Kodchadri Trek Part1
A couple of weeks back ( 16th and !7th Sep 2006 ) I treked to Kodchadri hills near Kollur with our usual trekking group. This is by far the best trek i have been to, not because of the actual trek itself but coz of experience we had on day two of the trek, and i definetly dont want to forget about this trek for a long long time.
This treak had been one of the two most procrastinated treks ( the other is Bramgiri ), so while planning for the months trek we decided on this after ruling out the earlier planned Bramgiri trek. Soon the tickets were booked and tents were arranged for the trip, a few email transactions later we were all informed about the terrain and the conditions of the place and were ready to go.
Kodchadri is around 25KM from Kollur, near a place called Nagodi, and can be approached from DakshinaKannada side or from Shimoga. In case you go via Udupi, you need to get down at Kollur and catch another bus to Nagodi Check post, but if u go via Shimoga bus you can directly get down at Nagodi checkpost itself. So we decided to take the 8:30PM Rajahamsa bus to kollur which plys over Shimoga. Being a part of Western Ghats range its terrain is very similar to that of Kumaraparvat thich vegitation with intermitant grassy slopes. Kodchadri is famous of its leeches , so we also carried lime ( adike sunna ) with us as this is the easiest to carry( salt is another option ).
By the time we reached Nagodi checkpost it was 5:30 Am and was pretty dark outside, so we decided to rest under the roof of a house until the road brightens. In the mean time we had 3 newcomers ( to trekking ) who had to informed about the trip ( what to expect ) and also they had to be thaught the usage of lime against leeches. At around 6:15 the road ahead seem to brighten so we started the trek. From Nagodi checkpost, where the bus stops, You need to walk around 2km along the main road until you pass through a arraca farm ( appears on either side ) when u see a Direction board directing the visitors into the forest. For the next hour or so you need to walk along the comfortable jeep track for 3-4 kms till you reach the famous Santosh Hotel ( some refer to it as Kaka Hotel as it is owned by a mallu ). This( hotel ) is at the foot of the Kodchadri hill, the actual starting point of the trek. The route from here onwards is constantly uphill until you reach Batrumane( 4KM from here ). The trail is distinctly visible and can be followed easily. The trail is very similar to the one in KP passing through alternating patches of Forest and grassy slopes, but here unlike in KP streams flow very close to the trail, so water is not a problem in this trek. The trial is infested with leeches, sepecialy while passing through the forest, so before resuming the trek make sure you have the solution for the leeches ( in our case lime inside a piece of cloth ) easily accessible to you. Initially the new-comers ( and sandy;-) )were terrified by leeches and were seen dancing every time they noticed a leech or two sucking blood from their feets;), we also had to stop every now and then to make sure the newcomers weren't left behind. inspite of all this we reached Batrumane around 12:30 ( 3:30 hrs from Santosh Hotel ). Here there are actually two families( Battru and a jogi ) and an IB who entertain the visitors to the place, on our arrival we were first greeted by the jogi family ( as they are close to the entrance ) so we had lunch at the Jogi's place. After lunch we relaxed for sometime and then decided to continue the trek further. Though it was around 2 in the afternoon the visibility was barely a couple of feets, so the hopes of experiencing the sunset was lost, but we still wanted to camp at the top of the peak ( like we did at KP ). So we dumped all the luggage at Batrumane and took the tents with us and continued the relatively steep ascend to the top( around 2km from batrumane). By the time we reached the top it was around 3:30 and was raining heavily supported by the strong winds blowing in all directions. This was bad for us as it would make it harder for us to setup the camp. After little bit of looking around we found a suitable place for setting up the tent and with great difficultly we setup one of the two 4 member tents we carried. Since the ground was wet we doubted the possiility of camping there but since we had already setup the tent we decided to eat the food we had brought along. within mins there was a pool of water inside the tent, that was the end of our hopes of camping at the top, and we returned back to batrumane for the night. After dinner we played a few rounds of UNO ( its becoming an important part of all our trips:-) ) and then went to sleep. Thus an exausting day came to a very satisfying end. Though we were disappointed about the failure to camp at the top the trek was worth every penny we felt.
Will the post about the day two of the trek and the unforgettable experience we had on day two tomorrow.
This treak had been one of the two most procrastinated treks ( the other is Bramgiri ), so while planning for the months trek we decided on this after ruling out the earlier planned Bramgiri trek. Soon the tickets were booked and tents were arranged for the trip, a few email transactions later we were all informed about the terrain and the conditions of the place and were ready to go.
Kodchadri is around 25KM from Kollur, near a place called Nagodi, and can be approached from DakshinaKannada side or from Shimoga. In case you go via Udupi, you need to get down at Kollur and catch another bus to Nagodi Check post, but if u go via Shimoga bus you can directly get down at Nagodi checkpost itself. So we decided to take the 8:30PM Rajahamsa bus to kollur which plys over Shimoga. Being a part of Western Ghats range its terrain is very similar to that of Kumaraparvat thich vegitation with intermitant grassy slopes. Kodchadri is famous of its leeches , so we also carried lime ( adike sunna ) with us as this is the easiest to carry( salt is another option ).
By the time we reached Nagodi checkpost it was 5:30 Am and was pretty dark outside, so we decided to rest under the roof of a house until the road brightens. In the mean time we had 3 newcomers ( to trekking ) who had to informed about the trip ( what to expect ) and also they had to be thaught the usage of lime against leeches. At around 6:15 the road ahead seem to brighten so we started the trek. From Nagodi checkpost, where the bus stops, You need to walk around 2km along the main road until you pass through a arraca farm ( appears on either side ) when u see a Direction board directing the visitors into the forest. For the next hour or so you need to walk along the comfortable jeep track for 3-4 kms till you reach the famous Santosh Hotel ( some refer to it as Kaka Hotel as it is owned by a mallu ). This( hotel ) is at the foot of the Kodchadri hill, the actual starting point of the trek. The route from here onwards is constantly uphill until you reach Batrumane( 4KM from here ). The trail is distinctly visible and can be followed easily. The trail is very similar to the one in KP passing through alternating patches of Forest and grassy slopes, but here unlike in KP streams flow very close to the trail, so water is not a problem in this trek. The trial is infested with leeches, sepecialy while passing through the forest, so before resuming the trek make sure you have the solution for the leeches ( in our case lime inside a piece of cloth ) easily accessible to you. Initially the new-comers ( and sandy;-) )were terrified by leeches and were seen dancing every time they noticed a leech or two sucking blood from their feets;), we also had to stop every now and then to make sure the newcomers weren't left behind. inspite of all this we reached Batrumane around 12:30 ( 3:30 hrs from Santosh Hotel ). Here there are actually two families( Battru and a jogi ) and an IB who entertain the visitors to the place, on our arrival we were first greeted by the jogi family ( as they are close to the entrance ) so we had lunch at the Jogi's place. After lunch we relaxed for sometime and then decided to continue the trek further. Though it was around 2 in the afternoon the visibility was barely a couple of feets, so the hopes of experiencing the sunset was lost, but we still wanted to camp at the top of the peak ( like we did at KP ). So we dumped all the luggage at Batrumane and took the tents with us and continued the relatively steep ascend to the top( around 2km from batrumane). By the time we reached the top it was around 3:30 and was raining heavily supported by the strong winds blowing in all directions. This was bad for us as it would make it harder for us to setup the camp. After little bit of looking around we found a suitable place for setting up the tent and with great difficultly we setup one of the two 4 member tents we carried. Since the ground was wet we doubted the possiility of camping there but since we had already setup the tent we decided to eat the food we had brought along. within mins there was a pool of water inside the tent, that was the end of our hopes of camping at the top, and we returned back to batrumane for the night. After dinner we played a few rounds of UNO ( its becoming an important part of all our trips:-) ) and then went to sleep. Thus an exausting day came to a very satisfying end. Though we were disappointed about the failure to camp at the top the trek was worth every penny we felt.
Will the post about the day two of the trek and the unforgettable experience we had on day two tomorrow.