Dudhsagar - My very first encounter with the leeches!!!

Mid Sept 2016!! 

The very first time I heard of this place is during Chennai Express movie release, being an avid Bollywood enthusiast. The picturisation at this spot induced a desire in me to watch and experience this wonderful creation of nature! Also, Dudhsagar trekking was in Mr Husband's Go-To list ever since he had seen the pics of his close friend's drive to this milky waterfall. Having had a history of booking and cancelling the trek to this place a couple of times, he didn't want to miss it this time around!

I sensed a chance to visit this fall, but the narration of the plan sounded like a horror movie! I was filled with questions like how to trek in the rain amidst jungle? how harmful are the leeches? will there be any wild animals? will I be able to complete 8kms one-way? how slippery can it get? where do we stay? how about the bathrooms and the (obvious 😊) food? So with lot of skepticism, I decided to go ahead be it whatsoever! My Mr doubted my decision as he asked 10 times if am cent percent sure, but I was all excited to experience this new adventure! Frankly, my Mr was horrified to take me along and warned me of the most adverse scenarios. Yet the fearless me did not care😀 !

The trek was quite well organised by Gulliver Adventures And Travels. The plan was to,

• Reach Whistling Thrush Homestay at Castle Rock by Saturday morning in a mini bus. 
• Get ready and head to the starting point of the trek in a gypsy. 
• Trek 8 kms one-way amidst the jungle and reach the view point to witness the waterfall. 
• Have packed lunch provided and get back to the accommodation. 
• Bonfire in the evening and halt. 
• Sunday morning start back to Bengaluru having lunch in some Khanawali at Hubli.

All set with the backpack for the Weekend adventure! We were asked to join at the nearest pickup point on a Friday Evening. The night journey started in a not so comfy mini bus. The organizer Abhay was kind enough to leave us the front row seats with the drive view! It had already started drizzling by the time we left Bengaluru. The driver took a break for his dinner and to fuel up at Tumkur road highway petrol bunk, where we got to exchange few words with the other fellow mates. There were only 3 ladies including me out of 20 in the group. The mini seaters were not so comfortable for healthy people like me😀. Yet it was fun with the comforting shoulder beside. I was asked to shut up and get some sleep so that I prepare myself for the big trek.

Whistling Thrush Homestay!

Watta morning it was, with the cool breeze touching my face, the huge trees and the greenery all around!!! The road looked as if it is given a shower and welcoming us. However, I wanted to forcefully sleep to avoid my morning emergencies until we reach homestay. Finally after a lot of confusion about the route, we reached the homestay. The very first thing I was introduced to, was the leech there so that I shout if any of them sticks to me and people would help to get rid of it😀. The Whistling Thrush Homestay was surrounded by lush greenery. It had only 4 rooms with each accommodating 4 people. The rooms were decent with the beds, a mirror, a table and chairs, a bathroom with good water supply. However hot water was supplied to the rooms in buckets as there were no water heaters. There was a stream right behind the back doors of the rooms and there was a huge ground covered with grass in front of the rooms. Coming to the roomies, we ladies were put in a room. One lady had come with her son (mostly just passed out of his schooling) who stayed with us. Me and my Mr had got just one backpack and thus he used to shuttle between the rooms. 

Homestay food hut!

Everyone freshened up and were all assembled in the breakfast area within an hour. Idly-chutney and upma was OK. Few leeches started climbing onto our shoes as we ate breakfast. The gentlemen were prepared with the tobacco powder. I was told that leeches hate the tobacco smell and was asked to put some on my shoes. Also on my socks so that the leeches don't intrude. Quite frankly, I was the most scared one in the group, before starting the trek. 

The water bottles we carried were almost empty after breakfast and there was no bottled water available😟!! My Mr asked me to fill the drinking water kept in the homestay jugs and I had no choice but to fill. A co-trekker there suggested me to fill hot water which convinced me a little. By the time we started in the jeeps, I was deeply horrified with the thoughts of leeches and getting sick by drinking the water I had filled😟 😟.

Trek starting point -
Green fields and misty weather!

There were only 2 jeeps and it's capacity was an adjusting one. However, I comfortably sat on my Mr's lap. Beside was an uncle who had given me the tobacco powder at the breakfast area. He started interrogating my husband about the trekking places visited and their grades. The bumpy drive for about 10-15 mins took us to the starting point of our trek. Since it was drizzling, the muddy road was slippery. We were asked to walk on the tiny streamlets where the probability of the leeches getting to our legs would be less. I decided not to get behind and that I would trek with the guide without getting lost in the jungle.

Misty jungle!

Bamboo bridge!

There was a bamboo bridge to cross during the first stretch of our trek. There were few houses and acres of lush green fields on the way which then led us to the narrow pathways into the misty jungle. The weather was awesome with the cool breeze and slight showers, but most of my concentration was on my legs to see if the leeches had made their way!!! The fear of leeches actually kept me in pace with the other people. My Mr was impressed with my pace, yet annoyed with me cribbing about the leeches. I could not keep myself calm seeing any sized leech on me. Having got to know that the leech senses heat and the first person walking in the path is much safer than the rest following his footprints, I decided to get ahead 😉. There were leeches falling from the low hanging branches of the trees as well. 

Jungle stream crossing!

The trek became a little scary as the forest got thicker & thicker. The steep pathways were slippery. Heavy rains had created small streams which we had to cross by holding each others hands making a chain so that nobody is drowned. The mud caked pathways got our foot immersed in it. At some point, I had to give up checking on the leeches. 

Stream which we could not cross😟

Then came the bolt from the blue! Due to heavy rains the bridge halfway through the view point was flooded. The water current was so much that we could not even think of crossing it. The guide reluctantly declared that we cannot go any further as the bridge seemed like broken😞. We waited for about 30 mins to see if there's any hope of the water levels subsiding, but there was no luck. Everyone was very disappointed for having to discontinue the trek😞😞 .

I got used to the environment by the time we started walking back to the starting point of our trek. The rain had stopped, so we got a chance to click few pics on our way back. We got some kind villagers offering us the much needed tea. The hot tea was a treat in the chill cold weather. We got back to the homestay in the same gypsy at around 3:30 PM.


Guess wot! the steaming hot lunch was ready by the time we arrived. The hungry us hogged the delicious veg meal with papad, pickle, fluffy puris, palya, rice, sambar and the happy tummy was satisfied😋. We had to freshen up and crash for a nice nap. I had 2 leech bites with the utmost care while my Mr was bleeding with 6 leech bites😨 .

After a nice nap, we woke up by 6 in the evening wanting some tea-coffee and snacks. By the time it was dark, bonfire party was on! People danced crazy!!! We enjoyed watching them as we waited near the kitchen for the chicken meal. The food here felt homely and it was always served hot. There were 3 wonderful ladies preparing dinner for us and the men served. The chicken curry, chapatis, rice, sambar, rasam were too good and tasty😋 ! After some chatting with the fellow mates and discussing the next day's plan, we came back to the rooms.

The falls!

The jungle path to the falls.

The next morning breakfast had the very popular Avalakki (Poha) with the grated coconut on top😋 !!! After the breakfast, we headed towards a small waterfall nearby that was suggested by the homestay guys. The mini bus took us to the spot in about 5 mins and we had to walk 4 kms till the falls. As the leech scare started again, we almost ran upto the waterfall so that leeches do not get any time to get onto us. WOW!!! The view, the water splashes and the rocks were mesmerizing amidst the jungle!!! It felt like we are in "The Jungle Book" location😀! It was pure nature with the chilled weather. I call it the scariest walk of my life😨 , but it was all worth it the moment we saw the waterfall! We spent good 30 mins sitting on the rocks with our legs dipped in the cold water. It is a must go place if you ever get to Castle Rock😊 . This was like a wonderful consolation prize as we failed to witness the actual Dudhsagar falls.

As the waterfall was close to the homestay, we thought of walking back on the wet roads along the huge trees. So, me and my Mr left the place a little earlier than the others, but we had asked the driver to stop when he finds us on his way back. The walk here turned out to be memorable for both of us and we relish it whenever we recall the nicest walky-talkies of our lives😊 .

The memorable walk!

It was time to pack our bags from the homestay and take group photos. We thanked the homestay guys for their warmth and the homely food and waved goodbye to them. We were hungry by the time our journey started towards Bengaluru at around 12 PM. The apples we got from home and the fried groundnut near a railway crossing saved us. Antakshari competition till the lunch time was the time pass! The driver missed our Khanawali at Hubli with his own confusion about the route😞. We did stopover at a small shop to buy some more snacks and water bottles. At around 4 PM, we got one eat-out on the highway which was OK for the sake of it. As we continued our journey crossing a place by name Bankapura close to Haveri, my dear husband recalled Bahaddur Gandu (a Kannada movie) as the story of the movie happens to be in that place! After another stopover for refreshments and my Mr's story telling, we reached Namma Bengaluru late in the night😊.

The troupe!

Dudhsagar..so near yet so far!!!