A Happy Full Stop to the Year contd...

Masinagudi Day II

Sunday morning, even when it was yet pitch dark, I decided to venture out of the resort. As I reached the gate, I found myself staring at 2 deer which were hardly 6 feet away from me. It seems they weren’t expecting me just like how I didn’t expect them. They scurried their way back into the forest as I walked back to the room to share my experience with others. At 6:30 we were all set to go on a trek. We were a group of 11 people and 2 guides. The initial phase was the same trail that Karthik and I had discovered the previous day. We crossed the waterfront and moved on to the other side. The guide said he could hear elephants on our path and hence we had to change our route a bit. The trail was getting tougher and the forest, denser. There were thorny shrubs at eye level, trees had marks of leopard claws, the ground cluttered from place to place with animal bones. But the best was yet to come. As we cautiously inched ahead, we saw this HUGE skull of a bison. I wished so much to bring back atleast a small bone but I didn’t want to against the wish of the guide.

As the slopes got steeper, my fear was getting the better of me. I needed help every few minutes. I started cursing myself on having started on this expedition despite knowing that I am scared of slopes. But just as I felt it was thankless to be there, we reached a waterfall. There was still water below as the waterfall was diverted by huge rocks. Our tour guide encouraged us to wade through the water to the rocks ahead saying the water was only knee-deep. Karthik and I were the first 2 to yield. We jubilantly pulled up our jeans upto our knees lest they get wet, and set foot into the water. The water was ice-cold and soon my legs went numb. As we moved forward, the water grew deeper. The water reached a little above my knees and I tried to balance myself on a wooden log under the water. And suddenly, Splash!! I fell from the log right into the water, drenched upto my waist. Thankfully Karthik was within reach and I gripped him for support. Our enthusiasm propelled Kishore and Hamsa who joined us into the water soon. We spent about quarter of an hour sitting on the rocks below the fall and then returned. After a short photo session, we moved on.

We continued further up to the peak of the hill. At one point the guide said that the climb would get steeper on ahead and people who were doubtful of their capabilities should stay back there. 10 out of 11 wanted to go further. Yes, you guessed right... I was the only one who wanted to stay behind. But again, Karthik wouldn’t let me stay. He persisted that I join them up and ensured that he would help me all the way up and down. The sight from above was lovely. We had a view of the entire ranges of Mudumalai. After a short halt on top, we returned back to the resort.

After a quick wash, we checked out of the resort and moved on to Bandipur. Post lunch, we went for another Safari. Here we weren’t any luckier, we only saw deer, deer and deer again. Some little mongoose and eagle here and there were like an incentive for having come so far. After the safari, our glorious trip was coming to a close; we were on our way back to Bangalore. Mostly everyone fell asleep in the car except for Karthik and me who didn’t waste a single minute. We went on and on and on talking non-stop such that we weren’t even bothered where we had reached.

Our chatter only ended when we reached Karthik’s house at 9:30. By the time I was home, it was past 10. No energy left in me, I directly hit the bed only to wake up to the alarm next morning. It was a trip that I didn’t look forward to before I went coz I didn’t know too many people who joined us. But it is definitely one of my most memorable ones after I returned.

A happy full stop to the year

Masinagudi Day I

Celebrating the last week of Year 2008, 6 people went on a trip to Masinagudi forest. Let me introduce you to the group - me, Pranathi and Bhartesh from CGI and Pranathi’s cousin Karthik and two of his colleagues Kishore and Hamsa from Bosch.

We started our journey at 12:00 AM of 27th with Gopalswami Betta, a Krishna temple atop a mountain as our first halt in mind. We reached the place at 5am only to realize that the check post to the peak opens only at 7. Most of us caught up on our sleep while Kishore kept watch against wild animals which may want to party on out carcasses. Finally losing our patience, we bribed the guard at the checkpost to let us in earlier and thus made it right in time for sunrise. The view from above was a feast for the eyes.

Soon we were on our way to our main destination, The Jungle Hut at Masinagudi. The resort was comfortable in the midst of a jungle. We had two adjacent rooms and a common verandah. Our plan was to freshen up and go for lunch followed by a safari run by the Govt. of India. I was the first one to be ready and decided to explore the place with Karthik. We walked though the back of the resort into the wilderness. As we moved forward, the trail became thorny but that wouldn’t deter us. Far beyond we could hear flowing water and that was where we wanted to be. The water was chill and fast flowing. Since we didn’t have too much time on us, we couldn’t stay longer to enjoy our find but rushed back to the resort.

The lunch was a heavy South Indian meal with Sambar, Rasam, Rice and buttermilk. We reached the ticket counter of the safari at 3:00. There was a pandemonium there with everyone trying to be the first person at the counter. The tickets were exhausted within no time and we were left behind. We decided to take a private safari which cost Rs.800 per jeep. The safari lasted for an hour and a half. We didn’t see many animals but those we saw included peacocks, bisons, deer, wild cocks and eagles.

Packing dinner on the way, we reached the resort all exhausted looking forward to a good night’s sleep. Since it was too early for bed time we decided to make use of the facilities provided by the resort. I tried my hand on all games from Carrom to Badminton to TT. The TT games with Bhartesh were memorable with me losing all of them. Yet, the satisfaction remained that it was a graceful defeat. Back in the room, we decided to play a game of Uno cards before hitting bed. ‘Catch’ing Kishore whenever he was on the verge of winning was awesome fun. Poor fellow, we all kept mum and stared at him when he was asking doubts as to what he needed to do after putting a Wild card. But as soon as he dropped it, we all screamed in one voice “Catch!!”

We slept as late as 2:00 knowing well that we had a trek at 6:00 next morning!