It
has been over an year since we trekked Pakshipathalam in Waynad. Chembra peak
has been under scanner for a climb since then. At about 2100 meters, it is the second
highest peak in South India after Anamudi. Now that the timing got right, on
Nov 30, 2012 night, we (Renjith Vijayan, self) packed off for the peak.
The
idea was to reach Waynad next day morning, barge into my cousin Shinu's house,
force ourselves with a lunch (he don't have an option), generally lazy around
till evening then abduct him to Chembra, stay overnight in the foothills where he has a
small shed and start the climb early morning.
Since
we are the variety of common homosapiens of mallu sub-species, being “fit”
comes only after a few drinks. So we thought, if not fit by body, we should be fresh
by mind; hence should have at least a good sleep before the climb. Someone
suggested catching a sleeper bus from Bangalore to Kalpeta and hence tickets
were booked for an 8.30pm sleeper bus. Rushing out from the office and
negotiating the Friday evening Bangalore traffic, we reached unusually on-time
to the travel's office at Kalashipalaya. After keeping us wait for about 45 min
and a lot of hush-hush over phone and between themselves, we were rather
unceremoniously informed that the same berths were booked by someone else and
the bus has gone!! As if doing a great favour, after a search for about 2 hrs,
we were asked to board a 1940's-looking bus-like vehicle. It was nevertheless a
sleeper coach and we tried to settle down on our upper berths, as expected, at
the farthest end of bus. At around 11.30pm we started; bus was going at a
decent speed and for first couple of hours things were ok. I might have just
caught the sleep, the bus crossed over a hump; even when we realize what was
happening, we were lifted up, kissed the roof and were back in bed with a sore
head. Thereon, we were on a permanent state of float with an occasional kiss of
the roof and sudden fall to the bed. Even in such bad road, the bus was going
at a steady speed. After sometime we got our self accepted that it is a
sleepless night ahead. At 8am next day, we both literally escaped out of the
bus at Kalpetta.
Both
of us refugees were at Shinu’s door steps. Till evening, things rolled out as
planned – good hot bath, good lunch, good sleep… At 3.30pm we were off, first
to the local market to pick some food & grocery for the overnight stay (i.e.,
1.5 Kg of beef, 2 Kg of tapioca, some puttu powder and all other paraphernalia to make them
palatable; disappointment was since it was 1st of the month, all
liquor shops were closed – bad planning) and then to the shed at the foothills
of Chembra. Also we had to buy the entry pass of Rs.500 (for group up to 10
Nos) from the forest office enroute after Mepadi
We
reached around 5.30pm; sun was low and light was great for a few shots. We went
around for some time. Shinu keep feeding us with his encounter stories with
leopards, wild elephants, pythons and ensured we are sufficiently scared. He even
showed us fresh leopard droppings with skin and bone remains in it.
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| Chembra foothills 01/12/12 evening: Grasslands beyond the thick green forest, glowing in sun's golden rays |
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| Chembra foothills: Sun slowly settling behind the grass |
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| Chembra foothills: Night setting in |
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| Leopard dropping: skin and bone remains |
With
Omanakuttan Pillai chettan, Shinu’s friend at the shed, the no-drink worry was
over. Omanakuttan Pillai chettan is one among the cleverer mallu lot, who keeps
sufficient stock. Shinu prepared the tapioca which turned out perfect. I took charge of the beef, leaving the other three concerned. At dinner, their concerns proved right. With gastronomic dissatisfaction we
were off to the bed at around 10pm. The night was not that cold.
Shinu
made puttu early in the morning. I’ve reworked on the left over beef and it
came out surprisingly well this time. Had a good breakfast and with sufficient
water bottles, we started the climb at 7.30am. Chembra peak is a succession of
7 hills one after another. The first one is the longest one to climb; it has thick
growth with larger trees. After the first hill, the terrain changes with trees
giving way to elephant-grass. Once the second hill is crossed comes a small
pond. It was more or less dry and has a sole tree standing on its head. The
next landmark is after the next hill, the trademark symbol of Chempra hills – a
heart-shaped lake. Since it was a Sunday, there was sizeable crowd, mostly IT
crowd from Bangalore. It seemed like there is more crowd here than in the
Mepadi town below. The usual crowd climbs up to here and returns.
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| Chembra peak: It is a succession of 7 hills one after another. View from the 2nd hill |
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| Heart-shaped lake after the 3rd hill. After the lake is a cliff |
The heart lake is a sole source of water for the wild life of the nearby
area. As informed by the forest official, there is a group of 7 elephants which
is regular in this area. There is a shola forest nearby. At such heights large
trees cannot grow due to heavy winds, hence most of the tree growth will be
clustered in the mountain folds and the rest of the land will have just grass growth.
These are very short trees with a flexible body which is a natural adaptation
against wind. We spend some time inside the forest; saw a lot of deer-hoof
holes in its muddy floor. While Shinu and I were still inside the forest, Renjith
was exploring the lake and the cliff below, when he spotted a Great Indian Hornbill
graciously gliding from one of the hills below.
After
about half a Km of flat land, the 4th to 7th hills are in
quick succession. There is only grass growth and wind velocities are high. We
started climbing the 4th hill by around 9.30am. Usually wild animals
are not seen upward of the 4th hill. The trail is through the top
edge of the hills with depth on both sides. The wind velocity was considerable,
which made the climb even more exciting. The sun was fully up, but the cool
winds flew away the tiredness. With only one more hill to climb, huge boulders
appeared. There is no ground for grip, but only the vertical rocks. These areas
could be really dangerous to negotiate had there been rain or even drizzle. The
thought that a silly slip can take one about 2000 meters below, sent down a shiver.
Even scarier was the thought of climbing down this stretch. Nevertheless, foot
forward is foot forward. By around 11am we were at the top. It is a table top
with just sufficient space for 5-6 people. We have negotiated a two side cliff
area to reach an all side cliff. I could barely stand up due to the winds; so I
just lied for some time before I gathered myself to get up for a look around.
Wow, what a sight it was; we were among the cloud, on top of the world. It was
only green and blue and mist and freshness till the eyes can reach. No amount
of photo snapping can capture the view and the feel. We had some crisp mountain
air and reveled for some time on the top.
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| Shinu crossing the 6th peak |
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| On the peak |
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| On the peak; among the clouds |
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| From the peak; the path we passed. See the heart-shaped lake and the shola forest by the side |
Down
climb was tough, but the feel of triumph was always exciting. After spending
some time at the lake, we reached back in the foothills at around 3.30pm. We
had the leftover puttu and beef curry – which was tasting heaven by this time –
and had a quick nap to buffer up the possible night-out in the bus, back to Bangalore.
