Our under-grad tronics junta was (in)famous for lotsa outings during our college days. Once out, we found it really hard to get going together, different work places, and different commitments. But then there was always this desire re-start and get going again. Thanks to Kaps, who almost pressed on all of us to make that a reality. Dates fixed quickly as 4-5-6 March, (really dunno watz sacrosanct about them), and place being Jungle lodges at Bandipur and BR Hills, mails came pouring in as to who would ride the bandwagon. Kaps, Sandmap, Torvi, Batani, Naveen, Gopi, HC and myself were the initial eight. Just as I thought I was in for sure, I had to drop out owing to unscheduled work. So Ballu came in to the hikers group. Now, I guess you are wondering why am I writing this blog…J
As usual, no trip is complete without lasts-minute inclusions/exclusions. Gopi and HC dropped out on the last day. Ballu, unfortunately met with an accident and could not make it. So now the number was down to 5. That was when I re-joined, coz my unscheduled work got rescheduled to a later date. Thank GOD!!
Abhay, a colleague of Kaps, decided to jump in on the day of departure and so it was for the seven of us to respond to the call of the wild. Leaving Bangalore early in the morning we headed towards the Bandipur Jungle Lodge-Resort (JLR). This is a chain of resorts at different forested locations. Harsha, a naturalist working there led us to our rooms and we whiled away the time on the well-laid hammocks till lunch was served. After a long hog, Torvi, Abhay and myself went on a short hike to the adjoining hillock. We were lucky to spot a running hare on our course.
At around 4 in the afternoon, we set out on the jeep-safari into the Bandipur forest, which is that part of the Western-Ghats range called Nilgiris. This is a dry deciduous forest and at this time of the year is quite dry. Accompanied with Harsha and his keen sense of vision, we could spot some rare birds and lots of animals. Crested Serpent Eagle, Barbets, Racket tailed Drongo, Woodpeckers and Peacocks were notable amongst the birds. Lots of deer, wild boars, Elephant, Gaur (Indian Bison), mongoose, Languars treated our eyes. What kept at bay were the predators, the prowling leopards and the royal tigers, though we heard the alarm calls often from their preys at a distance.
Returning from the safari, we had little to do. A documentary on Nilgiris forest and a game of cards after a heavy dinner was enough to call it a day.
Saturday early morning, we went to Gopalaswamy hill and had a short walk into the jungle. This hill is known for the elephant and gaur populace. Harsha led us to the place where he had placed a camera to take pictures of animals and we found it being trampled by angry elephants. We visited the temple on the hilltop and returned to our resort, all set to move towards K-gudi (BR hills) JLR.
Reaching the K-gudi resort in the afternoon, we lazed around and basked in the huge hammocks. Again at around 4, we went on another jeep-safari. Almost the same set of animals and birds were found here as at Bandipur, but at a lower density. Vegetation was a lot greener though. Teak and Rosewood trees are not a scarcity here .The forests around here area blend of dry deciduous, wet deciduous with patches of evergreen tress.
Returning from the safari and settling around the campfire, we played Dumb-charades, only to be interrupted for dinner. Later, ambling around we retired into our tents, getting ready for the morning trek.
An early morning trek/walk to a watchtower amidst the forest was a real refreshing experience. We could also spot few herbivores on our way. As we walked back, we were fast approaching the end of our sojourn.
Way back to Bangalore, we visited the Biligiri Ranga Temple. Reaching Bangalore in the afternoon, we parted ways loaded with lots of sweet memories to cherish.
Foto Collections: http://community.webshots.com/user/bsarvind_china_trip3
