She lay there on the ground, tired and disinterested in the happenings of the world around her. We saw her while entering the house and I said to myself it is we who climbed over 1400 metres. And she is experiencing the pain?
Mothers, I murmured to myself. But that is when I realised the extent of pain and fatigue I was experiencing. Although the physical pain was difficult to bear with, the mind was at peace having seen the greens, feeling a sense of accomplishment on climbing up and down over 1400 metres and spending the night with the village folk.
So it all started when trek enthusiasts sat around us itching to come under the weight of their gear and to carry their knapsacks. This usually happens with the onset of the monsoons, but we were a different lot. We wanted to do one summer trek before the Sun God went into hiding and Lord Indra took over the Sahyadri range.
Malshej, Lonavala, Matheran, Bhandardara, Bhimashankar were amongst the few places discussed for the trek. And, it did not really take very long to decide on Bhimashankar. Around 260 kilometers from Mumbai, located in the Western Ghats at a height of over 1,400 meters, Bhimashankar houses a wildlife sanctuary with leopards, sambars, barking deer, wild boars, Hanuman langurs and Rhesus macaques.
It has one of India’s twelve jyotirlingas. “And once you do the Bhimashankar trek, then every other one will seem like a game,” said Sachin, an information security professional and a trek enthusiast who has done the Bhimashankar trek over twenty times.
So the list was drawn up – a pair of sturdy shoes with a good grip, torch with extra batteries, a medical kit (you want to be spared the details), food and of course, two liters of water. Two days later everyone had taken stock of what was available at home and had even gone shopping to enhance their wardrobes to prepare for their trek gear.
With the beep of the alarm bell we woke up at the wee hours of a Saturday. While usually I would switch off the mobile and go back to bed on a weekday, I didn’t want to take the risk of getting beaten up by rest of the trek gang. After the morning ablutions we headed for the train station where the trek gang started trickling in one by one.
Reaching Karjat was a near two-hour journey. The stall floors were being cleaned with long brooms and the chairs and tables being dusted with a small dusty cloth. The staff looked like they were forced out of bed and I immediately looked out for a mirror to see my reflection. Hot vada pavs with the lasan chutney and a couple of chais and we were ready to continue with our journey which had just about begun.
After a couple of chats with the local folks and a bit of haggling we sat ourselves down in a fatfati popularly called the Vikram. After a bumpy ride and a few conversations we reached Khandas village on the footsteps of Bhimashankar. We treated ourselves to nimboo pani at a tapri before we could start the trek.
Our climb began. The plateau like ground was not so much of a challenge except for the sun.
Solitary tree
One must have done this trek several times, but to get lost in the curves and in the jungles is quite natural. So in a bit we had Tukaram accompanying us – a villager who was happily strolling in the jungles picking mangoes and sticks.
Entertained by Tukaram and his stories and relishing the mango that he gave us, we kept climbing. What was amazing was that he was married and was without a child, but that did not make him unhappy he said (surprising in an Indian village context). He was leading a happy life with his wife.
When asked what he would do with the fifty rupees that we agreed to pay him for being our travel guide till the start of seedi ghat (one of the three routes that can be taken to reach the peak) his answer was pretty much expected. “Mee komdi aannar aani khanar” (I will buy chicken for dinner).
The walk cum climb till the seedi ghat was pleasant. Tukaram who walked patiently was eager to reach the start of the seedi raasta, and the moment we arrived at the said spot he took his fifty rupees and disappeared back into the jungles to cook a delicious chicken dinner for him and his companion.
The sun was shining, the sweat was trickling down our spines, and the first ladder was awaiting us. Sachin and Deven (an event manager) were experienced trekkers and were taken to be the ‘group leaders’. So after a quick discussion the strategy was decided upon. The bags and the tent went first. Then the dare-devils went on, and then the slow ones. After the first ladder a little bit of relief came upon us. With the respite that there was only one more ladder we began climbing after a brief break. But this time, the ascend was not as easy and the sun shone in its full strength.
The second ladder appeared – not that we wanted it to but that was the only way ahead. But, this was a slightly precarious one. Against a big rock, the ladder was held by iron wires. Here we went along with our bags.
Having reached a safer spot, the decision was made to pass the bags first round the corner of a big rock and then to pull ourselves around the same. So, after a bit of hesitation and with the help of the team leaders we went on to the other side of the rock. And once again it was a good feeling of having passed one more hurdle.
We continued with our climb by hoping that the mountain would shrink and by sipping at water and Tang.
Bhimashankar tests ones patience, energy, stamina, strength, courage, team spirit, endurance, and more (no really). It may not be one of the most difficult treks, but it is most definitely not one of the easiest. So, we trudged on now a bit fatigued, more because the Sun God was defiant and refused to go behind the clouds. Little did we know there was another ladder awaiting us.
This, the team leaders were aware of, but did not want to reveal to help maintain the group’s enthusiasm. Once again the bags were passed and one of the team leaders went on the other side of the cliff. By this time some of the slow movers in the team had gained confidence and moved without much delay to the other side.
This move required for one to balance oneself on ones fingers by holding onto some crevices in the rocks and swing the body to the other side of the rock, and while doing that ignore that there is a free fall possibility if one lets go of the hands.
My heart almost sank and being a nervous wreck and also someone who fears heights, I almost froze. I refused to move. So, to salvage the wreck, Deven offered his leg – I had to stand on his feet while he would pull me over to the other side of the cliff. So amassing all my courage I put all my weight on Deven who magically and in a spilt second pulled me over.
Thank god for not being too heavy I said to myself and sat myself down on a small rock. By then the gang was there.
Vinay (a software programmer) was busy climbing branches – he felt one with nature by then - while Esha (manager in a retail organisation) forced a smile out of me for a pictureJ.
Half hour later we found heaven on earth – a resting spot. Almost flat grounds surrounded by thick shades of dense trees, branches which Vinay could use as beds, and a natural spring!
The spring was a little trickle which was converted into a steady skeletal stream by placing a small leaf at its mouth. However lanky the stream was, it was a boon for water starved souls like us. Soon Vinay was given the water portfolio – we kept drinking and he kept refilling the bottles.
Sachin put down his ‘storeroom’ on the grounds. Storeroom it was called for it had everything from tomatoes for a salad, raw mangoes as an appetiser, home made besan laddoos, lemons for a refreshing drink, to name a few. So after a sumptuous lunch of theplas, choondha, raw mangoes, laddoos, we were ready for a nap.
So under the generous shades of the dense trees we lay our bodies to rest. Sleep took over quite quickly and so did the alarm – cell phone alarms though! Knapsacks on backs and we were ready for another stretch of adventure and fun.
The trek seemed unending with the path turning and winding and converting itself from plain lands to forests to steep paths – sometimes the sun ready to burn us down and at times the shades in the forest willing to take us into its cool arms. Pulling and pushing each other, mentally more than physically we hauled ourselves to the peak.
Having reached the top we felt elated and almost ran to the one lane which was where one could find food and shelter and it was also the route which leads one to the Shiv temple which is a popular pilgrimage site.
We strolled to a tapri and after a quick conversation in broken Marathi ordered chai, poha, and Lays chips. We ate till the shop owner was almost giggling over the vast and quick orders and our stomachs were churning with tea and all the food.
We split ourselves into two groups. Vinay and Deven went to check out stay over places for the night while we settled accounts with the lady running he tapri. After checking out two places (not that there is too much choice) they short-listed one to get our final approval. We went saw and decided to rent the place. A small, but reasonably neat place packed with five beds, a table fan resting on a chair, a water pot, two honeybees, wooden support for the tiled roof, a spider web, and two plastic covers hanging from the wooden ceilings – we still do not know its purpose.
After deciding on the menu for the night with the lady of the house, making arrangements for a forest walk in the night, we unpacked, swabbed ourselves with some water and changed. Water scarcity was so acute that we had to pay Rs.10 per bucket. “Garam pani sakali bhetnar aata nahi” (hot water would be available only in the morning), said the lady of the house.
A visit to the temple and after a few attempts to call home we were ready for dinner. Simple yet tasty, we ate, cleaned up and set out for the night walk. Little did I realise that the dark would transform me from a person who had just enjoyed the warm dinner and the quiet of the night to a turbulent and almost violent person who forced the group back to the safe contours of the roads and to some village street lights.
Back in the room an idea to play cards was floated. Everyone said yes. But 10 minutes later I heard someone snore!
Woke up late, had chai, took a hot water shower and made ourselves at home by getting water from the tank – careful to not upset the lady by taking too much
of the asset. Went to the same tapri from the previous evening and enjoyed a lavish spread of batata vadas, misal, puris and bhaji, bhajiyas, and Mazaa (a mango drink).
We then headed to make our descend. Not as difficult as the climb of course, but still a challenge because the route can be tricky, slippery, muddy, and long. With some intermittent breaks we made our way to the bottom in about five hours (we took almost eight hours to climb!).
Though exhaustion popped its head now and then we tried hard to beat it because we were keen to reach the village and head back home.
Esha was most eager – she would keep looking at her watch and reminding us that we would miss the last bus.
As we kept descending we kept looking back at the height of the mountains and patting each others backs.
Finally we were at the base of the mountain which we believed we had conquered.
But the adventure did not end there. Deven and Sachin had done everything else but sing “yeh dil maange more”.
A few minutes later we were springing back and forth on a bullock cart! A few jolts and Esha slyly slid down the cart, leaving me and Deven in it. I stuck to it till the villager dropped us off at the promised point.
A refreshing lime drink at the tapri, which we had visited before starting the ascend, a bit of haggling and again a fatfati ride. Swaying to the tunes of old Hindi film songs we reached the train station. In the train, and we thought the slight breeze, the chattering of the women and the constant sales calls of the young boys and girls would work their magic and put our tired bodies to sleep. Contrary to our desires Esha and I spoke through our fatigue and kept making observations about the women and children in our compartment who in turn, seemed to be looking at us – may be our appearance was less than human at that time.
A bit disoriented though after seeing heights and the greens, to come back to the concrete jungle we managed to force ourselves into reaching home to be able to re-energise ourselves and prepare for another trek. But by then fatigue seemed to have taken over even our household and we saw my mother lying on the floor tired and disinterested in the world around her.
With contributions from Sachin
For comments/feedback you can contact:
Deven Joshi – debufromindia@yahoo.com
Vinay Hattangadi – vins_h@hotmail.com
Esha Anand – esha_anand2001@yahoo.com
Subashini Rajagopalan – subbu_r75@hotmail.com
Mothers, I murmured to myself. But that is when I realised the extent of pain and fatigue I was experiencing. Although the physical pain was difficult to bear with, the mind was at peace having seen the greens, feeling a sense of accomplishment on climbing up and down over 1400 metres and spending the night with the village folk.
So it all started when trek enthusiasts sat around us itching to come under the weight of their gear and to carry their knapsacks. This usually happens with the onset of the monsoons, but we were a different lot. We wanted to do one summer trek before the Sun God went into hiding and Lord Indra took over the Sahyadri range.
Malshej, Lonavala, Matheran, Bhandardara, Bhimashankar were amongst the few places discussed for the trek. And, it did not really take very long to decide on Bhimashankar. Around 260 kilometers from Mumbai, located in the Western Ghats at a height of over 1,400 meters, Bhimashankar houses a wildlife sanctuary with leopards, sambars, barking deer, wild boars, Hanuman langurs and Rhesus macaques.
It has one of India’s twelve jyotirlingas. “And once you do the Bhimashankar trek, then every other one will seem like a game,” said Sachin, an information security professional and a trek enthusiast who has done the Bhimashankar trek over twenty times.
So the list was drawn up – a pair of sturdy shoes with a good grip, torch with extra batteries, a medical kit (you want to be spared the details), food and of course, two liters of water. Two days later everyone had taken stock of what was available at home and had even gone shopping to enhance their wardrobes to prepare for their trek gear.
With the beep of the alarm bell we woke up at the wee hours of a Saturday. While usually I would switch off the mobile and go back to bed on a weekday, I didn’t want to take the risk of getting beaten up by rest of the trek gang. After the morning ablutions we headed for the train station where the trek gang started trickling in one by one.
Reaching Karjat was a near two-hour journey. The stall floors were being cleaned with long brooms and the chairs and tables being dusted with a small dusty cloth. The staff looked like they were forced out of bed and I immediately looked out for a mirror to see my reflection. Hot vada pavs with the lasan chutney and a couple of chais and we were ready to continue with our journey which had just about begun.
After a couple of chats with the local folks and a bit of haggling we sat ourselves down in a fatfati popularly called the Vikram. After a bumpy ride and a few conversations we reached Khandas village on the footsteps of Bhimashankar. We treated ourselves to nimboo pani at a tapri before we could start the trek.
Our climb began. The plateau like ground was not so much of a challenge except for the sun.
Solitary tree
One must have done this trek several times, but to get lost in the curves and in the jungles is quite natural. So in a bit we had Tukaram accompanying us – a villager who was happily strolling in the jungles picking mangoes and sticks.
Entertained by Tukaram and his stories and relishing the mango that he gave us, we kept climbing. What was amazing was that he was married and was without a child, but that did not make him unhappy he said (surprising in an Indian village context). He was leading a happy life with his wife.
When asked what he would do with the fifty rupees that we agreed to pay him for being our travel guide till the start of seedi ghat (one of the three routes that can be taken to reach the peak) his answer was pretty much expected. “Mee komdi aannar aani khanar” (I will buy chicken for dinner).
The walk cum climb till the seedi ghat was pleasant. Tukaram who walked patiently was eager to reach the start of the seedi raasta, and the moment we arrived at the said spot he took his fifty rupees and disappeared back into the jungles to cook a delicious chicken dinner for him and his companion.
The sun was shining, the sweat was trickling down our spines, and the first ladder was awaiting us. Sachin and Deven (an event manager) were experienced trekkers and were taken to be the ‘group leaders’. So after a quick discussion the strategy was decided upon. The bags and the tent went first. Then the dare-devils went on, and then the slow ones. After the first ladder a little bit of relief came upon us. With the respite that there was only one more ladder we began climbing after a brief break. But this time, the ascend was not as easy and the sun shone in its full strength.
The second ladder appeared – not that we wanted it to but that was the only way ahead. But, this was a slightly precarious one. Against a big rock, the ladder was held by iron wires. Here we went along with our bags.
Having reached a safer spot, the decision was made to pass the bags first round the corner of a big rock and then to pull ourselves around the same. So, after a bit of hesitation and with the help of the team leaders we went on to the other side of the rock. And once again it was a good feeling of having passed one more hurdle.
We continued with our climb by hoping that the mountain would shrink and by sipping at water and Tang.
Bhimashankar tests ones patience, energy, stamina, strength, courage, team spirit, endurance, and more (no really). It may not be one of the most difficult treks, but it is most definitely not one of the easiest. So, we trudged on now a bit fatigued, more because the Sun God was defiant and refused to go behind the clouds. Little did we know there was another ladder awaiting us.
This, the team leaders were aware of, but did not want to reveal to help maintain the group’s enthusiasm. Once again the bags were passed and one of the team leaders went on the other side of the cliff. By this time some of the slow movers in the team had gained confidence and moved without much delay to the other side.
This move required for one to balance oneself on ones fingers by holding onto some crevices in the rocks and swing the body to the other side of the rock, and while doing that ignore that there is a free fall possibility if one lets go of the hands.
My heart almost sank and being a nervous wreck and also someone who fears heights, I almost froze. I refused to move. So, to salvage the wreck, Deven offered his leg – I had to stand on his feet while he would pull me over to the other side of the cliff. So amassing all my courage I put all my weight on Deven who magically and in a spilt second pulled me over.
Thank god for not being too heavy I said to myself and sat myself down on a small rock. By then the gang was there.
Vinay (a software programmer) was busy climbing branches – he felt one with nature by then - while Esha (manager in a retail organisation) forced a smile out of me for a pictureJ.
Half hour later we found heaven on earth – a resting spot. Almost flat grounds surrounded by thick shades of dense trees, branches which Vinay could use as beds, and a natural spring!
The spring was a little trickle which was converted into a steady skeletal stream by placing a small leaf at its mouth. However lanky the stream was, it was a boon for water starved souls like us. Soon Vinay was given the water portfolio – we kept drinking and he kept refilling the bottles.
Sachin put down his ‘storeroom’ on the grounds. Storeroom it was called for it had everything from tomatoes for a salad, raw mangoes as an appetiser, home made besan laddoos, lemons for a refreshing drink, to name a few. So after a sumptuous lunch of theplas, choondha, raw mangoes, laddoos, we were ready for a nap.
So under the generous shades of the dense trees we lay our bodies to rest. Sleep took over quite quickly and so did the alarm – cell phone alarms though! Knapsacks on backs and we were ready for another stretch of adventure and fun.
The trek seemed unending with the path turning and winding and converting itself from plain lands to forests to steep paths – sometimes the sun ready to burn us down and at times the shades in the forest willing to take us into its cool arms. Pulling and pushing each other, mentally more than physically we hauled ourselves to the peak.
Having reached the top we felt elated and almost ran to the one lane which was where one could find food and shelter and it was also the route which leads one to the Shiv temple which is a popular pilgrimage site.
We strolled to a tapri and after a quick conversation in broken Marathi ordered chai, poha, and Lays chips. We ate till the shop owner was almost giggling over the vast and quick orders and our stomachs were churning with tea and all the food.
We split ourselves into two groups. Vinay and Deven went to check out stay over places for the night while we settled accounts with the lady running he tapri. After checking out two places (not that there is too much choice) they short-listed one to get our final approval. We went saw and decided to rent the place. A small, but reasonably neat place packed with five beds, a table fan resting on a chair, a water pot, two honeybees, wooden support for the tiled roof, a spider web, and two plastic covers hanging from the wooden ceilings – we still do not know its purpose.
After deciding on the menu for the night with the lady of the house, making arrangements for a forest walk in the night, we unpacked, swabbed ourselves with some water and changed. Water scarcity was so acute that we had to pay Rs.10 per bucket. “Garam pani sakali bhetnar aata nahi” (hot water would be available only in the morning), said the lady of the house.
A visit to the temple and after a few attempts to call home we were ready for dinner. Simple yet tasty, we ate, cleaned up and set out for the night walk. Little did I realise that the dark would transform me from a person who had just enjoyed the warm dinner and the quiet of the night to a turbulent and almost violent person who forced the group back to the safe contours of the roads and to some village street lights.
Back in the room an idea to play cards was floated. Everyone said yes. But 10 minutes later I heard someone snore!
Woke up late, had chai, took a hot water shower and made ourselves at home by getting water from the tank – careful to not upset the lady by taking too much
of the asset. Went to the same tapri from the previous evening and enjoyed a lavish spread of batata vadas, misal, puris and bhaji, bhajiyas, and Mazaa (a mango drink).We then headed to make our descend. Not as difficult as the climb of course, but still a challenge because the route can be tricky, slippery, muddy, and long. With some intermittent breaks we made our way to the bottom in about five hours (we took almost eight hours to climb!).
Though exhaustion popped its head now and then we tried hard to beat it because we were keen to reach the village and head back home.
Esha was most eager – she would keep looking at her watch and reminding us that we would miss the last bus.
As we kept descending we kept looking back at the height of the mountains and patting each others backs.
Finally we were at the base of the mountain which we believed we had conquered.
But the adventure did not end there. Deven and Sachin had done everything else but sing “yeh dil maange more”.
A few minutes later we were springing back and forth on a bullock cart! A few jolts and Esha slyly slid down the cart, leaving me and Deven in it. I stuck to it till the villager dropped us off at the promised point.
A refreshing lime drink at the tapri, which we had visited before starting the ascend, a bit of haggling and again a fatfati ride. Swaying to the tunes of old Hindi film songs we reached the train station. In the train, and we thought the slight breeze, the chattering of the women and the constant sales calls of the young boys and girls would work their magic and put our tired bodies to sleep. Contrary to our desires Esha and I spoke through our fatigue and kept making observations about the women and children in our compartment who in turn, seemed to be looking at us – may be our appearance was less than human at that time.
A bit disoriented though after seeing heights and the greens, to come back to the concrete jungle we managed to force ourselves into reaching home to be able to re-energise ourselves and prepare for another trek. But by then fatigue seemed to have taken over even our household and we saw my mother lying on the floor tired and disinterested in the world around her.
With contributions from Sachin
For comments/feedback you can contact:
Deven Joshi – debufromindia@yahoo.com
Vinay Hattangadi – vins_h@hotmail.com
Esha Anand – esha_anand2001@yahoo.com
Subashini Rajagopalan – subbu_r75@hotmail.com
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