Savandurga - overnight stay two

Savandurga had become an obsession for me and I shared that with my kith and kin. I would be looking for opportunities to visit Savandurga and pulled along anyone who was willing to tag. For the earlier visits, my friend Gulveer was a fixed accompanist. We lost count of the number of early morning climbs here but memories of one overnight stay are still fresh. That happened to be the first overnight stay at Savandurga.

Some time late 1997 or early 1998. This was my second overnight camping trip on Savandurga. For the others- Dipi, Appaji, Ravi Uncle, Kaalu, Ajay, Nagesh, Praveen and Shankar -it was the first time.

I was in-charge of planning the trip.. logistics, food & water, mats & blankets and other required stuff. We grouped at our office in Banashankari and started the journey around 2-30 PM. We reached Savandurga village around 4-00. We started our ascent immediately so that we had enough daylight to gather firewood and setup camp. I carried a haversack stuffed with mats and water bottles. The rest of the stuff were carried by Kaalu, Nagesh, and Shankar. Deepi and Ajay had their personal bags. The climb lasted around an hour and half. It was around 5-30, we still had plenty of light and time. Appaji and uncle found a place to rest while the rest of us looked for wood. The camp was all set before the stars appeared.

Once it was dark, a fire was made. Time for drinks.. whisky & water and snacks went around. It was fun to watch the flames dancing around the red hot wood. At one point one of the wooden pieces looked like a dragon spitting fire. Appaji enjoyed the scenes of in the fire. Hours went by quickly and the bottles emptied. I was one of the three teetotalers, must've had fresh lime. Dinner was chapati and avarekalu palya.. Appaji's all time favorite dish.

The night was warm, we chose to sleep under the sky just in front of the stone shelter. Around 9-30 PM a thunder storm passed by. The rain was light and short. We has move into the shelter. The wet surface brought out heat making it even more warmer, making it difficult for a comfortable sleep. Anyway, while camping, sleep should be least important.

We woke up to a cool and misty morning.

Ravi uncle, Appaji and Kaalu looking at Manchanbele reservoir

the team minus I

We trekked up to the summit.. a must to complete a trip to Savandurga. We sat in small groups around the Basava Mantapa at the summit checking out the beauty around. Around 8 AM we started our way down..

This was one of the best outings with Appaji. I was happy that he enjoyed it thoroughly. 

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