TIME OUT
Walking in the wilds
IT's 10 p.m. and Bangalore's "Majestic" is a scene of chaos. But we manage to board a bus to Sakleshpur via Hassan. And as we're coming straight from work, we munch on some stuff we have, leaving behind enough for our trek.
The mouth-watering rotis offered by a roadside dhaba are the most delicious ones I have ever had in South India. We soon doze off ... three hours after this sumptuous meal and we're in Sakleshpur — a five-hour drive from Bangalore covering about 300 kilometres. An idli or two at a bus stand and we are on the road again. About 15 minutes from Sakleshpur we get down at an under-bridge in Donigal and it's just walking after this.
The "Trek on the Railway Track", as it is well known, is a stretch of track from Sakleshpur to the Subramanya Road Station, which was shut down in 1989 due to high cost of maintenance.
This track, that traverses some distance of the Western Ghats, has been abandoned since. It forms a part of 56.80-km stretch from Sakleshpur to Kukke Subrahmanya, dotted by 58 tunnels, 109 bridges and about 25 waterfalls. So, for all you trekking freaks, this is the place to be in.
It is about 4.30 in the morning. With our `Mac' lights we spot a small waterfall every 15 minutes. By dawn, when we can see a little, we realise that we are in the midst of thick forests. A breakfast of "jaggery and gram" and some sprouts are enough to re-energise ourselves. To add to it the view is amazing.
And then come the devils — the railways bridges.
I see the nasty river below through the gaps between the broken planks of the bridge. Legs trembling, we hop across, managing to cross the bridge, only to encounter one every two kilometres alternating between tunnels.
And the tunnels are muddy and the haunt of bats. And how can you not get those leech bites when trekking in the Western Ghats?
At lunchtime we halt near a small waterfall, and with enough wood lying around we soon have spicy sambhar to go with boiled rice. After a walk of eight kilometres, it's quite a relief. A 15-minute nap and we are back on our feet again.
We are carrying our climbing gear, but cannot find a suitable rock for the same. While crossing one of the bridges, we toy with a wild idea: Why not just rappell down the bridge. A round of this is followed by a dip in the river. After a while we see a half torn board. It reads "Yedakumeri". Yes, after a walk of 18 kilometres we have reached the destination.
Soon we relax on the platform. It's time to celebrate, but it starts to drizzle. We move our gear into what looks like the stationmaster's office. For dinner, we cook whatever we have.
The morning sky is quite clear and we head back ... to be consumed once again by fast-paced life in a Silicon City called Bangalore.
Text and pictures by
RUBUL WALIA
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