Tag Archives: Farm tours

Nestled in the oblivion of Bannerghatta- Koratagere Doddi

September 7, 2020 thelostlander 7 Comments

This is yet another of my family’s random drive day, thanks to Corona unlock weekends… This time, our random pick was in the direction of Bannerghatta forest. We drove past Jigani marble market towards Ragihalli state forest. We drove around randomly and stopped wherever we thought we had a good vantage point. The place being around the fringes of a national park and in the fertile stretch of countryside, there was lots and lots of greenery all along. We stopped by at the IIM-B new campus plot near Mahanthalingapura from where we got a distant view of the ‘Ragihalli Betta’. (Remember our drive to Gullahatti Kaval? We had the view of the hill from a different direction- Click here to read the complete article) The cloudy and cool weather here made everything perfectly amazing, with a great combination of bright green and dull grey. With permission of a millet farm owner present there, we sat in his farm overlooking the green valley for a while, with some packed food and water.

After resuming our drive and on recommendation of a friend, we deviated from the main road leading to the Ragihalli state forest. It was quite an offbeat surprise for our ageing hatchback, but he performed smoothly compared to any youthful 4×4 SUV. A random deviation got our hatchback into an overflowing stream (with water level almost up to the doors). We didn’t know the way ahead, but our driver(my brother) didn’t switch off in the middle of the stream. Another car in the opposite direction directed us to the correct road from where, it was an unpaved gravel laid forest path for a few more kilometers, before passing through a couple of laidback villages. After the tree laden trail was over, small rocky hillocks appeared to our left and a vast stretch of farmland flanked the valley to our right. Apart from a few villagers transporting their goods on two wheelers, we were the only people in this stretch for most distance. We continued an uphill drive until there appeared a junction with a temple at the top. Watch the video of our drive below:

The drive to Koratagere Doddi

A milestone at the junction read that it was ‘Koratagere Doddi’. Thanks to the lockdown and social distancing norms, it had been several months since I had been to a temple and I was excited at the sight of it. From the architecture of it, the structure seemed to be a Sun temple. But google says it is a ‘Paanchala Kshetra’ that was closed at that time. However, the place seemed to be beautiful and we decided to park our car and take a stroll. We walked a few yards to our right and believe me when I say, it looked BEAUTIFUL! We were at a flat rocky tabletop cliff from where we could see a good stretch of the city outskirts. We decided to sit there for an hour at least and enjoy the strong breeze that kissed our faces hard. But yeah, the time was cut short by the rain gods who manifested themselves from the distant dark clouds to a sudden pounding of rain.

The misty Ragihalli forest viewed from a farm

We had no choice but run to our car for shelter. But wow, what a wonderful setting it was: Green grass, grey sky, hill on one side, valley on the other and a lonely temple ahead of us. We saw no signs of the rain stopping as we waited in our car and decided to continue our drive, back home but in the direction of the road ahead of us. Thanks to the rain, we did nothing specific to stop-by and take note of. But yeah, the Ragihalli Betta now appeared closer and COMPLETELY mist / cloud laden, a view not everyone gets lucky with.

Overall, a wonderful day out with family to a place where I belong: to Nature 😊

Gujarat

A detailed guide to the Rann of Kutch

October 26, 2019 thelostlander 1 Comment

With winter, comes in the dry cold winds over the great Indian Thar desert region. The great Rann of Kutch is a part of the Thar desert and is shared between India and Pakistan. The cold winds carry the surface water along with it and dry up the salt marsh. Thus, the entire marshland looks like this phenomenal never-ending stretch of white salt flatland. Rann of Kutch is one of the largest salt marshes in the world and the amazing sunsets over the white salt flats has made it to the bucket list of every traveler and rider.

With all my backpacking experience in other places of India, I wanted to explore ROK too… But when I landed there with a rough idea about the places to visit, I was in for a surprise. Backpacking in Kutch was not as easy as it seemed to me. Firstly, the connectivity through public transportation wasn’t reliable and accommodation options were very few and expensive. It is close to a year since I did this trip and I think I should post this before the ROK travel season starts for this year.

So to begin with, let me tell you the transportation options for getting around Kutch.
1. Pre-book a taxi for your entire trip if you are flying down to Bhuj (The option which I chose).
2. Get a self-drive car or bike from Ahmedabad if that is where you are starting your trip from.
3. There are government buses connecting each place. However, as on date there is only one bus plying each day with long to very long traveling time.

For the stay, I would recommend making Bhuj your central location as it is easy to travel to each place if you choose to follow my itinerary and the stay would be relatively cheaper. The Tent city is extremely expensive and overly commercialized. If you want to experience the tent stay in the salt flats like the way it is portrayed everywhere on the internet, I would advise you to spend your last night at Dholavira.

The roads in Kutch I must tell you are something that will amaze you with. They rip right into the horizon, they are super straight, and one would want to just stop by every other time and get the photos of the road with their car/ bike parked by the side.

IMG-20181217-WA0010 — The Tropic of cancer passes across the road

Then comes the itinerary. This is what a typical itinerary for anyone traveling to Kutch looks like if the start and end point of your trip is Bhuj.

Day 1: Koteshwar + Lakhpat + Mata no Madh

You will be traveling to the western-most tip of Indian Sub-continent, Koteshwar. The Koteshwar Mahadev temple is of religious importance. Right after it is located the Narayan Sarovar which is popular for spotting Flamingoes if you are going there in the right season. You can have free lunch at the Narayan ashram located nearby.
You can then drive to Lakhpat. You will be welcomed by the large walls of an erstwhile fortress as you enter this town which is now a religiously important place for the Sikh community which maintains the Gurudwara Sahib that houses some of the relics of Sri.Guru Nanak.
Lakhpat, once used to be a buzzing port town and the economic center of the state until it was hit by a major famine. The entire town was abandoned for what it is today popularly known to be a haunted village. Anyway, it is guarded by the navy and the coast guards and with their permission, I enjoyed my walk there with some nice photos of the abandoned village, its houses and temples.
The deity at the Ashapura Devi temple located at Mata no Madh is believed to be a powerful goddess and hence visited by everyone traveling here. There really wasn’t much for me to do there and I preferred my 2kms drive up to the hill temple over this. We had reached there at sunset time and I decided to spend the remaining time watching the golden skies from there before heading back to Bhuj for the night.

Day 2: Dhordo + Kala Dhungar + Hodka + Dhorbana + Banni

Dhordo: For me, the photos of this exact place was what brought me here even before I knew what Rann of Kutch was. Popularly known as the tent city, it is a commercialized patch developed by the Gujarat government to promote tourism. You can spend some time enjoying the various folk dances, camel rides etc. along with various stalls put-up there.
Drive up to Kala Dungar. This is the highest point in the entire Kutch region and the view of 360deg salt flat is something you will not forget. There is a small temple on the top associated with a folklore.
Hodka, Dhrobana, Bhirandiyara, Ludiya, Kavda and Banni are some of the several villages along the edge of the Great Rann of Kutch where there are settlements of specific artisans and you can interact with these communities. Although the famous Kutchi embroidery is a generalized term, the patterns used in their stitching, their apparel and jewellery are unique to each community and thus is a representation of individual village. Each of their Bhungas (as the huts are called in Kutch) are uniquely painted and walking in these villages are experiences in themselves. This day trip is highly promoted by the Gujarat government as part of rural tourism.

The fossils scattered around the fossil park and the great Rann in the backdrop

Day 3: Mandvi and Vijay Vilas palace

You can take the route via Nalia to reach Mandvi. This route offers amazing views and a stretch with windmills might even blow your mind 😛
Stop by at the Vijay Vilas palace
Spend some time chilling by the Mandvi beach

Day 4: Bhuj Local sightseeing (Every place has an entry fee and specific open days and timings)

Aina Mahal and Parag Mahal are both old palaces of the erstwhile royalty located within the same premises. A visit here is worth your time because it offers a lot of insights into history and photo spots to the shutterbugs.
The biggest Swaminarayan temple in India is located in Bhuj. For those of you who don’t know, it is the same organization that manages the Akshardham temple in Delhi.
This is a dedicated day for shopping all your Kutchi embroidered souvenirs. You can buy all the handicrafts directly from the artisans and get good deals either at Bhujodi handloom village or Bhuj Haat.
Take a walk around the Bhuj Haat premises. A replica of the Parliament building is made here and houses stories from the lives of several leaders who lead India to freedom.
A small hike up the Bhujio Dungar fort offers you a panoramic view of the entire Bhuj town, an early morning or evening visit is advised to avoid the harsh sun.
Befriend a local and there are some offbeat spots in the town that you would not find on the internet. The Kutchi museum, the Khari Nadi canyon, Paddhargadh ruins, Chattardi ruins, Tapkeshwari caves, Ramakund caves are among a few of those unexplored gems.

IMG-20181226-WA0070 — The Kari nadi canyon, Bhuj

Day 5: Dholavira
For me, this was the highlight of my trip. (Click here to read the detailed itinerary and my story in a separate post). An archaeological site from the Indus Valley civilization era, a fossil park from the dinosaur era, tribal settlements and the enormous stretch of salt flats- You need to time your stay here on a full moon night to get the best experience of the great Rann of Kutch.

Day 6: Head back to Bhuj for your return flight or proceed towards your next destination.

I assume this article was of some use if you were planning your trip to the Rann. Was it helpful? Is there something that I missed out? Tell me in the comments below…

Time Travel

Taking travel inspiration from busy bees

May 11, 2019 thelostlander 4 Comments

Aren’t honeybees good inspirers to travel? In a lifespan that’s as short as just a few days, they find a new place every day, explore a new flower every minute and taste new nectars on every flight! All this while still performing their assigned duties without having any complaints. Living a sweet life while being as busy as a bee!

It was curiosity that led me to learning about bee-keeping. This curiosity was a summation of multiple experiences accumulated through the years of childhood. I have been raised by my grandparents where honey has been an essential part of my life. We used it as a dip for breakfast and as a rice-mix for lunch, as an energy drink with hot water or even as a medicine with brandy or pepper corn. And yeah, stashes of several bottles went packed as souvenirs to guests who visited home and to friends who lived far away. You can call this honey with adjectives like pure, organic, handpicked, homemade, etc. ‘Coorg honey’ it was, after all!

Grandpa was personally enthusiastic about this particular hobby of his. I was often smitten with curiosity when he returned home with either a swollen face or with swollen hands. When I went nearer to him to check for his condition, he would only greet me with a warm smile and a piece of honeycomb dripping with fresh nectar. While at home, he would be busy with his bees in 75+ boxes that were kept around the house. It used to be a festival day for the family when drums of honey used to be extracted from his boxes all by himself. While at his favourite place- the Abbi estate, it was customary for him to have a daily look at this massive ‘Honey Tree’ as we called it, the single large tree where bee hives were formed annually. It was the family night out, an annual event that we all looked forward for. Honey tappers from a specific tribe called ‘Jenu Kurubas’ used to be called in, to climb the tree in pitch darkness on a no-moon night. The family camped in the darkness at midnight on the damp ground of the coffee estate with the rustling sound of the waterfalls in the background. While as a kid, I was amused with the spectacle of blue lights falling down from that tree, only as a grown up adult I realize the lights were indeed bees that were falling down after being smoked up in the process of honey tapping. And not to forget some odd days when he would pick out snakes from mud crevices that he had put his hands to collect honey from. And then there were days, when we made friends over a bottle of honey. These were customers who came to grandpa’s makeshift shop at Abbi falls with their unique ways of testing the quality of the honey sold there! Each customer, a unique character and every conversation, a story in itself.

For me, adding this new dimension to my travel stories was more of an emotional journey.. With the passing away of Granpa, the charm and life that his favourite place held too passed. The ‘Honey Tree’ eventually saw the ground leaving our family to buy honey from the market. Having relished the finest nectars from high tree trunks, deep mud crevices and those handpicked from the several bee boxes kept around the house, our family like all others are really not sure of the quality of those available in the market. That’s when this thought of setting up my own bee box struck me along with traveling in pursuit of knowledge sharing. These things led to me developing an interest about learning about honey bees and eventually respecting these tiny creatures more and more. I think being born in a community of nature worshippers gives me an instant connect with things that are natural and essential for our existence. Home is where primary and the most essential education starts and for me, Grandpa has been the main reason for one of the finest childhood lessons and home education I have picked up.

Albert Einstein said, “The Earth will come to an end in just 4 days if there be NO honeybees on this planet.” Honeybees are such an important part of our very own existence on this planet, Save them! Get in touch with an expert before you get that beehive removed from your concrete dwelling. Alternatively, get in touch with me for I would be more than willing to give a talk for awareness in your community. I signed up for a workshop to learn this art of bee-farming, and a certification came as a bonus. I did my course with ‘HoneyDay Bee farms’ who are thorough professionals and extremely knowledgeable in the field. They work with farmers right from the installation to extraction to marketing thus assuring you a 100% purity in their products. Go try them out!

Maharashtra

Strawberry heartland of India- Mahabaleshwar

October 17, 2015 thelostlander 3 Comments

This post is a follow-up on my 3-days backpacking trip to Satara. If you haven’t read it already, you can do so by clicking here. I had backpacked across Satara district covering Satara town – Wai – Panchgani – Mahabaleshwar – Khas plateau – Satara town

In this post, I have tried to share details of my day trip to Mahabaleshwar. The place as such, doesn’t needs any special introduction. This hill station is a favorite haunt of tourists from the nearby metropolis and afar. While its stunning views of the surrounding Sahyadri mountains and Deccan traps attracts the weekenders in large numbers, it sees a large footfall of Hindu pilgrims as well. Mahabaleshwar can be broadly classified into two parts, the New and the Old. I started my day trip to Mahabaleshwar from Panchgani on a Sunday morning. I have tried to explain my Mahabaleshwar trip in detail through this post.

Part 1: New Mahabaleshwar

This part of the hill station is popular for its breathtaking sceneries of the western Ghats or the Sahyadri mountains. It was mainly popularized as the summer capital by the British. The table top mountains were strategically used by the Marathas for holding up enemies. Today, it is especially popular among the honeymooners and millennials as a short getaway from the nearby cities.

With many good viewpoints falling on the way, the 15kilometer stretch from Panchgani to Mahabaleshwar calls for many pitstops enroute. We stopped in the following order of places.

a. Parsi point: that gives a view of the Dhom dam from a different direction than what we had been seeing all through the previous day.

b. The Lingmala & Bhilawar waterfalls: These places weren’t as appealing as the case would have been with a good monsoon season.

c. Mapro garden & chocolate factory: This is the venue of the annual strawberry festival and one can see the chocolate making process at the factory through a glass wall. We tried shots of different juices & crushes they offer at the factory and picked up some bottles and chocolates as souvenirs from our trip.

The Mapro strawberry garden and Chocolate factory

d. Kate’s point: It was a pleasant drive amid the Koyna forest reserve to get here. The highlight for tourists visiting this valley is the echo point and the elephant’s head / Needle hole point. From here, we caught a beautiful view of Dhom dam, Balkawadi dam, Krishna valley and the Kamalgarh fort.

e. Savitri point: We drove through the forests hoping to sight a few peafowls, deer etc. but had no luck. Our visit to Savitri point was disappointing because the entire valley had been engulfed by mist. Since the entire valley was filled with mist even at peak noon-time, there seemed no signs of it clearing out.

Kate's point & the elephant head — Kate’s point & the elephant head

f. Castle rock, 3 monkey point, Malcom point, window point, tiger spring, hunter’s point, echo point and Arthur’s point: These are view-points in the same valley, but now enshrouded by the clouds. We only walked past all these spots without being able to see even the faces of the people standing next to us. In fact, this very valley was what had inspired me to plan my trip to Mahabaleshwar. The view of these deccan traps / table-top mountains had mesmerized me through several Bollywood movies that had been shot here. However, that visit was a matter of bad luck.

g. Marjorie and the Elphinstone points: The drive through these places too meant only disappointment.

Part 2: Old Mahabaleshwar

This part of Mahabaleshwar spikes up the interest of the history buffs and those that are culturally or spiritually inclined. Several ancient temples are dotted here amid the serenity of the Krishna valley. Some of the important landmarks are listed below:

h. Panchganga temple: This is the place of origin for 5 important rivers in the region, namely Gayathri, Savitri, Koyna, Venna and Krishna. The five rivers conflux underground and then spout together through the mouth of a cow carved out of a stone about 4500 years ago.

i. Mahabaleshwar temple: This temple dedicated to lord Shiva is accessible from the Panchganga temple, after a small walk through the shopping lanes. This temple is what gives the hill station, it’s name. The legends mention about Atibaleshwar and Kotibaleshwar also, but those are temples that are lost.

j. Krishnabhai temple: A further walk of about 100 meters from the Mahabaleshwar temple led us to an archeological treasure that remains untouched by mainstream tourists. The stream of water spouting from a Gomukh (the mouth of a stone sculpted cow) in this 13.C.E temple is believed by a few to be the origin of river Krishna. Situated almost on a cliff, the place offered a great view of the Krishna valley around. For those familiar with ancient architectural styles, this temple is a good example of the Hemadpanti style of temple architecture.

k. Venna lake: A popular and a beautiful place otherwise, we decided not to stop here when we arrived there. The place was maddening and crowded with tourists.

l. Other places of interest in Mahabaleshwar: On a clear day, one could plan to see the sunrise at Wilson point that is known to be the highest part of Mahabaleshwar and Sunset at Bombay point. Both viewpoints are part of the Sindola hill.

NOTE:

The entry and exit to Mahabaleshwar is only between 06.00.a.m. to 06.00.p.m. as it is a protected forest area. So, it is required to plan your travel or stay at Mahabaleshwar accordingly.
This hill station contributes to 80% of the total strawberry produce of India. Hence, it is safe to call it as the strawberry heartland of India. DO NOT miss to eat fresh strawberry with cream for dessert after a nice Maharashtrian lunch at any of the restaurants in the Mahabaleshwar market.

Bangalore day trips, Karnataka

Haniyur – A village with simplicity

May 3, 2012 thelostlander 5 Comments

It was a visit due for a couple of years now… Subbanna uncle is a family friend of ours and after repeated invitations from his family; the long pending plan had finally materialized. Mom woke up early that morning and prepared sufficient food for the two families. The idea was that the two families- Subbanna uncle’s and our’s, ate lunch together. We left home around noon towards Haniyur, a small village located at around 10kms away from Rajanukunte on Doddaballapur road. That’s where the Subbanna family lives, a little away from their farm.

As we entered Haniyur village, we were welcomed by fragile houses with mud smeared walls, dry- unpaved roads which had never seen Asphalt, dusty animals and open drainage running up to their brim in front of the houses on both sides of the road. When we arrived at his house, the door was locked and the neighbors informed us that the family was off to their farm. So, we decided to meet them in their farm itself rather than troubling them to walk back home in the hot sun.

Asters horticulture farm — A warm welcome laid by the Asters’ garden

Their farm extends to a very large area that has been divided into several portions depending on what crop is grown. The crops are largely short term and comprise of fruits, vegetable and flowers. This time around they had Asters’ flower garden and a grape vineyard. While the elders in the family were busy with the labourers, the youngest member of the family- Uncle’s grandson was busy playing with the water pipes that were laid for drip irrigation. They were all excited to see us in their farm and some welcome drink (Tender coconut water) was sanctioned immediately. We told them that we would be having lunch with them in the farm itself and opened all the packages we had carried with ourselves. For salad, we had fresh tender cucumbers from the garden. Main course was ‘Kodava food’ from my mom’s kitchen and some nice ‘Ragi-Mudde’ from the Subbanna family’s large lunchbox. Yummy lunch ended with fresh chikkus, guavas and plantains- all from his farm. No restaurant could make up for the cool, fresh and pleasant ambience under the grape vine, in spite of the scorching sun seeming ruthless just outside.

Grapes vineyard visit — Clockwise from top left: Onion farm; Grapes vineyard; Gerkins farm; raw grapes

Later, we walked around their farm and the village and breathed in the rusty country side as much as we could take in. After having a hot cup of chai from the fresh milk from the cattle in the family’s backyard, we decided to bid good bye to this wonderful family.

Local dieties and place for worship — Some kind of a place for worship of the Local deity

It was still around 05.00.p.m, when we started from there. We decided to take a small deviation from our road and visit a temple located at around 4kms from Haniyur before heading towards the city. I’m not a temple kind of person, but for my parents’ sake, we went to the “Madurai- Shaneeshwara temple”. We were done with the darshan in 15mins or so… and headed back to the grind.

Conclusion remarks: There was no set agenda, just catching up for lunch with some old friends in the shades of a simple village and farm. The simplicity of the people who live there and the simple, yet tastiest food from their kitchen, with fresh and chemical free vegetables from their own garden… It’s a different feeling. We the city souls will never understand what money can’t buy. ‘Keeping it simple’ is the way of life!