On arriving at Girigadde from Kumara Parvata I felt a sense of thrill of having accomplished a goal I had set out to achieve. A nice hot water bath refreshed me. After dinner as I sat with Nagaraj and Mahalinga Bhat and was telling them that I had a full sense of satisfaction of having accomplished a tough task without a calamity, Mahalinga Bhat reminded me that there was still a significant part that remained.
That remark brought me down to reality – there was still a descent of 2500’ to be accomplished safely. A major problem had arisen – due to the steepness and the slippery nature of the slope coming down from Kumara Parvata, I unconsciously was forced to exert more force on all my toes of both the feet. This resulted in blisters on the left big toe and the second toe. In fact, even the big toe of the right foot had developed blisters. The problem was that the shoes were too tight and was beginning to bite at the left big toe. My feet were truly aching. Then there was the problem of stiff calf muscles and thigh muscles. I crossed my fingers and prayed that these should not give much trouble.
(L to R: Nagaraj, Narayana & Mahalinga Bhat)
We had decided to leave a little late (around 8:30 a.m.) on the morning of Saturday from Girigadde on our way back to Subramanya. After a breakfast of cooked Avalakki (beaten rice or poha in Hindi), I took a final round of photographs of my hosts and my guide Nagaraj. I thanked everyone for their hospitality and we set out on our descent at 8:30 a.m.
The shoe-bite and blistered toes gave me severe trouble. One has to be extremely wary while placing their foot while descending. Hence a person out of touch with trekking finds it quite strenuous. I kept on taking rest at many places before we reached Bhimana Bande. We arrived there at 10:30 a.m. and soon heard the sounds of a fairly large group ascending but they were concealed by the foliage. In a few minutes they appeared and I graciously invited them to come and rest on the rock – for after all, I had ‘Just done it’!
The group of youths was from Bangalore but a few of them belonged to Shimoga, Belgaum and other parts of Karnataka. They seemed to be appreciative when I told them that I was close to sixty and had set out from Bangalore on the trek alone with only my Guru as a companion. They took a few photographs of us which they later mailed me. (Right). I wished them a safe trek and an enjoyable experience as we began our descent further down. I had spent almost an hour at the Bheemana Bande. We left the Bande at 11:30 and after a slow and painful and strenuous descent arrived at Subramanya at 1:15 p.m.
We arrived back at Subramanya on Saturday. Nagaraj informed me that it was virtually impossible to get a hotel room on a weekend at that place. He graciously invited me home and pressed me to accept his hospitality. He didn’t see any point in my wasting Rs.500/- on a hotel room for a short stay there. He had actually called his wife on the cell-phone and had requested her to cook lunch for me too. That was an extremely generous gesture. Accordingly we proceeded to his house and were warmly welcomed by his wife and mother. After a brief rest, I washed myself and we had a tasty sumptuous lunch that was truly satisfying. After a brief nap we booked a bus ticket back to Bangalore for a bus that was to depart at 10:40 p.m. So we spent the evening from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at his house watching the television. Having dined later at 8:30 p.m. I took leave of his mother and wife. Nagaraj was gracious to see me off at the bus stand. Having thanked him profusely for all the hospitality he provided at Subramanya I bid him an affectionate farewell.
The journey back to Bangalore was a comfortable one in an air-conditioned Volvo carriage of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation. The bus arrived at Bangalore at 5:30 a.m. and I was at home by 6:15 a.m. on Sunday the March 28th 2010.
Thus the Subramanya – Girigadde – Kumara Parvata (Pushpa Giri) Trek was completed with the warm blessings of the Guru.
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