Wayanad Trip:

Total Journey: 1023 Kms

Start time: 11:45 PM, Friday, 16^th March, 2007

End time: 12:15 AM Tuesday, 20^th March, 2007

Total duration: 3+ days

Going: Blore – Mysore – Sulthan Bathery – Edakkal caves/trek – Karapuzha Dam - Sulthan Bathery (stay) - meenmutty waterfalls/trek - kalpetta - pookot lake - Kozhikode beach - ghat sections (punctured taxi ;D) - kalpetta(stay) - Soochiparra/Sentinal rock waterfalls

Coming: Kalpetta - Bangalore

Weather Conditions: Sunny

Vehicle : Taxi:-Chevrolet - Tavera

Friends: Adarsh, Sailesh, Rachna, Neha, Suruchi, Sonu, Tushar, Dhramendra, Varun AND Driver - Srinivas

Expense: 1000 INR - taxi + 928 INR (food + drinks + lodging + miscellaneous) ≈ 1928 INR

CLICK HERE FOR PICS

Article by Varun:

KWL gang was planning was goin on to go and freak out somewhere in the coming long "Ugadi" weekend. I was a bit skeptical about the program and was also keepin the track with my all time favourite - bikerzz. :)

Lotta mails sharing, somebody saying Goa other's list included Kerala; pondicherry; Bandipur, and me betting for Kemanagundi or Dandeli (Both are ultimate adventure areas). Finally Rachna came with a full proof plan to go to Wayanad. The way she prepared the trip was so unblemished that no body was raised any discocern.

There was lotta trouble about the members participating for trip. Finally Rachna sent a mail to remove all doubts and misunderstandings. See Rachna's Mail (Regarding misunderstandings)

Below are some of the confusion and misunderstanding:

Suu: Wanted to attend her college's convocation, where she was about to get a so called "Degree".

Neha: Goin behind Su to ask her prog and finally got confused totally about wot to do. Later after getting pissed of without any reason she wrote a stinker mail which nobody on the world understood. LOLzzz See Neha's Mail (RE: Reg misunderstading)

Sonu: Everbody was brawling around and another hero entered into the show. See Sonu's mail (RE: Reg misund, Inhume the hatchet).Like Neha again he wrote a lotta crap (no offences meant), there was a word which is worth mentioning - "Inhume the hatchet" means something like to forget the enemity etc etc...which i will never forget in my life time due to all this discussion. Thanks ooo sonu....;)

Now after lot of hue and cry I came to know that only Rach, Adi, Shailoo and me was goin for the trip. So we planned to meet up @Commercial street. i reached there Rach and Adi were already there and Sailoo was on the way...Rachna told me that Neha and sonu are also coming...gurrr...wot's tht...probably I could never understand the how we human beings work and think. Anyways I was more than happy to be with them. We were having some more seats vacant so we thought of asking to some of more friends if they wud like to join us... Oops before that I got a call from Tushar, my soccer mate and a nice guuy, who was highly interested to go for some bike ridezz on his new jaggernaut - "Enfield" :D. i told him that we are leaving for Wayanad tomm and have vacancy for two and yippie he was a game with his friend Dharmendra...Wot a great coincident my brain just thought of someone who could be ready for comin for the trip, I got him in a flick...Kewl...!!

I don't know but there is some problem with me I like to meet up and know the new people and many a times those strangers even become more important for me than some old buddy. Yaa even that is how I met a lot of nice people who became an important part of my life.

Finally we had parantha @Lalitha parantha, commercial

Night 1:

Blore – Mysore – Sulthan Bathery (lodging)

The program was to leave Bangy by 10:00 PM so as to reach to destination early morning but as always transporter's prob, the cab , the driver nothing was there by tht time...huh...finally they hitted my home at 11:45 PM, by that time I was with half a energy as I was waiting from last 1 hr 30 min for the cab..BAD..probably thats why I like BIKING, you are solely responsible for everything.

Finally cab arrived at my home @11:30 PM , ooops wot is this Suu was also there....huh...wot's goin on... she was going for her degree..human species hve gone to complete brain wash or what...god knows how this brain works...how it prioritize-cache-buffer things...

Started at 11:45 PM, Driver - Srinivas was heavily drunk...he he...it's OK for me, I drove and rode drunk multiple times with the blessing of GOD...:D...today again "Maa ki duyaen" will help us...LOL

Seating arrangement: Me and Adi was sitting @front with Driver, Neha, Su, Sonu, Dharmendra - middle & Shailesh, Rach, tushar - back

We sang songs...ppl in the group are fully untrained singers...they know a lotta songs and simply sing them by heart...more than enough..actually..:). After all throats were tired there was only one gud casette of Kishore Kumar which remained the all time favourite for whole trip....That was all fun...

Adi bhai...thankfully was keepin a full eye on driver, so that he shud not sleep as already he was drunk...

Finally reached to Cafe cofee day @Mysore road at 2:30 AM, had some fun and started again..reached Mysore @4:30 AM had tea and started again...Driver was in bad sahpe by thatt time as poor guy dint sleep after booze so much @night...

Day 1: 17th March

Sulthan Bathery – Edakkal caves/trek – Karapuzha Dam - Sulthan Bathery (stay)

Sultan Bathery, also known as Sulthan's Battery lies approximately 25 kms. from Kalpetta. Associated with Hyder Ali and Tipu Sulthan, Sulthan's Bathery no longer has a fort. It is worth visiting for the Jain temple, which has some interesting stone carvings. Sulthan Bathery can be seen on a drive from Kalpetta to Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Muthanga.

Finally reached Sulthan Bathery at 7:00 AM, searched for the hotel. Got a nice hotel(see pic below) but with no bargains. Just checked in then...

Ppl were very tired so evrybody including me went to fast but small sleep(just half an hour)...took a bath...had breakfast of idly, sambar and more than delicious coconut chutney, I ever had in my life...I actually drank chutney :D

Edakkal caves:

Started of from hotel at 10:30 for Edakkal caves. Some important info about Edakkal caves:

12 kms from Sulthan Bathery. 3 caves are located at a height of 1000 mts on Ambukuthi mala near Ambalavayal. The new stone age pictorial writings on the walls of these natural caves at Edakkal are the evidence of the civilizations that existed in the regions in the pre-historic times. The caves can be accessed only by a 1Km trekking trail from Edakkal. Morning hours are the best time to visit these caves. Entry is permitted only upto 1700 hrs. An interesting trek up of the Ambukuthi Hill near Ambalavayal town takes you to this fascinating neolithic cave site. Etchings found on the walls of these caves have drawn the serious attention of archeologists and historians worldwide.With at least three distinct sets of petroglyphs, the earliest thought to date back over 3000 years, it is assumed that the Edakkal caves had been inhabited at various stages in history.

Distances from: KPA-27 Km, SBY-12 Km, MDY-45 Km

Reached to Edakkal caves at 11:15 AM, there was a 2-3 KM narrow road to go up, for which u may take a local jeep or go by walking, no other option...Shailoo who came earlier at the Edakkal told to took local jeep to go up rather than to go by walk as late there is a lot more trek left. Took the jeep who charge 8 INR per head i believe...fitted we 9 inside it uncomfortably..tushar just hanging outside :D

Reached edakkal to see a long queue waiting to get inside...there was a very narrow entry so it was difficult to go as a lot..also those ticket makers-takers-chekers were a bit slow. Finally @11:55 AM we were inside caves..ppl were full of joy as son as we reached inside...has a lotta of pics...especially Adi...who climbed upon just to imposible rock and asked to get as many as pics as possible :D.