Scaling the Venkatagiri Hills

Saturday, February 20, 2010.

It's not about conquering 2 mountains in 2 days, It's not about letting those thorns tear you apart, not about carrying your heavy backpack across the rocky, thorny steep terrain, or not about the moment when you doubt if this trek was such a good idea after all, but it's about the heart pounding so fast, you could feel it right on your forehead, and then a chill breeze hits your face and rejuvenates you all over again, all this while you sit with your legs swinging on the edge of a cliff. Now how's that for a feel ! That's exactly what the bravehearts of the Venkatagiri trek went through. Here's where I recollect the event of the weekend trek to Venkatagiri, the second by CTC itself.

Woke at 3:15 in the morning even before the alarm went off, and this after I went to sleep just 3 hours before, such is the excitement the morning of a trek brings along. Got ready, packed my bags and ran through the checklist in my mind, and took my little alto. I joined the group outside Nathan's cafe at 4:40 am, the usual meeting point right outside the Koyambedu bus stand. The usual attendance procedure, and each of them were assigned their cars. My car had a Mechanical Engineer (Alex) and a Bharatnatiyam dancer (Meenakshi), great company they were. Unusually and fortunately this time, there were more accomodation than needed. So we had to split 3 per car instead of the earlier planned 5. There were 3 bikers among us, including a roadies couple (The couple had participated in MTV Roadies Battleground and it was not until the end of the trek did I know this). We took off at 5:30, our next regroup was near the Puzhal flyover and then a couple of halts because of the bikes, biking was not a good idea especially when there were enough space in the cars, some people just don't learn. We then reached Naidupet, the breakfast point at 8:30 and it was almost an hour before we proceeded. Some guys from Bangalore joined us here.

From here, it was another 1.5 hours drive off the Chennai-Hyderabad highway before we reached the Venkatagiri town, seemed like a pretty old town to me. Parked our cars/bikes, split all the eats and packed our bags and began our walk at 11:00 am, trust me, the February tropical sun does get hot!

We had a total of 11 km to reach the destination. By number it sounds quite easy, but adding the terrain, it's a mammoth task, this we realized later in the day. The initial walk was through dry grasslands and was a 5 km walk till we reached the base of the hill. From here the thorn forest started. It was now that our hands, legs, backpacks and sleeping bags were torn from all sides. It was like the forest was unwelcoming us, and warned us to stay away, just that we wouldn't listen. An hour later, the thorns reduced but the trail got steeper and the climb was through irregular rocks. I was carrying a total of 4 litres of water along with my other essentials. This was taking a heavy toll on me now. Not just me, but everyone seemed to struggle this trail. I had to reload myself with glucose fluids and high-energy bars. But I wasn't able to walk more than 10 min at a time. Meenakshi from my car walked with me, I was surprised to find her keep up pace with me. Finally Peter came around and announced we were just 5 min away. It was now that I learnt, never trust Peter when he says 5 minutes or 50 meters, both mean eternity !

We finally reached a cave at 600 mts high. By now I was exhausted and squeezed. Managed to catch some sleep near the cave, Peter filled water from drops dripping from between the rocks. This mineral water is the best part of any trek, this could refresh you beyond you can imagine. We regrouped here, lunched and started our way up again at 2:00 pm. We still had one-third to climb. If the terrain so far was difficult the terrain that followed for truly Herculean and I MEAN IT. Even though the thorns and sun was behind us, this time it was the rock boulder climb that made it difficult. It is believed that robbers used this Mountain top as a hideout location 1000 years ago. There was a proper path carved out at this large 300 mt rock. This was by far the most difficult climb I have made in all my previous treks. Me and the Thoughtworks guy grouped up and would climb not more than 5 min at a stretch. By now most trekkers had given up and vowed not to come back again. Even the strong looking guys now gave up. At this point it gets more mental than physical, and I was able to make it. Ironically the trip so far was relatively safe for me until I tripped on the last steprock of the hill, got a little bruise on my knees and I happily accepted it now that I reached the hill top.

The surrounding views were indeed breathtaking. What was disappointing was the lack of breeze, may be the geography didn't support strong breeze here. By now we had climbed 6 straight hours. Me and 2 more guys went in search for some water and were lucky to find a source of water, a better drip source than the one down. We filled about 4 bottles each and made our way to the hill top again. This time I fell victim to a cramp in my leg and slowed my climb. I enjoyed the sunset view, the sun looked real innocent, it was hard to believe it was the same sun than tormented us all day long sucking every ounce of our energy ! At one point we could see one side pitch dark and the other slightly lit up by the sinking sun. Felt lucky to witness this. With no source of light, it got dark very soon, Guru and co were busy getting soup and maggi for dinner. It tasted heaven after such a days effort. I was quick to doze off on my sleeping mat by 9 pm. The mist around ensured we missed any possible sight of a star.

It was around 12:30 when I suddenly woke up, it was not just me, but the entire group that woke up. The dew was so thick, it wet all our bedsheets and it was like I was covered in a wet cloth. I was shivering inside, and all hopes of a good night sleep vanished. Some guys lit up the camp fire, but I was too tired to even sit and rather preferred to stay in my wet bed. When I barely managed to open my eyes, I ended up seeing the clear night sky with stars embedded throughout. It was a sight to savour. Even managed to witness a shooting star, made no specific wish though. By 5, the bed dried a bit and I caught some sleep till 7.

Woke up to witness the morning sun, it was as pleasant as I had expected it to be. Caught up some pics and went with Biju to fill in more water for the group. By 9, the group decided to dismantle. Peter and we 14 others agreed to scale the next peak. I was surprised so little of us agreed to make it, others just wanted to head back to the cars and reach their homes at all cost. We had to find new trails to reach the new hill top, and at times even create new trails. Many got hurt in this process, but such is the spirit of these treks, it is way more than the physical pains. We caught up some wild gooseberries enroute to the top, and finally found our way up there. Even though this peak was not as tall as the previous one, the views were equally breathtaking. Infact all of us sat on the edge of the cliff getting the breeze on our faces. This was probably the most satisfying moment of the trip !

We had to make our way back down, and join the groups that split earlier in the day. The descent was harder than imagined but nevertheless we made it through. We were certainly a high energy pack. Finally reached the base through our walk back through the boulders and the thorn forest. This time the thorns seemed to request us not to leave the forest, for it found a friend in us, but we didn't belong here. We were all battered and tired and with aching legs managed to reach the village side by 6 in the evening. Had a little bath at the water pump on the way, and settled our accounts. Finally began our drive back home, it was a daunting 4 hours, 170kms drive back home.

Later parted with my car poolers, Alex and Meena and reached home loaded with scars, bruises, aching legs and an unforgettable twin peak memory. Given a chance, would I repeat this trek.... HELL YES !