Kudremukh Home Stay, Trek n Trip

Important Info In a Nutshell:

* Places: Hanumangundi Falls, Bangarabalige Falls, Gangamula.
* Accomdation Details:

• Homestay is 10km from Kalasa. It has 9 double bedrooms, 4 single rooms and a 100 sq feet hall.
• Address: Upasana, Mavina Kombe, Samse - 577 124 Karnataka, India
• Phone: +91 - 8263 249288/249488

Our Group - all are not in frame

Last weekend (25th, 26th Nov 06) I had been to Kudremukh (Banagara Balige and Hanumangundi Falls) for Trek n Trip by company's adventure club. I was behind Harish Malleshappa for 2-3 months to conduct a Trek through adventure club. It materialised last week with 47 people on board. This Trek n Trip was organized by Capture. Tarun, Ananth, Manmohan, Suma were instructors.

Homestay

We departed at 10.45 pm Friday Nov 24th from main campus. In the initial part of journey we played antakshari, after some time everyone decided to sleep. Next day morning 7:15 am we reached Samse(10 km from Kalasa). We got down from bus and walked for 1.5 km to Guest House(Homestay). After freshning up, we had breakfast and assembled in lawn. Here we got instructions about dos and don'ts, then there was introduction round in which each of us introduced ourselves with name, business group, hobbies etc.

Homestay - Facilities

At 10.45 am we started our trek to Bangarabalige falls carrying food packets. The trek was overall easy to moderate. In the trail there were many Leeches(part and parcel of Trek). We came across many plantations of Tea, Coffee, Arecanut, Elachi etc ... We relaxed at regular intervals and had photography sessions also ... One place we had to cross 'Marthalli Bridge of Kudremukh' ... It took more than 15 min for all 47 of us to cross it !!!. Then we reached a house next to paddy field. From here we trekked for 1.5 km to reach Bangarabalige falls. Near falls it was damn slippery. We even got a blasting from one of Instructor for not obeying his orders.

Marthalli Bridge

After having photo and video session we came back to the same house next to paddy fields. Here we had chappaties as lunch which we were carrying in food packets. After lunch we started trek back to homestay. This time we avoided marthalli bridge by taking alternate route.

On the way back there was misunderstanding among instructors. Anant tried to take us by different route. After all R&D he backtracked and took usual route. A km before guest house we had photography seesion at tea estate. We came back to Home stay around 6 pm and had tea and pakoda as refreshment. After sunset instructors set campfire for us. we played antakshari in front of campfire. I did my experiments with photography and took one snap(10s shutter, no flash) in front of campfire. Later we had dinner. It was south indian dinner with rasaina and obattu as sweets.

Campfire

After dinner we sat in balcony for a while. I listened to songs from my V3i. After sometime Srinivas P caught me for Handwriting Analysis. I analysed his handwriting with 85% accuracy. After this I analysed handwriting of Harishchandra, Sushil Kumar and Prabhakar with around 90% accuracy. Prabhakar was most curious and interested one. He asked many personal queries which are difficult to answer through handwriting analysis. Later we dicussed about many topics such as 'Sigma Top 10' etc.. before catching up sleep. After an hour of fun, finally we slept at 1 am.

Hanumangundi Falls

Next day(26th Nov) morning we got up at 6 am. After breakfast we left to Hanumangundi Falls by bus. The area around Hanumangundi Falls is well maintained by forest department. There are steps to go till downstream of the waterfalls. We had bath in cold water. It was amazing experience to stand below cold water falling from 50 feet. On our way back to Guest House we went to Gangamula - origin of three rivers Tunga, Bhadra and Netravathi. In this journey we had brief dancing session and also saw videos of songs such as Tuhi Meri Shab, Ya Ali, Bheege Hot Tere ...

Gangamula

We had lunch at 1.30 pm. In lunch we had fruit salad+ice cream as desserts. At 2.30 we left the Guest House to start our return journey to Bangalore. After having tea at Kottagehara dancing session started again. We danced for numbers of Dhoom 2, Don and various other dance masti remixes. We had dinner at Andhra Dhaba near Kunigal. Finally we were back in Bangalore at 1 am (delayed by 2 hrs).

Dhoom Machale ...

To conclude this Trek n Trep was awesome experience. It was conducted and organised effectively by Capture. Facilities and food at Homestay were too good.

More snaps of this trek are shared in my picasa album.

Casino Royale ...

I was awaiting for this movie for last one year (read my previous post). The wait is over this weekend. I was happy to see that this movie screened at my favorite theatre Urvashi. So 7 ppl(me, Ande, Ajay Simha, Raveesh, MB, Vijay, and Chethan) decided go for Morning show on Saturday.


After credits there is a hair-raising chase through the city streets and seaside construction area including a harrowing fight scene atop a crane. 11 out 10 to director for this scene. This scene so fantastic that little else in the film really matches up to it. My paisa was vasooled for this scene itself.

Later part of the movie is about the card game in which 007 bankrupts Le Chiffre (banker to the world's terrorists). The casino part of the story was too long and boring. The movie could have ended with lot more action.

This movie very different from other Bond movies.

- Bond is beaten, tortured and poisened. He is not projected like a superhero.

- The gun barrel sequence is different from other bond movies. It is not there in opening of the film, but instead in end of the pre-credit sequence.

- The pre-credit sequence is in black and white (reasons I donno).

- This time the sex object is a hunk, not a babe. It is a rebalancing of the sexes. The feminist revolution is over. It is a rapturous return to Adam and Eve. [NY Times, Belfast Telegraph]

To conclude this movie is worth watching. I recommend people to avoid watching this movie at Urvashi, as the crowd is noisy and one would not be able hear dialogues properly.

References:

Wikipedia: Casino Royale

CNN-IBN: Masand's Verdict: 4 stars : Having seen the film earlier this week, I can safely tell you it's the Bond film to beat most Bond films.

Rediff: Thank you, Daniel Craig : 3 and 1/2 stars : All fears are put to rest. Craig is a very solid James Bond indeed.

Belfast Telegraph: Daniel Craig: Double oh heaven! : Casino Royale is more than a terrific film.

NY Times: New Bond silences Naysayers :

Herald Sun: James Bond is back in style :

Bond .... James Bond ....

The wait for James Bond will be over this Friday 17th Nov as 21st James Bond movie 'Casino Royale' is releasing. Casino Royale images have been wallpaper both of my home PC and mobile phone for last three months.

Actually I was not really a fan of James Bond movies but ultimately turned into one when I bought DVD player last year. At that time I used to see one James Bond movie every weekend. After seeing all bond movies(except 'License to Kill' and 'View to Kill'), the wait for Casino Royale started. Initially was bit disappointed with when they chose Daniel Craig to play the role of bond for this movie. I saw the trailer of this movie at PVR (screened before Da Vinci Code movie). After seeing trailer and hearing voice of Daniel Craig I thought this man has potential to deliver.

Now the buzz of bond is already started. There are many new articles and blogs about James Bond in web. Star movies is telecasting all twenty bond movies this month. (today The spy who loved me was there).

My Top 5 bond movies

1. The Spy Who Loved Me: It blends most of the Bond elements perfectly, resulting in a highly entertaining movie that is never dull and features one of the most memorable Bond villains: the 7-foot steel-toothed killer Jaws.

2. GoldFinger: This movie is a classic in its own right. The plot is especially awesome because Goldfinger -- who is widely considered one of the best villains in film history -- doesn't want to steal the American gold, but rather render it radioactive in order to give more worth to his own stash.

3. Tomorrow Never Dies: Brosnan's action packed outing sees 007 take on a multimillionaire, media baron Elliot Carver who is mission of world domination. The box office success of this movie was not so much as it released on same day with Titanic-one of the biggest blockbuster of all time.

4. Living Daylights: Timothy Dalton's first appearence as 007, has one of the most solid storylines of the series. The climax fight sequences at Afghanisthan are too good.

5. On Her Majesty's Secret Service: This one I feel is most underrated Bond movie. Inspite of poor screen presence of George Lazenby this movie has good action scenes, emotional intensity.

Some features of James Bond movie.(may not be there in all movies)

• There are chases, attempts on Bond’s life, meetings with the new villain and the new villain’s super-powered henchman.
• He beds three women: The inconsequential one at the beginning, an enemy agent in the middle, and then “the Bond girl,” with whom he shares the final assault on the enemy’s fortress.
• Bond is captured and learns about the villain’s diabolical plot to a) blackmail the West, b) start World War III, or c) both.

These stuffs make bond movies entertaining one and are USPs of one of the most successful franchise, which has earned an estimated 4 billion $ worldwide.

To conclude, I hope Casino Royale meets my expectations. Already there are many rave reviews out in the Internet, praising Daniel Craig as the most believable Bond.

References:
Sony Pictures: Casino Royale

Casino Royale - Official Blog

MSNBC: Buying Bonds

Internal Herald Tribune: Bond is back

Savandurga : Bike trip n Trek.

Nov 1st 2006, it was Suvarna Karnataka Rajayotsava day . Rohith had planned for Savandurga bike trip and scaling the peak. There were 6 ppl ( me, rohith, venkat, kiran, rahul and karthik) on board and 5 bikes (3 victors, 2 pulsars).

Our group of 6

Our meeting point was ring road - mysore road junction, where we were supposed to meet at 8 am. We left the place around 8.30 am and the trip was on. We decided to take route via Ramnagara since mysore road(SH 17) is in good condition. We reached Ramnagara around 9.45 am, from here Savandurga is 25 km. After tea break we continued our journey. The road from Ramanagara onwards is horrible and is under repair. At 11.00 am we reached Savandurga. After having darshan at Lakshmi Narsimha Temple and buying food items we started our ascent.

Route-2: 5 ppl in front of me.

To climb the peak there is one regular way 'route-1' (with arrow marks) and there is alternative one 'route-2' (70 degree steep) which is challenging. There was other 'group of 20' (G20) peple who had come to scale the peak, were taking the usual route-1. We for the purpose of challenge and thrill decided to take route-2 to climb. While climbing I was in last position. After taking 10 steps I took snaps of 5 ppl in front of me, after this when I tried to continue ascent my woodland shoes gave up, I lost the grip and slided downwards. I got scratches on my fingers and elbow. My jeans pant got stone washed. I lost confidence and retreated from route-2.

Roti and Karthik

After all this I decided to go by route-1 on which G20 were going. After ascending for 10 minutes I got a call from Rohith that they are also retreating from route-2. So I waited for them sitting on a rock. In the mean time I took snaps of scenic view of tributary of Cauvery(donno its name). After 15 minutes Rohith and Karthik came. Other three were continuing with route-2. After refreshment and photo session we continued our climb.

After climbing 20 minutes we reached a place where route-1 and route-2 crossed. There rahul, venkat and kiran were waiting for refreshments which we were carrying. Unfortunately for them the bananas which we were carrying had already turned into rasaina. For them something was better than nothing because route-2 had taken lot of their energy. From this peak is 10 minutes climb. On the way we had many photo sessions and even video sessions.

View of temple and parking lot from the peak

Finally we reached peak at 1.40 pm. It was nice to see view of temple and parking lot from the peak. There were locals of Savandurga on the peak who where hoisting Karnataka flag and celebrating Suvarna Karnataka Rajyotsava by bursting crackers. As soon as they hoisted the flag a light drizzle started and eventually it turned into heavy rain. 3 ppl(me, venkat and kiran) took shelter next to Nandi idol. Other three and G20 went to towards the cave for shelter. The stay at the peak was amazing and eventful. The view was completly blocked by mist. Then the lighting struck three times. Thankfully we were staying under concrete structure otherwise who knows what might have happened?? .

Flag hoisting

Our shelter on the peak

After rain stopped we had photo session with Nandi idol and the flag post. Then we started our descent. The rocks had become slippery. I had a tough time, my woodland shoes was giving up many times. I used all 4 limbs to go down with 100% concentration. All of us decided to go down by route-1 as no one was in mood to take risk.

When we were about finish our descent a person climbing up said that one guy has had a fall and his dead body is lying adjacent to route on which we were descending. We went to see the dead body and discovered that he had a fall when descending from route-2. I feel people of his group tried to be too adventurous. Why they decided to climb down on a steep route that too after rains.

Dead Body

We decided to leave that group alone as they were doing the task of calling ambulance. After completing the descent at 4.00 pm we went to Laxmi Narsimha temple again for darshan(reasons are obvious). Then we started journey back to Bangalore. This time we decided to take Magadi Road route. On the way back we had Masala Dosa at some hotel (there were a few hotels in Magadi Road route, we managed to find a decent one). Finally at 7 pm we were back in Bangalore.

To conclude this trek cum bike trip had many memories of which some are disturbing. I learnt many stuffs from this expedition. So guys

• For trek don't compromise on the shoes. Wear good quality shoes. Avoid woodland shoes because generally it would be of poor quality.
• Don't try to be too adventurous. For real adventure better go with a professional.
• Don't to go Savandurga even if there is a slightttt chance of rain. Climbing on wet rocks is damn tough.

I hope you are not disturbed by reading this post. Please post comments. If you don't have blogger id post anonymous comments.

Suvarna Karnataka !!!!!!!!!!

Survarna Karnataka. this phrase is in air because Karnataka is 50 now. KSRTC had already started a new bus service Survarna Karnataka Sarige, (the new buses have nice leg room).

If we look back at last 50 years, there many people of Karnataka who have excelled in various fields ( not only IT). In Literature we have 7 gynapeet award winners. In movies how can one forget contribution of Dr. Raj. In field of science Raja Rammana, CNR Rao, UR Rao have contributed. In industry we have Narayan Murthy. In Sports B.S Chandrashekar, G Viswanath, Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath, Mahesh Bhupathi. Latest to this list is Pankaj Advani who recently was awarded Rajeev Gandhi Khel Ratna.

Karnataka was everything from waterfalls, beaches, santuries, temples to trekking spots. There are many more places other than Shravanabelagola and Hampi. Gokarna, Karwar, Coorg can be added to list of places metioned in your post which can be projected as tourist destination. If marketed properly scenic beaches of Gokarna can give those of Goa run for their money. (many places in Goa are junk and hyped up).

Tourism department has taken step in direction with punchline One State Many Worlds. Forest department has taken initiave by promoting eco tourism in MM Hills, BR Hills places were once Veerappan Trails. Eco tourism is a better option rather than commercialisation, the latter one pollutes the place.

One more thing I can suggest to Karnataka tourism department is to create one more tourist hub other than Bangalore at center of Karnataka, so that less time spent on travelling. Shimoga can be a better place which is equidistant from all major tourist spots.

This post yet to be completed. I have reproduced my comments in Raveesh's blog who had about same topic 1 month back. Visit again for more updates ...