Trek_Kodai_23rdJan_24thJan

Let me begin with the line that Pauncho said on the bus to the trek starting point,"We need no guide, lets follow the stars."

At that moment I was also thinking the same, waiting desperately for the trek to start , talking about snakes and Eucalyptus trees with Pradeep. We spotted a Malabar squirrel on the way to the starting point and that marked the beginning of a great experience.

Day 1:

We started late and it was already noon when we started the climb.The climb was easy with plenty of breaks.I would call day 1 as the photography day.Green grass,clear blue skies and green mountains were mesmerizing.Each click of the camera was just an effort to capture nature's beauty but the aura of the place can never be captured, it could be only felt.

We reached the campsite just in time to see the shades of the sky change from Blue to Red. Getting water from the bottom was quite a task which i relished the most. As the Sun set it left the chill behind which was to increase over the night. Learning to set up a tent was fun and probably you don't need engineering for that , you need common sense and experience.While the fire blazed , the soup was cooked and the maggie cooked, the temperature was falling drastically. I did not have a sleeping bag and after that cold night spen with no sleep the first thing I decided to get a sleeping bag. The first day was not that satisfactory considering the fact that we covered very little distance but the night camp and the cold made up for that.

Day 2:

I had secretly wished this day to be tough and my wish was granted. The journey down was tough and was real nightmare for some. Had to help people get down . Especially the lady I helped will always remain in memories and the witty remarks by her companion , to quote one,"Hey Messi , if she falls in a nice place just leave her there and proceed." When finally we reached down with more than 3 hours of decent I could not contain myself at the sight of water. I jumped into that cool water not realizing that it could be deep and considering the fact that I was not that great a swimmer i should have avoided it. But a lesson learnt ,was helped  to come out by fellow mates.The climb up from the stream was the most difficult and the most enjoying part of the trek. Almost no sleep, previous day's exhaustion and the morning decent made it more challenging. But Me and Ajinkya just kept on walking and were the first few to complete the trek.Was wondering how the lady I helped would complete the trek and when she came to the top all that I could do was clap , clap and clap.

The crowd on top was great , especially the children who wanted to feel our sleeping bags.We waited for everyone to climb and then moved to catch the bus to Kodai. I never knew that in no time I would be served with the best biryani of my life.

The treks with CTC have always been great. I have been meeting new people , making friends , new experiences and the best part is a day well spent.

Thanks to Balaji and Tara for organizing such a memorable trek and kudos to everyone who completed it and was a part of it , be it the guide, be it the biryani man, the bus driver or the Bison.

 

Old Monk

The Bartender now is a monk.

Pictures and Life

The football(Gifted by friends while passing out of college) and the squirrel (Bought at Mahabs where we spent the night at petrol pump.)

  

You had always wished to have that alone but it never happened.

 

                                                 Idiots will be idiots.

Nagala,January 14,2010

What does it take to push your body to the limits? What is one's limit? Is there one? Is it a factor of the mind's tenacity?
A trek is probably a sneak-peak into the myriad of answers these questions pose.

This was my third trek with CTC and probably quite easy as compared to Parvathmalai.But friends, if you just consider the fun quotient , nothing can be better than this.65 Trekkers from Chennai completed this trek on the auspicious day of Pongal.

On the trek made some friends and probably will always remember PD and Zoobie-Doobie.

Nagala is around 90 Km from Chennai. The road was good and the scenery  was  beautiful. I had not expected that we will have fog but nonetheless it added beauty to the landscapes. Probably saw Sunrise after a long time . The transition from Dawn to daylight had a beauty of its own.When we neared Nagala the hills were covered with clouds and all that one wanted to do was start, climb and conquer.

We had breakfast at the bottom and then started the climb.  Initially there was a distinct trail but as one reached the Pool 1 , the trail disappeared and we had to follow the path of the leaders who had been to this trek before.But after pool 1 the ploy was quite clear. To avoid getting lost one must try following the stream .Though there will be dead ends but exploring new ways , climbing difficult rocks is the main fun so why nit get lost. Though there were many loose rocks and tough climbs but these small challenges made it all the more interesting.We conquered all the 5 pools one by one with the difficulty increasing with each pool. Diving , swimming and sliding in the water was awesome. I must say this place is a swimmers paradise with so many pools with fresh water.

There are a few cuts and bruises, and the mud of Nagala still in my shoes and i don't want to clean it for some time because good times are few and this was one of those.

Thanks again to CTC for organizing  such a fun trip.

Lost

You don't need to get lost in a forest to understand how it feels to be so.

New Year Qoute

" With every new year, the year changes but the resolution remains the same."

Parvadhamalai,January 2 ,2010

Parvadhamalai is a hill located near Thenmathimangalam village, 20 kms from Polur in Tiruvannamalai district. It is also a part of Javvadhi hills, and accessible through Kadaladi village 25Kms north of Tiruvannamalai .32 trekkers from Chennai, successfully conquered this target.

We started the trek at 10:15 a.m with loads of water and stuff.The load and the sun made it very tough and a few really struggled to climb. There was a steep climb all through out the trek. The path was all green and one could hear the gush of the wind through the grasses.As we came closer to the peak, we were mesmerized by the beauty of the surrounding hills.Fresh air, greenery , rocks , and above all the fight to rise ahead was something we relished the most.

The final stretch of the climb was the best. Probably it showed the difference between being an average and being at the top.That was one part which we liked the most as it was very challenging. The temple at the peak was great.It was the tastiest "Sambar Rice" we had in out lives. The smiling faces as one by one the trekkers reached the top told the story of joy after accomplishment and a secret contentment.The fresh , cool air cleansed our polluted city lungs.

 

 Points to note for future trek: Plan a trek when there are no chances of rain, Reach the place by 6 a.m., carry 2 bottles of water and carry a very light bag, a polythene bag to carry your shoes and some tissue paper will help otherwise you will have to use mineral water.

On a different note : While climbing i was wondering why build a temple there at the top. By the time i reached there , it was clear. The top has made it important, it is aptly suited there and attracts attention. This is the thing that makes it special, probably something that which one could relate to his life. Probably the effort that may have been put behind building it could be felt only if one climbs to the  top.All these signify works of human labor and intellect which we tend to forget. Next time you cross a flyover in Chennai appreciate the effort put in it.