Bidarakatte Trek

BIDARAKATTE TREK on 24-6-18

Report by : BIJU CHERAYATH

Albert Einstein once said, “Look deep into nature, and you will understand everything better”. The Tryst with Nature, Chapter: 6 on 16^th June 2018, was a wonderful opportunity for us to experience this. The personal effort of a few passionate trekkers and naturalists, has brought together an eclectic, gregarious group of family oriented nature enthusiast.

The day started early with Raghu waking up the bus driver at 4 am and proceeding to various pick points and Ravi collecting freshly made lunch for the trekkers at 7 am. A few delays and waiting for some stragglers, did not dampen the overall enthusiasm and all new comers were made to feel welcome within minutes of entering the bus. All aboard, we set off after a brief breakfast.

On reaching the Biddarakatta, Savandurga the group were reigned in for a brief drill on dos and don’ts, lunch parcels were distributed and we all set of, full of excitment. The guide a local of the area, had a tough time keeping 44 adults and children together. There were our energetic nature lovers, who kept up with the guide, then there were the wanderers, dreamers and photographers like myself who kept a slower meandering pace and last but not least we had the ‘find your own path’ group. Over the hill, around the mystical ponds, under ancient trees and boughs, across meadows of wild flowers, grassy slops, rocky surfaces, wet with rain water from the hills, we were brought to an ancient temple nestled in the side of the hill and the old fort. 

The fort walls gave us a spectacular view of the surrounding rolling hills, fields and breathe taking scenery and skyscapes. The intermittent drizzle and sunshine with a brisk breeze kept us refreshed and we did not feel the effort of the climb. 

A short walk through the forest undergrowth was magical. We saw several species of birds, bird nests, flora and fauna. The team work of every one helping each other through the irregular path, our very own Bahubali having the herculean task of carrying a large water container and young and old scrambling over the rough path brought us to a cliff like clearing, overlooking the dense forests below. In this scenic venue, group photos were taken from many angle and there was a comradeship among all that was heartwarming.

There were many discussions in the groups on plants and trees, home remedies for various ailments. There were many who were quite knowledgeable on the benefits of some of the species.

 After a fun community lunch on top of yet another hill and part of the old fort, we all settled down for some games and relaxation. Some peaceful souls stretched out on the sheer rock surface and had a nice nap. 

The walk back found groups walking together, relaxed, pleasantly tired but still full of small talk. I was quite surprised to see quite a few trekkers carrying brambles and drift wood. My surprise did not end there, there was a ceremonial culmination to the day. 

The wood carried from the forest was used to start a fire and low and behold we had tea - a cup of refreshing ginger tea made from scratch. Efforts from the very young to old made the tea making and tea drinking an experience to remember.

Nature had brought us all so close to our true nature and to each other. A lot of effort by a few culminated in a holistic experience for many. A sincere thanks to Raghu and Ravi and thank you to all my fellow trekkers - may we have many more.

Written by Biju Cherayath

Beautiful sketch by Biju :

Thank you Ravi, Raghu for all your hard work in organising this trek. It was a beautiful experience for me. Also, Thank you for the gift, Ravi🙏🙏🙏

Sanjay

Once again a big Thank You to Raghu & Ravishankar for taking all the pains in arranging this trek. I am sure the youngest & the senior youngest from 4 yrs to 74 yrs & all others had a enjoyable trek.

Santosh Kumar-Canara bank

Yes we did! 

Thank you Raghu and Ravi!!

Atul

Thanks Raghu/Ravi for the nice trek...

Mohan

Ravi, Raghu - you two are awesome taking the effort in organising the trek. So much work goes into it to make it into a wonderful experience🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

Sravana Dasary

It was a wonderful trek day. Group member were great which made trek day more enjoyable. Game after lunch was awesome. A memorable day for me. 

Ravi & Raghu thanks a million time for making this day for me. Applaud your effort & planning that you 2 have done for days to make our trek day so so enjoyable. Hats off to you two.

Anand

Raghu and Ravi thank you for arranging a wonderful trek

Manu

Raghu and ravi.. Thanks for the awesome trek.. Appreciate your time and efforts

Indu

Raghu and Ravi. Thanks for organising this wonderful trek. Really enjoyed it. You guys put so much effort and we thank you so much. Thanks for the games and the tasty tea. How can we forget the people who made the tea and the ones the carried the firewood. 😂😂

Rachel

Best tea ever!!☕💕

Biju

Can we make tea after lunch too

Ramesh Dasary

R2 Thanks for the awesome trek.. Appreciate your time and efforts🙏

Khozema

Dear Raghu and Ravi. Wholehearted thanks. A memorable experience for me. I am ready for a next surprisefull trekking experience. Regards and good wishes Francoise

Francoise Bosteels

Well, this trek too sweet for spice girls 😀

It was well organised by Raghu and team .

Thank you so much for all the efforts put in.

Will catch up next .

Vidya

Had fun , thanks to Raghu ,Ravi & all others who pitched in to make this trek possible. Thank you Sravana for getting us to play the games without loosing your cool..😁

 Agree..it's important to keep time .

.Also too many pick up points. Stick to 2/3. 

Better keep on moving to keep rhythm. 

Yes ,must avoid plastic .carry your own spoon ,glass etc . 

 My two cents.

Sowmya

Thanks to Raghu and team for  making such a wonderful fun-filled memorable trek. 

Everything was well organized.

The experience was amazing words cannot express the beauty, awesome and grandeur  of this part of our trek. It was wonderful to get to know all of u.

Looking forward to create many more memories.

Vinutha

we wish to thank all and particulary, murutaza, the group of murutaza, anand, and all others who shared the load of carrying water and all other who helped in packing. thank you bini  took lead in preperation of the tea which is a specaility of ravi's treks and which i remember from the time we used to trek way back in early 2000s

a success is never a individualistic effort , its always a group effort, so compliments to all of you

Raghu Hukeri

https://photos.app.goo.gl/WmWmVkawEJ1LiHRbA

Photos by Biju

https://1drv.ms/f/s!ApoAXa28R6uhh1Uc3YVg0MlJeskC

Photos by:

Vinod kumar

Vinod

Santosh kumar-canara

Santosh

Anand

Vinutha

Murtaza

Biju

Sravana

Manu

Khozem

Harish