We set out on an All-girls-trek to Makalidurga peak on Mother’s day. The trek was organised by ‘Plan the unplanned’ . It was a one day trek and the difficulty level was easy-medium and I registered for it hoping for a break from the monotonous Bengaluru city life. The pick up van picked us up at Domlur and Koramangla around 6-7 AM. I went solo; I did not know anyone from the trekking group. The organisers Tarun and Mamtha were friendly and quickly broke the ice by going through a quick round of introduction through sign language and playing a name memory game which made us get to know each other. There were a range of women of different age group, some of whom were mothers which made this trek on Mothers day all the more special. We stopped at a hotel for breakfast and devoured some good south Indian bites and coffee.
We were provided lunch and a power kit. On reaching the foothills of the mountain we saw a rail track and the trains pass by. We started the trek around 9 AM. It was quite sunny for a 9 AM and it was a good thing we had brought hats, caps and coolers. A tour guide Venkatesan guided us atop the hill.
The path started off smooth but suddenly became steep. Seldom did we anticipate that we will be rock climbing through most of our trail. The sun was scotching hot and we were taking huge steps to balance ourselves off the unruly rocks. As with all the trekking groups the group got divided into two, the enthu cutlets leading the way and those who happily enjoyed the trail and walked slowly behind. We took ample breaks on our way to the top. The scariest part was a cliff we had to cross sidewards with minimal grip on the rock. We found chameleons and fruit trees on our way. The highlight was a lake shaped in form of south america. No kidding but it really looked like the continent. Water was a lifeline and our bodies were thirsty for it.
We rejoiced when we reached the top around midday. God was kind enough to give us some showers when we were at the top-most point. We considered it was our gift for having made it to the top. Some of us dint even move away from the rain. We went to the Kali temple and also saw the place which was used as storage in olden days. We had some breathtaking panoramic views from atop the hills. We walked around the fort walls. The rain just kept increasing in intensity while we hoped for it to stop.
We sought abode in the temple and its walls.The rain became harsher. We decided it was time to start our descent as the rain wasnt going to stop anytime soon. The path down tested all our trekking skills. The rocks were slippery, the rain was pouring down and we were all drenched from head to toe. Our Shoes were soaked with water. We even say waterfalls from atop the hill due to the rain. Midway downhill we were greeted by monkeys. We were scared out of our wits as we had snacks, caps and colourful bags with it. I had enough experiences of monkey menace to know what would happen if they came to us. We stopped to stare down at them. Luckily the rain increased in intensity and they ran away. We struggled our way down in the rain and when we reached the foothills the rain stopped. Just our luck!
We waited for others and went for our much dreaded bus ride in our wet clothes. The organises did a commendable job, still instilling enthusiasm in the group, by playing games and entertaining us on our way back as well. We stopped at a road side tea stall for a break. The air was awash with smell of manure, rain soil and tea. We drank tea on the chotu small cups for 5 Rs each. We dried our shoes and hoped we would dry a little by stayed outdoors.
Never have I experienced so many weather changes in one day. From Sunny to scotching hot to drizzle to windy to rainy to thunderstorm. We were happy we arrived back in Bangalore in one piece. We felt thankful to the organisers for bringing us back safely and patted ourselves in the back for having made it through the trek
This sure did inspire us to do more treks in the future!
Links: https://www.plantheunplanned.com
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