A Night Trek | Kaurava Kunda | 12-April-2014

NOTE: Pictures will follow soon! 

Some time back, I saw ‘Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani’ and that closed the deal. In the movie, a nerdy looking girl goes on a trek to Himalayas and meets a group of people that changes her life and in the process she rediscovers herself. As the movie ended with yet another cliché teary eyed Bollywood ending, I was certain that rediscovery or not – I had to go trekking. Freedom is after all not reality, it is, like any other story an idea that enters your head like a happy bug and then stays there.

And so I registered myself on Bangalore Trekking Club (BTC) ® (http://www.bangaloretrekkingclub.com/) and started looking for a Beginner’s trek which would not take me away from work and yet provide that necessary thrill of a journey worth remembering. And then there it was – A night trek to Kaurava Kunda, near Chikaballapur which is a small town 75 km away from Bangalore. I had never heard of the place or the trekking range, but how does it matter for a first time trekker like me, I thought and gave it a go.

It was the evening of 12^th April 2014, when it started raining in Bangalore and checking the weather conditions, I saw a storm at Chikballapur late in the night. I called up the organizers and found they knew their stuff and had contingency plans in case of emergency. That put my mind at ease. With no previous experience, I carried some basic stuff like Sleeping Bag, a torch (a must for night trek), energy bars, juice and lots of water. ‘And let the journey begin,’ a little unsure me told myself as I boarded the bus to Bangalore bus stand near Majestic.

Meeting new people can be unnerving for some, especially for people who spend almost the entire day coding their life out on a computer. But that was the beauty of this plan – to bring in a few people who are wrecked with their monotonous week and spend some time getting to know and hopefully make friends with new people. And though I met everyone at the bus stand and all looked forthcoming, I had my reservations on travelling without some common friends. It was all about to change.

We started our journey at 8 PM. We made small talk with each other on the way to Chikaballapur. Some guys who already knew each other from previous trek @BTC were very obviously much more comfortable in their zones. But Anshul had pointed out that there would be introductions later – ‘So don’t worry,’ he said which I later found was his favourite dialog.

Chikaballapur is a small district about 75km from Bangalore, which can be reached easily through a KSRTC bus. The journey takes about 1.5 hours and takes you through Hebbal-airport road. Due to traffic, we reached the town at about 10 in the night and started walking towards the foothills of Kuarava Kunda which is about 5km from the town. The road took us to the outskirts and into the villages. In a secluded corner, we all were told to stop for introductions. One by one, under Ramya’s glaring torch into our eyes, everyone introduced themselves and then recounted their previous experiences trekking with BTC. The surprise of the party was Kishore who turned out to be a professional singer and was aiming for World Record in balancing certain things on his nose and chin, skills which he demonstrated as well.

As the night fell and moon shone bright in the west, we reached the foothills of Kaurava Kunda between sleeping villagers and barking dogs. The hill looked a little formidable and mysterious in the night but that added to our already enthused adventurous spirit and we began our ascent to the summit.

One funny feature of this ascent were the over enthusiastic tail wagging dogs who decided to accompany us on the hilly trail right up to the top. It was funny because the guys decided to have a go at Garima who was very vocal about her fear of dogs. I guess the dogs too conspired with everyone to give everyone a good laugh. But frankly even I was not very fond of this idea of dogs chasing us around on a hill top (Alright! I was scared too!)

From the foothills, there are steps leading to the Shiva temple. This part of the trek was fairly simple and everyone decided to take a break here. Someone among the group wondered why this place was called Kaurava Kunda and we got some pretty hilarious and historically incorrect replies. Basically nobody knew. But who cares till you having a good laugh.

The organizers at BTC were very understanding when it came to people like me and few others who were trekking for the first time. ‘We will take 100 breaks, if you ask us to,’ Virander told us.

From Shiva temple we began a much more arduous journey over steep slopes and rocky terrain. Everybody was helping everybody and that made the bond even stronger. It was an example of true team spirit and accolades to BTC for bringing out the best in everybody. We collected twigs and dried branches on the way anticipating a bon-fire at the top.

We reached the top at about 1:30 in the morning. Sometimes in life, you put everything into perspective. But before all of that, you take a massive leak! Alright, no crude details from here on.

I will give the perspective in the last paragraph because right now more important things first – Maggi. We all sat down with our cup noodles in hand as the organizers set up the fire and boiled water. We put on our jackets and in the mean tried to keep the dogs at bay who wanted a piece of everything we were trying to eat.

Someone was definitely making notes on ‘first timers’ with BTC because as soon as we finished our Maggi noodles, people cried out dance and there we were – the ‘first timers’ who had to showcase their dancing talent. Well, as always I danced on item numbers only! ‘Sheela Ki Jawani’ is a must if I am dancing. Then there was Chikni Chameli by Garima, Lungi dance by Virander and Swati. And a cool performance by Kishore (is there anything this guy doesn’t do). And then everybody in the group joined in to shake some legs.

We then settled down in a circle around the camp fire and discussed the most famous topic in the world - our first crush/love. Ramya had a very funny story to tell about Complan boys. Everybody spoke with an air of nostalgia of ‘those days’ when we were young (some only 3^rd standard). Nobody got sentimental, thank god. But amazing stories were told – some funny, some heart breaking and some just downright cute.

At about 4 AM, Ankit prepared some awesome coffee. It is called ‘Ankit Special Coffee’. One of the secret ingredients in this coffee was – believe it or not - salt. But it was amazing. Standing on the top of a hill - with chilly winds blowing away - having a coffee at 4 in the morning. There are only few things in the world that can beat that.

We talked some more, while some people (Yes Virander – You!) slept.

In the morning, we were greeted by a beautiful view of the city. People decided to go to the edge and enjoy the scenic view. Almost everyone cried out when we saw the sun rising above the horizon in the east. It was bright, it was orange, it was majestic.

Channa, you have clicked some of the most amazing morning pictures I have ever seen. He went to immense pains to get that right shot while everybody posed with the rising sun.

The descent was quick and uneventful. It is important to keep track of your foot while descending because there is a lot of loose soil at Kaurava Kunda and hence the needed precaution. Channa made sure he got the right clicks by descending way before us and then calling out with a whistle signalling us to stop and pose.

After a few group pictures at the foothill, we started the long walk back to the bus stand. Abhishek and Swati decided to race to the end and it ended in a close tie but fun to watch. We encountered grape vines and a big well before we decided to stop in the middle of a field and have breakfast. Over some bread/jam, khakra and coconut water, we shared a few laughs before finally reaching the bus stand. I was so relieved that I wanted to die. And then it’s a blur till Bangalore! But what amazing trek, what amazing people and what an amazing night.

So the perspective, an afterthought that, at the end of it all, lives with you all your life.

At 1:30 in the night, we were at the top of the hill. And there I was - you are standing on top of everybody your eyes can see. You are above everyday nuances of life and you are away from the chaos of everyday struggle. You are above the sleeping towns and hollow people. You are above the noise that threatens to burst your ears and smoke that fills your lungs. You are not on top of the world and yet you are. You are not deaf but you let the roar of the wind filter any unwanted sound that troubled you for so long. And here you are, at the summit, drenched in sweat, letting the wind ruffle through you hair, letting it slap your face, letting it drum your ears, letting it fill your nose and letting it touch your soul.