I lived a dream...Chittorgarh...

Chittor new town from the top

It was a long dusty day, and the sweltering summer heat and AC-less car ensured that we were drenched in sweat, mud and sand. In the pre-bottled water era of the mid nineties, we were carrying water in a huge Milton container. At the same time, dad and me were also trying to convince amma and sis that we should take a detour to Chittorgarh, instead of going directly to Udaipur. That day we both failed, when faced with the unrelenting women in the family.

Cows in the early morning, waiting with me for the museum to open :)

I thought of all this and more as I called my sis (now married with two kids) and told her that I was finally in Chittorgarh and sipping chai right in front of Vijay Stambha (Victory Tower), one of the most enduring landmarks from the fort town. We both remembered and laughed about that day, but she was really happy that I was finally here. It took me 16 full years before I could do what I wanted to do as a school going kid...



Entrance to the main palace, we are getting ready for the first rains



The palace from inside



In one word, Chittorgarh is simply stunning! One of the oldest surviving forts in India, it was originally built by the Mauryas approximately in the first Century AD. Since then it has changed hands numerous times, but its grandeur only increased with time. It was only in the beginning of the last century that the consistent repair work on the fort stopped and it was left to die a slow death. Today its a fort in decay, yet the marvelous past will meet you at every single building that you visit.



Steps up to one of the oldest temple within the fort



Another upset Rajasthani woman!



I was traveling alone and reached the fort well before the town got up completely (i.e. around 6 am). I was keen on staying within the fort itself and so had to stay at the Birla Dharmashala, the only option for accommodation on top (I realised later that there are also no restaurants within the fort, so lunch or dinner unless you inform the Dharmshala in advance). At Rs. 200, it was decent room, though I left it before 7, ready to explore!



King's palace

One of the few completely intact temples



Ratan Singh palace



The Chittor fort is simply huge and if you intend to go beyond the usual tourist places, you would surely need time as well as a guide. I had time, and took a guide (something I usually skip). Prakashbhai was great, always ready to help me out, whether I wanted to climb up a gate, a wall, or simply walk on the fort wall in the rain. He was on a fast, and I had to u unitentionally skip all meals as I had no clue about the lack of food within the fort. I drank cups and cups of tea, till I managed to find a shop selling packaged chips, and later a kirana store selling five star bars!



Beautifully dressed local woman



Before she could stop me, I shot her :)

 The tale continues in part 2...

A condom, just in case...

More stories flow from the weekend which is long gone already...

The super stars of tomorrow :)

As we were on our way to the Ratangad, one of us declared how he always carried a condom in his wallet. His mantra was to be prepared just in case...

Hmmm...a good one again by Manoj!

Abhi...is he high?

With our 'other' guide...

Since we were a group of five grown-up men trekking to live in a cave, this precaution seemed highly unnecessary unless the plan was to meet a nubile village belle on the hill top (less than remote possibility), or doing a goat (much less remote) or letting the demon out and playing mischief while we were all high and sleeping in the cave.

However, from what I finally understand the packed remained unused, though none of us checked!

A bottle for all purposes

The story of plastic bottle/s we refused to part with during our trek, the bottled went up, was abused and then had to come down as well, only to find its resting place (for a while at least) in a dust bin...

The dude of all dudes...

The Abhi giving his best smile :)

We were a group of sensitive men and were keen on not leaving any ecological footprint no matter how tough to carry the waste. Especially odd was carrying the bottles without crushing them (Tej had ideas he wanted to try in the cave), though these were useful in collecting water before the morning ablutions. However as we wore our wet clothes and went out to provide fodder to the overgrown flora, the excessive showers ensured that no extra water was necessary.

However, continuing our Dediapada tradition, the potty jokes continued through the trip, often fed by Abhishek's own fears and nightmares :)

The walk down the falls...


The last day of the trip was spent doing random and aimless trekking at Dugarwadi, a beautiful weekend getaway near Nashik.

This is good!

On the edge!

The jungle instincts are on!

We often decided to walk away from the trek and went into the forests, and it was awesome out there. We would be out of our clothes in seconds if we saw any water body, especially Manoj who turns into a Mahatma when in water.

Hahaha...damn funny! What exactly is Abhi doing here???

We walked down to the falls, though unfortunately missed out on going right to the bottom as we had no clue that a trail existed.

Ah! The dudes :)

Manoj and me wandered separately into the meadows, while the rain kept growin steadily. Walking in costant rain had stopped bothering us completely a long time back and so had slippering in the mud. Our paths crossed in a far off field, but by then both of us had lost the trail completely. Much more aimless wandering and we found a couple of drunk guys waving their jackets to us, and we had to head back to the car. A worried Bijoy welcomed us on the trail which was already flooded and looked more like a fast flowing mountain river.

Drenched near the falls...

Manoj attaining Nirvana, not exactly reaching too far high up though!

Fauna of Ratangad

Frankly speaking we failed to meet anyone, including the monkey attack on our cave/ tent in the night. Manoj did, however, manage to find these to showcase to our readers! It seems efforts are being made to conserve these for the future generations of trekkers.

An exotic dog

An exotic bovine

An exotic crow

Meet the family

Actually the Lumium family. It was a perfect tear jerker moment when the two separate groups accidently met at Ratanwadi. Our group had all singles, and the other one had couples and kids.We all hugged, ate omelets, smoked cigarettes, and took numerous group pictures. It was a typical filmy family saga moment.

All of us in one nicely taken picture :)

So what next? We have Kalsubai and harishchandragad peaks in sight for our next Sahyadri outing, though it might have to wait till the end of this monsoon season.

And the boys climb higher and higher...

An illustration of the last leg of the trek. Courtesy Vikram Tej :)

The only picture of us all!

Its a random collection of thoughts from an amazing weekend of trekking. The five of us (Manoj, Vikram, Abhishek, Bijoy and me) had the best of our time walking and slipping through the Sahyadris. The following are some tiny snippets from the trip, the first ones that come to my mind, in no order whatsoever. More will follow in the days to come. The pictures are random too, since we could take none during the trek due to the rains...

Part of the gang, Manoj busy clicking us selflessly :)

The Climb to the fort

Bijoy from Bijoy's camera!

Abhishek sliding down fast into us!

As I climbed up the second stairs, I was left confused as the trail led nowhere. There was just a steep hill with a recess and lots of water falling down directly on my face. The guide called back again from behind me and asked me to continue walking. Surely we were not expected to climb up on this steep rock cut! I moved on, having little choice and no clue about how to move forward. It’s great when survival instincts take over and lead you, the mind works independently and leads the body. 

The few tense minutes passed, so did the climb up on the rocky and extremely slippery steps leading up to the fort in constant rain. We were relieved, till it dawned upon us that tomorrow morning’s climb down would be even more challenging. Abhishek flatly refused any further walking and insisted that we call a helicopter for a rescue operation :)

The bonding moments (through the night)

We saw the vibrant colors in the cave only later, the night was too dark to notice anything!

Sleeping comfortably, before Tej and Bijoy also squeezed in!

Lack of preparation ensured that the five us had to sleep in a tent originally meant for only two grown up men. A few clicks and some random jokes later, we were ready to sleep around 8 pm in the cave temple in the fort. Manoj, Tej and me continued talking for a while more, while Abhishek constantly complained about falling water, while Bijoy snored loudly. I was stuck in the middle between the huge frame of Manoj and absolutely unrelenting Tej, and had to wake them both up through the night to even turn! The cold weather, gushing water, pitch darkness and crushed bodies came to define our long night of bonding!

Tej's body hair ensure nothing else is seen in the picture.

The trek

The disappearing falls...

Plastic bags working in the fields!

The dog had no name, but it surely was faithful. It followed us through everything on the way, including some crazily flowing water in the rivers on the way. His faithful partner also gave us company. We were wet right from the beginning as it rained insistently. Soon we didn’t even notice the water, as our eyes strained to look beyond the mist at the hills, trees, falls and each other. The heavy bags too disappeared as our body accepted them as part of our bodies, only to reappear towards the end. The small meadows, the steep climb, the slippery stones, falling bodies and lack of camera was how the trek went. 

The ride to Ratanwadi

Trying to be a dude!

Tej the dacoit!

Bijoy after a close call with a villager's potty!

Tej doing his trademark jump!

Nashik to Ratanwadi is one of the most beautiful drives, especially in the monsoons. The greenery all around rejuvenates the senses, while the constant rains whet them. A punctured tyre, funny raincoats, chai with more than a ton of sugar, and constant jokes set the tune for the trip. Ratanwadi was our base camp and as the trek to Harishchandragad failed to take off due to excessive rains and overflowing rivers, it became the end of our trek as well.

Manoj missing again, we at Bhandardhara

P.S. Almost all images are courtesy our official photographer for the trip Manoj and his D5100 (with 55-200 VR lens). The rest are by Bijoy (through his Nokia), Tej (Sony) and Handu (our guide)...

Note: Do read about our other trip together to Dediapada almost an year back...

Some more Odisha through the lens...

Another set of images from Odisha (I guess the name is no longer Orissa)...

A pandit looking out into the busy bazaar...

Just a man smoking on the road,
I didn't light my cigarette till evening out of Snehal's fear

A very corny looking Oriya movie poster, I loved it :)

Another woman unimpressed with my camera

Mr. Dude actually made me take his picture as he smoked happily

He knew exactly how to pose, even before I took out my camera to click :)

She is lovely...

Some love making on the walls of Konark Sun temple,
this one remained with me long after the trip got over

Muz, Snehal, Kiran and Bhavin attempting to pose like Kiran!

Saajan ki baahon mein -  Sangeeta running into Vijay's arms...

Lovely Snehal :)