Benne Kallu Gudda, Maradi

..continued from Trek to Benne Kallu Gudda.

December 21, 2019
We were on a short vacation for the weekend at The Forest Homestay near Maradi village. The previous evening ended with a trek to the sunset point. Dec-21 started early with a trek through the jungle, up and down hills to reach this point called Benne Kallu which means butter ball in Kannada. What a name for this monolith standing on the edge over looking a valley. One could sit here and enjoy the silence, breathe in fresh air and experience bliss.

The wide valley had its own cloud line and we were high above it. Just imagine if the cloud cover was thick. We would've seen a huge white carpet. We were a group of six.. Sri, Pushpa, two co-guests from the homestay and our guide Pradeep. Sri suggested that we did Pranayama and mediated here for a while. Meditation was okay but Pranayama was out of question for me. Thanks to the blocked-running nose, I could barely breathe comfortably. Anyhow, Sri did meditate for some time, probably 10 minutes.

The clouds here can be easily mistaken for a water-body. On the valley floor were coffee and coconut plantations, also small patches of paddy fields. There were two or three houses scattered in the greenery. How lucky for the residents to be staying amidst this jungle. On the left is the Benne Kallu, a little plant growing out of it. Truly plants are versatile. They just manage to grow out of anywhere.

It was quarter to eight, sunlight was shielded by think clouds and the air was cool. The plateau here is a small one, hardly fifty feet wide, half of it was covered by grass and the other half bare rock. The soft light lit up part of the dry grass patch. The grass looked as though it was back-lit.

Oh, our four-legged friend had appeared. I clearly remember he wasn't with us on the way up. I'm sure his twin would be around. I think this is Braveheart, the other one is Lioheart. Braveheart is patiently waiting for Pushpa to unpack a snack. Ever since they met us, they somehow sensed snacks in Pushpa's bag and they would hang out with her.

Pradeep had already settled down under the rock. He had carried a bottle of ragi ganji and plastic tumblers. Except me all had had their share of the drink. Pushpa settled down, Braveheart next to her. Both were munching on some snack.. these two when together are upto something!

The spot was too beautiful to just sit at one spot, I looked around, checking out how far below the rock face would allow.

The edge of this picture as far one could venture without risking safety. I saw a number of dry plants, collected a few of them and made a dry flowers & grass bouquet for Pushpa.

I climbed down a less steep part and decided to go up a steeper part. With a camera in one hand and bouquet in the other, I had to be careful not to step on a slippery patch. My Woodland shoes did a terrific job holding on the rock. I presented the bouquet to Pushps, Sri snapped a picture of us :) Then I had my share of ragi ganji. Refreshing it was.

The three stripes looks like Vibhuti. Beneath dark surface the rock is whitish or grey. Wondering how the dark coating happened and these stripes were formed.

Sri wielding a machete. With his handlebar mustache he looks like the bandit Veerappan. The rock's base has a tripod, I think. Saying that because of the seen at its base.

An hour had gone by so quickly. We decided to leave, we'll need an hour to trek back. As we all got up to leave, our friends blocked the way. They were hungry. They wouldn't budge until they were fed. Brats! They knew Pushpa would pamper them.

Cunning brats! They did get some chikki. The rock's profile resembles an exotic fish minus its tail.

That's the only safe entry/exit passage to this point. I had a memorable time here. I would happily recommend this place for a weekend get away.

The path climbs down and passes next to a fence which marks the boundary of a coffee plantation. This vine across our path must be at least four decades old. We carefully stepped over it. Hoping people do the same and let the creeper live on.

The covered path gave way to the bare rock. This rock type is commonly seen in these hills. See the spine and rib formation.. I'd seen a slightly smaller one the previous evening at the sunset point. Also, see the channel running down. Is this rock that easy for water to have carved a path? However it was formed, its beautiful. Do check out the post- Sunset point near Forest Homestay -to see more pictures of this rock type.

We found a heart shape outlined by dry plants. The dry-rust color combination is glorious. Pushpa's holding on to the bouquet I made.

The bare rock slope ended and we re-entered the jungle. These vines are wonderful plants. Just hugging on to every other plant. Probably the most friendly plant in this jungle.

A colony of mushroom, either they are drying or have dried up already. One can find them on smaller twigs, can't resist taking them home as a souvenir.

By the time we approached the home stay, we were ravenous. The rest of the group were much ahead of us. Pushpa and I took our time shooting pictures and chatting. Though this forest is natural, the government was promoting schemes to grow more trees. We saw a hand written board in Kannada which mentioned such a scheme. Yes, we need more trees, the newer ones would replace the aged trees.

Back at the home-stay, at the dining table, ten minutes seemed like an hour while we waited for breakfast. Our hosts served kadabu, chatni and tomato rice. We relished every bit. The tomato rice was charged with chilly, the spicy food set our mouths on fire but we enjoyed it. After the hearty breakfast, we relaxed, under the portico, doing nothing until our host arrived with a car to shift us to Madhugiri Homestay.

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Trek to Benne Kallu Gudda

...continued from Sunset point near Forest Homestay

After a hectic day of traveling by bus and cross country trek, that too with a bad cold, I was exhausted. Sridhar and Pushpa too were tired. Back at our cottage we freshened up and eagerly waited for the caretakers to fetch dinner. The most tasty relished items in the dinner were rice and thili-saar popularly known as rasam. I popped in a tablet to tackle the infected sinus hoping it improved my condition. By 9-30 we had switched off the light and hit the sack.

December 21, 2019
We were up by 4-15 AM. With undisturbed sleep, my condition had improved. With two bathroom at our disposal, were ready by 6-15. Our caretaker-guide Pradeep turned up at 6-30 with hot tea. He had also got a bottle of ragi-ganji, our hilltop breakfast at the end of the trek. Our trek commenced around 6-45. We were six of us including the guide and two co-guests. Pradeep lead the way and I was at the tail end. I kept little distance.. had to blow my nose now and then. Also, I didn't want to bother the group with my coughing noise. This is the newly carved path through the hills, I believe this will soon be a metaled road. The spot of light seen in the distance is from Pushpa's phone, she was shooting along the way.

The path became steeper, the heavy breathing actually helped me. At one point Pushpa wanted a long stick, it was easy to find one from the rubble the excavators had made. There she is, with her stick, bag and phone. This was the end of the machine-cleared path, we would be entering the wild path.

One of the points where the leading group paused for Pushpa and I to catch up. Good chance to take a picture. The young couple from Bnaglore, Sri and Pradeep. The rock is light grey under the black surface, same as the rock seen at the sunset point.

This jungle is natural, not the plantation type seen in some parts of Western Ghats. The thick vines are proof that the jungle hasn't been disturbed much. However, at some point of time, probably several centuries ago, large trees stood here. The jungle cover and the neighboring hills had cut off the sun from our view until we..

..reached this point. The gold-brown-blue sky.  One cloud formation close to the horizon looks like a long fish.

Another view of the sky, hills and jungle. What a glorious sight it was. It was quite silent, there might have birds chirping around which I missed because of my own noises.. blowing nose and cough.

This part was quite steep but climbing was easy because of the comfortable grip. Its fun t climb such rock faces. There were low mounds of dirt held together by grass roots. The grass must've been green until November end.

I liked the shape of the grassy outline, looks like the peninsular India and black rock is Bay of Bengal. There's one mound in place for Andaman & Nicobar islands. Inside the green cover, there would be creatures of the Nature minding their business.

Our climb progresses, the column marches in the same order.. lead by Pradeep and me at the tail end. Actually the last person watches over the group, ensures that all members are present.

I took my time, pausing to see and shoot. These arches and circles of grass are admirable. How the invisible cracks have formed and grass managed to take root along those cracks. They look like rings of fire.

I shot this picture to give the viewers an idea of the slope. Not too steep at this point. Notice the undulations in the surface which let the rainwater play as it flows down in little streams, forming little overflowing ponds. I guess this part wouldn't be too difficult even during rainy season.

While I gave all the attention to Bhoo Devi, the sky was jealous. Our Surya Deva was peeking at the horizon while Varuna Deva's army dominated the sky.

Sri had caught us unawares. I thought he was shooting the landscape. Its a great shot, its like Pushpa and I were standing on the horizon. Somehow Pushpa is lagging behind. Some plants have managed to green here, perhaps this is close to the edge of the exposed rock.

I guess that's where Sri shot the previous picture from. Yes, we are close to the edge of the exposed rock. There would be much more moisture trapped in the soil here which would have kept the little plants alive. Anyway, even dead plants are alive in a way, all they need is water to become life again. Here we enter the jungle again.

Few meters into the green cover we saw a barbed fence of a coffee estate. Our path went along the fence for some distance and then we turned left and climbed again and came into the open again to see this amazing sight. The butter ball stone ~ Benne Kallu.

In the following post, I'll share the sights of the valley, hills, jungles and sky from this point. Do check  out Benne Kallu Gudda.

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