Short story on Hachi-ko, the Japanese Akita Dog

I just watched this movie "Hachiko" and found myself looking over my past list of beloved pets. I was not so fortunate to have many special pets and which were also members of my family. This movie is based on a true story.. the story was in Japan and the English movie starring Richard Gere is based on the Japanese version.. 

I'm not a pet owner myself but i've always loved dogs. The fierce and loving loyalty of our pets is something that we often take for granted. We sometimes push aside

the importance of their attention and love .As much as they depend on us, it's easy to forget that they touch our lives in a wonderful way too.

The story of Hachiko is one that has moved hearts across Japan and for anyone who has a dog, or any other pet for that matter, it is a particularly moving one.

Hachiko was a purebred Japanese Akita from Odate. He was adopted by a professor at Tokyo university and they became an inseparable pair, like father and son.

Every morning, Hachiko would walk with the professor to Shibuya station where the professor would get on the train to work. Every evening, Hachiko would make his own way to the station and wait at the exit to pick up the professor on his way home from work.

But one day his owner didn't come home.

The professor had passed away suddenly at work. Hachiko was moved into new homes but time and time again he would escape back to the professor's former home. Eventually, Hachiko realized that the professor did not live there anymore and was taken in by a former gardener of the professor's family.

But for the next 8 years, Hachiko continued to make the journey to Shibuya station and at 4 o'clock, he would sit and wait for his beloved professor's return.

Although the story is a sad one, it is a powerful reminder of the love that we have around us. Not only from our family and friends but the beloved furry (or not so furry) members of our families.

Kumara Parvata- The Most Adventurous Trek

Exactly an year after our first nocturnal trek at Nandi Hills, we embarked on this journey to Kumara Parvata.

Well, for those of you who haven’t heard of Kumar Parvata, at 5,617 ft. it is one of the highest peaks in Karnataka on the western Ghats & and hosts the route of the longest and the most strenuous trek in the state. Trekking can be done from 2 sides; the Eastern entrance that can be reached from Somwarapet & the Western entrance from Kukke Subramanya which we took.

As always, Charlie (aka Prasad) is the brain child behind this trek & because of the long hours of planning preceding to the event, the “Weekend Getaway” group had around 16 confirmations before some people dropped out & the final tally was 10 viz.. Charlie, Babu, Diwakar, Ravikumar(RK), Ravikumar(RKN), Raghu, Krishnaprasad(KP), Vimal, Manju & I.

Day 1: 4.30 a.m to 5.45 a.m, Kumaradhara( Kukke Subramanya)

After picking up Babu from his residence at 11.45 p.m we started our journey in a TT & reached Kumaradhara at 4.30 in the morning.  Our driver Nagaraju covered the 280 kms distance in 4.5 hours flat. Got fresh & repacked our bags with the food items, water bottles that got distributed amongst the team & we were ready.

6.00 to 9.30 a.m: Take the right turn before the Kukke temple & the entry point to the trek is 1.2kms behind the temple which is a walk by road. The plan was to reach half way to a place named “Bhatru mane” before the sun gets hotter. Just a few minutes into the forest trail & we encountered the biggest challenge which we had anticipated-the leeches. Salt, Tobacco(Hoge Soppu), Mosquito repellent & pain relief spray were duly packed & applied onto the shoes & socks but none seemed to help. We had to move carefully to purge from this freaky bloodsucker. Though we were heedful, few of these parasites trekked on to our legs & inside our shoes and were able to guzzle up some blood. Though everybody panicked, Charlie was the most disturbed & troubled. He thought Kitta( our mate) was wise in pulling out of this trek although he had other valid reasons.  One of these suckers pierced thru the aerial pores of my shoes & had sucked out some blood which I realized only after reaching Bhatru mane. It was one hell of a climb for about 2 hours in the forest trail. Manju, a wildlife photographer & an otherwise fit guy had severe cramps on his legs which hampered his climb. Ravi N & Raghu eased him of his luggage & with some Volini he continued further. Though the mutually agreed thumb rule was to “stay together” throughout, we did not adhere to it owing to the fear of Leeches. Even a mild break would mean few leeches climbing onto you & hence it was a literally a race to the top. 2 hours of trekking takes you above the forest canopy and it is now that one can get a good view of all the surrounding mountain ranges. We thought we had seen the Summit, but we were wrong. You can't see Kumar Parvata till the very end of your Trek. The mountain you can see from here is Sesha Parvata. On the way we met couple of interesting people: 1) Jayaraj- the forest officer who was a valuable help with his inputs & motivation 2) The domestic helps of Narayana Bhattaru. Must share this amazing with you all. These domestic helps climb up & down to the Subramanya town to carry essential provision viz. Rice, Oil, Daal, Salt & they do this Every day. Hats Off !!

Babu, Diwa, Vimal, RK, Raghu & I had reached the Bhatru mane by 9 followed by Ravi N, Charlie, Manju, & KP. By now Ravi N was fuming for not following the thumb rule which augured well for the rest of the trek coz together we can face the challenge & not by splitting up. We were the first set of people to reach Bhatru Mane that day & based on our request he served us some broken wheat Uppittu with Uppinakayi. They charge Rs. 100/plate of food but considering the kind of efforts that goes into it, it is not expensive. Apart from providing food, toilets & water you can charge your mobile, (Yes he has electricity), use his mats to rest & of course a satellite connection for television. But the most beautiful thing is, you can leave your extra luggage here and carry exactly what you need further which is what we did. Except for Babu all of us had carried heavy bags. After relaxing for an hour there, we embarked on our 2^nd part of the trek.

12 noon to 5.00 pm( Bhatru mane to Kumara Parvata)

The 2^nd part of the trek is from Bhatru Mane to Kallu Mantapa which is 3.5 kms. We’ll need to register our names with the Forest officer & pay an entry fee of Rs. 200/head. Camping on the peak is prohibited now & hence we were advised to return back well before dark.  Though we had kept your excess luggage in Bhatru mane, you can't ignore the fact that, you have covered already 6-7 Kms in high slope. Along with that, it is a race against time. We started from Bhatru Mane around 12PM. Target was to reach the peak by 4 and then start descending back to Bhatru Mane.  This is long stretch, mostly can be segmented into 3 parts.

1.                   From Bhatru Mane to Kallu Mantapa

2.                   Kallu Mantapa to Sesha Parvata

3.                   Sesha Parvata to Kumara Parvata peak

Leg1: (12 noon to 2.15 p.m)

The forest cover was no more and we were directly exposed to the merciless sun. The next point was Kallu Mantapa, a partially ruined structure. You pass thru two View Points which is useful for some clicks. This is mostly a walk thru the grasslands & hence relatively easy. Vimal had a narrow escape when he slipped at a curve. Though he recovered quickly, things could have gone wrong, sigh ! There is a stream flowing nearby which is a pretty sight and forms the camping place for most of the trekkers. We refilled our water bottles & quenched our thirst. Reached Kallu Manatapa @ 2.30 p.m & spent some time taking rest there.

Leg2: (2.15 to 3.15 p.m)

Kallu Mantapa is the foot hill of Sesha Parvata. After resting for a while, there was a debate if we should continue further or return to Bhatru Mane coz by then we were all almost drained out. Not many of them try to do the Peak & return on the same day. The next 4.5 kms was very steep & hence we were apprehensive about being able to come back before dark. Babu, Diwa, Vimal & Ravi N were clear in their minds about going ahead & it needed some pep talks from them & few Redbulls to inspire the others. From here it is a steep climb to Sesha Parvata which we covered in an hour & reached the spot by 3.15 p.m

Leg 3: (3.15 to 5.00 p.m )

Still there was no sight of the Kumara Parvata. Some of us were still wondering if it was a wise decision to continue further. Our bodies were almost giving up & only the mind was pulling it. Sun was settling down which was a good thing but confusion was arising among us. We were still together, but there was no sign of concurrence on continuing further.  People coming from other side were giving conflicting opinion. Though the question was simple,“how much left?". Answer was varying from 45min- to 2 hours journey.
 I could see, we all were tried and confused. Somehow Babu, Diwa, Ravi N & Vimal took charge of it.

From Sesha Parvathe you have to climb down a little bit and then climb up again. We’ll have to pass thru a dense forest & there was the Leech threat again. Somehow we crossed it without much trouble& then there is this monolithic rock which was slippery due to the preceding days’ rains. Vimal again had a slip though nothing to worry. At the end of that rock, the path splits into two. We could now see the way to Pushpagiri peak & continuing the climb little further…reached the peak of KUMARA PARVATA, Voila !!!!!!!!!!!!!!. Finally we were there, after almost 10 hours of climbing and countless plan & debate.

THE DESCEND

After spending some time in the peak we started the climb down. We were running behind schedule & hence did not spend much time clicking pics. I always thought that climbing down was easy but mark my words it isn’t .From a distance, things look easy. But as you climb down, every step is challenging. It is slippery sand, odd shaped pebbles and tightly packed odd shaped stones. Every step has to be careful or else you can fall or twist your ankle. Heavy on your knees and this is where you need lots of fluid consumption to keep up your energy and focus. But we had run out of water & food. We helped ourselves with some Peanut Butter & Nutella which was all that was left out. It was getting dark & trust me when I say this, not many people risk climbing down after dark but we had no other choice since we had run out of food & water. We had to come back to Bhatru mane. We kept on nudging one another to be safe & not to rush. A small mistake can be scary. Slowly but steadily we climbed down & reached the Forest office at around 8.30 p.m.

To me the best part of the trek started thereafter. Since we were late most of the safe places were already occupied by other trekkers to set up camps. So, we were left with only a choice of camping near the 1^st View point. Though we thought it was a great spot, what we experienced thereafter was damn interesting. We pitched in our tents for the night & headed to Bhatru Mane for Dinner. The menu was hot rice, Sambar, Majjige( Butter Milk) & Uppinakayi. There’s nothing like a Good Meal after all the hard work J.  Bigg Boss Kannada is quite popular now & Bhatru Mane was “HouseFull” with audience for this show. Cheers Huccha Venkat . Bhatru Mane was we bid adieu to Mr. Narayana Bhatru & he agreed to pose with is for a pic.

We had set up the camping tents at a place which was at the edge of a cliff, surrounded by lush-green mountain ranges, clouds and mist. The gushy winds almost blew away our tents & the mist water was dripping inside the tents which meant it would be a Loong night. Most of us could catch some sleep only for a few hours .The next morning served us with the most serene views we could ever hope to lay our eyes on. It is something that I’ve yearned for all my life, Truly Blissful !

7. a.m( Day-2) We packed our tents & left for Kukke Subramanya. Luckily we did not encounter much of Leech problem during the climb down & reached Subramanya by 9.30 a.m. 

Once we reached Kukke Subramanya town, the most important thing to do was to take bath, and there is no better place than Kumara Dhara River. To our surprise, there was hardly any water in the river. The deepest point was only upto the waist . But nevertheless, a wonderful place to cool down the body and wash all the sweat and salt from the skin.

River bath is a must before visiting Kukke Subramanya Temple. Let’s do things the proper way !!! Charlie’s words which we adhered to. After seeking the lord’s blessings &  breakfast at Neo Mysore Café, we started from Kukke Subramanya & reached Bangalore at 8p.m. 

Few People to thank for this successful Trek:

1)      Charlie: The brain child behind this plan & being persistent with it for over an year.

2)      Diwa & Ravi N: For being the nodal point of communication & managing the mathematics.

3)      Babu, Diwa, Vimal, Ravi N: For nudging all the other 6 to accomplish the Peak J

4)      KrishnaPrasad: For taking all the pain in going to Decathlon for 3 consecutive days  & picking up stuff for the team & for completing the trek without a Dholi.

5)      RK- For packing those yummy bakery stuff from Variar’s

6)      Manju- For all those Block Ops photo ideas

7)      Raghu- For being the official masseur of the Trip

8)      Kudos to all of us for another successful & safe trek

Yearning for more……. Charlie- Over to you

Looking back at my 10 Years in Quantum

There are some magical numbers in life to remember & I definitely consider completing this nice milestone of 10 years as a Quantum’ite is something to cherish & brag about J. Not that it is going to change anything but certainly a Feel good factor. Sense of getting reborn into a new role was something worth as part of this whole experience.  I can keep writing this on-and-on but let me pause & appreciate the many good things that have happened…

·         Great Learning

·         Great People & Friends

·         Great Passion

·         New challenges everyday

For real, Ten years seems like a long time, especially in the Sales domain & in the IT industry.

Some people ask, "Did you ever imagine you'd spend 10 years at one company?" Others are more critical, "How could you work at one company for 10 years?"

Commencing with one office in Bangalore through a small team & expanding to Hyderabad, Chennai, Coimbatore & Kochi I’ve seen them all.

Leadership, overseeing, survey, estimation, quoting, vetting, tendering, execution, inspection, reporting, rising slowly rung by rung on the diet of hard work, laced with self-training and spiced with self-abnegation , selling and setting for quality and quantity, batting for growth and bowling for profit, it was a sage of incessant struggle – of being ever on toes, always on call and returning instant e-mail response, to keep ahead and to stay afloat in troublesome waters, surfing the waves of receding veterans and surging recruits.

Of course, there were promotions, better emoluments & perks, bonus to boost the ego & words of appreciation. Life went on even keel, with marriage, births, anniversaries, school admissions and so on. Logging often into the laptop & the Smart phone, now my ubiquitous companion. My family regards it as their arch rival for hogging my attention and affection. In spite of my frequent outstation duties and long hours of work schedule all these years, a warm welcome always awaits me back home. My parents, wife and daughters still wait to dine with me no matter how late. That is time divine, my happiest hour. May God bless them always.

Industry now is surplus with bright faces and fresh young minds and brands. But do they come more fit and eligible? I DOUBT. I’m game & game for more. On this day I announce my coming again.

A few people to thank at work & none more than Mr. Ajit Menon. I would want to call you SIR today. There are times when I wanted to call quits but you egged me on & thanks to you I see this day in Quantum. Thank you for being there always. You remain my inspiration!

Thanks Sharad, Nileshbhai, Sunil Nair, Cyrus Lentin, Rajesh Singh, Purwa Jain, Kolen Shah & many others for being a part of this wonderful journey

Proud to be a Quantum'ite

--Jitender

Father & Daughter Relationship

Euripides, a greek poet said eons ago that to a father growing old, nothing is dearer than a daughter. Someday I’ll get there and so this post is dedicated to all such fathers of daughters and the girls themselves.

When we were expecting, we always prayed that we get a daughter. This was one of our many prayers that God answered & he did it twice. Thanks to the Almighty. Ever since they’ve come into our lives, life has been a roller coaster ride.  I may crib to high heavens about how much they trouble me and do not listen to me but each father-daughter bond is special and different. I know it’s not Father’s Day or Daughter’s Day or Family or whatever; it’s just a day I have chosen to express this.

The trigger to this of course was a lovely song I heard yesterday. The song is called “Laadki” from the India Coke Studio Season 4. The composers are Bollywood music duo Sachin-Jigar. This song features this young girl Tanishka (Sachin’s daughter), accomplished singers like Kirtidan Gadhvi – a known Gujrati folk singer and Rekha Bharadwaj – a name that needs no introduction.

The title of the song is a Gujarati word which means loved one (female). It is an extremely affectionate and loving way a father or an elder usually addresses a little girl. The song is a beautiful conversation between a father and his daughter and it spans the journey of a daughter from a little girl to a woman who is about to be married.

It starts with the young girl’s voice which says that she is her father’s loved one and no matter however much she may trouble him, she will always remain his loved one (Laadki) and that she will never leave him. It cuts to the time when the daughter has grown up and is about to get married, the father requests her to stay back for one more day and blesses her. The girl, a woman now, tells her father that wherever I may be I will always remain your ‘Laadki’.

There is so much soul in this song that it overwhelms me every time I hear it. Being a father of a daughter is indeed a special feeling which triumphs over a lot of other joys of life.

At a time when there is so much strife in this world of increasing violence towards women. This song brings love, hope and the feeling that yes someday everything will be just fine.

The link to this lovely song is here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5U9uP6riAZM

Cheers,JayEss

Trekking at Eeranna Kallu Betta(Chitradurga), 18,19-April-2015

Trekking at Eeranna Kallu Betta(Chitradurga), 18,19-April-2015

Our 3^rd trek post Ramadevara Betta & Brahmagiri took a while since we could not gang up the entire “Weekend Getaway” group. The two Ravi’s, Babu & Vimal missed out due to various reasons & hence Charlie, Kitta, Diwa, Manju, Murali & I could only make it this time. After much deliberations about the venue during which we discussed Kumara Parvata, Kunti Betta, Brahmagiri(Coorg) we finally decided upon the “Gandu Mettida Nadu-Chitradurga”.

18-April-15, 14.45: After a brief chat at the Parle G toll gate on NH-4, we started the journey & reached “Chandravalli Thota” at 16.45. The caves were one place which had rave reviews, and that seemed a doable option for the evening. What awaited us took as totally by surprise! A sparkling lake, set against a hilly background, just as the sun was setting and the evening turned cooler.We were ushered up to the cave entrance by the locals, as the guide was just packing up for the day. The cave, also known as Ankalagi caves, is known to have existed since pre-historic times, and used and modelled as and when kings of various dynasties visited at some points during their reigns. Interesting carvings and paintings made out of natural materials, meditation seats, resting sofas, bath tub and rain water harvesting systems, niches for holding lamps, name it and you can find it in these caves.. With the torches turned off here, one can experience absolute darkness. Though most of the structures were damaged to a certain extent over time, the beauty of the caves is remarkable.

Later in the evening, we checked into Hotel Aishwarya Fort, one of the better known hotels around the area. Vikram-our friend helped us with the bookings since most of the hotel rooms in the city were going full due to a SPB musical nite. After a sumptuous dinner & watching an IPL match, we retired to our beds.

19-April-15, 06.00: Charlie, the time keeper he is, ensured that everybody was up & ready by 6 a.m. We had packed our bags with loads of water & some chocolates & biscuits. We reached the Fort main gate at 6.15 where Charlie’s BIL RaviShankar was waiting for us. He had already done couple of treks here & recommended this place to us. After a walk of 3 kms beside the fort bed, we reached “ Thimmanna Nayakana Kere” the zero point of the trek. Our guides for the trek Mr. Nagaraju of Chinmooladri Adventure Club & his assistant Shivu were waiting for us along with 2 other local trek enthusiasts. The various trekking spots around the Fort are: Pandavara Gudda, Davalappana Gudda, Chittay Kallu, Seedgallu Bayalu, Gavi Bagilu, Nallikayi Siddappana Betta & Eeranna Kallu Betta. Nagaraju had chosen Eeranna Kallu Betta for us.

19-April-15, 07.00 :  We spotted some peacocks in a nursery of plants at the entry point & could hear the screeching sounds of them almost for a kilometre of our foot trail. To our surprise, a local dog started following us from the zero point. Nagaraju & Shivu feared that the Leopards can smell the dog easily & can prey on it. Hence they did not want to take a chance. However in spite of our best efforts to shove it away, it did not budge. The stillness of the place will surprise you.There are absolutely no people around, which is a partly eerie and a partly exciting experience. The initial part of the climb was not that difficult, we just had to wade thru some thorny bushes & small boulders. After clicking some pics & selfies midway, we continued our trail. At a certain point, Murali(Mama) almost slipped down on a climb but managed to cling on & with little help he recovered. It was a scary moment for us.  

Test of Endurance: Continuing further, we hit upon a point where we had to climb a 7 foot boulder. Call it the test of endurance or warm up, With absolutely no grips to hold on to, we helped one another in the ascend. The ropes that the guide had carried was’nt strong enough & did not make us feel confident. Raja( we had named the dog by now) was still following us. We all had developed a liking & soft corner for him. He had become the 11^th member of the sojourn.

Cliff Hanger: with the destination point in sight we encountered the toughest part of the climb which was a Cliff.  In the middle of some closely adjoined boulders was the Cliff with a 25 foot ditch to its right & Left. We had to take a 2 foot jump from the barks of a tree to land on to the safest point on the cliff. The novices that we are, some of us including myself wanted to give up but with lot of encouragement from the rest of the brave hearted we risked & managed to overcome the cliff hanger moment. Raja(Dog) could not make it & he was left behind. Since it was a high risk point, none of us could help him. He was trembling & stranded on the barks of the tree.  All of us minus Raja reached the zenith point. It was a moment of pride for us, the sense of having accomplished something really great.

19-April-15, 11.00: Moment of Joy: We had all given up on Raja & thought that he will soon become prey to either a Leopard or Bear. But like they say desperate times call for desperate measures, Raja had built up the required courage to cross the Cliff & he had come out a winner. When he joined us at the Zenith point, we could not control our joy. It was the time for breakfast, Nagaraju had packed delicious Chitranna(Lemon Rice) & Bajji(Bhajiyas) for us. Raja who was still trembling felt better after the breakfast & some water.

19-April-15, 11.30:  After the breakfast & some photo shoot at the top, we embarked on the descent. While descending, I kept hoping we won’t have to climb down the same way as the route was very tough. Thankfully Nagaraju had another route.

2^nd toughest part of the trek: Well we did not know that there was more to come. After having conquered to the top, we thought the climb down would be easy. By & large it was but midway thru the descent, we had to crawl down a 15 foot ramp that was very steep. You could either 1) walk sideways with your body bent backwards for which you need strong feet & supporting ankles or 2) Sit down & slowly move on ur Bums with the body bent backwards. This is the point where Kitta gave up(almost). He wanted to simply slide down & somebody stop/hold him at the end of the ramp. Since it was’nt practical, he took the 2^nd method mentioned above. My saviour Shivu held my hands & helped me in the ramp descent. Few others viz. Charlie, Diwa, Manju & Murali did not find this that challenging but for sure Kitta & I had our hearts in the mouth.

19-April-15, 13.00 : After this ramp, the rest of the descent was’nt tough & we covered it quite easily. Reached the zero point at around 13.00 hours. Raja had reached his territory of safety & he vanished thereafter. He did not even bid adieu, thankless Dog J. We thanked Nagaraju & Shivu for the successful trek & headed towards the hotel. Some of us relished on the military style non veg food at the Reddy’s hotel while some others filled their tummies with vegetarian lunch at the hotel.

After a quick shower, we started our return journey to Bangalore & stopped in between for the steamy Thatte Idlis & coffee at the Pavitra Restaurant, Kyatsandra.

Treks are addictive. They make you give up your inhibitions and your fears, shuts up your doubts and confusions and pushes you towards the road less travelled. And you come back feeling better than ever, feeling the joy of experiencing the unseen, of exploring the unknown, of realizing that you have it in you to do the un-doable!! Treks are also the best place to meet awesome people, people you wish to hang out with even after the trip is over. By the time I finished Chitradurga, I realized how much more there is to do when it comes to building my endurance, to become stronger mentally and physically. So far, none of my treks demanded so much out of me as much as Chitradurga did. But, I loved it. I loved every bit of pain in my body, loved every step taken towards a new experience.

--JayEss

Night Trekking to Brahmagiri

Let me begin by introducing the five hills adjoining the Nandi Betta. Nandagiri, Skandagiri, Brahmagiri, Divyagiri and Vishnugiri. There is not much information available about Brahmagiri, Divyagiri & Vishnugiri while the other two- Nandagiri( or Anandagiri as it used to be called earlier) aka Nandi Hills & Skandagiri are quite popular now. 

Prasad alias Charlie is the brainchild behind this initiative. Post the trek to Ramadevara Betta in Oct'14 he planned this one to Skandagiri & after having almost booked the tickets thru an Internet Portal we decided against it & wanted to venture out on our own & that too for a Night Trek. The infamous Kalavarahalli(foot hill of Skandagiri) kallaru(thieves) dissuaded us to take our own cars & hence we hired a TT. The 10 members of this trek are: 

Prasad alias Charlie, Diwakar alias Owner/Champ(of Badminton), Kishan alias Kitta, Ravikumar alias RK, Ravikumar N, Babu, Vimal( no aliases),, Manjunath( the Sr. Photographer), Murali alias Mama & myself yours truly Jitender alias Dinga :)

After mild refreshments at the Green Park dhaba opp: Jakkur flying club we reached Kalavarahalli at around 12.30 a.m to be welcomed by few Lathi wielding cops. They almost shoved away a group of enthusiasts who had just alighted an Auto. Luckily we did'nt meet up with similar treatment. Nagaraj( our TT driver) submitted the documents & after careful examination the cops asked Nagaraj to take us back safely( Henge Karkond Bandidyo hange vapas karkond hogu). Though a positive statement it turned out to be otherwise & we were advised to return back saying the Night Trek has been banned for now due to some mishap couple of days ago. Babu & Ravi's negotiations were in vain. It was a cold water splash on all our planning & efforts but not on our Spirits. With no Plan-B in place we had to depend on the Big Brother Google to help us out, which we did & came out with some alternatives viz.. Jaramadagu Falls, Antaragange, Ranganathaswamy Betta & lo Behold" Brahmagiri( from no where). Till such time the only Brahmagiri that we knew was the one near Madikeri ,Neither did Google have much information about this. Luckily I found a Blog on a Night Trek to Brahmagiri & that was it. We decided(almost) that this was the Plan B & asked Nagaraj to head towards Kerehalli Cross which apparently is the T Junction point of Blr-Nandi Hills-Skandagiri. The Left turn(coming from Devanahalli) is to Nandi Hills & the Right Turn is to Skandagiri. Kerehalli cross was brimming with people, all Night Trek enthusiasts from Bangalore & many of them the disappointed lot who were returned by the Cops at Kalavarahalli. 

2 a.m : We reached out to a local chai wala to gather some info about Brahmagiri. With some misleading information he successfully managed to sell us some yummy Bread Omlettes. We referred back to the Blog for some clues & there we found "Hotel Abhinanadana" right at the T Junction & the lane next to that we presumed might lead us to Brahmagiri. After much deliberations we entered the lane to be greeted by some barking dogs & a not so violent horny cow( pl dont mistake). we outnumbered them & hence was not much of a problem. All the torches were out by now & a couple of them worn by Vimal/Ravi & RK were awesome. Manju named them as " Hanebaraha" people coz they had to wear it on their Heads. After walking on the Jeep Trail for close to Kilometer we hit upon a clueless point with no directions or prominent walkways. All we could see was the majestic Nandi Hills Rock in the backdrop but we were let down by our Courage(s) & hence decided against continuing further. A dejected walk back to Kerehalli Cross where Kitta helped us with some Bread Toast & Benne Biscuits. Babu managed to take a Cat nap while all others were doing some lose talks & Mama had made up his mind to return to Blr. 

3.30 a.m: Charlie's spirits were'nt dampened as yet & a ray of hope came in the form of a Chai Shop who opened at around that time. Charlie & Kitta coaxed the boy into giving out some much needed information on Brahmagiri & the boy also inspired us by saying that Ladies trek in the morning & Men trek in the night. That was enough to rekindle our  male chauvinism. After having Chai( as Thanks giving ) to the Boy we embarked on the Trek to Brahmagiri. Charlie was still not convinced about this & he was trying all out to postpone the trek till sunrise. He finally had to reluctantly relent & started with us. The Dogs & the lonely Cow were still in action but our enthusiasm was much higher this time. Ravi N had by now volunteered to be the Navigator & he was leading from the front. His calls of "watch left" "watch right", "watch for Lil Rocks & Thorns" were accurate. Vimal who probably was lil more scared than others had clinged onto Ravi N. We kept counting ourselves from 1 to 10 so that we dont lose anybody in between. Must admit that the path is treacherous & risky but we had made up our minds not to give up. After about an hour of trekking we found some hope when we spotted fresh cow dungs(probably a day old). With that Diwakar took out his SLR camera to capture the moments. Manju & Diwa took some cool pics & Selfies while Ravi N was still in top form. 

5 a.m: The Sun was still trying to break thru the clouds but we could spot the mild rays & that was sufficient to switch off some of the Torches which were running out of Batteries. Charlie( & probably most of us) was a relieved man now coz he sensed being out of danger. 5.30 a.m- The Sun was almost out & with that everybody's camera shutterbugs too to take some pics as proof for the family members back home. We could now spot the Nandi Rock in full glory from there but the way out was still not clear, but we continued the trail.

6 a.m: Finally & to the relief of all of us we reached Curve No. 20 of the Road to the top of Nandi Hills. We spotted some 2-wheelers & cars zipping to catch the Sunrise from the top. An awesome feeling & the pride of having come out trumps. The joy was inexplicable all the more because we are no trekking professionals & we had taken the unexplored path. 

6.30 a.m: With a feeling of Victory we were all sitting at Curve no. 20 & Kitta helped us again with some Cream Buns & my wifey had packed some cut papayas which tasted very yummy. 8 /10 of us were willing to take the reverse trail but Mama wanted to go on top of Nandi Hills coz the last time he visited this place was when he was in his 3rd grade. Nagaraj, after a good sleep came with the TT & we boarded to reach the top of Nandi Hills & surprise surprise there were already around 1,000 bikes & a few hundred cars in the parking lot. Most of us caught up with the much needed sleep & rest by staying back in the TT. 

7.30 a.m: we bid adieu to Nandi Betta & Brahmagiri & reached Sanjay Nagar at 8.30 a.m. Luckily Brahmin's Thatte Idly joint was'nt crowded much & most of us preferred to fill our hungry tummies with hot & steaming Thatte Idlis & then it was time for the Gang to split & head to their respective homes. 

The official photographers( Diwa & Manju) have shared some amazing pics that they captured in their SLR's & below is the proof :)

Cheers to the Weekend Getaway Group( on Whatsapp) & i See that there is already lot of discussions going on in the group about the next destination. 

Thanks to all for being part of such a wonderful trek. Looking forward to More.

--Jitender