KALINDI PASS EXPEDITION --- AN ULTIMATE HIGH ALTITUDE TREKKING

Kalindi pass one of the toughest trekking expeditions in the Himalayas lies between two religious place—Gangotri and Badrinath. This route offers all the elements of Mother Nature one can ask for, Tough, Beautiful, Serene, Rugged, Rigid, yet fall short of appreciating the beauty

Below is a mix of both a travelogue and a description of the route, by a team of 16 members from Bangalore.

TEAM

Lakshminarayan V (Leader), Sunand S, Sandeep, Santosh, Jaimon Jose, Annapurna Lolla, Rohan Prabhu, Rajendra, Sreekanth R U, Vivek S, Chethan N, Arjun Ravishankar, Kumar Gopal Rao, Rudresh M N, Mamatha Bhargav and Jith Veeravalli.

Given the toughness of the route and the height of the pass (highest in trekking) this trek is sure to squeeze out the juice out of every ardent trekker and give a lifetime experience.

Selection of the team had to be different than the normal high altitude trekking because of the toughness of the terrain. There were many enquiries and interested trekkers. Most of the organizers do not take first timers to this trek.

It was really a challenge to lead a team of 16 members totally inexperienced in high altitude trekking to take them to the top of the world. Some of them had done a few high altitude treks, but most of them had not seen Himalayas at all.

Team kept meeting regularly, discussing about the treks, difficulties to be faced and how to prepare for any eventualities. A few had the fear about altitude sickness, frost bites, etc. Answering all the queries made me prepare for the problems likely to be faced by the members.

Route taken

Initially the plan was to start from Badrinath cross over Kalindi pass on the 3^rd day and reach Gangotri , the same way as I did in 1994 with a 3 member team. But on enquiries made with friends in Gangotri, I found that it will be difficult to gain height for an inexperienced team from 10000ft to 19700ft in 3 days.

We changed the plan to suit the team strength and decided to start from Gangotri and reach Badrinath which has a gradual height gain.

From Delhi we reached Rishikesh and then proceeded towards Uttarkashi to reach Gangotri.

Gangotri, one of the char dhams is considered to be a very sacred place, situated on the banks of Ganga, this Himalayan town offers the much required initial starting push.

At Gaumukh

The trek starts—Gangotri to Nandanvan

The documents are checked at the check post, which is at 1 km from Gangotri. The trail is well laid and is shared by mules up to Bhojbasa for 14 kms and further for another 3kms after which moraine starts, trek gets tougher by the distance, most of the time trekking on the glacier, with never ending pile of boulders. The mighty Shivaling standing majestically at our right keeps us company through out our trek from Bhojbasa to Nandanvan. View of Bhagirathi peaks in the morning at Bhojbasa gives us a boost to undertake the tough part of the trek.

Bhagirathi 1, 2, 3

Gaumukh, the birth place of Ganga is visited by many religious people. Mules go up to 3 kms before Gaumukh and thereafter had to be trekked on the huge pile of boulders to reach the birth place of Ganga. The glacier has been receding over the years and off late this is at a much higher rate much thanks to the Global warming.

The entire route from here looks like a desert filled with boulders. The trail from Gaumukh gets tough wi10th steep ascent towards Nandanvan with no greenery and very few potable water points.

Nandanvan camp site had everything required for camping,-- flat plain camping area, good view of peaks --Shivling, Kedar Dome, Bhagirathi 1,2,3, Chandraparbat, gentle streams flowing, especially early sunrise when the first rays of the sun hit the peaks and summit points turn golden colour, offering opportunity to take some photographs worth winning awards. This is the last greenery point for the whole trek and the only good camping spot, rest all was on the boulders.

Shivaling Peak

Nandanvan to Kalindi Base

Trek from Nandanvan to Vasuki Tal is initially a gradual height gain through the land slid zone and mostly on the ridge traversing the caved in glacier. I was surprised to see the difference in the route from 1994 to 2007, the glacier which I had crossed enroute had all caved in and we had to fix ropes to cross a small cliff to reach the camp site Vasuki Tal – a High Altitude Lake. An acclimatization walk in the evening to a high point before getting down to the camping area made us get acclimatized to the higher altitude. One gets to view all the surrounding peaks in the back drop of the Vasuki taal.

A steep climb in certain places and a gradual ascent in most of the route take us to Khara pattar our next camping place. The trail towards Swetha Glacier is through ridges and across glacial terrain and one witnesses many landslide zones along the path, comparatively challenging days trek, not to mention the beauty of the glacier and surrounding peaks gives one company throughout.

The trek to Kalindi Base is again on the never ending pile of boulders on a narrow ridge and then gradually ascends on snow and ice terrain to the Base camp, a very small area, surrounded by ice and moraines, the tents have to be pitched on rocky surface, sure to give all a nice acupressure. Time for all to get ready for the final attempt to summit, the high altitude makes the camp even more adventurous. The minimum temperature going subzero, heavy snowfall gives us the real High Altitude feeling. We discuss about our plan to the summit and everyone is eager to reach the top.

Kalindi Base to Badrinath

Kalindi Base

Every one is geared up for the challenge ahead. It’s a step climb from the start walking only on snow and ice, the whole team stays together helping each other, nobody, except me, has seen so much of snow, the conditions change very soon and whiteouts are an order of the day, the terrain is filled with crevaces, and the altitude makes us move very slowly. At last after a tough climb of 3 hours we reach our goal – Kalindi pass. The summit point (19700 ft) is like heaven not because of the breathtaking view, the weather conditions barely allow us to view anything beyond a few meters, and the great feeling is due to the sense of achievement by an inexperienced team.

After offering our prayers to the almighty and some snaps we start descending keeping every step very carefully, ropes are fixed to ensure safety to the trekkers, the route towards Rajparao is very dangerous as it is full of crevaces and utmost care is required while trekking in this terrain. After a long grueling trek in a white out condition, one touches boulders and sees the brown color, a little distance ahead Rajparao campsite is fixed much to the relief of the trekkers. We had trekked for nearly 11 hrs from kalindi Base to Raj parao in one day.

Descending from the top

Rocky terrain and land slide zones does not leave us, but this time it is on a gradual descent towards Badrinath. Every one wish to reach the next camp as soon as possible to end this walk on rocks and boulders. Crossing many streams and ridges the route takes serpentine trail gradually losing height, we come across the Himalayan flora.

At Ghastoli there is an ITBP Check post where our documents are checked again. The final days trail is an easy trek from Ghashtoli to Badrinath where one gets into mule trail and later on the road being constructed. The route leads to Mana village which is just about 3 km away from Badrinath, walking steadily one reaches the final destination of the great Himalayan Expedition – Badrinath.

A Summary

DAY	FROM	TO	ALTITUDE	TREK DISTANCE	Time Taken
	Gangotri		3010m
DAY 1	Gangotri	Bhojbasa	3900m	14 kms	6 hrs
DAY 2 (Rest day)	Bhojbasa	Goumukh and back	4000m	5 kms + 5 kms	5 hrs
DAY 3	Bhojbasa	Nandanvan	4465m	7 kms	6 hrs
DAY 4	Nandanvan	Vasukital	4950m	7 kms	5 hrs
DAY 5	Vasukital	Kharapattar	5120m	7 kms	4 hrs
DAY 6	Kharapattar	Swetha Glacier	5337m	7 kms	5 hrs
DAY 7	Swetha Glacier	Kalindi Base	5650m	7 kms	5 hrs
DAY 8	Kalindi Base	Kalindi Pass	5970m	6 Kms	3 hrs
DAY 8	Kalindi Pass	Rajparao	5460m	8 kms	8 hrs
DAY 9	Rajparao	Arwa Tal	4701m	13 kms	3 hrs
DAY 10	Arwa Tal	Ghastoli	4100m	16 kms	6 hrs
DAY 11	Ghastoli	Badrinath	3110m	16 kms	6 hrs

Category Tough

Maximum height gained 19700 feet

No of days 11 days

For further details on trekking in this route or for any other Himalayan expeditions please contact Lakshminarayan v at lacchhii@gmail.com or call 9449649236

for more photos http://picasaweb.google.com/lacchii/KalindiPhotos

Dayara Bugyal

This was my first trek to the Himalayas in 2006. Mr Narayan who had come with his friends to Kumaraparvatha wanted a trek during Christmas holidays. Season being a snow fall time I had to check the possibilities of trek being conducted. First I had the idea of trekking in Frozen Lake in Leh, but on verifying the details the right time to do this trek is during jan-Feb. After a thorough search I decided to plan for the Dayara Bugyal trek. Inquiries were made with the Travel Agent in Uttarkashi to find out the feasibility of the trek and about the snow condition. Mr Narayan took initiative in mobilizing the team.

The team comprising of 7 members (Mr Narayan, Mr Sumesh, Mr Kamalesh, Mr Lakshminarayan Rao, Mr Sreekanth, Ms Nalina ) started meeting regularly for briefing about the trek. Since all the team members are first timers to Himalayas lots of doubts arised and every body was anxious to experience the snow fall.Itinerary was finalised according to the convenience of all the team members. As per the plan we were to leave Bangalore on the 23rd by flight to Delhi and by bus to Uttarkashi via Haridwar. Weather turned bad the whole of last week of Dec. Flights were delayed and cancelled due to heavy fog in Delhi. Anxiously looking at the weather report we made last minute calls to each other to know about the schedule departure of our flight. Scheduled time of our flight was 4.30 pm. Finally at 9.30pm it left Bangalore and we reached Delhi at 1.30 am with outside temp being 10 degrees. Took a taxi to ISBT Kashmiri Gate (Rs.260/- per taxi) for our next part of our journey. We were lucky to find a bus to Uttarkashi even at that odd hour. There are no luxury buses available to Uttarkashi. Visibility being almost nil, the driver has to be given an international license for driving in this route at this condition. Sitting in the front seat with our hands at our heart we were watching the driver's experience in driving at this nil visibility condition. We reached Haridwar at 8.00am where Mr Lakshminarayan Rao , who had left Bangalore 2 days early was waiting for us at Bus stand

24th Inquiries were made for the bus journey to Uttarkashi. Taxi rates were exorbitant. We took a Govt bus which took 2 hrs more than the scheduled time because of a road block near Tehri. We reached Uttarkashi at 5.30pm. Mr Rawat, our tour operator welcomed us and made us settle at Hotel Bhandari Annexe. Mr Rawat with whom I was associated for nearly more than 20 years had earlier helped me in crossing kalindi Pass in 1994. Meeting him after 12 years exchanged pleasantries. After enquring about mutual friends started preparation for our next days programme. Mr Rawat told about the heavy snowfall at Dayara Bugyal and every one was exited. We had a late lunch/dinner settled for the day. We were tired after tedious travel for nearly 13 hrs. Mr.Rawat had taken care of arrangements of rations, tents, and porters (7 porters, 1 Guide and 1 Cook).

25th We left for Barsu by Taxi at 9.30 am which is 32 kms from Uttarkashi. It took us 2 hrs to reach Barsu. Barsu - a small village with 80 houses has a GMVN Rest House and a beautiful lake. It also is the home town of our Tour Operator Mr Rawat who had accompanied with us to Barsu. We pitched our tents in the camping ground. It happened to be the only place where we pitched our tents. Our cook and guide who had accompanied us with minimum rations prepared food. Rest of the porters came by bus at 5.30pm. There is only one bus which ply from Uttarkashi to Barsu and hence it is advisable to hire a taxi to save time.

26th Weather turned bad in the morning. Every one was ready at 7.30 itself. Mr Rawat advised me to be careful and also said to reach the campsite at the earliest. Initially it was a steep climb in the forest and then the climb became gradual. It took sometime for us to warm up and also to acclimatise to the high altitude. After 3 hrs of climb in the forest we reached the snow field. There was around 3 ft snow. It was too much for the beginners and were finding it a bit difficult initially to walk in fresh snow which was at times knee deep. The support staff had not expected so much of snow. We halted for lunch after crossing the snow field. It was a much needed rest for all of us. After Lunch break we started traversing towards Dayara Bugyal . At 2.00 pm it started snowing. We had almost reached our camp site. After 6 hrs of trekking we reached our camp site - Dayara Bugyal - which means meadow, but fully covered in snow. It was a amazing to see the camp huts covered in snow and temp being very low. From here there is no necessity of tents. There are plenty of Camping huts to camp for the night. Our cook - Dipendar immediately started camp fire and every body dried our feet and socks. It was very cold. The temp was touching minus. Our Guide Mr.Kishan was worried about the route being difficult for us. We had to change our plans. Weather was also not good. It would have been difficult for the porters to make route in knee deep snow without proper equipment. Alternate route to be taken the next day was discussed and it was decided to halt the next day at Dayara Bugyal for the weather to clear and also for the snow to get settled. It was also decided to trek towards Dodital and Kishen would go around the place in the morning to check for a safe route to Agora. After dinner we all settled in our sleeping bags. Night the temp was - 6 degrees.

27th I got up at 6.30 in the morning to check the weather. It was very clear. Slowly one by one came out to see our camping place. What was not visible the previous day was clearly seen. It was a treat to see the beautiful peaks surrounding our camp site. Our camp site was fully covered in snow. No one had anticipated so much of snow. All started playing in the snow. After breakfast we went to view point to see the wonderful view of the peaks (Bunderpunch, Kalanag, Draupadi Ka Danda to name a few). It was an amazing sight. We were not interested to go to our camp site. Photos were being clicked from all possible angles. We went to our camp site by 11.00 am. Again I discussed about the route with Mr Kishen. Since the weather was clear we decided to move down to Gwahi, 4 kms from Dayara Bugyal. By this time all the team members were fully acclimatised and was immediately ready for trekking down hill. The plan was to trek upto Raital and then take a cab to Sangam Chatti which is the starting point for the Dodital Trek. Since we started very late we decided to camp mid point at Gwahi and proceed to Raital the next day. We left Dayara Bugyal at 2.00 pm. We were initially traversing in the snow covered trail for nearly 1 hrand later we entered into a forest and the path became easier. We reached Gwahi at 4.00 pm and settled in the camp huts available. It was agin very cold. Lake had frozen and hence had to melt ice / snow for water.

28th Our plan was to reach Raital(4 Kms), take a taxi upto Sangam Chatti and from there trek up to Bewara, which is 8kms from Sangam chatti.We started at 8.30 am. I was suffering from severe stomach pain / headache. Mr.Sunil and me went ahead to arrange for the taxi, but when we reached Raital at 10.00 am there was no taxi available. On enquiry with the forest dept staff came to know that taxi can be arranged over phone call to Bhatwari - 3 kms from Raital. There was a little bit of confusion when Mr.Sunil and Mr.Depinder had both booked for Taxi. Finally things were settled and we left Raital in 2 Taxi (Rs.1500/-) reaching Sangam Chatti at 1.30pm. We had our packed lunch at a hotel. My acidity problem was giving a horrible time. I could'nt eat anything. Seeing my discomfort, our Guide Mr.Kishan offered to carry my rucksack and for the first time I was trekking without a rucksack. I decided to trek ahead with Mr.Sunil so that there will not be any delay in reaching the camp. Route from Dodital is a very wide trail almost like a jeep track and that made it easier for me to trek almost blindfolded. Initially it was a steep climb and then the climb became gradual. After reaching Agora at 3.30pm, I was informed by Mr.Sunil that our guide had sent back all the tents with 2 porters since the route has camping huts all along. That means we have to trek for another 2 kms for another 1 1/2 hr of steep climb to reach the camping hut at Bewara. I wasn't aware of this and was not happy trekking another 2 kms since the other team members were very far. Our Guide and all other team members reached Agora at 5.00pm. I made sure that we stay at the guest house available at Agora and not continue upto Bewara. Whole night I was suffering because of my stomach pain.

29th Mr.Kishan was more worried about my health. We had to trek for 10 kms to reach Manjhi. It is an very steep climb till Bewara and afterwards it is clear level path up to Manjhi except for snow in some places. It was very tiring for me. My legs were not moving at all. There was no intake at all. I was getting dehydrated even after taking electral. Water is scarce in this route. The forest is full of Rhododendrons. We reached a tea stall 2 kms before Manjhi. I slept for nearly 1 hr till the time others had there tea. I was slightly feeling better. Finally we reached Manjhi at 3.00 pm.

30th Our final destination point - Dodital was 5 kms from Manjhi. It is an easy trek without any ascent and descent except for some patches of snow. We trekked up to Dodital without rucksack and reached in 1hr and 45 min. Weather was very good. We walked around the lake, took some snaps. There were 2 guest house and numerous camping hut, but all of them were closed. We decided to trek up to Agora instead of camping at Bewara. After a total distance of 21 kms we reached Agora at 5.00 pm. It was very tiring, but of course everyone was happy at the completion of the trek.

31st Last day of the trek. It is only 6 kms and so everyone was relaxed. We celebrated Sumesh birthday. After breakfast we started trekking at a leisure pace and reached Sangam chatti at 11.00am. We cramped ourselves in the only available jeep (14 of us) for 15 kms and reached Uttarkashi by evening. Mr.Rawat greeted us with a warm hug. All of us were really happy with the way the trek went on. We celebrated new year at the hotel itself and wished for many more adventurous treks for the coming year.

Trek Programme

Day 1 Uttarkashi to Barsu 32 kms by vehicle

Day 2 Barsu to Dayara Bugyal 6 kms

Day 3 Dayara Bugyal to Gwahi 4 kms

Day 4 Gwahi to Raital 4 kms

Raital to Sangam Chatti 30 kms by vehicle

Sangam Chatti to Agora 6 kms

Day 5 Agora to Manjhi 10 kms

Day 6 Manjhi to Dodital to Agora 21 kms

Day 7 Agora to Sangamchatti 6 kms

Sangam chatti to U.Kashi 16 kms by vehicle

Total distance trekked 56 Kms

Yedakumeri to Gundya

Trek to Gundya 19th to 21st October 2007

Explorative trek which we went on the 1st and 2nd of October didn’t go according to our plan. With great difficulty we reached Dodkalbetta . But from there we couldn’t locate the trail to Katte. In fact we thought we were on the right path, but to our surprise the trail took us back to Kaginahare.

Trek to kaginahare was again planned on the 19th of October with a different team with me and Deepak leading a 7 member team

Members: Lakshminarayan, Deepak, Dipayan, Murali, Ramesh , Mahesh and Eshwar

The Route

After our first trek we had a fair idea of what went wrong. This time we changed our route

First Day

Reached Hongadahalla by Qualis
Hongadahalla to Yedakumeri village 3 Kms
Yedakumeri village to railway track 3 kms (61 kms milestone)
Railway track to Yedakumeri Railway Staion 6 kms (67 kms milestone)
Yedakumeri R.S to Kaginhare village 3 kms

Second Day

Kaginahare village to Railway track 12 kms (88 kms milestone, 3 kms after shrivagilu)
R T to Gundiya gate 6 kms

Day One

As per our plan we reached Hongadahalla village by 7.00 am and started our trek to the track after enquiring the route with a localite. The trail initially is on the jeep track and afterwards the trail takes a turn towards left. We were on the right track sighting the trail which is not very clear in most of the places for nearly a hour. We were happy to sight the bridge down and were satisfied that we are on the right track.

Suddenly the trail vanishes and we enter into a deep valley. With no trail visible and the track is seen we head right down in to the valley wading through the thorny bushes and finally we reach the track with lots of bruises on our hands. Here we meet at the 61st km milestone and we trekked on the track to reach Yedakumeri Railway station at 1.30. yedakumeri Railway station is at 67th km milestone.

After resting for while we start again towards kaginahare. The trek deviates from the track to the jungle at 68.5 kms milestone to the left. It is a steep climb for nearly 2 hours on a water path initially and a regular trail thereafter. We reach the grassland after a tiring climb for 2 hours and were greeted by lovely view of the surrounding valley. An other 1 hour climb leads us to Kaginahare village.

Day Two

After an early breakfast we left kaginahare at 7.45 am and spent some time at the Fort taking pictures. From the Fort we get down towards the temple and enter the forest heading towards south west direction initially. The trail is missing in most of the places and only by the direction of our destination, we were able to sight the trail. We reached the top of an hill straight opposite to Dodakall Betta. From there the trail is on the ridge towards West. At the end of the ridge we could see the village Katte and started descending into the shola forest.

The problem starts from here. The trail which is clear till now does not exist. We had to simply walk towards west direction without deviating much cutting those thorny bushes, avoiding those relentless leeches which always wins over you how much ever you try to avoid biting.
AT around 11.30 pm we reached the stream. From here it was supposed to be an hour’s trek to the railway track. After crossing the river, we followed the jeep track which was clear for quite a distance. Since the path is not used regularly, thorny trees and grass have covered the path making it difficult to locate the trail. At 1.30 we could see the Dodkall betta and we were sure that the trek was almost over. We could feel that the railway track is very much closer. But we were not able to find the path.

Deepak and I left other members near the stream and went in search of the path. After searching for ½ hour we could find the trail. We had come on to the other side of the stream. Dipayan started having problem with his knee. He had a ligament tear because of an accident and wanted to test how fit he is now.

Pace was very slow due to his knee problem. Having found the path we reached the railway track (88.5 km milestone) at 2.00 pm. This is 3 kms after Shrivagilu railway station. Intermittent rains also added to the weight of our rucksacks. We were all drenched and were stinking. There was a sigh of relief in every ones face. We stopped for some time to have bath and to have lunch. It started raining again. We started trekking again at 4.00 pm in the rain for 1 hr reaching the 93.3 km milestone from where we can see the subramanya road.

Here we got down to the road. Our driver was waiting for us from 4.00pm and was happy seeing us. The road to sakleshpur, 40 kms from Gundiya is horrible which took us 2 hours. Had our dinner at Hassan and reached home at 4.00 am.

Note:
01) Trek on the railway track is not allowed. You can’t start from the beginning. One has to enter the track in the middle and deviate before reaching the next station.
02) The trail from Kaginahare is not frequented and is not advisable during rainy seasons.
03) The tree canopy helps in not getting wet even in pouring rains.
04) Its better to take a guide or have a map / GPS / Compass if you want to venture on your own.

Lamayuru to Chilling

Trek to the Land of the Lamas did begin on the 20th of July, but the planning took place nearly 3 months before. After a through search we setlled for the trek from Lamayuru to Chilling. We met several times clarifying the doubts which arised since all were first time to the mighty himalayas. Finally we left bangalore on the 13th. Reached manali on the 15th and left for Leh by 2 vehicles on the next day. The road from Manali to Leh was horrible. We halted at Bharatpur for the night. This was at 14000ft. Every one was feeling tired and some signs of altitude sickness.



We reached LEH on the 17th evening. Mr Namgyal had already booked us a Guest House. Next day was an acclimatisation walk. We went around Leh palace and some monastries on the way. Sign of altitude sickness at bharatpur had gone and everyone was well acclimatised.

19th First day of the programme. Drive from Leh to Lamayuru.This is on the highway from leh to srinagar. surprisingly the road was good except in a few places. We reached Lamayuru by 6.00 pm via Alchi. The supporting staff had pitched the tents at the camping site and we selected our tents. After a cup of tea, we went to see the monastry, which is an ancient monastry, supposed to be 10th century.

20th First day of the trek. Everyone was geared up for the trek. The first day’s trek was up to Phanjila crossing over Prinkti la (3750m). The trail for the first 45 min was along the stream and then the climb to Prinkti La starts. We reached the pass after 2 hrs trek. After descending for 3 hrs we reached Wanla. It was very hot and everyone was tired. From Wanla to Phanjila is around 10 kms trek on Tar road. We halted for lunch at a camp site near wanla, rested there till sunset and walked on the road to reach Phanjila at 4.45pm.




21st We started trekking on the jeep track for 1 hr before entering the forest along the stream, crossing it many times. It’s a gradual ascent till Hinju village. Here Mr Hemanth backed out because of sickness. He and his wife Soumya was sent back along with one porter and the rest of the team started trekking towards our campsite. It’s a steep climb for 2 hrs. We reached Base of Konzki La by evening. It started raining at around 8.00 pm and went on for whole of the night.

22nd It was raining till 8.30 in the morning. We started the trek along the stream for 2 hrs and then the climb to Konzki la (4950m) begins. It’s a long winding path and took us 4 hrs to reach the top from the base of konzki la. After taking some pictures we descended to Sumdo Doksha in 2 hrs. Descend to the camp site was an easy one crossing many streams.





23rd Weather was very clear and everyone was well acclimatized. It was an easy trail traversing for 3 hrs before climbing 500 mts to Lanak La. Climb to Lanak La is strenuous. From the top of Lanak La to Base of Dung Dung Chan La took only 15 minutes.


24th We left early for the climb to Dung Dung Chan La at 7.40 which was a gradual ascent reaching the top at 9.30. This was the last day of the trek. We left the top at 10.00 towards chilling. Descend was a very tiring trek. It was a steep descent and it took us 4 hrs to reach chilling. Mr Hemanth and Soumya greeted us at chilling. We reached Leh by vehicle and after visiting Pangong Lake and river rafting we reached Bangalore on the 28th.

Kalawara Betta

Kalwara Betta – It all started with an Email from Kallesh who had forwarded some photos of the Betta which his friend had taken during his visit. Amazing photos. Just couldn’t believe that such a place exist so close to Bangalore

Where is it? None of us had heard of Kalawara Betta. All we could gather was that this was in the Nandi hills range, closer to Chikballapur. We had no idea. Enquires were made to our friends. All I got was a mail from Ravee to check the blog of Pradeep Jayaraman. It wasn’t sufficient. They had not reached the top. We decided to give it a try.

Our plan was to be there before the sunrise to have a good view. Kallesh, Deepak, Nagaraj and me planned to meet near the petro bunk after getting down the Hebbal flyover. I was there at the meeting point at 4.00am. No sign of others. It was very chill and visibility was very poor.

At 4.30 am we all assembled and started our move to the hills. We decided to take the nandi hills, ask for the route and then proceed. But that didn’t happen. On widening the roads the nandi statue at the entrance of the cross was missing. We had crossed over and had reached Chikballapur. It was 5.30 am. We found one much wanted tea shop. Stopped for tea and made enquiries at the shop. In a hurry to reach the place I had forgotten to take my camera. Later I was cursing myself at missing my camera. It requires another visit.

The route There are 2 routes to kalawara betta. One is take a turn towards Nandi Hills and go further to kalawara Village crossing Muddenahalli. This is shorter route than the one from Chikaballapur. Second one is to go to chikaballapur and then to kalawara Village. From Kalawara Village ask for Omkara Jyoti Ashrama / Papagni Mutt which is 2000 years old. There is a shiva temple and vehicles can be parked. This is at the base of the Hills.

Nandi to Kalawara to Papagni Mutt is 6 kms

Chikaballapur to papagni Mutt is 3 kms.

The tea shop owner guided us the route towards muddenahalli and asked us to enquire from there. We were 5 kms before Chikkaballapur. Initially we were on the tar road up to Muddenahalli and then we took a detour to a muddy track. Enquiries were made with every person on sight. Finally we were guided to the starting point of the trek. We parked our vehicles and started trekking. We had no idea!!! We headed towards south on the boulders and dense shrub. Our plans of seeing sunrise didn’t happen. It was a cloudy day. Nagaraj and I took a different route and Kallesh and Deepak were ahead of us. I was using my mobile camera to take some snaps. After 1 hr Deepak called me over phone and said they have found a mantapa. We joined them and had much needed rest. The route up to the mantapa is not very clear. Further ahead there is a clear steps cut on the rocks till the top. Here sleep took us away from the actual route and we went towards north west direction. After half an hour of trekking in dense shrubs I decided to go back to the mantapa and look for the route. We returned to the mantapa again. Clouds had cleared and there was a clear blue sky. Wow!!! What an amazing sight!!! The ridges on the north were awesome. Again and again I was cursing myself for not bringing my camera. My mobile camera was not sufficient, but anyway I couldn’t stop myself from clicking.

Once on to the path the trek became easy. We were on the top of the hill in about 1 hr. There are remains of the fort wall and a temple / mantapa on top. We couldn’t find any info about the fort. From the top of the hill we could see Nandi Hill on the south and Papagni Mutt on the east. In between Nandi Hills and Kalawara there is another hill, the name of which is not clear to me. Road cut across each hills. May be if we camp there for 2 days we can try reaching Nandi from Kalawara Betta criss crossing the roads in between.

We stayed there on the top for nearly 1 hour going around the hill discussing the possible routes that can be taken. It easily is a one day outing. But the best way is to reach the top before sunset, camp there for the night to watch both sunset and sunrise. Our route for the next moonlit trek was planned. We decided to visit the Mutt and make enquiries for the moonlit trek.

The Papagni Mutt is 1 km from the base of the hill. We met the priest Gangadarachar and told him about our moonlit trek. He assured to help us in providing a guide for us and also to prepare food for us.

Having noted all the details about the place we headed towards Chikkaballapur. It was 12.30 when we reached Chikkaballapur. We were very hungry. We had not taken anything for breakfast. After Lunch at chikkaballapur we went into a Grapes field. Purchased 2 kgs of grapes each and happily left for Bangalore.

Waiting for the moonlit trek to happen in March, but this time with my camera without fail.

Kalavara betta

Moonlight trek to B M Betta

Moonlight trek

A visit to Bananti Maramma Betta, popularly known as B M Betta was pending for a long time. After my Himalayan Trek to Dodital in December 2006 there was some snaps left over to be completed, hence decided to visit B M Betta.

Deepak and I planned for the visit to B M Betta and started off in my bike on 06.01.2007 morning having only a vague idea about the place. We reached Kanakapura and had breakfast. The owner of the hotel to whom we enquired about the place had not heard of this place, surprising, though he was born and brought up in kanakapura. Such is our importance of tourism here. We came out of the hotel and made enquiries at the fruit stall who gave us a clear picture of the place.

How to reach B M Betta

After Kanakpura start going towards sathnur for 2 kms till you reach the end of a tank bund where you can see a yellow colour board on a tree on the right side of the road. Take a turn and continue the path for nearly 10 kms till you reach the village. Take a left on the mud road for 2 kms to reach the base of the hills. At the base of the hill is the Bananti Maramma temple. Vehicles go up to this point and can be parked here before you start climbing the hill.

There are two hills opposite each other. One hill has bolted route and requires climbing gears to go on top. The same hill has an alternate route to go on top without the use of climbing gear also. The other hill is a normal climb. In between these two hills there is a trail which goes inside the forest and comes out of the hills. The hills stretch up to 3 kms and the trail is a neat descent and a good trek for the beginners. Coming out of the trail you reach a lake Sidde Gowadara kere.

Alternate route to B M Betta.

From Kanakapura take the road leading to Ramanagaram and reach B M betta from the other side of the temple. This is a shorter route to B M Betta, but not much frequented. On enquiry with a local villager, there seems to be roughly 25 routes that can be done in these hills. One can easily engage themselves for trekking for 3 to 4 hrs going around both the hills.

There are number of trees near the temple. River crossing technique, Jummaring, ladder climbing are the other activities that can be undertaken in this place.

After spending nearly 3 hrs in this place, we thought of doing a night trek on full moon day. The villagers and other friends who had been to this place earlier cautioned me about the bears in the hills and told me that it is not advisable to do trekking in the night.

We decided to trek on a full moon day on 02.02.2007 which is also our first trek from Bakpackers group. Preparations for the trek were done and till 30^th there seemed to be no response. But from 31^st morning enquiries started pouring and by 1^st morning it had crossed 25 members. Prasanna and I decided to visit the place and make arrangements for a local guide and also for food. We spoke with Mr.Borashetty and made enquiries about the safety who assured me not to worry about the bears since there is a huge group. He also agreed to prepare tea and chitranna for us in the night. By afternoon I lost count of the number of participants. Had I expected such a huge response we could have chartered a bus to take us to the place safely. But it was too late to change our plans.

Almost everyone had agreed to come on their own vehicle. We decided to assemble at 9.00 pm near Khodays gate (Opp Metro), but by the time the whole team assembled it was 10.00pm. It was getting late. I had to call Mr. Bora Shetty and tell him that we will be coming at around 12.00. He was kind enough to wait for us till that time and served us Chitranna and Tea. He even made arrangements for a local guide also. After food we started trekking up to the temple. Temple is 3 kms from the village. Reaching the temple we assemble for a self introduction and have a count of the number of participants. The total number of participants was exactly 50. It was nice to have such a good response. After a small briefing we started to climb the hill. The weather was very good and there was no wind at all. This made it very warm. The trail up to the top was a gradual ascent and since the team was huge we trekked at a leisure pace ensuring safety of all the trekkers.

After resting for a while at the top of the hill we started the descent to the other side of the hill. The route is full of thorny plants, hence one had to be extremely careful not to hurt themselves. We reached the lake at 3.30 am. Some of the first time trekkers were a bit tired. We relaxed near the lake having some snacks and biscuits.

At 4.00 am we started our return trek to the village. This circles the hill and the route is on a level land, cutting across the forest into the village. This takes a clear 1 hour to the village. We reached Mr Bora shetty’s house at 5.00 am, where we had parked our vehicles. We thanked him for the kind gesture and left the place at 5.30. Reached kanakapura and had tea, from where every one disbursed to their place.

Arasinagundi Falls

A team of 12 members started off for a trek to Kodachadri and to Arasinagundi Falls in Kollur. Mr Prasanna who was supposed to lead the team had to back out due to some personal work. He had booked tickets to Kollur for the 8.00pm bus. There are 2 routes to Kollur. One via Mangalore and other via Shimoga. Never take the Bus via Mangalore, which is longer and also the road around Shiradi Ghat is horrible. Since the starting point of the trek –Nittur is 22 kms away from Kollur it is advisable to take the Shimoga route bus which stops at Nittur itself. By the time we reached Kollur it was 10.00am. After freshen up and breakfast we decided to reach Nittur by jeep to save time. (Cost Rs.350/- per jeep). We reached Nittur by 12.00 noon. Our guide Mr Vijay was waiting for us at Nittur.

Our plan of trek was like this;

Trek to Hidlumane Falls 9 Kms

Hidlumane Falls to Kodachadri 7 Kms

Halt at Kodachadri.

Kodachadri to Arasinagundi Falls and to Kollur 13 Kms

Since we reached Nittur very late, I decided to take a jeep up to Hidlumane Falls with packed lunch and trek from Hidlumane Falls to Kodachadri. The journey to the Falls was around 20 minutes. A week ago 1 Gaur (weighing around 10 quintals) had slipped and fallen dead right at the falls. Jeep stops 1 km before the falls. Forest offcials were burning it and the whole place was stinking. They also advised us to be careful while climbing the water falls. Hidlumane Falls is a very small one which is in 7 stages. On reaching the top one can find the path on the right side of the falls which will take u the road point to Kodachadri. But this is not advisable because of the slippery path and not frequented by many. We came back to the starting point and traced our trek trail which initially is a climb through the forest till you reach the grassland. From here the trail circles around the hill with the shola forest on your right side. After an hour’s trek the trail leads you to the jeep track which comes from Gowrikere. Here take right and trek for 3 kms to reach Kodachadri.

We camped at the Inspection bungalow for the night. The charges for the food are Rs.25/- for Break fast and Rs.25/- for Lunch. In case u ask for campfire it is Rs.100/-. Next day we went to Shankar peeta and to see the sun rise. We couldn’t get a clear picture of the sunrise because of the cloudy weather. After breakfast we started getting down for our next destination – Arasinagundi Falls. This is not frequented by many because of the long journey through the forest where there are many trails and hence quite confusing. Our Guide Mr Vijay was not aware of the route and hence I had to recollect my memory and find the route which I had done 6 yrs back. Trek on the same route to Karakatte till you reach the ISKON temple just after crossing the Hotel. After ISKON temple take a left deviation on the grass field and trek for 2 kms on the field before entering the forest. Once entering the forest one has to be experienced to find the trail which is not frequented by many. The trail is at some places a steep ascent, but generally traverses till you reach the stream. After crossing the stream in 3 places you can find a wide path which actually is the route if you approach Kodachadri from Kollur entering the Medicinal plant area (2 kms from Kollur) crossing Arasinagundi falls. Trekking on the wide path for nearly 1 hr you can see a board which guides you to Arasinagundi Falls. You need to descend down for 1 Km to reach the Falls.

From the falls again climb up to reach the wide path it’s a long trek of 6 Kms to the road. We were lucky to reach the Kollur main road just in time to catch the last bus to Shimoga (5.00pm) We reached Shimoga at 9.00 p m. After dinner took a bus to Bangalore and reached Bangalore at 5.00 am. Thus ended our trek to Kodachadri.

Silent Valley 2006

Trek to Silent Valley (20^th October to 25^th October) – nature at its best

Come Diwali, there is always a trek planned to avoid the noise of the crackers. This time it was a Trek to Silent Valley in the core area – a dreamland for naturalist and trekkers. Having trekked in the core area 3 times before, I can never forget the thickness of the forest. With great difficulty and lots of influence, I could get permission to trek in the core area for 5 members. Thus a team of 5 members (lacchii, Ajay, Kiran, Babu and Gopi) made arrangements for the trek.

We couldn,t get tickets in the train and so had to travel by Semi Luxury Bus up to Palghat. We reached Palghat at 4.00 am on the 21^st. On enquiry it was learnt that there is a bus to Mannarkad at 4.30. It was one and half drive from Palghat. We reached Mannarkad at 6.00 am in front of a vegetable market. After purchasing vegetables we boarded a bus to Mukkali at 6.15 am and reached Mukkali at 7.00 am.

The information office was to open only at 8.00 am. We had breakfast at the only available hotel. After completing the formalities at the office, we proceeded to Sairandri by jeep accompanied by 2 Guides from the forest department. The 24 km distance was covered in 1 ½ hour. We were all looking for some sighting of wild animals. We could only sight 1 barking deer.

At sairandri, we climbed the watch tower to have a look at the full range of Silent valley. It was rare privilege to be in one of the best evergreen forest in the Nilgiri Biosphere reserve. 3 Km from Sairandri is where the proposed dam site on the River Kunthi. Thanks to the environmentalists and naturalists (Kerala Sastra Sahitya parishat and an organisation in Bombay) who vehemently campaigned and saw to it the project to build the dam was abandoned by the Government. A metal suspension bridge on the river marks the point till where the tourists are allowed.

Crossing the bridge, real trek starts. The trail initially is a steep climb towards east and since the team is an experienced one having trekked together in various parts of the Western Ghats, moved at a faster pace. We were greeted by the leeches as we entered the shola forest. After 40 minutes of steep climb, the path levels and from this point it is an easy walk with lots of orchids to look at for another 45 minutes to reach Poochipara, our day,s camp shed.(1370m). Poochipara translates as “CAT ROCK” appearing like a squatting cat seen from a distance. However much we tried we couldn,t make out a squatting cat. We gave our provisions which we had taken, to the Forest Guards who served us hot rice and sambhar.

Next day, we started at 8.30 am after breakfast with a pack lunch. Experiences with the leeches made us apply oil mixed with snuff till the knee. (This really has a very good effect) The path all along is a wide one with a gradual ascent and descent walking in North West direction. Initially the trail is through grassland where we could sight a herd of Guars which had come for a morning walk. After some snaps we moved on and the trail descends into a valley through thick and dense mixed jungle till we reached the Kunti River. Crossing the river, we enter into the shola trekking for nearly 3 hrs fighting with the leeches which tried to climb onto our legs for a happy break fast. Snuff mixed with oil applied onto our legs till our knee made those leeches difficult to have a go at our blood. It was difficult to move along easily as we had to keep bending to remove those leeches for more than 100 times. Here I wish to say that, never trek during the rainy season in Silent Valley; else you miss to see the amazing forest. The forest canopy is a treasure house for a variety of birds, trees, flora and fauna. After trekking for nearly 4 hours we reached our camp site Vallakkad at around 2.00 pm. We were at the same height as the previous day. As per the Forest Guard, there once was a Guest House built by a Britisher Mr Walcott near the Grass land just before the present Camp Shed which might have given the name Vallakkad.

Having planned to come back to vallakkad the same evening, we started our trek to Sisipara at 8.30 am with only our pack lunch and some snacks. Initially the plan was to trek up to Sisipara, leave our luggages and trek up to Anjinda the highest peak in this region and camp at Sisipara. The forest guards at vallakkad briefed us that after the rains, the camp shed at Sisipara is full of water and is not possible to camp inside. Sisipara which is at a height of 2370 m is the entry point to the Nilgiris. A steep climb on a winding path of 8 km inside the shola forest takes you to Sisipara. This is the only place in the Western Ghats where one can see Rhododendron species. Since the weather had turned bad, we decided to skip the trek up to Anjinda which would take another 2 hrs, and decided to return to our camp site Vallakkad.

The return journey was not tough since the route was familiar. We moved at a much faster pace and reached Sairandri on the 25^th morning. The forest Guards had made arrangements for the jeep to take us to Mukkali. It was rare privilege to be allowed to trek through the national park. I wish to thank the DFO who gave me the permission and the ever helping Forest Guards stationed at all the camp sites keeping the camp site so clean making our stay comfortable. I hope to get another chance to trek to Anjinda peak and cross over to Ooty.

Thanks to the restrictions in entering the core area, the place remains litter free. I remember the settlements inside the national park with rubber plantation, when I first trekked in Silent Valley. The concerned officials have taken great pains in vacating the encroachments and I fully agree with the restrictions made for entering the forests. You need to be lucky to get an entry inside.

Never miss the Information centre where the details about all the national parks in Kerala forest have been neatly made and the sounds of all the birds and animals which are available inside the Silent Valley have been recorded.

The programme goes like this.

Bangalore to Palghat or by train / Bus

Palghat to Mannarkad by Bus 40 kms 1 ½ hrs

Mannarkad to Mukkali by Bus 20 Kms 45 min

Mukkali to Sairandri by Jeep 24 Kms 1 ½ hrs

Sairandri to Poochipara Trek 8 Kms 1 ½ hrs

Poochipara to Vallakkad 16 kms 4 hrs

Vallakkad to Sisipara to Anjinda to Vallakkad 30 kms 9 hrs

Vallakkad to Poochipara 16 kms 4 hrs

Poochipara to Poochipara peak to Sairandri 12 kms 3 hrs

One can extend the trek from Sisipara to Bangitappal (12 Kms) and from Bangitappal to Upper Bhavani (12 kms) after getting permission from Ooty forest officials.

Mukkali can be reached from Coimbatore also which is considered faster than from palghat.

silent valley