Dauntless Adventure in Kaginahare

A little bit of fear, and a little bit of enthusiasm, but determined to have a dauntless adventure. Ahhaa yes! This trip started and ended with all these mixed feelings inside me, and I hope the same with my tripmates as well.

The places that we visited, the way we visited, and the way we stayed there all adds on to this mixed feeling. I know, I am creating curiosity, hang on, and read it further to know more!

 Day One

We, the stout-hearted people started our journey on day one, early in the morning at 6.30 a.m. We were all set with the Nomad things and accessories that were required for this trip. We reached Kaginahare (also known as Kagenari) near Sakleshpur by 2 p.m. for lunch.

Kaginahare is a small village of approximately 15 families residing in. Cardamom, coffee, pepper, and paddy are the main plantation here. This village is the end of the cultivational land, Yes after that, all we can see is the Western Ghat forest land. 

On having lunch, we all headed to Kari Gundi, a small river stream with a natural pond. A continuous stream of water with a cool big pond in between is the highlight of this place. The tadpoles and small fishes were in many for the kids to enjoy. My children enjoyed catching tadpoles in their hands as an adventure, and I tried it too 😊

The sun was setting, and the shelter was needed, ohh no, the shelter was supposed to be prepared! This sounds better 😊 Yep, after playing in the pond, we all gathered small wooden logs for campfire, and then started building tent for us to spend the night in the open land. Thanks to the nomad expert, Satish for building a resting place for us before the sun goes down to rest.

The moonlight, campfire, chitchat, and vlog by Ashish and Sushruth added excitement for the special Maggi prepared by me using the campfire. Hold on, how can I forget about corn and sweet potato. Special thanks to Satish for making me to taste the smoky flavor of sweet potato.

A big tent with four adults and four children inside. All the children had good sleep, but we managed to have a cat nap as it was first time for us. The increased wind speed in the early morning, around 2.30 a.m. had made the tent straps loose. Used our car as a wind break and tightened the tent straps. It would be injustice if I do not recall the dog, which stayed with us all through the night near the tent entrance. This is the pet dog of the family who provided food for us. This dog made us more confident to stay in the tent. The fear was that of a wild bore, which we had heard from the local people. But we did not face that throughout our stay.

 Day Two

Fresh air, cool breeze, green hills are the start of day two. We climbed one of the hills and visited the ruins of a small fort built by Tipu Sultan. The hill-top view is like the milky-white clouds hugging the green hills.

After packing the tent and having breakfast, we headed to a small waterfall in a plantation field. A good massage for the tired body when we stood in the waterfall. A day well spent in Kaginahare, and with the cherishing memory, continued our journey towards Bisle Ghat. We had a look at the Ridge point in Mankanahalli, where the rainfall gets divided and it either ends up in the Arabian Sea or in the Bay of Bengal. This stone is laid by British officers, and has inscribed Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal on it as it determines which way the rivers or streams likely to flow. Interesting isn’t it!!

After having lunch in a hotel in Kudrashte, we wanted to unwind, and hence booked a homestay known as Malnad Homestay in Attihally.

A decent stay with comfortable accommodation and basic facilities. Do not expect more options in the vegetarian food menu. Children had a nice companion here, Sharsha, a friendly golden retriever dog, who used to always have a ball in its mouth as a time-pass toy. Sharsha loves playing with a ball. She used to get the ball to us and wait for us to throw the ball for it to catch.

An evening well spent with activities like a small walk, dance with party music, dumb charades, and campfire.

 

Day Three

Never expected such an adventurous and happy ending of the trip. Yes, a hidden gem amid the forest, the Mookana Mane Abbi falls. It has broad, highly photogenic waterfalls. Reaching the bottom of these waterfalls with children was an adventure for all of us. But it is worth taking risk to see this silvery-bright waterfalls.

Having filled with the beauty of the western Ghats, we headed back to our home, and reached home by 9 p.m.