16th October 2009
A river in the desert-A long drive to Mahdah, Oman
My latest trip back home. ( I have finally convinced myself to call that place ‘My Second Home’ because, in many ways, it is.) So, it’s Diwali and I would do anything to escape the noise that inadvertently Diwali brings along with it. One phone call to my Dad and my ticket’s booked and before I know it I am on my way. This was one of my best trips till date (touchwood) provided I overlook the air sickness that I experience on every flight.
Thankfully on this week long trip, I had one weekend on which my whole family would be home. And I hoped it would be spent exploring UAE instead of visiting relatives and smiling at them all day. Hence, you can imagine my surprise when Dad announced that we would be going to this place called Mahdah which was just across the border in Oman. Since I now have a residence visa I can go into Oman without any hassles. So, Friday, early morning (10 am, which is extremely early for my family) we set out in my brother’s car with our equipment of making a barbeque in the middle of the desert as well as with a tent (although I don’t know why we got that along) and some buns for a quick burger in case the barbeque took too long.
It was a long, long, long drive although I didn’t remember to note down the distance.(Lesson learnt- so won’t forget it next time.) We stopped on our way at a masjid for Friday prayers and, at the same time, dad managed to inspect it since he had done its waterproofing work sometime ago. After the males in the family had thanked God for a million things, we were back on track. At the border checkpoint, the officer asked for a National ID card or a passport but didn’t bother to check it. All he checked was whether the car’s insurance was valid in Oman. Good thing we didn’t get dad’s car since he was getting his car insurance renewed. With that done, we went on looking for Mahadah, a place dad had only heard about, where there was supposed to be a river running.
After a long and winding drive we came across a few Pakistanis walking along with big plastic water containers, looking for water to fill. I don’t think they really understood the place that we were looking for. One of them simply made an action, where he raised his hand to his mouth, indicating food, and then pointed in a particular direction which we took to mean that “If you are looking to have food, head that way.” Well, it was past lunchtime so we took his directions and went along. Somewhere along the way, we found cars parked here and there, scattered away. We found a spot where a group of Pakistanis were having a barbecue. We parked near their spot and set out to look for a place where we could set up our barbecue. While the others were getting out of the car, I walked ahead to find out what else the place had to offer.
Now, this place was kind of an oasis. It was right next to the road, had a clump of green trees to sit under, a hill beside it (actually a range of little of hills), water in certain places with fish swimming in it. Plus there was a pipe jutting out of the hill with a constant supply of water. On turning back, I found my brother holding barbecued chicken graciously offered by the Pakistani group. Well, we were starving and who could refuse such an offer. So, we devoured it and when my brother went back to return the stick on which we got the chicken, he came back with more! And when he returned that, he came back with Sweet Lime. It turned out that the Pakistanis had packed up a lot of extra food which I don’t think they wanted to take back. And that is how our marinated fish and the barbecue equipment traveled all the way to Oman and came back without seeing the light of day.
Now, that our tummies were almost full, it was time to move on. But my eyes wandered to the hill and I thought why not climb it and see what lies on top. May be that’s where the river is, maybe that’s where the water is coming from. The path didn’t seem difficult to climb. So all of us agreed to do it. But then we hit the first road block! Someone had thrown fish bones on the path and it was swarming with wasps. The detour was dangerous, to say the least. So, the others backed out. But I was blinded by a desire to prove myself (which in retrospect wasn’t a very good idea.) The hill consisted of extremely loose rocks and one slip and I would be looking at a fracture. Well, those ideas didn’t come to me when I started climbing up and somehow I made it with my heart beating faster than ever. And on top I found, “Flat Land!!!” There was no sign of any water. By this time, I had realized how screwed I was and what an impossible task lay ahead of me of climbing down. And then my heart beat even faster! I couldn’t see my family and I didn’t know what to do. Somehow I managed to keep calm and find my way down. It was scary to say the least but I couldn’t show fear especially in front of my family who already doesn’t understand my love of trekking. So, with my heart in my mouth I went down with no problem at all. I guess my dad guessed I was a bit scared but I am thankful he didn’t make a show of it.
Even after getting down, I was shaking with nervousness which hopefully not many noticed. The Pakistani group was shocked to say the least on seeing that I had disappeared. At least Dad said they were, and when they expressed that shock to my Dad he just shrugged(with pride). Well, I had proved my point! Although I have to admit that was the most least thought of stunt that I have pulled in my life. And I survived (touchwood). I know it seems like I am making a big deal out of climbing a tiny little hill but that hill had such loose rocks which I could easily pull out and, the other thing, I forgot to mention was that it was around 40 degree Celsius out there and the rocks were burning! And so did my palms when I held on to those rocks. So that’s all about my little adventure.
Moving on, we clambered into the car and decided to go further ahead and see if there was anything else to explore and, sure enough, there was. We found the underground river which surfaced only for a short distance. And there were people already bathing in it and most of them were Keralites. (For those who don’t know, UAE has a lot of Keralites) Well, the water was down in a hole sort of a thing and the place was already crowded, so, we didn’t go down. I did find a poor, dead water snake probably killed by a scared human being. (Well, I am sure the snake would have been just as scared as the human when they encountered each other.) The same species of wasps I had encountered earlier were feasting on him. Got a video and then got back in the car. On mutual agreement, we turned back. My sis-in-law made us some burgers since our tummies were beginning to growl again. And, then, we headed back. On the way back, I did spot a Lapwing but I couldn’t manage to get a good look. And that was it. And I forgot to mention the bit of motion sickness I experienced. (I hope to find a cure some day.) Motion sickness is something I have grappled with almost all my life. I love to travel and this seems to be the only hindrance. One day, I hope to be rid of it.
As for the drive to Mahdah, it was great. I am not exactly sure as to whether we ended up in the right place because when I googled Mahdah, I got pictures of a lot of water and boats sailing in it. I didn’t really do much research on it as I thought I am just going to tell you about the place that I visited, no matter what it was called(plus I was too bored to find out more.) It was definitely a trip to remember.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Harishchandragad-Trekking into the Clouds
6th October, 2009
Harishchandragad-Trekking into the Clouds
It was more than five years ago that I had first heard of Harishchandragad. It was during an Optional English lecture that Dr. Phadke had talked about the awe-inspiring beauty of the huge cliff at Harishchandragad. (I didn’t know then that the cliff was called Konkan Kada!)This was before I started trekking. But since that day I had always wanted to go there. Somehow the trek never fell through. Being the fatalist that I am, it just reinforced my belief that when something is supposed to happen it will.
And so more than five years later on the 3rd of October, 2009 at 6 am, four other friends and I set out from Shivajinagar on a Pune-Nashik bus. We got down at Ale Phata at 8:15, in order to change buses. The bus ride cost us 60/- each.(for which I have yet to pay!) Since none of us had had breakfast, we ate at a small restaurant out there. Then at 8:45, we managed to catch a bus going to Kalyan, which would drop us at Khubi Phata. We made it there by 10:15. From Kubhi phata, we get a beautiful view of Pimpalgaon Dam. As the sun was shining bright overhead, the water was glistening in all its glory. Luckily, we got a jeep going to Khireshwar which was about a kilometer ahead. Khireshwar is the base village of Harishchandragad. The jeep ride took us barely 10 minutes. The driver pointed out to a lot of vehicles parked in the distance at the other side of the dam. It seems, Abhishek and Aishwarya were somewhere in the vicinity shooting for Raavan. Thankfully, no one was interested in that. So, we moved on to our little village where we had tea at a small hotel called Yaswant I guess. There I found a few chicks and even managed to get hold of one. Cute, cuddly little creatures they are. After the refreshment, we started off at 10:45.
The climb uphill was exhausting. It was after a long gap that I had gone for a trek and it definitely took its toll. Harishchandragad is the second highest peak in Maharashtra, nestled in Malshej ghat. It’s at a height of about 4500 ft. I was pretty disappointed with my stamina. :( On the way up, we spotted a number of butterflies. ( A detailed checklist will be provided at the end) Apart from that we spotted a few birds. (Checklist later) Saw a few mountain loaches in the water and lots of crabs. We found a partial snake skin, also, which a friend of mine quickly snatched up for keepsake. And how can I forget the huge skink who scared me stiff. The reason it scared me so much was that one of my friend’s kept saying that we were going to spot a snake (and he is usually right in such cases). So when I spotted the skink peeping out of a crevice in a rock, my first instinct said it was a snake! (which it thankfully was not since it was right in front of me!) We just seemed to keep going up and up without stopping. Mountains can be so deceiving. Every time we crossed a hill, it seemed that we were near the top only to realize that it was not so. Spotting a kestrel hovering in the strong wind was a nice sight. We had lunch somewhere on the way.
Finally, by the Grace of whoever it might be, we reached the top at 3:45 pm, after five long, unending hours! Actually even after reaching the top, it took us five minutes to realize that we had made it because there was mist all around and we could barely see anything. But the mist cleared to reveal a temple which has been carved out of a single rock. It was beautiful but I was too exhausted to look at it. There we met a group of three photographers who had come the day before and had put up a tent right in front of the temple. They gave us a lot of good information about everything out there and advised us to quickly find a cave for the night since they would get filled up soon. So that’s what we did. We went cave hunting. Thankfully, we found an empty one. The cave had two parts. The inner part was where we would stay and at the entrance was a small corridor type of place which was, unfortunately, occupied by a local villager had set up his cooking stall on the outside of the cave to cater to the trekkers. Honestly, it wasn’t that unfortunate because it was thanks to him that we got hot cups of tea in the cold weather up there. But the smoke of his kerosene stove blew right into the cave, making my eyes water all through the night and not to mention the completely blocked nose. (I might be allergic to smoke is what I realized later on!) We spread our mats and sleeping bags to mark our territory as we were sure there would be more trekkers looking for shelter and we didn’t want an invasion. And then settled for a nice cup of tea. My legs were sore. Every time I got up, I groaned inwardly with the pain. (Felt even more disappointed with myself)
One of the photographers we had met earlier, came to check on us. They had asked us not to go to the Konkan Kada for the evening since there was so much mist. Two of my friends had wanted to see the sunset but we had chucked the plan on their advice. He said the mist had cleared a bit so we could give it a try. He also wanted to show us a wild flower that he had spotted. We readily accepted his offer to accompany us. His two companions joined us. We were barely even half way there when the rain gods let loose their fury (or love, depending on your viewpoint). We were not prepared for the rain at all. It had been clear all day and even the three photographers didn’t expect such hard rain. We kept on for a while but soon realized it was fruitless. It was pouring hard. We were soaked. Thankfully, I had a couple of plastic carry bags for my cameras and mobile. Otherwise, I don’t know what I would have done! We turned back. I was shivering like hell due to the cold. The senior most photographer apologized on the way back for taking us there in the first place when he himself had advised us not to go. I think he felt really bad that he got us all soaked. And so he treated us to khichdi that he cooked on his stove(which was delicious although I couldn’t savor it due to my bad throat which had got worse due to the smoke.) We slept off with the alarm for 6. We finally managed to pull ourselves out of bed at 7 or something.
The photographers had invited us for breakfast the following morning. We had got food along and didn’t really know whether to accept the invitation or not. The rain gods solved our dilemma though. The rains had lashed out all night and the water seeped into their tent. They were in a pretty bad state in the morning, so, the breakfast invitation stood cancelled. It was drizzling a bit so we decided to take our chance on konkan kada and set out dressed in our rainwear. We had planned to have sandwiches up there. But on the way there, the rains got harder. By the time, we reached there, it was pouring and the mist had covered the valley so there was no view. It was the cliff that I had wanted to really see but I wasn’t very disappointed. The trek till now had been worth it. No regrets. Although I really don’t know why we still had our cheese sandwiches up there on the cliff under a tree with the rain pouring down on us. It was a watery sandwich. We could have easily gone back to the cave and had proper breakfast(which we had ultimately) but we kept to our plan of eating the sandwiches on the cliff! After that we trudged back to our cave dating back to the 11th century. It was quite a feeling to be in such an old cave. And there I had one of the best tomato soups I have ever had, made by a friend. (It was thanks to his cooking that we survived!) To add to that, he made great maggi, which we nicknamed ‘meri cavewali maggi’(like the ad.)
After packing up our things, we started off on our descent. I was apprehensive about it. My shoes had given up on me. The grip was almost gone. There were a lot of rocky patches to cross which had become slippery due to the rains. Plus there were many water falls to wade through. Each step was a struggle to keep my balance. Thankfully, I made it with one fall where I landed on my butt which still hurts! There was a very steep rocky patch which we hadn’t been looking forward to. And believe it or not but there was traffic jam at that very point. Before us, a group from Tech Mahindra had gone down. And some of their group members were stiff with fear. Usually, fellow trekkers help each other out. But their group was too huge to give them a helping hand. They had enough of help. So we managed to move ahead of them. And crossed that rocky patch with no mishaps. After that the trek down was fairly easy but very exhausting. My legs were shaking with exhaustion (more disappointment with myself.) No one else complained which drilled the guilt even further. We made it to the base at 4 pm. The trek was almost done but we weren’t home yet and Pune was more than four hours away.
There was a bus at 5:45, from the village going to Otur which was a little before Ale Phata. We planned to catch it. We were soaking wet. We went to the same place that we had been to in the morning. Changed clothes out there (for which we were charged!) Had Poha which I didn’t really like and then sat waiting for the bus which was exactly on time. The bus ride was bumpy! It took an inner route and finally reached Otur at 7. There we caught a goods carriers and rode in the back up to Ale Phata. It didn’t take long to get there and I was starting to get motion sickness. At Ale phata, we got a Nashik-Pune bus which was packed. So, we had to stand. My aching legs and motion sickness were beginning to bother me. I hoped to make it without vomiting. Bus journeys usually make me sick. Thankfully, I got a seat. Two of my friends got a friendly traveler to chat with, who recounted stories of his trekking days. The bus journey was otherwise uneventful. I made it to Shivajinagar without vomiting. That was an achievement in itself! We made it there by 10 pm and I was home by 10:30 eagerly looking forward to a really hot bath and then to snuggle into bed under a warm blanket. The trek was a success! Touchwood!
Checklist ( It is tentative-Will update it on further confirmation of IDs)
Butterlfies:
Common Rose
Common Indian Crow
Common Gull
Crimson Rose
Yellow Pansy
Blue Pansy
Lemon Pansy Chocolate Pansy
Painted Lady
Plum Judy
Blue Mormon
Common/Angled Pierrot (Need to confirm though)
Tailed Jay
Lime Butterfly
Great Eggfly male
Plain Tiger
Glassy Blue/Common Wanderer (Not sure)
Grass Yellow(Not sure which one)
A Hesperidae species which I need to ID
Blue bottle
Common Leopard Plus two moths which I need to ID
Birds:
Rufus Turtle Dove
Shikra
Red Vented Bulbul
Blue Jay
White Throated Kingfisher
Cattle Egrets-Near the dam
Common Myna
Sparrows
Marsh harrier-Near the dam
Grey heron(Not sure)-Near the dam
ducks(No clue of species)-Near the dam
Kestrel
Brahminy Myna
Malabar Whistling Thrush
Larks (Need to ID the species)
Pied-bushchat (both male and female)
Crow pheasant
Ashy prinia
Yellow eyed babbler
Small Green Bee eater Heard a Cuckoo call
Harishchandragad-Trekking into the Clouds
It was more than five years ago that I had first heard of Harishchandragad. It was during an Optional English lecture that Dr. Phadke had talked about the awe-inspiring beauty of the huge cliff at Harishchandragad. (I didn’t know then that the cliff was called Konkan Kada!)This was before I started trekking. But since that day I had always wanted to go there. Somehow the trek never fell through. Being the fatalist that I am, it just reinforced my belief that when something is supposed to happen it will.
And so more than five years later on the 3rd of October, 2009 at 6 am, four other friends and I set out from Shivajinagar on a Pune-Nashik bus. We got down at Ale Phata at 8:15, in order to change buses. The bus ride cost us 60/- each.(for which I have yet to pay!) Since none of us had had breakfast, we ate at a small restaurant out there. Then at 8:45, we managed to catch a bus going to Kalyan, which would drop us at Khubi Phata. We made it there by 10:15. From Kubhi phata, we get a beautiful view of Pimpalgaon Dam. As the sun was shining bright overhead, the water was glistening in all its glory. Luckily, we got a jeep going to Khireshwar which was about a kilometer ahead. Khireshwar is the base village of Harishchandragad. The jeep ride took us barely 10 minutes. The driver pointed out to a lot of vehicles parked in the distance at the other side of the dam. It seems, Abhishek and Aishwarya were somewhere in the vicinity shooting for Raavan. Thankfully, no one was interested in that. So, we moved on to our little village where we had tea at a small hotel called Yaswant I guess. There I found a few chicks and even managed to get hold of one. Cute, cuddly little creatures they are. After the refreshment, we started off at 10:45.
The climb uphill was exhausting. It was after a long gap that I had gone for a trek and it definitely took its toll. Harishchandragad is the second highest peak in Maharashtra, nestled in Malshej ghat. It’s at a height of about 4500 ft. I was pretty disappointed with my stamina. :( On the way up, we spotted a number of butterflies. ( A detailed checklist will be provided at the end) Apart from that we spotted a few birds. (Checklist later) Saw a few mountain loaches in the water and lots of crabs. We found a partial snake skin, also, which a friend of mine quickly snatched up for keepsake. And how can I forget the huge skink who scared me stiff. The reason it scared me so much was that one of my friend’s kept saying that we were going to spot a snake (and he is usually right in such cases). So when I spotted the skink peeping out of a crevice in a rock, my first instinct said it was a snake! (which it thankfully was not since it was right in front of me!) We just seemed to keep going up and up without stopping. Mountains can be so deceiving. Every time we crossed a hill, it seemed that we were near the top only to realize that it was not so. Spotting a kestrel hovering in the strong wind was a nice sight. We had lunch somewhere on the way.
Finally, by the Grace of whoever it might be, we reached the top at 3:45 pm, after five long, unending hours! Actually even after reaching the top, it took us five minutes to realize that we had made it because there was mist all around and we could barely see anything. But the mist cleared to reveal a temple which has been carved out of a single rock. It was beautiful but I was too exhausted to look at it. There we met a group of three photographers who had come the day before and had put up a tent right in front of the temple. They gave us a lot of good information about everything out there and advised us to quickly find a cave for the night since they would get filled up soon. So that’s what we did. We went cave hunting. Thankfully, we found an empty one. The cave had two parts. The inner part was where we would stay and at the entrance was a small corridor type of place which was, unfortunately, occupied by a local villager had set up his cooking stall on the outside of the cave to cater to the trekkers. Honestly, it wasn’t that unfortunate because it was thanks to him that we got hot cups of tea in the cold weather up there. But the smoke of his kerosene stove blew right into the cave, making my eyes water all through the night and not to mention the completely blocked nose. (I might be allergic to smoke is what I realized later on!) We spread our mats and sleeping bags to mark our territory as we were sure there would be more trekkers looking for shelter and we didn’t want an invasion. And then settled for a nice cup of tea. My legs were sore. Every time I got up, I groaned inwardly with the pain. (Felt even more disappointed with myself)
One of the photographers we had met earlier, came to check on us. They had asked us not to go to the Konkan Kada for the evening since there was so much mist. Two of my friends had wanted to see the sunset but we had chucked the plan on their advice. He said the mist had cleared a bit so we could give it a try. He also wanted to show us a wild flower that he had spotted. We readily accepted his offer to accompany us. His two companions joined us. We were barely even half way there when the rain gods let loose their fury (or love, depending on your viewpoint). We were not prepared for the rain at all. It had been clear all day and even the three photographers didn’t expect such hard rain. We kept on for a while but soon realized it was fruitless. It was pouring hard. We were soaked. Thankfully, I had a couple of plastic carry bags for my cameras and mobile. Otherwise, I don’t know what I would have done! We turned back. I was shivering like hell due to the cold. The senior most photographer apologized on the way back for taking us there in the first place when he himself had advised us not to go. I think he felt really bad that he got us all soaked. And so he treated us to khichdi that he cooked on his stove(which was delicious although I couldn’t savor it due to my bad throat which had got worse due to the smoke.) We slept off with the alarm for 6. We finally managed to pull ourselves out of bed at 7 or something.
The photographers had invited us for breakfast the following morning. We had got food along and didn’t really know whether to accept the invitation or not. The rain gods solved our dilemma though. The rains had lashed out all night and the water seeped into their tent. They were in a pretty bad state in the morning, so, the breakfast invitation stood cancelled. It was drizzling a bit so we decided to take our chance on konkan kada and set out dressed in our rainwear. We had planned to have sandwiches up there. But on the way there, the rains got harder. By the time, we reached there, it was pouring and the mist had covered the valley so there was no view. It was the cliff that I had wanted to really see but I wasn’t very disappointed. The trek till now had been worth it. No regrets. Although I really don’t know why we still had our cheese sandwiches up there on the cliff under a tree with the rain pouring down on us. It was a watery sandwich. We could have easily gone back to the cave and had proper breakfast(which we had ultimately) but we kept to our plan of eating the sandwiches on the cliff! After that we trudged back to our cave dating back to the 11th century. It was quite a feeling to be in such an old cave. And there I had one of the best tomato soups I have ever had, made by a friend. (It was thanks to his cooking that we survived!) To add to that, he made great maggi, which we nicknamed ‘meri cavewali maggi’(like the ad.)
After packing up our things, we started off on our descent. I was apprehensive about it. My shoes had given up on me. The grip was almost gone. There were a lot of rocky patches to cross which had become slippery due to the rains. Plus there were many water falls to wade through. Each step was a struggle to keep my balance. Thankfully, I made it with one fall where I landed on my butt which still hurts! There was a very steep rocky patch which we hadn’t been looking forward to. And believe it or not but there was traffic jam at that very point. Before us, a group from Tech Mahindra had gone down. And some of their group members were stiff with fear. Usually, fellow trekkers help each other out. But their group was too huge to give them a helping hand. They had enough of help. So we managed to move ahead of them. And crossed that rocky patch with no mishaps. After that the trek down was fairly easy but very exhausting. My legs were shaking with exhaustion (more disappointment with myself.) No one else complained which drilled the guilt even further. We made it to the base at 4 pm. The trek was almost done but we weren’t home yet and Pune was more than four hours away.
There was a bus at 5:45, from the village going to Otur which was a little before Ale Phata. We planned to catch it. We were soaking wet. We went to the same place that we had been to in the morning. Changed clothes out there (for which we were charged!) Had Poha which I didn’t really like and then sat waiting for the bus which was exactly on time. The bus ride was bumpy! It took an inner route and finally reached Otur at 7. There we caught a goods carriers and rode in the back up to Ale Phata. It didn’t take long to get there and I was starting to get motion sickness. At Ale phata, we got a Nashik-Pune bus which was packed. So, we had to stand. My aching legs and motion sickness were beginning to bother me. I hoped to make it without vomiting. Bus journeys usually make me sick. Thankfully, I got a seat. Two of my friends got a friendly traveler to chat with, who recounted stories of his trekking days. The bus journey was otherwise uneventful. I made it to Shivajinagar without vomiting. That was an achievement in itself! We made it there by 10 pm and I was home by 10:30 eagerly looking forward to a really hot bath and then to snuggle into bed under a warm blanket. The trek was a success! Touchwood!
Checklist ( It is tentative-Will update it on further confirmation of IDs)
Butterlfies:
Common Rose
Common Indian Crow
Common Gull
Crimson Rose
Yellow Pansy
Blue Pansy
Lemon Pansy Chocolate Pansy
Painted Lady
Plum Judy
Blue Mormon
Common/Angled Pierrot (Need to confirm though)
Tailed Jay
Lime Butterfly
Great Eggfly male
Plain Tiger
Glassy Blue/Common Wanderer (Not sure)
Grass Yellow(Not sure which one)
A Hesperidae species which I need to ID
Blue bottle
Common Leopard Plus two moths which I need to ID
Birds:
Rufus Turtle Dove
Shikra
Red Vented Bulbul
Blue Jay
White Throated Kingfisher
Cattle Egrets-Near the dam
Common Myna
Sparrows
Marsh harrier-Near the dam
Grey heron(Not sure)-Near the dam
ducks(No clue of species)-Near the dam
Kestrel
Brahminy Myna
Malabar Whistling Thrush
Larks (Need to ID the species)
Pied-bushchat (both male and female)
Crow pheasant
Ashy prinia
Yellow eyed babbler
Small Green Bee eater Heard a Cuckoo call
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