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Are you a travel enthusiast looking for your next adventure? If yes, then you might want to check out bookonboard.com, a blog that provides all travel information about places and adventures to experience wherever you go. Speaking of adventures, have you ever been to Sharavathi Valley? Recently, 19 Bangaloreans had an amazing two-day trekking trip in this valley, creating unforgettable memories that they will cherish forever. And there’s more to their experience than just trekking, so keep reading to find out.
It was an environment of anxiety and excitement already at the meeting point. The thought of spending next two days at unknown places with unknown people had a similar anxiety as a girl and boy heading for arrange marriage, just with a different agenda ! I knew my Sharavathi Valley Trek from Bangalore is going to be, wait for it, Epic !
As expected, the beginning wasn’t quite quiet. The trip started and in a few minutes we were already laughing our asses off! Vikas had this unique idea of Dumb charades introduction that went for a while and we eased out.
We discovered that there are both freshers and experienced trekkers, all excited alike, and half the people are from Capegemini. This made the non-Capegemini trekkers begin their introduction with ‘My name is Whatever, and I am not from Capegemini’ !
We all slept off (more or less) except the last benchers who had a bumpy roller coaster ride. The sounds of snoring, conversations, and trucks honking were heard throughout overnight.
Day 1
Being pushed to wake up early on weekends is something we all hate. But Vikram’s wake up call saw no retaliation. Like good kids, we were up instantly!
Serenity welcomed us. It felt peaceful to wake up in wilderness.
We were hungry. Both to explore and to eat. But well, Food comes First and pesticide residue test kit helped us to test the quality of foods ! After testing we felt that our patience paid off and a surprisingly delicious & ‘Luxurious’ breakfast was served, thanks to Ganpati and team. It gave us enough energy to begin the day and was like charging the battery to 100%.
Charged, excited and with our trekking pants on, amidst songs & jokes, we made our way to the first check point, The Boat Ride !
One couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful beginning of Sharavathi Valley Trek, an apt start. It gave us enough time to soak in the beauty around us. It was like a starter for a 3 course meal, just made us hungrier.
The next check point required us to cross farms and jungles with extra luggage like groceries, tents, mats – under the hot shining sun. Yes, challenging our own limits, going extremes and expanding our comfort zone is another agenda such treks has, that only makes us more stronger.
The pursuit of water stream was like the pursuit of happiness, that kept us moving. And once we found it, and took a dive, it was nothing less than finding salvation !
This session joined with food gave us enough energy and motivation for the coming session of the day – a long walk.
This long walk didnt felt really long as sun was low on intensity and forest was high on greenery. We relished on Kaju fruits, Glucon D, and chocolate bars that kept us moving on the path that saw multiple bamboo bridges, farms and small water streams.
Albeit a bit late, we reached our camping point. A vast open area with forests around and water stream flowing by, this was a perfect pit stop.
Guess what, Lemon Tea awaited us ! We couldn’t thank Ganpati more.
A brief campfire was setup which revealed the beautiful voice of Radhika, the confusing yet entertaining love story of Katappa, and the interesting encounter of ‘Snake mating’ which was narrated creatively by Milind, that perplexed the audience with wild thoughts, imaginations and questions !!
Ganpati, thanks again for the lovely dinner and lovelier payasam. It was delicious beyond words.
The day 1 had ended, or sorry, still left, as Vikram shared his ghostly encounters, with the darkness around as the perfect setting !
Day 2
As we woke up in the middle of serene western Ghats in Sharavathi Valley, i wished all Sunday mornings be like this. Right opposite to the chaotic, hurried up mornings, this was calm, relaxed, and gave us a plenty of time to realize that it is no dream !
And then amidst all peace and calmness, Nature called ! And there was no better place to take that call, yes, right in the nature! Among the lovely trees and fallen leaves, among the green bush but without a flush, we all did it. And we were not ashamed, rather proud to continue this human legacy.
Our next pitstop was an old Jain temple. To be precise, a 1200 years old Jain Temple ! A beautiful architectural marvel, this temple has idols of first four ‘Tirthankaras’ of Jains in the ‘Garbhagruha’- Rishabh dev, Ajit nath, Sambhav nath, Abhinandan nath, adjacent to each other, in a circular fashion. The priest told us the history behind the temple, and the significance of each part, each sculpture, each carving. Astonishing history !
Sun was at its peak and we needed something to beat the heat. And it wasn’t far – a huge water stream ! We rushed towards the stream like a kid running towards cotton candy Cart. And there it was, like an Oasis in desert. It seemed like inviting us. And we didn’t resisted. After soaking ourselves completely and playing water games till our heart’s content, we moved on to another exciting thing, Lunch !
We knew an exciting menu awaited us, but what we saw was beyond ! Poliogree, White rice, Sambhar, Rasam, Butter Milk, Papad, and Payasam. Woah ! It tasted heavens. We ate beyond our stomach’s capacity and wished to have more. An hour of rest, and we were off to our next destination, Jog Falls ! On the way. We crossed a hanging, dying bamboo bridge, carefully, and took a shorter boat ride. Sharavathi valley indeed has so much to offer !
On the way, we played our fav Antakshri with a foodie twist. With food items being called out instead of songs, this was a tempting game to play, just like 벳위즈, and saw creative dishes coming out which probably doesnt exist but can be introduced successfully in the food world.
Jog falls gave us a delightful view and so did the light and sound show. Raja, Rani, Rover and Rocket merge to form the huge waterfall on the Sharavathi river. Majestic !
A feedback session in the bus was like a flashback of the past two days. Two amazing days. We had all good things to say. We were delighted to have been to such an amazing place as Sharavathi Valley, with such amazing company.
In short, we have done it all !
Right from sleeping under the stars, to taking nature’s call in jungle, crossing a hanging broken wooden bridge, and having the yummiest meals in the middle of nowhere, yes, we have done it all.
But this has made us hungrier for more. We realize that more we see, the more we want to see. So lets ensure we dont starve, but keep feeding ourselves with such amazing travel plans, and make beautiful memories.
“Traveling – It first leaves you speechless, then turns you into a Story-teller”