The wind blew against my face.
It was cold. Cold that made even us, youngsters, shiver as the bus made its way through the modest streets of Bajagoli. The night had crawled its way through and the stars shown bright and luminous in the vast expanse of the sky above. The roads were lined on either sides by dense forests that extended way beyond plain sight, home to wild animals of all kinds. Excitement showed in each of our faces. Six of us, including myself, bracing ourselves for what was in store for us. The road that we had taken could lead to only one possible destination of adventure. Our destination. Kudremukh.
Kudremukh, a hill station located in the Chickamagalur district of Karnataka, is sandwiched between Karkala and Kalasa. Though the town itself is picturesque and known for its scenic beauty, we were interested in something unique that the town housed. Something that gave the town its name: The Kudremukh peak. We planned to trek on the second highest mountain peak in the state of Karnataka and our fantasies were about to come to life.
The bus halted at Kudremukh and we got ourselves off. It was unnervingly quiet for a town, for there was no civilization around except for a refreshment store. The aroma of fresh coffee filled our senses and it was an invitation we couldn’t resist. Having had the fresh coffee, we decided to take a jeep to the guide’s house which was eight kilometers further into the jungle. We would stay the night in the guide’s house and then start the trek early the next morning.
The driver of the jeep was an interesting fellow. He kept repeating how terrible the road was and tried to scare the shit out of us by revealing that wild animals were a common sight in these jungles and could jump on us at any instant. After some rigorous driving, we finally arrived at the place we would call home for the next couple of days. The house was built in the old traditional way and was quite modest. The guide’s name was Arun. He welcomed us in and showed us to our room. We lighted off our backpacks and surveyed the room. It was not huge but could hold the six of us comfortably. In some time dinner was ready and after having had our fill we decided to call it a day. The ocean of stars shone bright in the clear sky outside.
The next day, having had our breakfast consisting of some pancakes and a simple palya, we set out. The six of us, the guide and his dog, Bella. It was a good ten kilometers to the peak and one had to climb up and down six mountains before one reached the base of the Kudremukh peak, and so it began. We trotted slowly up the muddy road and after walking some distance we got to see the bounty of nature, nature in its divine form. The breathtaking view of the towering, lush green mountains made me humble. I felt small and insignificant compared to what lay in front of me.
The bases of mountains generally have fresh streams of water flowing through. These were the waters we had to rely on for quenching our thirst. The waters were very cool and were ideal if one was tired and wanted to take a break during the trek. The sun was out and started beating down on us.
The mountains are home to all kinds of wild animals. We were lucky to witness a few like the Lion-Tailed Macaque, the Common Langur, the Sloth Bear and the Samba, thanks to the guide who could spot them from miles away. An excited friend of mine started pointing at things thinking they were animals. The guide cajoled saying that if it was a wild animal then he would spot it before us implying that we were low lives who didn’t know shit.
Bella was the show stopper. He was quite the character and tried to stick his face in all of our photographs. There wasn’t a single photo in which Bella couldn’t be found. Like the show off he was, he would pose majestically on a high pointing rock the moment he saw one and moved from his stance only upon receiving a couple of blows from his master.
We stopped many times along the way to have some water and rest our legs. The guide commented that even sixty year olds wouldn’t take so many breaks en route. This was enough incentive for us to start walking again. After hours of climbing, there we were at the base of the magnificent Kudremukh peak.
I was exhausted, my legs were giving away but I knew that a few more steps and I would be on the top of the mountain, literally. It is at this moment I realized that the human will is the most potent of all the weapons we possess and that failure and success are merely choices that we make. A divine feeling indeed.
With the last stretch of the trek yet to be completed, we set out, with Bella leading the way. After what seemed like aeons, we were finally at the top of the horse face, staring at the huge forest that looked like horsehair from afar. The world looked tiny from this altitude and it somehow made you feel above petty things. The bounty of nature now was clearly visible. The beauty of this moment slowly started sinking in and an air of satisfaction and accomplishment filled us. We had just set our mind on something and achieved it and that was good enough for me. A Chinese proverb says ‘’ it’s not about the destination but the journey that takes you there’’, and so it was for us. Apart from a sense of accomplishment, the fun we had along the way was the only thing we could carry home with us.
After spending some time at the peak, we had our lunch and decided it was time to head back home. At this moment the guide revealed to us something that he should have done a long time ago. Climbing up was the easy part. It was getting down that was difficult. And so another journey began.
No comments:
Post a Comment