[sushrutha]

@cnaganathan
Nice narration and good pics too.
Can't wait for you to finish off the travelogue soon. :-)
Post some pics of the cottage where you had stayed.

[cnaganathan]

Sorry folks. PC at home had conked off. Hence the silence over the weekend. Rest of the Travelog will be uploaded soon.

[venki.bala]

cnaganathan, Superb narration. It is as good as reading a novel. Waiting for you to update the travelogue. Hope you fix the Comp soon.

[cnaganathan]

@Sushrutha, @venki.balan, Thanks for the compliments. PC at home will be ready today.

Managed to finish the rest of Day3 at lunch while at work today. Here you go.

4:00 PM – SIL calls and says they just crossed a board that said Mudiegere was 17 kms away and wanted to know the directions. Gave her directions to the rendezvous point at Banakal and set out to Banakal along with Sampath some 15 minutes later. My reckoning was that it would take them about 25 minutes to do the 22 odd kms to Banakal from where they were. Reached Banakal and waited for over 15 minutes – it turned out that for almost 10 kms after the call the road was downright bad.

After their arrival and once they settled, Wifey, SIL and self with Sampath as an escort decide to go for a small trek to a meadow on a nearby peak. The climb was through a path bordered by small trees, shrubs and grass. On the way up we noticed a lot of young trees bearing chopping marks on their trunks. On the way back Sampath explained that these were Sandalwood trees that were targeted by illegal traders. It was sad to note that most of these trees would not survive the dry months or would perish due to infections later. We also saw a lot of heavy stones during our descent and our host explained that these were iron ore rich stones and hence the weight. One thing that amazed me was the deftness with which Sampath handled his M800 on those rough roads though it was sad to see him ripping her through some of the bad patches at 50+ kmph.

By the time we came back, rain clouds were gathering in the sky and the air became a bit nippy too. The planned Bonfire will happen tomorrow since a shower was imminent. Tomorrow would be a nice day with a drive through Charmadi Ghats and then to Kalasa / Horanadu / Kudremukh.

Here are some pics shot at the meadow.

1. A view from the meadow
2. Close up of a lily at the estate lawn – converted to BW using MS Photo editor.
3. my little brat with Sampath’s car
4. The ladies enjoying the view from the meadow.

[cLJ]

Nice narration and good pictures too. Waiting for the complete log.

CLJ

[cnaganathan]

It has become colder but the fan is not working. Wait ….what was that rhythmic noise? Got up and peeped through the window. It is raining cats and dogs!! Rain at this time of the year in these parts seemed to be unusual. Just then there was a huge bolt of lightning and a little later a loud thunder clap. Probably an earlier lightning strike must have led to the Power Cut. I get back to bed but it takes a while for me to doze off again. And not before I wonder what will happen to our plans for the next day.

Day 4 – Dec 27, 2009.
Around 7.00 AM the fans came on and I could hear the din of a DG Set from the back yard. This morning I cannot hear the Peacocks and the birds over the din made by the DG set. It is another 30 minutes before I finally get out of bed, brush my teeth and step on to the porch. The sky is still grey and there is lot of mist around. It is still raining lightly. All our clothes strung out to dry yesterday were dripping wet now. Hope Over a cup of steaming hot coffee, our hostess Kavya says that it rained heavily last night and it was unusual to have such heavy rains during this time of the year. Sampath is a worried man now – the rain meant more damage to the crop that was ready for plucking. Wifey and I decide to go for a walk inside the plantation while the rest of the gang is still stirring up.

Back from the plantation trip, a conference is held to review the plans. The gang unanimously vetoes my suggestion for a drive towards Kalasa and Horanadu. They want to visit the stream instead – Stream? After a night of heavy rain and in such weather? But then it should be fun to get drenched in the light rain too. So we all set off to the stream and spend a good part of the morning there. Water level has gone up a bit and it is not as clear as it was yesterday.

Post lunch there is a let up in the rain and we get some time to play. Soon one cricket ball is sent into the well and another into the coffee bushes. Around 3.00 PM I finally cajole every one for a drive at least up to Charmadi Ghats. Sampath assures everyone that the vistas will be great. We decide to travel by two cars – my queen and Sampath’s M800. Children pile up into his car to enjoy the fast ride. The drive through rain drenched roads amidst the plantations was great and about an hour of driving up and down winding roads brought us to a view point. This place seemed to be a tourist attraction as we found many other cars parked. There were rising peaks lush with greenery all around and in front of us was a valley with a river flowing through it. While we were enjoying the sights, Sampath called to us from a rock outcrop below the road. The climb down was steep and none of us dared to go down. When Sampath promised an excellent view and that he would help us get down the steep slope, I gave in and took the descent. It was pretty scary as the path was slippery, and if I lost foot hold there was nothing to hold on to as there was only grass all around. The view from the rock was truly amazing – how I wish my camera hadn’t conked off. After spending a few mins there, we decided to get back. Climb back was tougher with nothing to hold on to.

Back in the car, children went with Sampath to the estate while we drove down to Mudigere in search of ATM. We will have to settle the bills tomorrow and our hosts accepted cash only.

By the time we came back it started raining again so no campfire today also. After dinner we all sat down to in the living room to play Dumb C and Anthakshari. The day ended with a game of cards. Hope there will be some sunshine tomorrow and we will be able to drive around to Kalasa and Horanadu.

Some of today's Pics

1. Harvested banana
2. Rainwashed rides - my Queen and bro's Punto
3. Coffee Berries in monochrome
4. Rain washed hills
5. Waterfall on the way to Charmadi Ghats
6. A view of the valley and the river
7. View of the ghats from the rock
8. an upward view from the rock
9. Simian friends waiting for someone to feed them
10. Rain Clouds again!!

[cnaganathan]

A freak accident last week has left me with a broken finger. Finding it difficult to type with one hand. Will continue with this travelogue soon.

[LongDrive lover]

Nice travelogue. Hope your broken finger recovers soon.