Western Karnataka Coast - Place to Stay and Eat

Here is some info on places where you can stay and places to eat at Gokarna, Karwar and Udupi

Gokarna: If you dont want to shell out a huge amount to OM Beach resort, the only other decent option is Hotel Gokarn. Ph No: 8386-256622, 8386-257368. (www.geocities.com/hotelgokarn/ ) This is not a fancy hotel. A basic hotel. The small Darshini type hotel attached to this doesnt look to0 great but the meals were quite good.

As far eating in Gokarna is concerned, it is better to head off to the beach and eat at Prema's place there. It is a small joint but serves some very good food.

Karwar: I stayed at Hotel Bhadra. Ph: 08382-225412, 225613. Decent value-for-money place on the highway itself. The Jungle Lodges office is situated opposite this hotel and you can do a day trip to Devbagh resorts of Jungle Lodges. The other staying option is at the Jungle Lodges resort in Devbagh. A nice place but will cost you much more.

Food at Hotel Bhadra is quite good so you can have it there. You can also check with the Jungle Lodges folks and go to Devbagh resort for lunch

Udupi : In Udupi we stayed at Hotel Srirama Residency (0820-2530761). A very neat place, good value for money and very close to the temple. There are a couple of more hotels around this place which also looked good. Hotel Karavali on the highway is also a good hotel, though it is a bit far from the temple. (http://www.karavaligroup.com/ Ph:0820 2522860)

Udupi has lot of eating options if you are a South Indian. We ate at Hotel Srirama and Woodlands, which was near to Hotel Srirama. You can always try lot of other good hotels around.

Kawar beach - Between a rock and a watery place

The main attraction of Karwar is the beach. On one side the western ghats tower over you. You can see the Konkan railway train precariously passing on these mountains. On the other side is the Arabian sea where the hot orange sun cools himself by slowly immersing himself into the waters there. No wonder Gurudev Ravindranath Tagore was impressed and inspired by this place.

We went to the Karwar beach that evening. We saw a strange sight there. We were standing at beach waiting for the water to careess our legs. The waves came and splashed against us. When the next wave came, the wave front would die a couple of feet before us. The next round would see the wave dying a few more feet before us and after a few mins the wave front was ending atleast 10 feet before us. It was as if the sea was withdrawing itself. In due course of time, the wave front would come forward till our feet and the cycle would repeat. The effect of tsunami. It felt as if someone had taken hold of the globle called earth and slowly rocking it.

The beach was quite clean and we had a good time there. We would see some ships anchored at a distance and the lights of the ship glow when it became dark. There were some municipal people monitoring the situation near the beach and cautioning the people not to go in too far into the sea. There was also some cultural show going at the beach. Some school kids were dancing and we watched it for some time. The whole setting on the beach was very nice, with the wind blowing from one side and music from the other.

The next day morning we started for Devbagh beach. This is a property of Jungle Lodges. If you dont get a reservation there, you can do a day trip to Devbagh from Karwar. I had paid for a half day trip at their office opposite the hotel I was staying (Hotel Badra). You need to go to a small jetty from where a motor boat will take you on the Kali river and deposit you at Devbagh. We went to the jetty and saw that the Kali river was boiling. See the state of the river Gayathri wanted to turn back and not take any risk. The boatman didnt make it better either. "I have never seen the river like this sir. Heard some huts along the banks were washed away yesterday night. All these due to the tsunami". Added to this we had to wait for some time for the boat to arrive from Devbagh. All these led to escalation of anxiety. Finally the boat arrived. As it took us towards Devbagh we felt as if was bobbing up and down too much. Anyway we arrived at Devbagh and went to the beach. The long strech of sand here is very clean and they provide the beach umbrellas and chairs to relax. Given that the tsunami had stuck the earlier day and the waves were behaving unpredictably, they didnt allow us to get into water, though we managed to get our feet wet !! There were no water sports either. The whole atmosphere at Devbagh invites you to just hang up your boots and relax. The cute cottage, the long stretch of the beach, the pine trees all around and the seclusion make this an ideal place for honeymooners and for those who want to rejuvenate themself. On the way back, Kali river has subsided quite a lot. That evening we went to the Karwar beach again. Well, there isnt much you can do at Karwar than go to the beach !!

Udupi, Sringeri and Hornadu - A short pilgrimage

The next day morning after breakfast we started our drive from Karwar to Udupi. The NH17 is a great road to drive. It follows the west coast all the way from Trivandrum to Karwar. The sea is always around 1 to 2 kms away from the road. Unfortunately the sea never is seen from the road except at Marvante. At Marvante for some distance the sea comes along with you. I made a mental not to come to this place sometime in the future (hasnt happened yet). On this road is Murudeswar, where the imposing Siva statue can be seen from the road. I saw it and went in to see it from near. It was hot at the beach and we had a darshan of Siva from the car. This place with the giant statue of Siva on the beach and the mutistoried hotel nearby is very impressive. I am sure it gets quite crowded during the season. We did see a lot of people on the beach even though it was close to noon and hot.

We arrived at Udupi at lunch time. By mistake I took a wrong turn and ended up at Manipal. I didnt realise the Udupi and Manipal were so near. I mean you just step out for a walk at Udipi and you are in Manipal !! Anyway we reached our hotel, had lunch and relaxed. Which meant we slept. The evening was spent at the Malpe beach. This is around 7 kms from Udupi. Here too the waves exhibited the same tendency as at Karwar but to a lesser degree. This was also a very clean beach but a bit crowded. Since it was the christmas vacation time, there were bus loads to school children at most places that we visited. The were some college going kids as well here. Ranjani and Harini enjoy being at the beach and they enjoyed themselves at the Malpe beach. They also had camel rides here, which for the kids, was a thrilling affair.

Returning back from the beach, we headed to the famous Krishna temple at Udupi. The temple structure is not like the traditional temples of Tamil Nadu. The way you see the idol is also is also unconventional. You the see the idol through a small window. (There is a story associated with this). I know that some people are disappointed when they see a small idol and that too through a window. Both Gayathri and I liked the atmosphere of the temple. It is paradoxical but there was some sort of serenity here though the whole area was crowded and noisy. We sat there for some time to soak in the atmosphere and we promised to ourselves that we will visit the temple again the next day. The temple has an elephant and we saw it outside the temple which made the kids very happy.

Since I had been driving for long streches, I decided to give myself a break and hire a cab to go to Sringeri and Hornadu. The cab driver came in later than we had asked him to. We started to Sringeri. On the way was Agumbe. It is a short ghat section but very steep. We stopped at the top to have a view of the surounding area. As usual with most hill top views the surrounding mountains were covered in haze. The sunset view is supposed to be great from here.

We arrived at the Shringeri temple around noon time. The temple is on the banks of the Bhadra river. We went to the Sharadhamba sannidhi. This is a very well maintained temple and the place is calm. There were some children learing the vedas and the sound of veda recitation always brings in some untold joy and peace. After the darshan of Sharadambha we went down the steps to be on the banks of the river. There a lot of big fish here which are fed by the devotees. The kids were happy watching the fish thrash around in water when some food is thrown. We had our lunch at the temple. Most of the temples in Western Karnataka provide food for the devotees. Here is the first time that I observed rasam being served first and then sambar !!

From Sringeri we left for Horanadu. The drive through Kudremukh was wonderful and I was sure I was going to come to this place again, which I did. (I had written in detail about Kudremukh and Hornadu in my earlier post). We had a darshan of Annapoorneshwari at Horanadu and came back to Udupi in the evening.

Next day morning was a visit to the Udupi Krishna temple, evening at the beach. The day after we left Udupi for Bangalore. While climbing the Sakleshpur ghat we could feel our car grunting and groaning and going up the ghat with great difficulty. After we got down the ghat, I opened the bonnet and peeped in, as if I knew all about cars. I had no clue what to look for and as can be expecetd found nothing wrong !!! We came to Hassan and I took the car to a mechanic. He found out that one of the cable which goes to the spark plug was faulty. Out of the three cylinders in the car, only two have been firing !!! So we had climbed up the Sakleshpur ghat with only 2/3 power !! Should appreciate the Maruti 800s sturdiness. The mechanic changed the cable and now it was a different car altogether !! We stayed at Hassan and visited Belur and Halebid, where the sculptures were mind boggling. That afternoon we left for Bangalore.

The drive from Hassan to Neelamangala was smooth and we came to Neelamangala in quick time. As usual the drive from Neelamangala to my house was a nightmare. Welcome to Bangalore !!

Western Karnataka Coast - Gokarna and the amazing OM beach

"It will be a very small ghat section. Maximun 15 to 20 mins. Not more. There is no need to worry". This is what I told Gayathri. This was our first major road trip, with or without the whole family. I had decided to go to Gokarna and Karwar. Gayathri was pretty apprehensive about the Ghat sections along the way. My in-laws were also apprehensive and lot of ideas were floating around like hiring a cab or hiring a cab etc. That is why I gave gyan to Gayathri that the Ghat section was very small and there was nothing to be worried about !! I had no clue about the ghat section but I was sure that I had to drive and I had to take my car. The Gerasoppa ghat would be more than 50 kms and took close to 2hrs to cross but what a beautiful ride it would be.

My friend Andy had been to Gokarna and he was very impressed with that place. I was oscillating between a South India tour which would take me to Tanjavur, Nagapattinam, Tituvaiyaru, Tiruchi etc or a Karnataka West coast tour to Gokarna, Karwar and Udupi. Hearing Andy tell me about Gokarna, I decided on the later. It was the Christmas weekend of 2004. If you havent realised the significance of my decision to go to West Coast, you will get to know as we go along.

We started very early in the morning. The earlier night I felt my Maruti misfiring but the garage guy said not to worry. We left at 5:15 hence got to Nelamangala quite soon and hit the Tumkur toll road. It was a wonderful road. Andy had told me that the road is as good as a US road and that he didnt believe it when his friend had told him. Well, I didnt believe Andy until I saw the road. It's a great road but to be fair to our highway guys they have laid such roads in many more stretches like Hosur to Krishnagiri and then all the way to Chennai. That's progress.

We stopped for breakfast at Tumkur. I had all along associated Tumkur road with the Pune highway. So at Tumkur I saw the map and started going on the Pune road towards Sira. After going almost 2.5 kms I realised that my destination was NOT Pune !!! I did a U turn came back to Tumkur and proceeded on the Shimoga road. We got to Shimoga just before lunch time but decided to have lunch anyway. I didnt want to cross Shimoga without having lunch. After lunch we started from Shimoga and as we got out of Shimoga, I stopped the car, folded the back seat of Maurti and made my kids lie down. They happily slept for a some time and woke up only when we got near Jog.

We stopped briefly near the diversion that takes us to Jog. I didnt want to go to Jog since that would delay me and I wanted to be out of the ghat section before it got late. At the point you can see the river running. Had tea is a small 'dabba' tea shop and proceeded.

The Ghat section starts after Jog. What a ghat section it is !! I loved it and Gayathri hated it since she starts getting motion sickness when we go on Ghat section. It was full of twists and turns, lot of hairpin bends and steep climbs. All the way, the scenery was fantastic all around. I would look at the scenery and exclaim to Gayathri, "Wow. Look at that !!!". She would always reply back, "I look at that. You better look at the ROAD"!! I could understand her anxiety as the roads were curving and you need to be on high alert. I dont know how many mountains we crossed but we did cross a lot of them. It would look as if we have come down and the ghat section is done with, when the next mountain will appear in front of you and the climb would start again. Again you will come down only to start climbing again. After some time Gayathri was fully frustrated, "When will get to level ground". Everyone was hungry and tired and wanted to get to a hotel fast. It took us almost two hours to cross this section.

You hit the town of Honavar after your final descent. You almost will run into the Kamat Hotel which is bang on the coastal highway NH 17. It was a no brainer as to where we should stop. My car by itself went into the Kamat parking lot !! After refreshing ourselves, we drove to Gokarna. We arrived there after 6 o clock. I had booked us in Hotel Gokarn. Not a very great place but the best you can get in Gokarna.

We went to the temple that night. As soon as you get there, the priests will surround you and tell you that they can do lot of pooja's for you. For a price of course. Since one of my friends had warned me about this, I told them, "Thanks but no thanks" and went in only for the darshan. the temple has many legends associated with it but somehow seeing all the priests running after people, I really didnt get a great feeling here. We had dinner at Prema's hotel on the beach and came back to sleep. Tomorrow will be our day at the beaches of Gokarna.

We came to Prema's hotel for breakfast and then went and stood at the Gokarna beach. It is a nice beach and was lonely in the morning hours. In the evening you will see lot more people. But you dont go to Gokarna for this beach. You go there for the other beaches. The Om beach, Paradise beach etc. We went and bargained with the boat guys, who have motors fitted to their boats. They will take you into the ocean and then to the Om beach. You can trek a small hill and get to Om beach as well. Since my daughters were small, we decided to take the ocean route !!

Om beach is fantastic. Even though there lot more people due to vacation, still you felt it was lonely !! You feel that you have the whole beach to yourself. Since not many people come here, it is neat and the water a lovely hue of blue. The water is shallow and you can happily swim here, which I did. Ranjani and Harini were lierally rolling the water. Though the sun was shining brightly, it wasnt too hot. It was an ultimate place to relax, to swim and to enjoy yourself. The boatman, though had agreed only for an hour, seeing us enjoying here was willing to wait for a longer time. It was with great difficulty that we tore ourselves from this place and started back. On the way back we spotted a dolphin and that was a bonus.

We came back to the Gokarna beach, had our lunch at Prema's hotel, came back to Hotel Gokarn and check out. I then drove to Karwar and checked into Hotel Badra there. We switched on the TV and it was then we got the news. The same time as we were at the Gokarna and Om beaches, the East Coast had been devastated by the terrible Tsunami !! It was shocking to see so many people lose their lives to the Tsunami.

The shadow of Tsunami would hang over all the beaches for the next few days.

Sikkim - Some info

Getting there : The best way is to get to Kolkata and from there to New Jalpaiguri by train. In case you want to fly, you need to get to Bagdogra. There are flights operating from Kolkata and also from Delhi to Bagdogra. The only problem is that the flight fare is generally high and you dont get any great fare even if you book very early. New Jalpaiguri, Siliguri and Bagdogra are next to each other and so you can get to any of these places in order to get to Gangtok. You need to hire a cab from here. The cost will depend on the season. Last year it cost me Rs.1400/- one way. You can contact this cab driver. He was very nice guy and drove safely.

Jantu - Cab driver - 9932534996. Speak to him in Hindi or Bengali and not in English !!

Places to stay in Gangtok: Check out www.sikkiminfo.net for different hotel options. The hotels I stayed were:

Hotel Sonam Delek : Ask for Tam Ding - Ph: 03592-202566 The place doesnt look too upmarket but the rooms are neat and the price is reasonable. The restaurant serves great food.

Mintokling guest house: This has a resort type of feel to it. The rooms are good and the delux suite is reasonably priced and is spacious. Has a good view of the mountains. The food was a bit bland here but the stay was good. Ask for Pema. Ph: 03592-204226.

North Sikkim : You need to take the help of a travel agency to go to North Sikkim. I went thru Marcopolo agency. They did an excellent job. The driver who came with us for the North Sikkim trip was great. He drove well and was friendly. The rest house they have in Lachen is very basic. Lachung property is better and probably the best in that area. The guide was also very helpful. The whole trip was arranged in a professional manner.

Marcopolo Travels: Ask for Karmatashi Bhutia (the owner) or for Ganesh Ram Sharma (Manager) Phone: 03592-204116/229407/221723

I have heard that Sikkim Tours and Travels is also a good travel agency. Contact Lukendra. Phone No: 03592-202188 / 227191

A word of caution about North Sikkim tour. There is a lot of travel by jeep involved and the weather can be harsh depending on when you are going there. Added to it, variety in terms of food is very less. So if you have very small kids or senior citizens travelling with you, think and find out all details before you undertake this trip.

Food: There is no problem about food in Gangtok. Nowadays everyone eats chappatis and North Indian dishes. These are available in Gangtok easily. Chinese food is also available. In Lachen and Lachung you will not have much say about the food. You will get vegetarian food but the variety is very limited. All the provision to Lachen and Lachung comes from Gangtok and so dont expect to get A La Carte menu. The breakfast is usually bread toast at Lachen and bread toast and poori at Lachung. Lunch and dinner have phulkas/chapatis and rice. You will have dal and a curry. The rice is a variety of boiled rice. I was used to it since I had been to Kolkata many times earlier and had eaten this rice. Gayathri had a bit of a problem getting used to it.

Safety and the people: Both Gangtok and North Sikkim turned out to be very safe places. The people are extremely polite and helpful. All the cab drivers we got were very pleasant, friendly and patient. The prices were agreed upon in advance and so there no cheating involved. Overall I found the people of Sikkim to be excellent in their hospitality. You can get along at most places by speaking in Hindi.

The Valley of Flowers which wasnt


"There is no need to rent the snow boots. You rent some wind cheaters. It will be windy there and the jackets will be useful against the wind", said the senior guide. No harm came to him because I abhor violence !!!

The journey from Lachen to Lachung was a short and uneventful one. It took us around 2 hrs to get to Lachung from Lachen. The scenery, as usual, was breathtaking. Just before entering the Lachung town, there was a nice waterfall. We stopped here since the driver wanted to have tea at a tea shop here. We also had a cup of tea and took some snaps near the waterfall.

The place we stayed at Lachung was a nice one. It was better than the one we stayed at Lachen. The cold was also less here and the hotel people gave us hot water packs, which were very useful. Upon arrival, we were treated to plate of onion pakodas, which were extremely tasty. That night I had a minor shock. I had covered myself with a razai and about to sleep. I turned around and suddenly felt breathless. It took me some time to get back to normal !! I was wondering as to what happened to me. The razai was heavy but not so heavy that you become breathless. There didnt seem to be any doctor or hospital around and here I was feeling breathless. Anyway I slowly relaxed and was able to sleep. Only the next morning did I realize that what happened was not due to my lack of fitness but due to the altitude at which we were staying. We were staying at close to 13000 ft and I did notice the effort I had to put in when I took a morning stroll to get some photography done.

The next day morning, we started for Yumthang, the Valley of flowers. It is not too far from Lachung and takes around an hour or so to get there. Along the way we saw a lot of yaks. We passed through the rhododendron sanctuary. There are supposed to be around 63 or so varieties of these flowers which grow here. Unfortunately when we went it was still snowing and so the flowers were not in bloom. There were some trees which had flowers on them. This itself gave us an idea of how beautiful this sanctuary would be in the summer time.

As we entered the Yumthang area, we saw a board, 'Welcome to the Valley of Flowers'. We were excited to get there. As we got out of the vehicle, the scene in front of our eyes totally surprised us !! There were no flowers. Instead the whole valley was filled with snow !!! This is a big valley and the whole of the valley was covered with snow. From the main road, around 200 mts away ran the river. Past the river, around 100 mts off were the mountains again. To our left, around 20 to 30 mts away were the mountains. Both the sides of the road were fully covered with snow. The snow had carpeted the whole area till the river and it would be great walking all the way till the river in the snow. The area again resembled a black and white picture, with the black mountains being covered with glowing white snow.

I looked round for the senior guide, who had advised us against renting the snow boots. All the people who had come there had come prepared. They were taking off their slippers, putting on their snow boots and started walking and playing in the snow. Here we were, looking totally dumb and frustrated, with all the snow around us calling us to play and we unable to step into it. It took great control not to give the senior guide a few bangs on his head. Instead I went and bugged him and told him to get me some boots on rent. After almost half an hour or more, he managed to get a couple of them. We sent in Ranjani and Harini and they just loved it in the snow. After some time, we got two more pairs of boots and then Gayathri and I went in.

Nothing beats the experience of walking in snow. The land beneath us was not even and we were not sure if we stepping on firm ground or on a stone. I did fall a couple of times but it was enjoyable. I walked till around the place where the river was flowing. Harini had done done something close to a snow man and the kids didnt want to come out of the snow. We finally came out and went to a water spring which was nearby. They have built a room around the spring. The water was luke warm. What was interesting was the walk to the spring. You had walk across a bridge in order to cross the river. The bridge also had snow on it which made it slippery. The light had faded a bit and I was able to take a couple of good snaps of this area.

We came back to out hotel for lunch. In the evening we visited a monastery nearby. Before that I had taken Gayathri and kids for a small walk around. There were some kids playing cricket here. I joined them and played for some time !! It was a nice experience.

The next day after breakfast we started for Gangtok. We had lunch at the same place where I had earlier had salt tea !! Along the way, as we were getting near to Gangtok, we saw our first and the only glimpse of Kanchenjunga. It was a towering peak which seemed to tear apart the clouds. It was visible for less than 5 mins before being covered with the clouds again. It was raining in Gangtok when we arrived and the drizzle continued for some time.

Thus ended our North Sikkim trip. The next day we were off toNew Jalpaiguri from where we would go to Kolkata and get back to Bangalore

The unsuccessful attempt to reach Gurudongmar lake


The light drizzle continued the next day as well. We had finished breakfast, when we got a call from the reception informing us that the vehicle from our tour agent has arrived. We went down with our luggage. The driver said, " We need to start soon so that we can get to Lachen soon". As soon as we loaded our luggage, the driver promptly disappeared !!! He informed us that he was going to the market to buy a spanner. So there we were, all luggage loaded and looking lost !! We came in to sit at the reception. A set of old people were already sitting there and one of them asked me,"Are you off to North Sikkim?". I said yes upon which he told me that there was a landslide and the road was blocked. Oh great. At this time the guide from the travel agency arrived. He said that the road was being cleared and there should be no problem. I hoped so. After some time the driver came and we started, not knowing what roadblock lay ahead.

If you thought the 'guide' meant someone who knew the land intimately and knew about its history and will educate you about the mountains etc, you will be sorely disappointed. He was a tour guide, which means he will tell you where we will stop, where we will eat, what we will eat and when you need to get up tomorrow etc. He was more like an arranger of the trip. Anyway the guy who came with us was a young chap, who was very polite and did arrange things well.

We started in the drizzle and the first stop was not very far from Gangtok. We had to climb a small hillock to have a good view of the region, which we did. Then started the actual journey. I had initially thought that nothing would beat the drive from New Jalpaiguri to Gangtok. This drive was to prove that wrong. We were entering the actual Himalayan ranges now. The mountains became huge. After seeing them, the Brahmagiri ranges look like small hillocks. The Teesta river was running along with us all the way and whenever we stopped we could hear the gushing of the water. The Teesta was running with gay abandon over the rocks and the water was crystal clear. Once in a while the river would drop a few feet to create a mini water fall. Teesta would run along with us at our level sometimes. When we crossed bridges, it would run underneath us and we could feel its force. Most of the time it was way below us but always visible. Added to it was the vegetation all around us and it was a real pleasure driving along this road. I thought this was the best road journey I will ever have. I was to be proved wrong the very next day !!!

At many places we crossed some old bridges and when you cross these bridges you get a lovely view of the river beneath you and the mountains surrounding you. Generally we were climbing mountains, so we could see the valley below and the mountains in the front of us. At one point, we got a great side view. There were mountains on both sides stretching as far as the eye could see and the river running between the mountains as if it was the river which had cleaved these mountains. An outstanding sight. Mention must here be made about the Border Road Organisation, who have done a wonderful job on all these roads. I guess to have such great roads in a remote area like this wouldnt have been possible without their dedicated effort. Three cheers to all of them.

The journey to Lachen was a long one but the scenery kept us captivated. It took us more than 6 hrs to get there. On the way we had first stopped for lunch. I came to know that the driver and guide were having salt tea !!! Yup. That is right. They put some butter and salt in the tea. I had to have it and asked for a cup. After I drank that Gayathri asked me how it was. I told her it tasted like tea with salt in it !!! She knows me well not to react to such statements !! We then stopped in the evening at Chungthang and had tea, this time with sugar. The kids had Maggie noodles. By the time we reached Lachen, it was getting dark.

The facilities at Lachen are very basic and the tour agency had told me this. The place we stayed cannot be called a hotel. It was a multi storied building in reverse !! It started with the ground floor and was about three levels deep. The rooms were plain but they had hot water and electricity. The most fascinating part of the stay here was the disappearing act of the cast and crew there. When we went in, one guy showed us the room and disappeared. When I came out I saw that the driver and the guide have also disappeared. I searched for some soul but couldnt find any. After sometime the guy who showed us the room appeared bearing some tea. Then again he disappeared !! Suddenly the guide would pop up and say something and disappear. Then this guy would appear with some news about dinner and then promptly vanish. I was scared that I too would suddenly vanish without my own knowledge !! I wasnt the only one feeling that way. A family which had come there the previous day told me that they couldnt find anyone when they wanted something !!

Lachen was cold. Gayathri comes from Chennai and is not used to this type of cold. The temperature was getting close to zero degrees. Chennai people's concept of a cold day is when the temperature hits 20 degree centigrade. You can see people in sweater and mufflers in Dec in Chennai when the mercury touches 20 !! So you can imagine what a single digit temperature would have felt like to them. Gayathri was literally shivering and so were the kids. I asked for a room heater. The guy said he will check the availability and vanished. He didnt appear again for some time. Gayathri was fully draped in blanket and a razai but was still feeling cold. The guy finally appeared with a heater. We gave a sigh of relief when the heater gave out some hot air. This relief was short lived when the fuse gave out. I again went in search of someone and by some miracle located the guy who got us the heater. Told him about the problem. He came to the room, checked the heater, confirmed there was a problem, took the heater and you guess it, he vanished. Then the guide appeared. I told him about the heater. He said he will check about it and did the vanishing trick !! Finally the first guy appeared with a heater which worked and kept working. Only after this did Gayathri's agony subside.

Given the cold weather, we werent sure if we wanted to go to the Gurudongmar lake. I wanted to see it but wasnt sure if the kids will be able to take in the cold. We finally decided to go and we started a bit late than what the driver would have liked. Now came a journey which was incredible. After we left Lachen, the mountains seemed to grow even taller. Wherever our eyes turned we saw snow capped mountains. The whole place was deserted and ours was the only car on the road. Along the way there were lot of yaks grazing. Cows were climbing the mountains surefooted. There were waterfalls everywhere you turned. We could clearly see the snow melt and come down in the form of a waterfall. There were small purple flowers growing out of the ground all along the way, giving the whole place a colorful glow. This area is supposed to be a birdwatchers paradise and we could see why. As we were driving along, suddenly a big group of tiny birds would take off, fly in front of our jeep for some time, then do a tight right turn in such unison that it would have made the best fighter pilot jealous. As you watch these birds with amazement, another bird, slightly larger, with a black body and a lovely brown tail would start off from a bush and fly away. As you watch that wonderful bird with your mouth agape, there would rise a couple of tiny birds with wonderfully colored wings and fly away. I am not a bird watcher but I was sure taken in by the sheer variety of birds I saw during the journey. If a birdwatcher were to come here I am sure he will just die of sheer pleasure. The yaks, flowers, birds, waterfalls, snow capped mountains and the ever flowing river made this a journey which was unforgettable. This sure beat the journey of yesterday.

After traveling for quite some time, we encountered snow. There had been a very heavy snowfall the earlier day it seems and the whole area was now covered in snow. We traveled for some more time before we saw a large caravan of jeeps in front of us. A couple of vehicles had got stuck in the snow and all the people were trying to help these guys. We were stuck behind the vehicles for close to one hour and our dream of visiting Gurudongmar lake vanished. Somehow they got the vehicles out and we proceed for some more time. The snow was thicker here and almost everyone turned back since it made no sense trying to get to Gurudongmar. One guy had told us, when we were waiting for the traffic to move, that Gurudongmar was at a high altitude (17,000+ feet) and kids may find it difficult there. Gayathri was apprehensive and she was relieved when we turned back. We turned back at a place called Thangu, which was at 15000 ft, had tea there and proceed back to Lachen. Due to the heavy snow, we couldnt get to see Chopta Valley either. The kids though were very happy since they could play in snow again. We came back to Lachen, had our lunch and left for Lachung. Not seeing Gurudongmar was a regret.

The next day was our planned trip to the Valley of Flowers near Lachung. We were in for a surprise.

Tsango, Snow and the fading light

Gayathri and the kids were to see snow for the first time in their lives. It was to be snow, that beautiful lake called Tsongo and fading light on the second day of our stay in Gangtok.

We had slept quite well with the hotel guys providing us a room heater to beat the cold. I woke up in the morning and came down to check about the trip to Tsongo lake with the manager. As I got off the last step and turned around, I was stuck by the scenery outside. A light drizzle was on, the light was dull and the whole area was covered by mist. I walked to the terrace to take in the scene. Nothing odd about it except for the fact that the terrace was on the ground floor !!! Well, in Sikkim most of the people build their houses on the mountain slopes. So you can have terrace on the ground floor as well !! I quickly went and got Gayathri down to see the scene. It was misty and it looked as if all the clouds had legs as they crawled across the mountains, which were there on every side we turned.

The manager had arranged for the Tsongo lake trip. We paid around Rs.1200 for the trip. It was a bit high as it was the season. The driver turned up by the time we finished our breakfast. He was past middle age and he turned out to be a safe driver and a pleasant man.

The drive started and after we had gone some distance I had the first glimpse of a snow capped mountain. (There are no snow capped mountains when you drive from New Jalpaiguri to Gangtok) I was sitting in the front seat of Maruti Omni besides the driver. I turned around and told Gayathri and the kids, "Look there, way beyond. Can you see the snow capped mountains". "Wow" said Gayathri and the kids. "Thats where we are going sir", said the driver. "What" !!! The mountains looked way way away. "Yes sir. We have to cross x number of mountains to get there" said the driver. I have forgotten if x is 11 or 20, but it was surely in double digits.

We started climbing the mountains and the houses and trees below were diminishing in size. The view of the valley was fantastic and you would enjoy it as long as you dont suffer from vertigo. We kept steadily climbing and the sizes of objects kept steadily decreasing. Gayathri, who is not a great fan of heights, told me,"We are climbing so high that it looks like we will directly go to Kailash". The scenery beneath was scary or wonderful depending on your point of view. I mean the figurative point of view !!

After crossing a few mountains the light started dimming. The drizzle had stopped earlier. It was then we saw those white patches along the road. All along the road and on the mountain side, we could see patches of something which was dirty white. "What is it", we asked the driver. "Snow", he said. "Whoooa", said the kids. "Stop, stop. We want to touch it". It was the first contact with snow for Gayathri and the kids and were they thrilled!! This snow was made of tiny crystals and was not the powdery one. Both Ranjani and Harini squealed in delight when they touched the snow and felt the chill on their hands. Even the more restrained Gayathri couldnt control herself. She picked up some snow and threw at me !!!

Promising them that there will be more snow ahead, I got them back into the car and we went ahead. We stopped at a tea house and had some hot tea. Lot of other cars had also stopped at this place. The amount of snow around us had increased and so had the thickness of the mist. The light was fading. The kids as usual wanted me to buy some stuff to eat from the shops there. We started and passed a couple of waterfalls. I still clearly remember an area which was in between two mountains. The road was curving and the mountains had cut off most of the already failing light. The extremely dull light, the black mountains and the silver waterfall combined in such a way that it reminded me of the dark scenery in Harry Potter movies.

After some distance we came to point where the road widened. There was a river running besides the road and the road had probably been widened so that people can stop and watch the river. A great idea. There was more snow around, the river running in midst of it and the whole area covered with mist and the half light. It was too good a scene to miss. We stopped the car and asked the driver to take a picture of us.

The snow around us was getting thicker and whiter. There were lot of army camps around and all of them were covered in snow. As the vehicles were getting nearer to the Tsongo lake the climb was steep and the snow on the road made it tougher for the cars. We could see a couple of cars getting stuck in the snow and other drivers helping them get out of the mess. "These small boys dont know how to drive in these conditions", said our driver. "The trick is to give the right power at the right time. It takes experience to know this". As could be expected, he got stuck in the next five minutes when he was climbing a curving slope which had snow on it. There was an awkward silence in our vehicle and a couple of drivers from other cars helped us out of this situation. That was the last climb and a few hundred yards off, we were at Tsongo lake.

Generally whenever you read about a lake, people describe it as shimmering in the heat or glowing like a pearl. Though I would have loved to use such high flying descriptions, unfortunately I cannot. The lake was neither shimmering nor glowing since the light there was not bright. It was half light and the scenery was a surrealist delight. The black mountains around the lake were covered with white snow giving you the illusion that you have mistakenly stepped into a Black and White world. You would probably have believed it had it not been for the colorful dresses of the people around. Tsongo is an almost oval shaped lake lying in midst of the mountains. The lake was a real delight to behold and its location impeccable. Looks like this lake is frozen during the winter and looks even more beautiful. My colleague told me that when he had come to Tsongo, there was no snow around but the lake was partially frozen !!

It was extremely chill and we were saved by the fact that we had shopped for the woolens the previous day. The gloves were absolutely essential and I had a tough time when I removed them to take some snaps. It was freezing cold and my hands started paining. So I had to put on my gloves back soon.

We went on a yak ride. There are lot of guys with yaks around this lake and this is probably the most entertaining thing you can do around the lake. Harini refused to get on the yak and stayed back in the car. There were too many people and vehicles around. The area was slushy with the half melted snow and it was a difficult task getting around on foot. So you can imagine how much more difficult it would have been for a yak !! The yak handler though made the yak walk between the narrowest of path between cars, made it climb over ledges and walk in the mostly slushiest of the areas. They way the yaks maneuvered around, I wouldnt have been surprised had a yak climbed over a car and got down on the other side !! They did look capable.

We came back after a short ride, took Harini along to play in the snow. Ranjani started feeling very cold after playing the snow for some time and now it was her turn to get back and stay in the car !! Harini was enjoying herself in the snow and started throwing snow at us. She and Gayathri threw snow at each other which made them very happy.

We then went and had some hot chai and got some hot Maggie noodles for the kids. You need to clear off from the Tsongo lake by 1 or 1:30pm. That is the rule there. So all vehicles started pulling off. We too started. Along the way it started getting foggy. Infact the fog became so dense that the visibility decreased to almost 10 feet. Given that we were going on curving mountain roads with no barrier on the side, this was not an advantage !! Inspite of all our apprehensions, we still couldnt stop ourselves from appreciating the lovely scenery !! Terror and Beauty coexist in such situations. The driver got us back without any incidents. We had our lunch in the hotel and couldnt go outside in the evening as it was continuously raining.

The next would take us to Lachen. It was a trip which would make Gayathri and the kids shiver !!

Glory of the Eastern Himalayas - A trip to Sikkim


When I told him that I intended to go to Sikkim for my summer holidays my colleague gave me a gem of an advice. He said, "Most of the travel agents would want try and pack your holiday with Gangtok, Darjeeling and Kalimpong. Dont fall for it. Go to Northern Sikkim". I took his advice and oh boy, did that enhance my enjoyment of the whole trip !!!

The travel agent I spoke to in Bangalore gave an itinerary which did include Darjeeling and Kalimpong !!! Deciding to do this on my own, with the help of the favourite travel adviser, the World Wide Web, I searched for hotels in Gangtok and also the agents in Gangtok who can arrange for the North Sikkim tour. I was to realise much later that I had hit pay dirt !!! The hotels were good and the Gangtok agency had arranged an excellent North Sikkim tour. (www.sikkiminfo.net is a good place to get info about Sikkim)

The same colleague same me another advice which led me to do lot of shopping in Gangtok. That is a different story which I shall relate as we go by.

We had gone to Hyderabad to visit my parents during the summer vacation. The summer of 2006. From Hyd we flew into Calcutta. My good friend, Subbu, had arranged for accommodation in Calcutta. He had also invited me to his house. The hospitality of Subbu and his wife Shobana is something that we cannot forget. After having dinner at his house, we went to the Sealdah station from where we boarded the 'Darjeeling Mail'. This goes upto a place called 'New Jalpaiguri'. In case you want to fly in from Calcutta, you need to fly to Bagdogra, which is very close to New Jalpaiguri. The train leaves around 10 o clock in the night and reaches New Jalpaiguri after 8 o clock in the morning.

New Jalpaiguri is the place where you will land when you want to go to Darjeeling or Gangtok or Kalimpong. You will need to take a bus or some sort of road transport from this station to get to any of the places I had mentioned above. We opted for a Tata Sumo type of vehicle (it was called a different name but it was a Tata vehicle and looked very much like the Sumo). The driver turned out to be a very nice chap. The rate varies depending on the season and when we went in April it was the season. So it is a no-brainer to guess that the rates were high !! I think we paid around Rs.1400 for the trip.

The trip to Gangtok takes around 5hrs or so. The land is quite flat for the first 15 to 20 kms. After that the mountain section starts and it is a drive to savor. When you get to the mountain section the Teesta river joins you and comes along with you almost all the way to Gangtok. Imagine a drive where you can constantly see the river flowing in the valley for close to 50kms !!! You cannot take your eyes off the scenery around you. I thought it was probably the best ride on any ghat section that I would get. I would be proved wrong later !! On the way we saw the Sikkim-Manipal Institute of Technology. What a place to have an education institution!! Standing almost on the edge of a cliff and the Tessta flowing way below, it is a location which dreams and postcards are made of. My wife asked me, "How can people here study? It is such a wonderful place". Nature at its distracting best !!

The vehicles which ply from New Jalpaiguri are generally West Bengal registered vehicles. They are not allowed to ply inside Gangtok. So they get to a taxi stand, which is very crowded with all sort of vehicles, and drop you there. You need to take another taxi from here to reach your hotel. It is a bit of pain but you have no choice !!

I had booked myself into a hotel called Sonam Delek. The hotel is in a narrow road. The external facade isnt very attractive but the hotel is a good one. The rooms are neat and the charges are quite attractive. I got a 4 bed room for around Rs.1100/- per day. The added attraction of this hotel is that their restaurant is very good and both the breakfast and dinner were very tasty. (The manager here, called Tam Ling, had stayed in Bangalore. When I had called him from Bangalore for the hotel booking he tried speaking to me in Kannada, with a Nepalese accent. I couldnt make out what he was saying till me told me, "Sir, I am speaking in Kannada". Normalcy was restored) The staff was helpful and so was the manager. They arranged for the trip to Tsongo lake, about which I will talk later.

After lunch and some rest, we decided to go in the evening for a walk along the most famous road in Gangtok. You guessed it, M G Road !! We went there after 6 o clock and it started getting cold. My colleague had told me that late April will be quite warm and I didnt need any warm clothes. Oh boy, was he _wrong_ !! We walked on this road and had chai in one of the shops there. A slow drizzle started and the temperature dropped further !! Now the complaints of 'feeling cold' started coming in from my wife and kids. And here we were without any warm clothing whatsoever !! Added to it someone there told us that the cold will get worser in North Sikkim. So we did the most sensible thing that can be done. We shopped for sweaters. The guy in the shop told us that if were going to North Sikkim, we might as well buy some gloves and monkey caps. It would turn out be a great advice. The rain had intensified by then. So we had no choice but to take an auto to our hotel, which was quite close by. Had a nice hot dinner and went to sleep.

The next day would take us to the amazing Tsongo lake.

On to the Kudremukh mountains

I wanted to explore the Kudremukh mountains so my brother and I started off one day by car to Kalasa. This was during May 2006. The family was in Chennai and we two decided to go off to Kudremukh. I was fascinated by the Kudremukh region when we had earlier gone from Sringeri to Hornadu.

I searched the travel books and came to know that there are only two options which are available for your stay. And both of them at Kalasa. There is no option to stay at Kudremukh. One option is the Silent Valley Resorts and the other is Hotel Chandan . Since Silent Valley Resort was fully booked, I called up Hotel Chandan and booked a double room.

Kalasa is a small place and the hotel isnt great a great place to stay if are with your family. I saw lot of small cockroaches in the room. So avoid it if you are going there with your family. The Silent Valley Resorts is the other place and is around 5 to 6 kms from Kalasa on the way to Kudremukh. Those who have stayed at Silent Valley Resorts have not waxed eloquently on the facilities but were quite neutral. Food is a problem in Kalasa. You dont have any decent hotels here and people werent too happy with the food in Silent Valley either.

We started off early in the morning from Bangalore, stopped on the way at Hotel Mayura enroute to Hassan. Then we took the Belur road. The road was newly laid at that time and it was a great pleasure driving on this road. From Belur you go towards Mudigere and then towards Kottigehara. (You can find the directions for reaching Kalasa in the Silent Valley Resorts website www.silentvalley.net/roadmap.htm). At Kottigehara, we stopped for tea. You need to take a right turn here and proceed 7 kms before taking a almost U-Left turn. The road climbs steeply here. We missed this turn and by the time I realised it we were far gone !!! It turned out to be a blessing in disguise since the road was in a bad condition compared to the wrong road that we took. (We realised it when we came back by the normal route). We went almost till Ballehannur and took a left road which led us to Kalasa. We checked into Hotel Chandan.

After having lunch and relaxing for some time, we left for the Annapoorneshwari temple at Hornadu. Hornadu is around 7 kms from Kalasa would take you around 15 mins to reach there. On the way you get a nice stream where you can stop for some time. The road is also good in the sense that there are lot of twists and turns. (I am nowadays so hooked to these ghat roads that driving on straight roads doesnt give much pleasure :(

You can rarely get such a location as the one where the Annapoorneshwari temple is situated. It is in a valley, surrounded by mountains on all sides. The mountains seem to enclose this place and the moment you stop your vehicle and get out, you feel a kind of calm even before you enter the temple complex. Sitting on the steps leading to the temple and looking at the mountains rising in front is an experience you must not miss. If you sit there during the twilight hour, your experience will be more enriching as it was in our case. Being so close to nature gives a sort of peace which we city dwellers can only dream about.

The temple is a nice though not as spectacular as the more famous temples of the south. The idol inside is a big one. As is the custom in many temples of this region, guys have to go in bare chested. Free meals are provided in the temple. (Afterall, she is Annapoorneshwari , one who provides food and she cant let her devotees go hungry)

Next morning, after a simple breakfast (we really didnt have a choice :) we left for the Kudremukh National Park. My idea was to just drive through that region and enjoy the scenery around. We passed the Silent Valley Resorts on our way to the park. The drive is an enjoyable one with the forest cover or coffee plantations always with you when you drive. The roads have lot of twists, turns and gradients to keep you awake :)) It is green all around and you may spot a langur or two on the way. Though it is called a National Park, except for monkeys and birds, you will not get to spot any wildlife.

Our stop in the National Park was at Hanumangundi Falls. On the way to the falls you see a board saying 'Ganga Moola' 1 Km. You need to trek for a km to get to the Gangamoola but the problem is that you need to stop your car and then trek. At the place where you want to stop there is a No Parking board !!! Infact at many places they say that you shouldnt park your car in the park and wander around. I dont know how they expect you to trek to this place if you cant park your car anywhere nearby !! Gangamoola is supposed to be the birthplace of three rivers, Tunga, Bhadra and Netra. Given the peculiar problem that I described, we couldnt trek to this place.

We stopped at the Hanumangundi falls. Dont immediately imagine that we stopped very near the falls and you can see the falls from the place where we stopped !! The place where you have to stop is near the Hanumangundi Falls hoarding !! There is an office here which will issue a ticket. I forgot the cost of the ticket. After you buy this ticket, you need to climb down a good number of stairs before you see the waterfall. The steps are steep and you will lose breath climbing back if you are not in good shape.

The climb though is worth it. The waterfall is a nice place to have a bath. So go prepared with change of clothes. You will find people at the waterfalls but it is not overly crowded. You do get a feeling of seclusion even if a few people are around. You can easily spend an hour or more at these falls.

From here, Karkala isnt too far off. If my memory serves me right, it should be around 25 kms or so from here. At the Karala, you can get to see a nice Jain temples and a huge statue of one of the Jain gurus. This place is situated on top of a small hillock. The temple was closed when we went. We could only see the statue from outside the gate and it looks impressive.

More importantly, Karkala has some good places to eat !!! Seeing the hotels, I thought it would be a good idea to stay at Karkala and explore Kudremukh than staying at Kalasa. We had a decent lunch and got back to our hotel. We left the next morning to Bangalore and on the way I was able to get some good shots of the mountains with the sunlight filtering through the clouds.

This area is definitely worth a two day trip.

Places to Stay and Eat at Kushalnagar and Madikeri

At Kushalnagar, the two good hotels are:

1. Kannika International (Ph: 08276-274728, 273401/02/03). It has slightly old look. I didnt check out the rooms but the food is very good.

2. Hotel Shylaja Arris (Ph:08276-272762) This was a newly built hotel so the rooms very neat and fresh. There were a few teething problems but I guess they would have solved it by now. Their restaurant serves Andhra food ("first restaurant to serve Andhra food in Kushalnagar" etc). The food was OK.

3. Nisargadhama (Ph: 08272-228305) This is the Forest Office number in Madikeri. You will need to call them and send them a draft if you want to book a cottage at Nisargadhama. The location is superb but the food is pathetic in the canteen there. Even if you are staying here, it is better to head for Kannika or any hotel in that vicinity.

At Madikeri

1. We stayed at Brahmagiri Comforts.(Ph: 08272- 225866 / 224866 / 224867) The road leading to it is very narrow and steep. You need to ask for directions getting to the hotel or you will miss it. It is a mediocre hotel. We didnt eat there. There is a good vegetarian restaurant on the main road, less than 5mins from this hotel. We had food there which was good.

At Bhagmandala
1. I dont know about the staying options here but the best and probably the only place to eat is the Hotel Mayura. The lunch was good here.

At Kakabe

1. I didnt notice any good eating places here. If you are going to Kakabe, ensure you get to the Iguttappa temple during lunch time. That way your food problem will be solved :))

Trip to Madikeri, Bhagmandala, Talacauvery and Kakabe

We started from Kushalnagar in the morning after breakfast and headed to Madikere. Madikere is around 45 to 50 km from Kushalnagar and you should do this distance in an hours time. This is the ghat section but the hills slope very gently. So the drive is quite good and not very strenuous.

We got to Madikeri and went to the hotel, Brahmagiri Comforts. We just dumped our bags here and started for Bhagmandala and Talacauvery. This road is also on a ghat section and has many twists and turns. On the way there is a small shop where you can have a cup of coffee and can also buy coffee powder and spices. What caught the eye was the slogan there, which went 'Drink and Drive'. They meant coffee ofcourse :)) We stopped here and had a cup of coffee, bought some spices and drove down to Bhagmandala.

Well, if you are not too religious a person, there isnt much to do at Bhagmandala !! You can see two river streams joining there. There is also a temple here which you can visit.

From there we went to Tala Cauvery. This is the birthplace of Cauvery. There is a small tank built here and you can take a dip in that. Take a change of clothes along if you want to take a dip. Next to this spot are steps which lead up to the peak of the mountain. Frome there you can see a lot of the Brahmagiri ranges and also the hills of Kerala. Since it was close to lunch time and we were hungry, we didnt climb up this mountain.

On the way back we stopped for lunch at Hotel Mayura at Bhagmandala. This is the only decent place to eat in the whole stretch from Madikeri to Tala Cauvery. So ensure your stop is such that you are at Bhagmandala when you are hungry :)) The food is good here but do expect a crowd since everyone going this side wants to eat here !!

Starting from the hotel, we went headed for Kakabe. For this you need to go straight thru a village road without turning left at Bhagmandala. It is better to ask people at Bhagmandala on the road that you have to take. This drive is excellent. It takes you thru lot of plantations and except for seeing a town bus once in a while, you get absolutely no traffic on the road. It is very peaceful.

Our destination at Kakabe was the Iguttappa temple. When you reach the taxi stand at Kakabe, you need to take a right and follow the sign boards to get to this temple. The temple is on top of a hillock and is on all sides surrounded by mountains. You can see Todiyendamol, the tallest peak in Coorg, from here. The temple is a Kerala style temple.

As luck would have it, we reached there when the temple was closed. We got there around 4pm but the temple opens only after 5pm or so. They close at 1 pm. So keep this in mind when you plan a trip to this temple. The priests were very nice people and asked us to stay back. But I didnt want to drive late in the night not knowing the route. So we put a small donation in the hundi and the priests gave us some prasad and some coffee !! We started from here and drove back to Madikeri.

The next day morning, we left for Abbey falls. These falls are part of a private estate. We reached quite early and so the crowd was very less. You need to park your car and then walk down for 10 mins to get to the waterfall. This walk will make you feel miserable. It is not the strain of walking but the strain of seeing !! Everywhere along the path plastic is strewn. Empty chips packets, cigarette packets, empty plastic bottles etc etc.

But your anger vanishes when you see the falls. Abbey was in its full glory when we went there. It was a wonderful sight and we could go down and stand in the water. We didnt take a shower in the falls but you could do that if you take a change of clothes along. We stayed there for quite some time and by the time we were leaving, it was getting crowded.

We drove back from Madikeri, with a brief halt at Nisargadhama, for my daughters to say Hi to the rabbits and then had lunch at Kushalnagar, before heading back to Bangalore. We got back to Bangalore late in the evening.