As We Keep Searching

Chapter 9 - The Twilight Zone

I awoke to the pitter-patter of dewdrops falling from tree leaves onto our grassy shelter. As I turned over, my eyes panned across the deep blue of the tent, which matched the new-born morning sky. The day was upon us. 

I climbed out and called everyone's names, hearing them stirring in their somnial cocoons. We needed to fill water, pack up our tents, collect our garbage and head to the Ballalarayana Durga fort. 

Also, we needed to sit at the edge of the waterfall. 

'Let's go,' Shankar grinned at me, carrying a bag with three bottles. This was going to be one of the biggest highlights of the trek. The others set off towards the waterfall. Me and Shankar would fill water and join them there.

It was another calisthenic experience. We anchored ourselves with both feet, like a scene from 127 hours, and bent carefully to place the mouth of the bottle in the path of the falling rivulet. After stashing the bottles in a nearby bush, we parkoured our way to the end of the waterfall. The sense of impending doom and thrill swelled like the waves following us, as we saw the hazy skyline finish into nothingness. We were looking at the edge.

'All right, people.' I chuckled, 'Who's with me?'

Shankar was already heading down as I finished asking. With some reluctance, Parag, Saurabh and Ravindra followed. 

Soon, there was nothing around us but damp rock and unstoppable water. We could hear nothing but the symphony of this infinite duality; the baritone of the massive boulders - powerful yet impressionable, being triggered by the soft tenor of the water splashes - impressionable yet powerful; a transcendental white noise.







I stood at the very edge of the masterpiece, being torn apart and healed over and over again by the harmony, as the song faded away into the twilight zone; and then into the inky sky.

'Baaro krishnayya...ninna bhaktara manegiga...' - 'Come Krishna, come into your devotee's house...' I sang into the emptiness, like a carrier pigeon I was sending to whichever wizard stood behind the indigo curtain of this reality. One day, we would listen to the song together.

'Danish!' Come let's sit on this rock!'

Ten metres behind us, there was practically a platform (very similar to the one from Lion King) jutting out from the middle of the stream. We perched atop it, looking up at Vedant taking photos of us. I looked at all their faces; they wanted to stay here forever, I could feel it. But the sun was up; we needed to leave.

'You and I both know,

Everything must  go away...'

Me and Shankar went back for the bottles. When we reached our campsite, the tents were being packed, and people were depositing their garbage in our failed fireplace. We put it all in a big plastic bag, and surveyed the scene. Some people were chewing on bread, some on dry fruits; some still had the rotis from yesterday. Overall, everyone seemed content and optimistic.

Damn it.

'Okay, people. The next leg of this journey is a breeze.' I spoke cheerfully, like I was bluffing at a poker game. 'The terrain goes up for about an hour, and then it's all downhill from there.' They had no idea what meaning of the word I was using, thank God. 

Soon, we set off. Anjana once again put the compass in my hand. The needle swiveled and pointed straight, following the light angling off its golden edges. 

No way but forward, right?

Chapter 10 - Fort Minor

The trail went higher and higher, and soon, the roaring of the waterfall sounded to us like a mere rush of air. It meandered and curved upwards, like a staircase into the clouds. I kept looking back at the others; I was pretty sure their thighs were groaning 'Not again', and I saw them pause more often, setting their bags down and drinking copious amounts of water. Instinctively, I felt the water cannon inside my rucksack. This time, that psychological trick wouldn't work. 

We came to a trail that led downwards towards the forest, and one that led upwards into sheer oblivion. Our rational minds told us we needed to climb higher, but our animal instincts coaxed us towards the more visible, foreseeable path.

'Stupid amygdala,' I grumbled. 'Hey guys, I'm going to...'

'Wait, I know this one.' Parag piped up. 'You're going to scout ahead and get back to us?'

I chuckled sheepishly.

'Leave your rucksack,' Shankar declared. 'If the trail is wrong, come back. If it's right, whistle - I'll bring your bag.'




I raced upwards, feeling the suspended droplets wash over me, wetting my face for an instant and then being taken by the breeze. I was reminded of my recent half-marathon in Coorg. 

A part of the mist cleared, and I saw the trail momentarily, continuing upwards. This was it. I blew down on the whistle hard. It sounded thick and dampened in the foggy air.

I heard Jaydev whistle back, mimicking me like a mating call. I chuckled and blew again, this time doing a trill. He obliged. I smiled; they were tired, but in high spirits nevertheless.

Soon, Shankar emerged from the fog, groaning and panting as he clutched my rucksack to his chest whilst carrying his on his shoulders. Damn, he was one tough Osmania biscuit. 

He gave one last huff and heaved the rucksack onto the ground, settling himself down too for a brief respite. He'd earned it.

I picked up my bag and soldiered on. He'd be up in no time.

Parag caught up with me, as I was staring down an abyss through some neelakurinji flowers. We paused for a while, waiting for the others to catch up. The mist shimmered in the forest, dancing between the foliage and materializing in and out of the sky above it. I shifted my gaze to the foreground, and saw a spiderweb weaved between the blades of grass, with drops of condensation balanced precariously on its silky tightropes. The breeze weaved in and out of the obstacle course of the hills and valleys, like sun-birds darting through a flower garden. The world had put up a dance show, and we were right in the centre of it.

A few steps later, we came across a stack of rocks, arranged like a boundary wall. There was even an entrance of some sort, leading to an arena of mud, bushes and low-hanging trees. 

'Guys, wait here, I'll...eh, you know.'

I walked hastily into the playground, and saw a shrine-like structure, with moss and ferns suffocating the rocks that housed it. At its edge was a tree, which was so heavy with dew that it had become a cloud of its own. Soon, Parag, Shankar and Jaydev came up behind me. 

'Dude, what is this place?'

I found a small trail that led away from the shrine, to another entrance. I climbed it to reach a much smaller arena, surrounded by a short rocky wall you could even climb on.

I stepped on it and looked down, getting the shock of my life.

'Err, people, I think we're on the fort...'

Chapter 11 - Holy Cow

'Say what?'

'I think I made a fort like this too when I was five.'

'Do you think The Children Of The Forest lived here?'

'This looks like a baby elephant's dollhouse.'

'All right guys, enough with the jokes. I wasn't expecting this either, but hey, it's really charming.' I looked around at the crudely placed boulders and wild-grown weeds. 'Kind of like a temple from the pagan times.'

'Or just one in Chinndwara,' Parag chuckled. We all laughed. It wasn't offensive - he was from there. 

We all sat on the edge of the wall, surrounded by clouds and a sheer drop. Parag, Karthikeyan and Shankar stood by the entrance, looking down at the other side.

'Do you think this will be here, say ten years from now? Do you think there will be a city here, and a building where we're standing?' Ravneet mused. I tried not to think about it, and let the winds carry away whatever questions and half-thought answers I had.

The mist had grown thicker, giving everything a surreal, obfuscated look. It was as if we had walked in on someone else's dream. 

"Have you ever walked in on your mind,

Dreaming up another one?

Do you tangle thoughts in a thousand knots,

When you converse with a multi-verse?

Do you dream of worlds where you belong?

Or do you dream of something worse?

Maybe you dream of eternal night,

Or a world breathing inside the sun,

Do you dream to set this planet right?

Or do you dream up another one?

We live in a world where beauty dies,

And gives its place to a masquerade.

Do we smother all where we lay eyes?

Do we ruin all that we invade?

That's why we hide inside our minds,

The only place where we can run,

But maybe there's a dreamer there,

Who's dreaming up another one. 

Sometimes I think - am I a dream?

Just a part of something quasi-real?

A grain of sand in a creator's hand,

Or a flimsy spoke in a broken wheel?

A floating drop in your cosmic mist,

But I am not like anyone,

So take me to your mind, O Lord,

And I'll dream you up another one..."

'Okay, people. Say leech!' Vedant turned on the timer and hurried over to our side. Everyone laughed and bared their teeth. We barely heard the click.







'All right,' I spoke to Shankar, aside. 'We have to find the way down.'

'Yeah, just move north, right?'

'Problem is, there's no trail to the north side. We'll have to find one that eventually curves towards it. More scouting,' I grinned at him.

'Cool. We'll scout. Just let me get the garbage bag.'








There was a cow ravaging the contents of the bag, as furiously as a cow can.

We both gulped.

'Okay, here's the plan. Team Alpha, you distract the cow with some leftover rotis. Team Tango, you block its vision as me and Shankar take the garbage bag away from her.'

The plan went to bollocks as the cow zeroed in on the bag everytime, like it was protecting a young one.

'Jesus, this is the first cow I'm seeing so eager to eat plastic.'

'Dude, it's pissing on the bag...' Shankar barely completed his sentence, being doubled up with laughter.

'Well, it's a clear message. That's her territory.'

Somehow, after a hundred attempts and one final 'Screw it,' I leapt at the bag and got away, kabbadi-style, narrowly missing a headbutt. 'Shankar, I got it!' I hurried away, frantically shaking the piss off.

The two of us looked at the pitifully violated bag. No one else knew about the recent additions to the prasadam inside it. 'We take this to the grave,' we decided.

'All right, people! If someone could carry this bag for a while, me and Shankar will look for a way down.'

We hadn't seen the last of that creature, we could feel it in our bones.

After ten minutes of aimless wandering, I stopped the group and pleaded guilty. 'Okay, okay, stop. I don't know the way down. We're finally lost. Any ideas are appreciated.'







'Yikes,' Parag made a face. Suddenly, his face lit up. 'Hey, you tried, I don't know, scouting ahead and getting back to us?'

I eyed daggers at him, as Sushmita piped up, 'I told you we should try that route, the one I showed you. No one listens to me...' she trailed off.

'All right, let's go back to the fort and find that trail.'

'You realize we're going back to the poltergeist cow, don't you?' Shankar uttered nervously.

Sure enough, the cow jumped out at us from the mist - it looked like she hadn't moved an inch since we had taken her polyester progeny from her. We froze, looking at each other from the corners of our eyes.

That's when she charged.

Me and Shankar passed the bag around, hoping to confuse her enough to give up, but she could detect our movements and kept pursuing us. 'All right, that's it,' I grabbed the bag and kept it with me.

'No, you're not getting the plastic until you finish your veggies,' I addressed her as one would an insolent child, while the others laughed noiselessly. The cow kept nuzzling me, delicately trying to reach for the piss-soaked goodies.

'She loooooves you...' Anjana gushed loudly, and everyone lost it. 'Come on Danish, don't be like that.'

I shot her a fake grin and rushed away. I could see some silhouettes near the boundary wall where we had been sitting. 'People. There's people!'

We dragged our tired asses, our rucksacks and some new leeches that had latched onto us, to the fort, along with the cow in tow. We looked like a small hamlet migrating to the city in search of a better life.

There was a group, and a guide with them. They were just about to leave for Durgadahalli, our final stop. Karthikeyan summoned our last refreshments - toasted bread with cheese - and we took slow, grateful bites by the boundary wall.

The clouds parted below us, revealing a thick jungle and a clear trail down into it.

'Yay, we're not lost anymore...' Shankar sang in mock triumph. I smiled ruefully.

Maybe I wanted to be.

Chapter 12 - The Last Leech

The sun was now shining brightly, and everything looked clearer; the light blue of the sky, the vibrant green of the leaves, the burnt sienna of the revitalized ground. We had transformed; from a misty, ethereal memory, to a crisp, immortal photograph.

'Hey, I'm getting a signal,' Anjana waved her phone at Shankar. 'You wanted to talk to the driver, right?'

With the help of the guide, we gave the driver the exact location of the exit of the forest. As Shankar spoke wistfully (it wasn't because he was tired - he always talks like that), I tried to carve the scenery into the stone walls of my memory cave. There was no way I was forgetting this.

I rushed on ahead, entering the jungle, and felt a canopy descend over my senses yet again. This time, it was different - sunny, sprightly; almost festive. I spotted a few birds, and a few exotic insects, passing the message on to Vedant to keep an eye out for them.

We saw three dogs - a Golden Retriever, a Bull Mastiff and another unidentified breed - with adults attached to their leashes. We smiled at them as they huffed past us; this was a whole new level of taking the dog out for a walk.

I could hear snippets of conversation behind me as Jaydev and Anjana shared life-stories. I didn't feel like talking to anyone - this happened to me towards the end of every trek. I was like a child being taken away from Neverland. In some ways, I would always remain a child.

Soon, me and Jaydev were leading, a long way ahead of the others. I brushed my home-sickness aside and struck up a conversation. It turned out he was an adventure-hungry nomad too. We started sharing the tales of our various treks, and decided to do one every month, no matter what. 

As we waited for the others at the bottom of the trail, we glimpsed another path leading into the forest. It called out to me, and I set off.

'We're here!' Shankar boomed as I had barely taken two steps. Aarrgghh...another time. I would be back. 

We all walked out of the forest and came to a proper road. There was a small trail leading to the edge of the hill we were on. I took it - one little detour couldn't hurt. 

I casually looked to my left - and stood spellbound.

'Everyone, get over here,' I whispered to no one. And strangely, everyone did.

We sat on the edge of the hill - there was nothing between us and the sky. We sat and talked for - I don't remember how long, but I was pleased to see that everyone wanted an excuse to not leave this place.

After several rounds of the sun playing hide-and-seek with the clouds, we decided it was time to go. 

I saw Shankar and Rashmi sprinting up a hillock, and I raced after them. 

Any excuse to stick around, right?

We came back to everyone wearing their bags and their patience thin. Relocating the trail, we walked off, and stepped down a series of roughly-cut steps to face the other side of the forest. We saw cars parked in a line, leading down to a clearing, where - hopefully - our bus was parked too.

Across us, we saw the rest of the town, split into night and day by the dark clouds terrorizing one half of the sky, and the sun blazing through the other half. 

'Wow, this town is small.' Vedant remarked.

And so we set off towards the bus, making a new template of 'Yo town so small' jokes, and trying out some masterpieces.

'Yo town so small, it doesn't have a pin code, it has a pin digit...'

'Yo town so small, the balloon on Google Maps covers it...'

'Yo town so small, Parag thinks it's small.'

Everyone laughed hard at that last gem, even though it was an inside joke. I could see this trend wasn't going to be a big hit anytime soon.

One last hastily-timed group photo later, we were standing at our bus. Everyone cheered, putting their tents, sleeping bags and mats in the trunk, and resting on one of the stone benches nearby. Some people changed into shorts and slippers, looking at their war wounds; half-fascinated, half-horrified. 

'Leech bites tend to stick around,' I told Radhika, as she looked woefully at a tiny hole in her ankle. 'Don't pay them any attention. Just, avoid scratching them.'

She nodded, her expression not changing.

I chuckled sheepishly. 'Sorry - leeches can get, well, overly attached, if you'll pardon the pun.'

'I regret nothing,' she answered, a huge smile stretching her face. 'This was an amazing experience. Thank you.'

I smiled and helped her up. Ravneet huffed beside me. 'I've been gymming for two months,' he panted. 'It's useless. I need more stamina.'

We laughed as we climbed the bus. 'Just keep going on treks,' I told him.

That should be a T-shirt one day.

Taking a quick head count, I asked if everyone was all right, and received a sea of thumbs-ups. I went to the front to sit with the driver - I wasn't going to miss this montage.

'Anna,' I told the driver, and he understood. He smiled at me and started the engine. 

I saw the forest receding in the rear view mirror. My lament is not that all good things come to an end, but that they fade away. 

"These moments slip away like sand,
As I grasp them with my failing hand.
Trapped in my vicious hourglass,
These broken bards of our past,
These eyes shed tears of broken glass...

What's spoken last? Is it anything,
But a late goodbye to an open cast?
As I run my hands through golden grass,
These dewdrops break in frozen shards,
And I have played my stolen cards...

O sullen stars, don't shy away,
I bleed for you with sudden scars,
With love that comes from hidden hearts.
For you I climb each soaring hill,
Each roaring stream, forbidden pass...

Forgive me for I didn't ask,
If absence is your written task,
I'll gladly part and come again.
Recall when we were smitten last?
You come and part like fickle rain...

So don't stay after I am gone,
For I will leave after my song,
And I will smile when you move on.
So don't stay, I am not that strong,
Please don't stay, I am not that strong..."

Photos, courtesy of Anjana Pillai, Abhishek Shankar, Vedant Sapra and Abhinav Sethi.

Anjana's Blog : https://anjlifeexperiences.wordpress.com

 

Vedant's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_-wTP-OKAF6HskDOqSeREw

Vedant's Instagram Page: https://www.instagram.com/vedantsapra/

  

As We Keep Searching

Chapter 5 - The House Of The Rising Sun

'Everyone! We're here! It's time for adventure and danger in the lap of nature. Let's get this show on the road!'

Cheers, hooting and enthusiastic howls completely failed to resound in the tired bus.

Everyone rubbed their eyes and yawned as they dismounted the bus grudgingly, trudging to the stone steps that led up to the house. I could actually hear their joints groaning and muscles squeaking, as we led the procession of R2D2s into the central courtyard. I spotted Kishore Gowra, the landlord of this resting point, and walked up to him to explain the situation.

All that came out was caveman.

'Group come for trek. Group need food. You give?'

His smile faded, and I quickly called upon Shankar to negotiate the peace offerings. In a matter of minutes, we were stuffing idlis with hot, delicious sambar and coconut chutney. The group regained energy like soldiers on Dunkirk spotting a ship. It was as if the food had imbued life and sentience into our animatronic beings.  

Finally in control of ourselves, we set about clearing up all the logistics and securing all the necessary supplies for the journey. We would receive packed lunches, and Kishoreji said he would try securing a guide for us. On our end, we started securing the mats, sleeping bags and tents to our rucksacks and...err...school-bags. 

We all took our share of the luggage and collected our lunches. As Anjana tied the last roll of mats to her bag, I looked up at the mist-covered hills and tried to spot the waterfall. The morning light had grown bolder, brightening the sky and enriching every colour our eyes could see. The chirping of the crickets and cicadas had faded, creating an ominous silence, punctuated only by the dripping of the water tap in the corner. 

After paying the landlord, me and Shankar went to the driver to tell him to get to Durgadahalli, our final stop, by afternoon of the next day. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a wizened local - presumably our last-minute-rescue guide - go into the house. Things were looking up. 

The group gathered around. I looked at their faces - tired, flushed and sleepy. A night in the bus wasn't exactly beauty sleep.

Then I looked at their postures - shoulders squared, chest up and a bounce in their steps. 

We were ready. 

Chapter 6 - Walk, Talk And Two Christmas Carols

We set off in single file, instinctively breaking up into smaller groups of two or three based on speed (and misanthropy, though no one would admit it). In no time, we were in the thick of the forest. The canopy acted like a blanket, providing a natural amphitheater for the concerto of chirping birds and gurgling brooks. 

 

We came to a narrow stone bridge. The rocks were covered with moss, still wet with dew-drops from the previous night. As we crossed solemnly, some of us slipped; while some of us stepped expertly like mountain goats.

The guide took us past a few houses, and we spotted betel nut palms, some pepper plants and tree stump mushrooms.





After passing the houses, a trail emerged, cutting through the undergrowth and snaking its way upwards. The ascent was starting.

Our guide turned around, said something to Shankar and promptly took off. Me and Parag looked at him as he scampered away, our eyes widening with shock. But we were being silly; he wouldn't ditch us like this, the landlord had said it was very easy to get lost here. He was probably going back for supplies or getting food from one of the houses.

Then we looked at Shankar's face.

'What happened?' Ravindra asked as he and Sushmita caught up with us. They both waited for an answer, as the forest fell silent for the pin-drop moment. What was I to tell them? Should I just avoid the question and carry on? There was a trail anyway - how hard could it be? We could follow it, catch up with other trekkers and complete the trek without anyone knowing we had no guide.

'He bail,' Parag said non-chalantly, ending my train of thought.

'Now listen, people.' I talked hurriedly, like we were covering up a hit-and-run. 'No one needs to know about this. There's a trail; let's just keep walking as if nothing happened.'

'Okay, but where should we hide the body?' Parag asked sincerely.

I scowled at him as everyone else chortled. We headed off as Surendra and Abhinav joined us.

'Hey, where's the guide?' I heard behind me.

I gulped and picked up pace. Running away does solve your problems.




I slowed down a bit to check up on everyone. Surendra was panting, but taking big, easy steps (he is 6'4", he better be) with Abhinav in his stead. Ravindra and Rashmi were racing. Anjana, Jaydev, Prajyot and Saurabh were sharing life stories, with Vedant and Harmeet close behind, looking for interesting flora and fauna to photograph.

I smiled at Sushmita as she made her way steadily. I had met her before through Nandini, a very close friend.

'How far is it?' she asked innocently.

I frantically looked for a number that wouldn't scare her into a U-turn.

'It's not very long, but it's steep. We should maintain our pace.' Parag jumped in to my rescue yet again. Sushmita smiled and soldiered on.

Karthikeya, Ravneet and Radhika came up last. 'Pra,' I called out to Ravneet and handed him a packet of Glucon-D. He looked at me as if he could kiss me, and then started emptying the dry powder into his mouth. I rolled my eyes and hastened back up.

'I've heard there was a secret chord, that David played and it pleased the Lord...' I hummed Hallelujah as I climbed upwards. The song resonated in my throat, and I could hear every rasp, every inflection clearly in the stillness of the canopied forest floor. There was no better audience for music than silence.

'It's a beautiful song,' Anjana uttered beside me. I looked at her. 'Do you sing?' I asked as the rest of the song played in my mind.

'As a South Indian kid you either learn classical music or dance,' she chuckled. 'I've learnt both. Forgotten both too, I might add.'

As I would find out later, that wasn't the case.

'Silent night, holy night...' I hummed as I sauntered on. I remembered the medley our a cappella group in BITS Pilani had done - my last performance with them. My mind flashed through the innumerable people I had come to know in any small way because of music. How lonely would I have been, otherwise?

"I know they are not reckless beasts,
For I have heard them sing. 

I've seen them be so harsh, unkind, 
Enslave, deprave an innocent mind,
But know they're not unfeeling scum,
For I have heard them hum.

They'll hunt and haunt for fleeting thrill,
They'll loot and plunder, maim and kill,
But know this, I wish them no ill,
For I have heard them trill.

They'll rage and ravage with furious feasts,
And plunder even the lonely moon,
But know they are not heartless beasts,
For I have heard them croon.

I've seen what they do to this beautiful world,
I've seen the fights and blights they bring,
But I've seen they're not thankless beasts,
For I have heard them sing..."

I came to a river crossing and stopped, waiting for the others. 'Sleep in heavenly peace...' I finished, fading out to the sound of birdsong.

Chapter 7 - The Climb

I crossed the stream and put my rucksack down, stretching my shoulders. I could hear a few others close by. Ravindra, Rashmi and Ravneet emerged, their faces being tussled by expressions of relief and exhilaration.

'All right, people, the rocks are very slippery. Step carefully - don't put all your weight on one. Be quick, hop and skip over the smaller rocks, and you'll be here in a jiffy.'

Rashmi nodded and stepped gingerly onto the first boulder, promptly slipping into the water.

After that, everyone decided to simply wade through.

I cupped my hands and drank from the brook - the water was cool, and piquant with an earthy flavor. I felt the elixir send jolts of joie de vivre through my limbs.

'That's E-coli you're drinking,' Ravneet stated as he flicked off a leech from his shoes, promptly spoiling the moment.

The four of us waited for a long time, but nobody showed up. Ravneet gave me a yellow whistle, and I went back, blowing shrill staccatos and listening for cries of help.

'Danish!' Anjana and Shankar yelled in unison as I bumped into them. The entire group was here, scared out of their wits. There was a tree trunk blocking their way, which had everyone stumped (if you'll pardon the pun).

'I told you he would come back for us!' Karthikeyan declared passionately, making everyone laugh.

I led them to the crossing and repeated the advice. This time, I slipped too. Sheepishly, I crossed quickly and beckoned them. To their credit, they tried stepping on the rocks, but that just prolonged the inevitable, and I watched them all tumble one by one, like a Takeshi's Castle bloopers tape.

Very soon, we caught up with the others at a much larger river crossing. Here, everyone would need help. Me and Shankar decided to cross first and take our positions to pull the rest across.

After a few games of 'passing the disproportionately heavy parcel' and Twister, we took our first respite between some dry rocks. Everyone de-leeched themselves (with minimal screaming, admirably) and picked a spot to rest their legs. Vedant retrieved his DSLR and started clicking away.

After all the fake candids, we filled our bottles and picked up our bags. We still had a long way to go, and the longer we rested, the more our bodies would get comfortable. One hurried group photo later, we were on our way.





'Dude, actually, the guide had told us to wait and have lunch at that stream, that he would be back with another group. I just remembered.' Shankar laughed nervously. It didn't help that there were three equally legit trails in front of us now.

'Okay, wait. Let me scout ahead and get back to you.' I had no idea how much mockery that catchphrase had coming.

I set off on the rockiest path, hoping to eliminate it first. As luck would have it, there was a dead end while I was still in sight of the others.

'The left path goes on much longer,' Parag grimaced. 'It's a coin toss from here.'

'Only this middle path goes uphill,' I reasoned. 'I'll take my chances.'

'Me and Parag will wait here for the guide. You go on ahead and whistle if the path continues.' Abhishek decided.

I was skeptical - but it made sense. We made our own little Morse code; one long whistle meant we were on the right path, two short bursts meant we had screwed up and needed to come back (three probably meant I was losing it). And we were off.

'I'll come back for you!' I yelled dramatically. Both of them smiled nervously.

The landscape changed drastically as we climbed higher. Whatever little sunlight there was now failed to penetrate the foliage, and the ground turned blacker as the leaves turned deeper green. My comrades stopped more frequently, and the light reinforcements of water and glucose were replaced by the big guns of chocolates and biscuits.

I gave a long, shrill whistle to signal to Abhishek and Parag that we were on the right path. There was no response.

'What should we do?' Ravneet asked, chewing noisily on a Snickers bar.

'We'll move on,' I sighed, 'But slowly. Hopefully they'll catch up to us.'

Soon we had nothing left but a tiny bottle of water and Lindt chocolates. Everyone laughed at the irony.

'Up ahead, I see a clearing!' I called out to the others. 'We can have our lunch there. Last lap, people!'

God, I really needed to stop lying to them.

Suddenly, I heard the frantic rustling of leaves and cheers behind me. I turned to see our two heroes sprinting up the path, covered with sweat and scars. As if to complete the imagery, a ray of light escaped the gauntlet of leaves and lit up their faces. I couldn't help but be reminded of Gandalf rescuing the Battle Of Helm's Deep.





'We back.' Parag declared triumphantly. 'We no need no guide.'

'And not a moment too soon.' I pointed upwards. 'Look!'





There it was - the clearing. We left the trees behind and walked among tall grass, as our hill finally rose above the rainforest we had crossed. The mist surrounded us with a chilly welcome, rolling over the valleys and hilltops with the clouds. It looked like we were underwater in a ghostly sea.

Our group collapsed onto the least grassy patch, staring into the foggy distance, wordlessly. As we traded thoughts with the clouds, they sent back watery words of their own, raining a misty drizzle down our way. I looked at each of my friends - all so different, sitting in the same stance; in submission to the sky.





"And maybe, one day I will see,
We're the same, both you and me..." 

'Guys, the waterfall isn't too far from here. Should we set up camp and then have our lunch?'

Famous last words.

Chapter 8 - Landslide Comes Before A Falls

With some persuasion, everyone agreed to hold on for a while longer. I set off, with no sense of direction and just one criterion - if it goes down, don't take it. 

'That doesn't apply to just trekking,' Parag giggled. 

'Oh, shut it. Kids read this blog too.' 

As it turned out, navigating through hills was much harder. Sometimes we had to go over, sometimes we had to go around. For a long time, we followed the roaring sound of the waterfall. That didn't turn out well, as we hit a thicket of wild trees that were hiding a steep plummet. 

'Wait here, I'll scout ahead and get back to you guys.' 

After determining North from the moss growth on the tree trunks, I tried to look for a trail westward. I climbed swiftly - we had to find it before sundown.

'Danish! Karthikeyan has offline maps!' 

The word 'maps' echoed in the valley, like divine intervention guiding me towards the answer. 

And the answer was always Google. 

'Danish, I have a compass, if you want.' Anjana handed me an archaic looking artifact. 

'Scabbards out, me mateys,' I said gruffly. 'All hands on deck, ye scurvy curs!' 

No one was amused. 

'All right, all right, I'll find it. Just let me go on a little ahead, and I'll whistle if you are to follow.' I turned around and set off, checking the compass and the GPS with every ten steps, while trying to spot human footprints. We felt like Red Indians - if they'd had Google maps. 

We walked mostly in silence, except for the occasional, 'Wait for us!' yelled angrily into the air. Time was running out. 

Soon, I saw thick, dark silhouettes through the fog, in the shape of tents. I blew a sharp whistle for the others to follow, and received a similar one from above me. People. We'd found people. 

'Civilization!' I bellowed below me. 'Come on up!' 

In a matter of minutes, our group was together again. We saw one of the guides from Gowdru Mane peeking, bemused, from a tent in the corner. He smiled and gave us a thumbs up. For some reason, I saluted him. 

'Water,' Ravindra groaned. 'We need water.' 

'All bottles are empty,' Ravneet wailed. 'We're doomed!' 

'Not so fast.' I boomed, as I revealed my 2.5 litre cannon. I always carried it, in every trek - to be opened only at the very end. A lot of hunger and thirst was purely psychological.

Everyone passed it around like The Holy Grail, taking big, rejuvenating gulps. I made to protest, but caught myself just in time - there was a waterfall right below us.





'All right,' Jaydev panted, plopping himself down on the soil. 'Let's set up the tents and eat.'

'Err, not quite.' I uttered meekly. Everyone looked at me like I'd just told them the lunch packets were empty. 'The falls are just down there - we'll have enough space to put up tents and ready access to drinking water.'

I could see everyone's faces contorting into the first signs of protest.

'Come on, people.' I jumped in. 'Ten more minutes, I promise. Then we rest forever.'

More lies.

Remarkably, everyone agreed to this one last ordeal. I was going to be murdered in my tent tonight if something went wrong, I was sure.

I hoisted my rucksack back onto my shoulders and followed the small trail that dipped into the forests and emerged again at the bottom, near the Bandaje Falls.

It was the loosest, steepest, muddiest trail I have ever walked on. We grabbed vines, tree trunks, even suspicious branches, some of which turned out to be connected to nothing. No one slipped - they'd had enough practice for a lifetime.

I descended quickly and crossed the stream. Quickly dropping my bag on a flat rock, I went back to help the others. Shankar joined me - we were making quite a team.





'Again, throw me the bags, and then grab their hands!' I shouted to Shankar over the roaring of the river. He nodded at me through half-opened eyes, being sprayed by water battering the giant rocks. This time, the water was much deeper and stronger, and one false move would wash anyone of us off, right over the cliff.

We got everyone across safe and sound (except a serious cramp suffered by Jaydev), and after refilling our bottles, we went across the small hill overlooking the cliff, looking for a flattish place to pitch our tents. Everyone turned around to look at Bandaje Falls - each taking a moment to absorb the fact that they'd made it.





'So,' I asked, standing on stable ground, 'Should we have lunch first?'

By the time I'd finished the question half the people had opened their packets.

We gobbled our meagre yet invigorating meal of pulao, raita and rotis. I saw colour come back to everyone's countenances, and everyone stood almost an inch taller. We were phoenixes; risen from the ashes of our own fires.

'I learnt how to set up a tent in sixth standard. Let's see how much I remember.' Anjana mused, opening up one of the bags. Me and Shankar decided to refill all the bottles, leaving them to figure out the tents.

We came back and helped pitch the last three tents. By the time we were done, night was upon us. It was serene, yet eerie; every cloud threatened to blind us, every breeze attempted to uproot our tents. The drizzle had ceased, but everything around us was damp. Our plans of starting a campfire had been doused - but we weren't above trying.

'Let's do it, bro,' Vedant brought a bottle of deodorant and a lighter, as me and Ravindra collected the driest branches we could find from nearby trees. Soon, we were spraying the deodorant onto the firewood through the lighter. It was a spectacular sight - although it didn't do much damage.

'Let's put the cardboard from our packed lunches,' Sushmita suggested. It was a good idea.

That gave us about ten seconds of a tiny flame, dancing over the driest surfaces and disappearing, leaving glowing embers in its wake.

'People, turn off your torches,' Vedant whispered. Everyone did - the only light that remained in the entire valley was the orange glow of the dying fire. We all stared into it; a fractal universe of its own, its shadows and sparks narrating the history of its world, from fiery birth to fading death.

Weren't we too, a product of a hasty fire, made up of shadows and flames? Didn't we too, rise and fall like embers, fleeting in existence and purpose? What Gods watched us dance, our aeons and epochs passing like seconds in their world?

'And now I can play this game,
For the shadow is born and killed by fire,
And the phoenix is born and killed by flame...'

After five minutes, it was over. Everyone switched on their torches and brought us back to our lucid states.

'Well, we don't have a fire - but our firewood smells amazing.'

All of us chose our tents and settled in snugly. Me, Karthikeyan and Surendra split a packet of biscuits and some sev bhujia. Soon, we were feeling drowsy.

It was getting stuffy. I opened up a tiny flap on the side of the tent and looked out. For a moment, it felt like I was back on the bus, staring out the window. A firefly glowed in the grass right in front of me. Soon, another one joined in. I stretched out and looked further, to see an entire pack of them, lighting up the grasses surrounding us. I couldn't take my eyes off them - it's not often you get to see something right out of a storybook.

In the tent in front of us, Radhika and Anjana started singing. I heard a varnam in Raga Mohanam, followed by Lambodara Lakhumi Kara. A huge grey cloud was making its way towards us, winking out the tiny lights of the fireflies. As the song reached its crescendo, the cloud engulfed us.

I was asleep before the song ended.

"Come hither, mighty cloud, I need to talk,
It's a story told by a waking dream,
Of a traveler, born to swim and walk,
Of mountain, forest, sky and stream.

These journeys should not stay untold,
And die in whispers, fleeting words.
And I know you're a nomad, bold,
Who'll speak of this to the highest birds.

Don't drizzle down on heedless heads,
Don't sprinkle words like misty rain,
But rage my tales like thunderstorms,
And let them feel my sweetest pain.

Yes, tell my stories far and wide,
For we're not fleeting fireflies,
Or dying embers, left to glow,
Nor faint footprints in melting snow.

For one day we shall learn to fly,
And tell these tales to the starlit sky,
And then they'll know the universe,
Through each lonely cloud's lonely verse.

So go, and rain these fables hard,
And be my muse, my pen and bard,
For even after I'm gone long,
I'll be your minstrel and your song..."

Photos, courtesy of Anjana Pillai, Abhishek Shankar, Vedant Sapra and Abhinav Sethi.

Anjana's Blog : https://anjlifeexperiences.wordpress.com

 

Vedant's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_-wTP-OKAF6HskDOqSeREw

Vedant's Instagram Page: https://www.instagram.com/vedantsapra/