Shootout At Ranganathittu

Destination: Balamuri falls, Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary
Squad: iJag, Megha and Myself
Departure: 06:30 IST, 20th July, Sunday
Distance: Approx 140 Kms
Directions: Bengaluru – Srirangapatnam – Balamuri Falls – Ranganathittu

After a busy work schedule and continued weekend traveling in Switzerland, the travel bug left me thirsty for more after my return to Bengaluru. So was my Nikon D80 and it was time for a shoot.

Megha was the immediate aspirant to jump onto a day trip plan. After a lot of shuttling thoughts between various folks, the plan was finalized and Jagdish (referred as iJag) hopped in with his jazzy Chevrolet Spark. iJag picked up Megha and they were at my place by around 06:30 IST to welcome me aboard the car. We were then ripping by the Mysore road until we stopped for refueling ourselves at Kamat Lok Ruchi; one of the hot spots for some south Indian delicacies.

A right deviation after Srirangapatnam leads to the Balmuri falls. “Balamuri” in Kannada means “right turn”. There is another water fall called the Yedamuri falls, “Yedamuri” in Kannada meaning “left turn”. Balamuri falls is not exactly a water fall, but a blockade for an irrigation dam; this in turn creating artificial water fall. We were lucky to reach the place early as the place got crowded with time and also the police escorted us out of the water fall due to rising water levels. After a refreshing shower and fun, we were off to Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary.

Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary has a restaurant; which is a decent place for lunch. We had to wait quite a bit until the sanctuary started their post lunch boat rides costing Rs. 25 per person. The boat ride is very short but is very charming to the eyes of a bird watcher. We could spot tons of Nigerian migrants called White Ibis, Egrets, Herons and Strokes. Of course few elegantly swimming crocodiles were also spotted.

Loaded with lovely pictures and memories, we bid a farewell to Ranganathittu. The drive back on the Mysore road was pleasant and a little faster as our iJag tested the speed limitations of his car. “We arrived, shot and sped away!”

Over Night Hike To The Clouds

Destination: Kalavara Betta aka Skandagiri
Squad: Nikhil, Yateesh and Myself
Departure: 01:00 IST , 27th July, Sunday
Distance: Approx 75 Kms
Directions: Bengaluru - Devanahalli - Chikabalapur - Kalavarahalli

After having picked up Yateesh and Nikhil, we stopped over at my place before heading out for a quick dinner. Then after a small party at a friend’s place, we were driving with a speed limit of 80kmph on the newly laid highway leading to the new International Bengaluru airport. After having passed the airport, we drove towards Chikabalapur. At Chikabalapur, we had to take a left turn at the bus station, on the road leading to Gauribidanur. It was indeed confusing to get to the correct road; but with few local's directions, we were on track to the Kalavara Halli which is a host to Papagni Matt.

It was around 02:30 IST when we reached the base at Kalavara Halli to be welcomed by a lot more hikers. A forest entry fee of Rs. 25 per person is charged for the uphill hike by the forest department and the local guides are very expensive. We teamed up with other hikers to share a guide and we almost immediately started the hike, and forgot to take water bottles. We were also not carrying torches, which handicapped us almost completely but the mobile phones came to our rescue.

It was the rainy season and though it wasn’t raining, it was pretty cold. As we crossed the halfway mark, we realized that we were indeed walking into the clouds of mist. The hike is quite tiring as it is a steep climb. It almost took us 2 and a half hours to reach the top. The top of the mountain has couple of small temples, which were all occupied by the hikers trying to keep themselves warm. It wasn’t raining; but we got soaked in a few moments in the mist. The temperatures must have been around 5`C plus fast winds, which created a very freezing atmosphere. Indeed the water droplets on the eye lashes started to freeze at some point of time. We enjoyed our entire time on the hilltop with my Nikon D80, shooting in the clouds.

Our downhill was faster which took us about an hour. Only at the base, we could relish tender coconut, our first glimpse of fluid; yes we covered the entire hike without water. We then started the drive back till we reached Konark for breakfast at 09:00 IST.

The first overnight uphill hike turned out to be an helluva experience. It was tiring; but worth every calorie burnt!