Kumara Parvat - My Backyard Trek

So I have a very high affinity towards mountains - as have most people, I too have learnt some of the greatest lessons of my life through them - and it is true - when it is time, they do call out to you.

Now, to do an expedition or head to the Himalayas is the most obvious option for any mountain lover - but due to work commitments - it is difficult to head into remote areas with limited connectivity for extended periods of time. Although it is great for my soul - it is not so great for all the trainees who depend on me for their daily workouts and continuity in their fitness journey - so a balance has to be attained. It is here that my favourite backyard trek Kumara Parvat ( KP) comes to my rescue - it gives me a hard trek on a trail with total paisa-vasool value for money.

I like a certain degree of challenge in most things that I do - the challenge forces one to continually level up and a trek such as this - can never be easy. There are 2 ways to ascend this mountain - one is from Coorg ( Somwarpet climb) and the second is from a tiny temple town Kukke Subramanayam. I have only ever ascended it from the Kukke side - it is meant to be tougher and from what I understand it is the toughest trek in Karnataka. I have previously done this trek probably 5-6 times and each time in different weather. I know a lot of people are of the opinion that the same trek over and over again is boring but to be honest - I find it to be a brand new experience each time I go. And every time I fall in love with it all over again!

Eitherway, at GRM, a couple of my friends had expressed an interest in heading to KP. So, we decided we would do it once the COVID situation settled down a little. The Forest department had also closed the trek to the public keeping in mind the pandemic. Effective Feb, the trek opened to the public for the next month. I decided to head there every weekend for the next month. I had a race planned for Mid-Feb which did not work out, so, I decided this would be my little treat to make up for that missed event. As luck would have it, I caught the flu on the last weekend of Jan. I assume it was COVID-19 since everyone at home tested positive. I, however, tested negative ( giving credit to my immune system here). As luck would have it, I had to miss the first trek of Feb - simply because the body had not recovered completely and I did not want a relapse.

The second weekend of Feb took Rushit ( the brilliant and superbly patient man who had accompanied me through my entire SR series) and me for our trek to KP. It was Rushit's first trek ever and he performed brilliantly. We made this a day trip - booked a room close to the Bus Stop, reached in the morning, freshened up and headed off to the trail. We took a total of 11 hours for the ascent and descent. Had I known it was his first ever trek - I would never have recommended it - a brutal trek like this has a tendency to throw people off in the first instance so its best to do some of the easier ones first and gradually build to KP.

I decided to head to KP alone the following weekend - it had been a long time since I did a solo-trek and by now I was quite familiar with the mountain ; more importantly the Forest officers. Usually, they will not let a solo trekker up alone - this is as a safety precaution. Neither will they let only a couple into the mountain alone - because jungle main mangal! So anyway, I booked my bus ticket and headed off to Kukke by the overnight bus - landing at the temple town slightly later than expected. Anjana, a dear friend was part of the Tour De Malnad and had a room already booked so I used that one to freshen up.I had a cuppa chai - because, well, chai is life - filled up the camelback with water and decided to head out.

Nutrition: It has become really hot at Kukke now and the stream that usually flows in full glory during the monsoon has now turned into a tiny trickle. Besides the heat from the weekend prior had practically turned me into a burn victim. So my plan was simple, climb at a decent pace and keep moving with minimal breaks. Of prime importance was water - so I carried a camelback - 2 litres which would be enough half-way and I could refill it at the forest checkpoint. I carried 6 boiled eggs ( 4 for me and 2 for the dog if he joined me) & 4 slices of bread, 2 oranges & 1 apple.

I started my trek at apprx. 7:20am with a walk/jog from the chai shop - taking about 20 mins to cover the 2.5odd kms to reach the start of the trail. From here, the plan was simple - to keep moving with the first break at the Forest Department Checkpoint, then the summit, third one at the checkpoint and then the final one once I reach back into town. So it began - the entire route is steep with few spaces to breathe in between - The first part of the trek is in dense forest with very old trees creating a stairway up the mountain with their roots - it truly is gorgeous! The dense cover is a relief from the hot sun however, it does create a lot of humidity and any sunscreen that you apply gets washed off within the first fifteen minutes. I passed by a lot of trekkers - most of the trekkers do this trek over two days with the first day being a trek to the half-way point - to the cooks house ( Bhattre Mane/ Giri Gadde) where they can rest and relax for the remainder of the day, catch the sunset and retire for the night. The Cook also prepares simple food which in available to trekkers for a reasonable sum of Rs150/meal. The next day they do the remainder of the trek and head back to town. In comparison to the week before, the numbers had definitely dwindled.

I continued the climb up until I reached the end of the tree-cover and comparatively flatter trail. The thing about this trail is that other than the space with the roots, it is rocky - sometimes it is less rocky and sometimes it is more - but its rocky all the way! I picked up the pace on the trail and started a slight jog here until I reached the clearing with a board right at the centre. Thought I might grab one of the oranges - I knew I was approximately 10 mins away from the Forest Checkpoint. I gobbled the orange and headed on forward with my walk/jog pace. As expected, I jogged straight in to the checkpost. Punith, the forest officer in-charge was attending to 2 other trekkers when he saw me jog in. He looked at me and said, " YOU? Again? What are you doing here?"

Me: " Climbing - wanted to come and climb it at a good pace"

Punith: " Where is your friend?"

Me: " Its just me today, will you let me go?"

Punith: " Just because I know you".

With that sorted, I completed the entry process - they check your ID, and there is an entrance fee of Rs 350 for Indians. They also keep a refundable deposit for the plastics/ glass you carry - which will be returned once you show them that you have bought all your waste back. I re-filled my camelback and went merrily on my way. The orange had kept me quite full so I decided to add another breakfast break further up the hill. There is this particular point - its a black rock which overlooks the trail that we come up on the one side and a ridge on the other - it is one of my favourite spots on the trek and was probably about 75minutes away from where I was at the pace that I was climbing. I decided that would be the designated spot for breakfast.

As per plan, I reached my breakfast point and took a break - sat myself down, clicked some pics, had 2 slices of bread with one egg each. This breather took abut 30 minutes and then I was ready for the next half of my journey up the hill. Having learnt from the trip the weekend prior, I carried a dri-fit top with long sleeves to cover up and avoid unnecessary sun burn. I prefer using dri-fit over cotton, because it dries up a lot faster and keeps the ventilation on point.

Next stop was at the summit. So climbed up on that rocky trail, winded around the forest in the grassland, passed by the stream which had turned into a trickle, moved further along leaving the mantapa behind as I continued forward towards the barren trail strewn with big black rocks - the wind was a welcome relief to the harsh sun beating down on me. After the rocks, there is a slight downhill ( maybe 20mtrs) which is followed by an ambling trail - I kinda geared upto a trot here as I jogged towards Shesha Parvat lookout. I continued climbing - yes, there were trekkers but few and far between. I kept waving out to them, exchanging pleasantries and moving forward. Post Shesha Parvat is a slight downhill which is followed by a rocky trail through the forest - the shade from the forest is a welcome relief as always. I thought I might pick up a jog, but then the trail was just so rocky, I decided against it. Thing is, if you end up twisting your ankle or tearing a ligament, there is no one coming to save you - you have got to take your own self back to the bottom - helicopter rescues are not even an option. And it is this very thought which always makes me err on the side of caution - that excruciating pain taking your injured self back down the hill! Even if you do have company, they cannot do much for you - you are your own baggage and you have got to learn to look after your own self - maybe this is why sports such as these make you more confident and independant - simply because you discover yourself in the process. ( more on this another time).

And yes, these are the thoughts which run through my mind. It is how you speak to yourself through these journey's that really make you fall in love with the sport or not - the more intrinsic the joy, the more you love yourself - the easier these long and ardous journeys become No, in the midst of nature I do not like to have headphones in my ears - I enjoy hearing the wind rustle through the grass, the chirping of the many birds, the trickling of the water, the slithering away of the snake or the mating calls of the crickets - there is just so much music in nature - it is almost like a progressive trance track - all consuming and heart-rendering.

So, I continued through the jungle and saw some trekkers returning, I also met Chotu, the dog who had adopted us the weekend prior - he had adopted another group this time and was trekking back merrily with them. I thought I saw a flicker of recognition in his eyes - but that could also be wishful thinking. Anyway, I have trekked enough to know that once a dog adopts a group he will be loyal to them and bring them back to safety - there will be no deserting them mid-way because thats just not how they roll. So anyway, we said a quick hello and he moved down with the group of 3 trekkers while I continued on forward towards the summit. Towards the end, the rocky trail becomes an extremely rocky trail with steep incline - this coverts into a vertical black rock which has to be climbed to reach the summit. after climbing the black rock - is a 400mtr climb to the summit which does not really have much to boast of - no views per say, but it does have a small temple made of the rock found around the hill - it is a temple dedicated to the Lord of Serpents and is meant to be extremely auspicious. I reached the top, and saw a man sitting inside the temple with shoes on - I am not a religious person - but I do believe in respecting the basic principle of it. I requested him to take his shoes off and he obliged. I went towards the side and celebrated reaching the summit with an orange. It was 11:15am and here I was having climbed apprx. 1800mtrs.

At 11:30am, I decided to start my descent. Now the descent is really killer -the incline, the rocky trail and the fatigue already set in, is a good combination for multiple falls along the descent. A good amount of strength training and strengthening of the legs and the muscles around the knee and hips is a pre-requisite to have a smooth trek back. I had thought that since it took me approximately 3.5 hours to ascend, it will take me a similar amount of time to descend. In fact, the week prior we had taken longer to descend.

As was the plan on the way up, I planned to make the first stop at the Forest checkpoint. I kept moving and as I came out to Shesha Parvat, decided to stop for an impromptu self-photography shoot - its just criminal not to take pics at this point so I decided to take a break - I must have stopped for 20-30minutes and then restarted my descent back. The heat was getting to me and soon enough I had finished all of my water. I was waiting to come to the stream to refill the bladder. I crossed a lot of trekkers that I had on my way up - most had the same question - how much further to the top?

Eventually, I did reach the stream, I met the 3 trekkers with Chottu ( doggo) there as well. However, the stream was too much of a trickle for me to actually fill the bladder. So I washed my face, sipped on some water - decided that it is probably another 30 minutes to the checkpoint so I will just refill the water at the tap there. The trail is a little sweeter from here until the checkpoint so I picked up pace yet again. Soon enough, I was at the checkpoint.It was 1:00pm. The forest officers were pleasantly surprised to see me, I stopped, washed my face - refilled the water, had my lunch break - 2 more eggs with 2 slices of bread - gave the remaining eggs to the dogs there while chit-chatting with the forest officers. I collected my deposit - bid adieu to the boys there promising them a visit the following weekend possibly traversing down to Somwarpet and back on that trip. They were positive I would be able to do it. It was 1:30pm.

As I walked out I met some other trekkers who were also making their way back to the base. Call me a purist, but I absolutely hate loud boom boxes out here in the midst of nature. These boys were chatty and I guess they thought the music was added entertainment - but it was a bit much for me. We chatted briefly before I picked up pace - more to get away from the sounds than to reach the base faster. Since I had picked up the pace I continued onwards. One step ahead of the other as though in a trance - transfixed by the trail figuring out where to put my foot next and which tree to use as support - Before I knew it I saw the arch marking the end of the trail - I looked at my watch - it was 2:15pm - I could not believe it - I had made it back in 45 minutes flat! I had originally thought that I would walk/jog back to the point I had started from to close the circuit - but the sub-7 lure was too much temptation for me to be able to walk away from - I continued jogging until my watch showed 6:59:59 - and with that it was a wrap!

For those of you who want to know - I walked back to the hotel I got chai at in the morning, chatted with the owner and servers there - they couldn't believe I had already come back - I had a couple cups of chai - had a dosa and then head to the hotel to meet with the Tour De Malnad gang. Such positive energy when the crew all got there. After a shower and change, Anjana and me got some stretches in and then head to the Temple, a few others from the group joined as well. The temple is stunning, it has the cutest temple elephant also and OMG! the laddoo is just WOW!! - Eventually, I gatecrashed the TDM Briefing and joined the gang for dinner - Soon after, I shunted off to the Bus stop to get my night bus back to the ooru. It was a good day!!!