Of leeches, frigid rains, and delicious mock meat - Kumara Parvatha

Day 0 (Friday evening)

It was decided just a week ago. Most treks with friends happen this way, as we know that prior planning seldom works. There would always be a couple of interesting folk dropping out at the very last minute or even cancelling a week prior to the trek. Hence, we booked our tickets only on Tuesday that same week, and were off to Kumara Parvatha the following Friday. Somehow, we still managed to get the required number of bus tickets.

The plan was to catch up with Venky, and rest of the Chennai folk at the 'Majestic bus station' in Bangalore. He gave me a look of astonishment when I met him inside the 22:40 bus to Kukke Subramanya. As I had switched off my phone to conserve power, he almost decided that I wasn't going to make it. The usual introductions and chitchat were done, and the bus started moving within a few minutes, making us all sleepy.

In the morning we woke up to the majestic Western Ghats, the bus winding its way through valleys, meadows, and forests dotted with many a farm and village hutments alike. Many such old world charms with mini civilizations passed by; but the main attraction was the old growth forest of this UNESCO world heritage site. Towering hundreds of feet above us, slanting at right angles away from the road, some towards it, presented the traveller with a sense of majestic awe, and admiration for such spectacular marvels of nature. The moment I woke up, the scent of the forest engulfed my senses, and I knew that that is all I'd be breathing over the next two days. Petrichor. That's what they call it. It wasn't raining, but it seemed to have rained the previous night, and hence that primeval aroma still lingered in the air.

Day 1

The bus arrived at Kukke town in a decent time of 7 hours (considering that it was taking a longer route owing to road closures). We quickly finished our morning ablutions, and got down to some piping hot Idlis inside a dark, dingy village eatery. It was like going back in time; the quaint cement-floored room smelled of old wood, lit by filtered sun rays washing through the tiny metal squares in the vents of the building right down to the floor. It provided enough light to see each others faces and the food as well. I felt like we were sitting in one of those creepy dark dungeons of Hogwarts, learning spells and incantations to use against the creatures of the forest.

Before we knew it, breakfast was done, and we were on our way to the entrance of the trail head. The verdant, thick growth of forest and foliage on both sides of the road stunned, and captivated, my sleep deprived senses, and I stopped multiple times just to admire them. The trees that were living right on very sides of the road were also quite intriguing. Elephant ears, Plumerias, Crotons, many of them whose names I still don't know, dot the entire stretch of this road. The road was tarred, but grainy with lose bits of tar all over the place, some getting stuck in the spaces between our shoe grip patterns. Since I'd also started documenting my treks on Instagram stories ever since they came out with the service, I was quite busy with that. Ironically, all this had begun as an escape from work, home, traffic, stress, technology, etc; somehow I had found myself to be inextricably attached to this service for the past 3 treks.

Busy removing leeches

Once you get hooked to it, Instagram stories can be quite addictive and hard to let go. I was beginning to miss those days of quiet contemplation, and admiration of the jungle as you gingerly climbed up, without making a sound. Nowadays with Insta stories, I feel like there are a dozen fireflies buzzing around in my head for which picture and what caption to post next. Sure, it did inspire many to get out there and enjoy the great outdoors, but for me, it was sometimes at the cost of my own peace and solitude. No one was forcing, paying, or incentivizing me to do this. Then why did I develop this insatiable urge to document each and every moment on the trail? Everything in moderation please!

People who went ahead were hollering at me to catch up. I reluctantly agreed, and moved on from the bridge where I had stopped to admire the flowing stream below. We reached the entrance to the trail head in 15 minutes or so, took a group snap, and marched on straight ahead. Next stop: mid point stream.

There is a stream that you will encounter on your climb up KP while climbing from the Kukke side. It flows abundantly for most part of the year, barring a month or two in the summer.

The leading group arrived at the water point quite early and some had already gotten into the water. The rest of the group, being regular trekkers themselves, took a bit more time, owing to the time spent removing leeches from their feet and legs. During the monsoons, leeches proliferate like crazy in these parts. I, on the other hand, had absolutely no issue climbing up the mountain, as the leeches blissfully drank my blood. I could feel their rubbery, slimy bodies rub against my skin and socks, as I twisted and turned my feet to climb. The regular trekkers and newbies in the group were equally stunned, as they saw me take leeches from the ground and put them on my body. Here they were! busy and frantically trying to remove them with as much force as possible. And then there was me, doing the exact opposite! Some of them burst into roaring laughter when they got to know what I was doing, as my friend explained it to them.

Yummy!

After taking a mighty chill bath in one of the waterfalls of the stream, I felt reinvigorated, reborn, and all the sleep deprivation, and fatigue faded away. Such was the chillness of the water! It was eclectic, and energizing at the same time. I was shivering right to the bone. The neurological effects of a cold shower couldn't be understated better. It definitely does get the adrenaline flowing. It was only after this that I gathered the wits to be ahead of the group, which I usually am in most treks. For most of the KP trips, I am sleep deprived on day one, on account of not having slept through the rickety bus journey all night, but it doesn't hit me till we actually begin the trek. Today I made sure to stave off that fatigue and dread by taking a stimulating dip, and boy did it work!

We reached Mr Bhatra's house next to the forest check post at around 11AM. Ominous, black monsoon clouds blanketed, and completely obscured the upper part of the mountain from view. We couldn't see the trail leading to the top, which is usually visible. A sense of dread filled the group as we were jittery about whether the forest officers would let us through, to visit the peak. We were met by two not-so-happy officers who said it would be quite risky to let us through at this time even though it wasn't raining. Since the forecasts said chances of rain were quite high, they didn't want to take a chance. We then decided to spend the rest of the day at the view point consisting of a set of heavy metal seats arranged on a cement square, for the purpose of rest and relaxation of trekkers.

Here's a photo of the viewpoint from another trek:

All we had to do was while away the time here, eat our packed lunches, and then look forward to the next day. Some people got into photography mode, some socialized, some decided to get that much needed sleep to make up for the sleepless bus ride, and some others were busy browsing on their phones or making calls.

It was like this on day 2 as well

Baby mushrooms sprouting to life after the rains

A house cat at Mr Bhat's house

Rain getting misted off on striking a tin roof

By dusk, another group had made it up to the view point, and were socializing amongst themselves, after exchanging pleasantries with us. It was a great sight to watch, to even be here; to take it all in, all of us huddled around, at the viewpoint watching the cloudy sunset together, the intermittent rain, the faint creaking of the Cicadas all around, the ice cold weather, the sound of the gushing waterfall in the distance, the dramatic, meditative rolling of the clouds above, and the smooth Petrichor in the air, along with the aroma of the rainforest, that is so lacking in cities.

Mr Bhats fairytale house in the middle of the jungle

The beautiful verandha with a plant at the centre

The trip was already beginning to feel worth every penny, even though we couldn't visit the peak. I had my "paisa vasool" moment the second I had gotten under the ice cold waterfall earlier that day. Moreover, I tried to get the maximum number of leeches on me to make the trip even more worthwhile and exuberant. Trust me, when in a monsoon trek in the Western Ghats, you definitely want to get  maximum amount of leeches on you as possible before weakness sets it. Its a high that no drug can provide. The bites may itch for a week or two, but you'll come back feeling like a refreshed, reborn person. The very fact that we were here, not doing anything, just meditating, and being one with nature was priceless, even though we weren't going to the peak.

Its pouring buckets!

As night fell, most of us retreated to Mr Bhat's house, where we were to camp for the night. Due to the heavy rain, the forest officers didn't allow us to pitch our tents next to their office as is usually done, and besides, where was the starry night sky to gaze at anyway ? So off we went sulking to Mr Bhat's outhouse, where we rolled out our tarpaulin sheets and marked our territory.

Taking my first bite of mock meat

At the time of the trek, I was vegan for a good 2 and a half years, and though I'd heard a lot about the famous "mock meat" through various media channels, I knew it wasn't available in India. Also at that time (2018), plant-based entrepreneurship was in its early stages in India, and venturing into mock-meat would have been quite a risky proposition.

I had never tasted mock meat, and always assumed it was something made by, and for Westerners, as they needed something to replace the meat in their traditional diets. Anyway, we Indians always had a mind-boggling range of options when it came to plant-based food isn't it?

The call for dinner was sounded, and we all lined up with our plates at the buffet-style set up. All the vessels of food were neatly arranged on the wall of the outhouse, which was so broad, that even a massive rice casserole could be propped up onto it. This time, instead of the usual Sambar rice, there was another curry that had these slimy fleshy things floating in them, which closely resembled pieces of chicken. I've never seen Mr Bhat serve meat, so this wasn't chicken for sure. However, to still be sure, I inquired with one of the kitchen helpers as to what this dish was. He said it was Jackfruit curry. Wait, what? I've eaten a lot of Jackfruit, and we even cook the seeds at home, but cooking the fruit itself? That was new to me.


With a little apprehension and skepticism, I took my first bite and damn! It tasted exactly like chicken, with sinewy, chunky bits all around. It took me quite a while to chew it into the smallest bits that could be swallowed. Chomping it down felt really nice, and pleasurable. I think it's for someone who's a cross between a chewing gum, and chicken lover; or maybe someone who likes both. 😄

Dreamy and ethereal

It already exists??

Who would have ever guessed that this very same unripe Indian Jackfruit would one day be worth millions of dollars in the plant-based meat market in the United States?

Here were all of us early stage vegans, eagerly waiting for something similar to mock meat to pop up in India, so that we could start enjoying delicious meat based preparations without hurting animals, while its been right under (or above in this case) our very noses all this while. It seems that that this particular preparation has been a staple in village households for a quite a long time.

You see, we always manage to box ourselves into narrow, siloed ideas of what products should look like, and where they should come from. Sometimes, all we have to do is to turn around and look for solutions, rather than always trying to invent them.

Who would have ever thought!

Check out this article from National Geographic, that talks about how the popularity of this fruit as a meat substitute has exploded in the US:

Is Jackfruit the next big meat Substitute?

After that hearty & satiating meal, we all huddled together on the tarpaulin sheet, and talked ourselves to exhaustion, since there was no trek to tire us out anyway. One by one, each of us exited the conversation, and gradually fell off to sleep. It was raining outside, and biting cold. The only source of warmth was our own body heat, that was trapped inside the sleeping bag.

A misty morning on day 2

A spiders web highlighted by the mist

Petrichor rising out of the soil

Day 2

Rapturous birdsong, the pitter-patter of raindrops, and a blast of cold air woke us up the next morning to the dreaded news that we wouldn't be summiting the peak today as well. After hearing this piece of news, many of us decided to make the most of the hut ambience, bathed in the tranquil, serene surroundings of the forest, to get a few more Z's in and, swiftly got back to the warmth of our sleeping bags.

After all, what the heck were you going to do for the rest of the day at the viewpoint again?
At least that's what we thought; but boy were we in for a smart surprise!

After much obliging and pleading, the forest officer decided to let us enjoy a mini hike to Kallu mantap, on the condition that we would keep our bags at the office itself, and get back in an hour. Overjoyed, enthusiastic and brimming with energy, most of it saved up from the inactivity of day 1, we began our slow trek to Kallu mantap. The trek to this place is barely a 30 minute hike, but its does get quite steep in some spots. With the current spells of rain, combined with the rain from Saturday, we noticed that the trail itself had been turned into a mini stream, and was gurgling with pretty good flow at some places.

Once we got higher up, we were rewarded for all our perseverance and patience over the past two days with breathtaking views of puffy cloud balls in the distance, discreetly mingling with the Shola forest below. This sight was straight out of a Jurassic Park movie that kept us frozen right on the trail, and some of us were too stunned to move an inch. I sat down right where I was, and watched this scene play out just like you would watch a movie. This ultra high-definition fusion of colours is so staggeringly beautiful and enchanting to watch, that it will never let you feel the passage of time.

Make sure you are fit and healthy before you embark upon this trek, rather than suffer the aches and pains of your own body, as you might miss the movies nature has directed for you.

The insanely dazzling and spectacular sight of Petrichor emanating from the forest and joining the clouds above is a lifetime experience in the ghats, that one should never miss; not for anything else in the world.

I was too awestruck to move for this one, and it was not just the rainwater freezing on my body. I had to be prodded by the others as we were getting late for our afternoon exit.

Exit

We planned to have lunch at Mr Bhat's house, as we would be drenched, covered in leeches, and pretty unkempt to present ourselves at any of the restaurants in town. Our exit was timed perfectly, and we arrived at Bhat's house for an early lunch. The rain had stopped, giving us a window of opportunity to get outside and rearrange all the contents of our bags. We quickly finished up with lunch, that consisted of watery Sambar rice, with pickles and curd. We then slowly packed up, bid adieu to this gorgeous estate, and started moving from there. We were all lucky enough to get seats in the same bus which was scheduled to depart at 2pm, so there was no need for anyone to rush down separately. With more than 2 hours left to get down, we had sufficient amount of time to pay a visit to the stream. It started pouring the moment we reached the stream and the temperature dropped like crazy.

I couldn't figure out if it was because of the loss of body fat over the past tow days, or because it was actually that cold, but this time the waterfall was frigid, and those who chose to come here, could barely stand under it for a few seconds. It continued to pour heavily all the way till we exited the forest, and reached the temple choultry in town. The town was abuzz with devotees who usually thronged the main pedestrianized road that leads to the temple, but couldn't due to the rains. Conversely it was the choultry and restaurants that were packed with crowds. Some of us had to change into dry clothes, while some others had to take off, and pack their raincoats. With that activity done, we all headed to board our bus for Bangalore.

The return journey was invigorating and enjoyable, as unlike the onward journey, we were awake to witness it all. We had the comfort of an AC bus, with a high definition view of the forest. The windows of those KSRTC Airavat buses are massive. It was like being inside a movie, looking at waterfalls and peaks far in the distance as the bus rocked and rolled along steep hairpin bends. The sights of undulating green forest, of water flowing beneath bridges that we crossed, the intermittent villages, the occasional swamp and river embankments, were all too magical and metaphysical to be ignored. While others were busy in chitchat, I was busy staring out the window, planning my next trek to Kumara Parvatha.

Disclaimer: No advice on my treatment with leeches should be taken seriously. I am not a medical professional. I have just narrated my positive experience with them. I assume absolutely no responsibility out of any untoward situation arising out of you voluntarily putting leeches on your body, whether inside a forest or otherwise, after reading my blog.