Kumara Parvatha Trek

Kumara Parvatha: My Toughest Trek Yet

This trek to Kumara Parvatha (KP) was a whirlwind plan, conceived in just three days! Vikram, Amruth, and I were determined, despite the scramble to arrange a tent and sleeping bags. Vikram handled the BMC (Bangalore Mountaineering Club) rentals on Thursday, and he and Amruth collected the gear on Friday. After a hectic week, I rushed to collect a rucksack from KMA (Karnataka Mountaineering Association), then stuffed the tent into it. Amruth and I headed to Majestic, where we met Vikram, Raghavendra, and Anil, securing seats on a Rajahamsa bus for our 10:00 PM departure.

Day 1 - Saturday, June 5, 2010: We reached Kukke Subramanya bus stand after a long, slow journey. At 6:00 AM, my first thought was the wet road – it had rained, the very thing we'd prayed against! After a two-hour break (including a quick temple visit and freshening up), we began our trek at 8:30 AM. The road soon thinned, and people vanished, until we found the welcome board: "Welcome to KP - route this way." The real adventure began. We plunged into the thick forest, the ground still damp from the previous day's rain. Hoping for clear skies, we started climbing, cameras clicking away, captivated by the scenery.

About 20 minutes in, I had my first encounter with leeches. I was utterly terrified and determined not to stop until we reached the top! Our target was Bhattara Mane, 5 km from the base, our planned lunch stop. Vikram and Raghavendra, unfazed, wore just sandals; leeches would attach, suck blood, and they'd simply flick them off. I, however, was in a state of panic, constantly asking for help to remove them from my shoes and socks. For 3 kilometers, I didn't stop or sit, constantly dancing in place during our brief halts. Just as I was about to give up, we found a huge rock and, luckily, another trekking team resting there with salt – it felt like heaven! After a 30-minute respite, we continued. The next kilometer had fewer leeches, and we stopped a couple more times. With only half a kilometer left to Bhattara Mane, Vikram, Amruth, and I, burdened by our heavy gear, were ready to call it a day. Anil and Raghavendra, however, were still buzzing with energy for the full KP ascent. We reached Bhattara Mane at 1:30 PM, where a delicious meal awaited us.

Initially, the heavy luggage and the cloud-shrouded peak made us consider stopping. But after dropping our extra gear at Bhattara Mane, and with renewed determination, all of us decided to press on to the summit! We left Bhattara Mane around 3:00 PM. The trek from here was blissfully leech-free for me. Around 4:00 PM, we reached Kallu Mantapa, another pit stop on the way up. We admired the stunning mountain views, endured a strong but short shower, and then continued our climb. It was getting dark, and clouds enveloped the mountain, reducing visibility to barely 5 meters.

At 5:45 PM, near the peak, we found two other trekkers already camped. We decided to pitch our tent next to theirs. The encroaching darkness and thick clouds signaled it was time to set up camp. Barely five minutes after pitching, the rain began to pour! We scrambled inside, not even checking for leeches on our bags or ourselves. The rain was relentless, water began seeping into the tent from below, and the fear of leeches invading our sanctuary gripped Amruth and me. We ate the chapatis we'd brought around 7:30 PM and decided to try to sleep. A campfire was out of the question. Anil joined the other trekkers, as their tent had space.

Day 2 - Sunday, June 6, 2010: In the middle of the night, around 1:30 AM, a leech on my hand jolted me awake. After removing it, Vikram asked if it was daybreak, only to realize it was still hours until dawn. We tried to get more sleep. At 6:00 AM, we emerged from our cramped tent to start a campfire. With dry wood and borrowed petrol, we finally got a fire going. After some welcome warmth, we decided to push for the peak. We packed our bags and tent, left them at the campsite, and continued our climb. Even at 8:00 AM, there was no sun, and visibility remained near zero. We reached the peak around 9:00 AM, snapped some photos, and quickly headed back down. We were back at the campsite by 9:00 AM, grabbed our gear, and began the descent to Bhattara Mane. We planned breakfast at Kallu Mantapa. Around 9:30 AM, as we descended, the sun burst through the clouds, revealing a breathtaking valley view. We took countless photos with both SLR and ordinary cameras. We reached Kallu Mantapa at 10:30 AM, enjoyed breakfast, and rested for a long time. At 11:20 AM, we resumed our descent to Bhattara Mane, arriving at 12:20 PM. After a hearty lunch and picking up our left-behind gear, we started the final descent to the base by 2:30 PM. This meant re-entering the leech territory—a thought I dreaded, but unavoidable.

Just as I thought the trek was almost over, with only the initial 5 km left, nature had other plans. Dark, rain-bearing clouds swallowed the mountain range. We could see rain pouring in the distant valley. A local "bhattaru" (priest) going down to Subramanya, armed with an umbrella, confirmed a heavy downpour was imminent. We had a critical decision: rush down or retreat to Bhattara Mane. Amruth and I had work the next day, so we decided to push on. Anil and I, carrying the tents and wearing good shoes, were faster. We split into two teams, taking the lead. We didn't want to go slow, knowing the rain would turn the path into a leech-infested river. We dashed, jogged, and walked our way down. Our only stop from Bhattara Mane was at the large stone where we'd rested on the way up. It was a mistake; the rain had driven leeches onto the warm rock. We immediately resumed jogging. Fallen trees forced us to make detours. The only times we stopped were when exhaustion forced us to pull leeches from our shoes, socks, and legs. My fear of leeches had vanished, replaced by the greater fear of being stuck in the forest overnight. The kilometer signboards we'd seen on the way up were gone. We just kept going, feeling like an eternity had passed (no watch, phone, or wallet, as our non-waterproof bags were with the others).

Suddenly, a fence appeared. No way through, just a small parallel path. We thought we were lost. Darkness (due to the weather) was setting in. Anil and I debated going back, but that wasn't an option. We pressed on. A minute later, a white house appeared on the right—a beacon of hope. As we approached, we finally saw the road and the very board where we had started the trek! YES! We had made it down, albeit by an alternate route. Only then, after getting water from a kind lady in a nearby home (we'd even left our water bottles behind!), did we realize we'd covered 5 km downhill in an hour, in the rain!

The lady graciously gave us a 2-liter water bottle. After guzzling the water, cleaning our legs, shoes, and socks, we waited for the others, who arrived about 45 minutes later. By 4:30 PM, everyone was down. We headed into Subramanya town, booked tickets for the 10:00 PM bus to Bangalore, and rented a room for three hours to freshen up. After a much-needed bath and a quick temple visit, we left Kukke Subramanya and KP at 10:00 PM. I reached home in the wee hours of Monday morning, around 6:00 AM. Vikram, Anil, and Raghavendra headed straight to BMC to return the gear. This was, without a doubt, a wonderful trek, filled with incredibly difficult situations—the most challenging trek I have ever undertaken in my life.