 (when we were supposed to be up by 5!) and after a hurried hour of getting ready and gulping down hot idlis for breakfast, we were off by 7:30 to Thadiyandamol! For all the folks out there who dunno what this strange word means, it happens to be the highest peak in Coorg District! We got onto a bus at Madikeri main stand to Kaikamba, the town closest to Thadiyandamol. I made some good friends on the bus journey having seated next to an old man (who told me all about Thadiyandamol, Bhagamandala and Talacauvery) and later, a Coorgi lady (who told me quite a bit about Coorgi customs and even invited me to a wedding later that day!!). After an hour’s journey on a surprising good road, we got off at Kaikamba. The bus conductor had promised us that the actual trek to Thadiyandamol was just ½ a km away, but we ended up walking 5 km on a steep uphill road! Our foolishness not to take a jeep actually!
My fellow trekkers!
The trek though not difficult at all, is extremely scenic. We were still not even halfway up, when the views were breathtaking! Surrounded on all sides by mountains, we could see sparkling streams that looked like glistening silver threads from the distance, lush green fields in the valley below, the little houses and the ubiquitous coffee estates! It’s beautiful how God plays with colors! On one side, u have the sky sporting different shades of blue in different parts, the mountains in every imaginable shade of brown and gray covered by the rich green forests, whose trees are capped with a pink cover of tender new leaves, the fresh green of the lush paddy fields, the white, gray and black of the clouds, the myriad of flowers each of a different hue, red and purple, yellow and blue, the golden sunlight which makes everything sparkle with glee and above all the wonderful fresh raindrops on the leaves which cast rainbows everywhere after their game with the light! No poet, no artist, no photographer can capture the essence of the beauty of Nature in all her glory! She changes colors and shades faster than it takes to blink and smiles mischievously when u try to create a copy of her beauty on paper or canvas! Well, I just can’t go on! It ought to be experienced- the beauty and the magnitude of that moment can only be captured by the eye and perceived by the mind, nothing else! I was spellbound as Nature mesmerized me with her beauty and tried in vain to capture a few snapshots of that beauty with my camera but I honestly failed miserably. Nothing and nobody can do full justice to Nature and her charm.
A view from Halfway up en route to the Thadiyandamol peak.
This pic is one of my personal favorites!
There wasn’t much to do after that with heavy rains pounding down on us and we slipped with every step we took, so we decided to head back and go elsewhere. We managed to get hold of a jeep to take us back to Kakkabbe after a visit to a nearby coffee estate which had its own waterfall! We got back to Madikeri and after a much delayed lunch (at 4:30) we headed to the Madikeri museum (which frankly does not have much!) and then to Raja Seat, another place with a breathtaking view! If Thadiyandamol has treats for the eye, bathed in sunlight, this holds feasts for the eye by the twilight. After a round of chaats and the musical fountain, we trekked back to the room to rest our “tired” limbs.
Shrouded in mist... near Raja Seat.
A pic on the fort near the museum.
The next day, we set off to Dubare Elephant camp (located near Kushalnagar). We had the cross the river Cauvery in a boat to reach the elephants. Sadly we could not go river rafting here coz it cost an outrageous 600 bucks per person! At the camp, we made friends with Parashurama (aged 3), Ranjan (aged 8) and Maithili (aged 52), all of them the trunked inhabitants of the camp. Sadly again for us, we could not go for an elephant ride as most of the elephants had gone to the Dasara procession at Mysore.
Parashurama at Dubare
From Dubare we went to Nisargadhama after an amusing auto journey with 6 of us (7 including the driver) in one auto and me sitting on the window bar! Nisargadhama happens to be a quiet place with tree houses, bamboos, rabbits, deer and monkeys. A huge garden where one can spend many hours in solitude, reading a book, penning down thoughts, pondering… I felt at peace there. Nature was placid and calm. Time seemed to stand still. The bamboos seemed to create music with percussions in the breeze with the chirping rendering beautiful melodies in the soft green light.
Nisargadhama
After a good lunch at Kushalnagar, we moved to the famous Buddhist monastery and what a treat it turned out to be. The meditation hall was an architectural marvel with beautiful and huge statues, marvelous pillars, rich paintings and the quiet solitude and calm that can only be experienced. I clicked more than I blinked there. Monks dressed in maroon walked everywhere, chanting with prayer beads, talking on the phone, moving in line… Little monks running around and playing… devout ladies bowing their heads before the deity…
The prayer hall at the Buddhist monastery.
After a bit of shopping at the Tibetian shops in the complex, we headed back to Kushalnagar and then to Madikeri at around 5 in the evening. We visited the Omkareshwara temple in evening and then headed back to the room. After a series of card games, “Badam Saath” being the most popular, we trooped to East End Hotel and tasted good food for the first time in many days! Then back to the room, packing, checking out, going to the bus stand at midnight and boarding a bus going to Kundapur, getting off in front of the guest house early next morning…
We cheered! We had finally made it back, safe and sound after having a wonderful time at the Scotland of India, Coorg! Two days filled with fun and rich experiences. Hope there are many more such memorable trips to come!
Highlights of the trip:
1) Sab’s birthday on the day we went to Dubare and the “green eyed” cakes we got for her! Hope u had a wonderful day!
2) Prarth’s birthday on the day we were travelling back and our “Happy Birthday” song for her sung on NH 17 after we got off the bus. Hey kiddo, welcome to the world! J
3) Sonal’s explanation of “intern monks” when we were all wondering aloud as to why some of the monks were staying outside the Vihara.
4) Sonal: “Hey!”; Little monk: “No!” (Ask her for more details! I’m still rofling coz of this!)
5) The sleepyard pics in the bus(es).
This post is dedicated:
1) To Mother Nature, the most beautiful lady I’ve ever seen.
2) To Divya and Pragathi who unfortunately could not make it. U guys were terribly missed!
3) To Varun and Shashank for giving us very useful details on the hotel, trek and gen stuff.
4) To my wonderful camera which helped us capture the wonderful memories of this trip and record them in places other than our hearts and minds.
5) To the 9 leeches which managed to draw blood from some of us ( Sab – 7, Shish and Prarth – 1 each. Sonal, Ro and I were very fortunate indeed to escape their bites).
6) To all those who managed to read this post and reach this point.
7) To Prarth, Shish, Sab, Ro and Sonal – my fellow trippers. It was truly great fun guys!
8) To William Wordsworth, my idol, for giving the world some of the most beautiful descriptions of Mother Nature and one of the very few who’s gotten closest in doing justice to her beauty through his works.
Awesome Sur!!! We all thank u for this wonderful writing and ofcourse ur cam :D
ReplyDeleteWell, our trip has started the fire in the forest(GB). Three cheers to US:)!!!
When my daughter prarth told me about this blog, I just thought that this may be just another blog i usually surf. The way u have portrayed u'r trip,is just amazing.
ReplyDeleteI think you can become a professional photographer too