Trek to Ponmudi

It began with plans for a team lunch, but we wanted something more. Brian was the one who suggested Paintball. It was a really good idea, since we don’t get an opportunity to shoot up our Manager and Team Lead every now and then. I was all up for it.  I mean, haven’t we all at one point wanted to do it?  But then the plan was dropped, I guess Manoj (our Project Manager) knew what we were up to J. Then I suggested that we visit Brimoor. And while checking online I stumbled upon a blog post about trekking to Ponmudi from Brimoor. So it was decided. We were going to a have a real team outing. Not the usual namesake lunch/dinner and group photo. This was going to be test of our physical limits.

So on Friday we met up at Brian’s house at Kannamoola. By 9:15 we left for Brimoor Estate in Manoj’s car. We were using google maps to navigate and after an initial hiccup (due to which we made a loop around Kerala University) we were on our way. The whole drive took around 1.5 hrs. There is a forest check point at Mankayam from where we paid the fees (800 rupees for a group of 5 members) and took our passes, a guide was also allocated to us. So from the check post at Mankayam the six of us (Myself, Brian, Manoj, Gireesh, Sreerag and Pappichayan, our guide) set out towards Brimoor Estate from where the trail starts. On the way we passed Mankayam water falls and since it was already late, we decided to jump into it on our way back. We parked where the trail starts took our backpacks and set out with enough water, supplements and other gear. The first thing that we did was getting hold of broken branches to be used as trekking sticks. Here's a map of how the trail would look. The portion marked in red is actual trail.

And thus we began, all fresh and pumped up, ready to walk, climb, crawl and do whatever it takes to make it through to the other side and back. The catch was that we would have to make it to the top and then walk back all the way because the car was parked at the beginning of the trail. The below pic is what you normally see at the start of a trek, eager, enthusiastic devil may care attitude.  

Brian and Sreerag

The plan was simple, walk through the forest, climb some hills then walk some more and then make it to the top of Ponmudi and do it all again. But we were already at a disadvantage, it was almost 11 am, the sun will be out and we'll be tired even before we cover a single kilometer. A long as we're under forest cover, it won't be an issue, but out in the open we'll be fried. At that time, we weren't thinking much about this, we were just walking along..

Fast forward half and hour, we're still walking. We're starting to feel the exhaustion creeping up, like another trekker. Soon enough he'll catch up with all of us. We came out of the forest cover and started climbing a hill, which would be one of many that we'll climb on this day. The estate used to produce tea, but for a long time it hasn't been looked after properly and has fallen to ruin. Nowadays they rent out rooms (which used to be the quarters when the factory was still operational) to tourists. Along the way we saw people picking cloves using ladders. Manoj, our Guide and myself were walking on, and when I looked back I saw Sreerag, Brian and Gireesh  opening up a gap between us. So i decided to wait for them. 

Another half hour has passed, our time under the sun was horrific, even with caps and enough hydration we're sweating out and feeling tired. Thankfully the ordeal was over and once more we found ourselves inside the forest canopy. The trick with trekking is to forget about it all, and try to enjoy your time in the forest. Soon enough we came across broken trees and more chaos which is quite the normal order here.

After some more grueling climbs, we reached what was according to our guide the half way-point? So we stood and looked down at the path we came up, there was nothing to see except for trees and a lot of green. It was 12:45 pm, the peanuts, biscuits and water that we had was almost over. The only thing that was left were glucose tablets,which we were all taking after every 15 mins or so. We came upon another clearing which according to our guide was the last bit of the trail before it joined the main road towards Ponumdi. We were all so damn hungry, and upon hearing this, we picked up the pace. Because when it comes to food fatigue can be kept aside.. :) 

This final stretch of the trail had tall grass on either side which we had to brush aside and in some sections it was completed closed off by the grass. The summer heat has turned it to a shade a yellow. Made me wonder how it would have been if we took this route during the rainy season. At least now we don't have to worry about leaches..

Grass, grass and more grass

Slow and Steady :)

And thus after two hours we found ourselves on the road again, amidst civilization. It was supposed to have made us happy, but only after we walked a bit did it dawn on us, that we still had a long way to go before we found any hotels. And to make matters worse, there was no more forest cover and on top of that we had to walk up hill. Maybe some of them might have thought paintball would have been a better option. From here on out, there's nothing much happening except for walking, Boulevard of Broken dreams would have been a good theme song for our current predicament. 

Empty roads..

After Grass, grass and more grass, now it's  Road, road and more road.

                                 

At-least the scenery was really cool. The hills covered in thin mist even at 1 pm in the afternoon, and a dreaded howling sound as the wind races between the trees. After a while, we came upon the penultimate bus-stop before you reach Ponmudi. There were two restaurants - one was by KTDC and the other was run the forest division (which was more of a canteen/mess). We checked into the latter and ordered lunch. We ate (more like gobbled) and then refilled our water bottles and sat outside the restaurant before setting out to complete the final stretch. 

At our destination we collapsed onto the bamboo shelters. I decided to get some more snaps before we started on our way down. We were short on time and we also had that much awaited dip at the waterfall. 

View from atop the observation tower. 

Being a weekday, the place was practically empty. On new years eve the place was so crowded that there were no parking spots and the roads were pretty much shut down. As you can see here, there are a handful of vehicles and a KSRTC bus. That bus would take us back to the start of our trail where it joined the road. But where's the fun in that eh? We had tea from the small shop there, stocked up on snacks and water and were on our way down again. The descent was rather fast, but painful on the knees. We could see a mist descending on the hills. Our guide told us that it would be best to cross the forest before dark. So again we were racing against time. Our way back was uneventful, except for the constant reminder of fatigue on our legs, but we kept on moving, our minds focused on that waterfall, our only thought the cool water and how great it would be. 

Another two hours and we made it back. We threw away our trusty trekking sticks,Sreerag however was too fond to let go of his. I thought we was gonna bring it back. After what seemed like a great deal of internal conflict he said goodbye and thank you to the stick and stashed it safely between a rock and a tree. All of us squeezed into the car and drove to the waterfall. We reached there just before 6 took a picture and jumped into the water.

The water was cold as ice, but it was awesome. After some 6 hrs of walking and climbing it was the most soothing experience ever. Even though the current wasn't that strong the pool was deep and had clear water and there were fishes too. Manoj was soon swimming around showcasing his techniques, while we were all just wading and sitting under water. Our guide, meanwhile told us to take our time, enjoy it and went off to smoke. (That guy was awesome, he walked the whole distance without flinching and must have been close to 60 years old). 

By 7:00 we were back on the road and had dinner from Zam Zam, wheer again we gobbled up all the ordered food, no surprises there as well. 

Until the next time....(Wonder where we'll go next...) :)