[l-r] Supratik, Vijay, Me, Sagnik, Gaurav and Prashant (SP)And the seven of us went on one of the craziest trek ever.
Sushrut, Gaurav, Prashant, Sagnik, Supratik, Shamik and Vijay.
Morning at 5, a text-
"Wakie Wakie.
Wash your teethie and let us Trekkie!"
Vijay modifies- "Walkie Talkie, Trekkie Wakie"
SP, Suppu, Shamik reach Karjat, by bus, an hour early.
"Pinnacles of Rajmachi" text received by all.
Replies- "Fuck Off."
"Shut the fuck up and travel."
Sushrut, Gaurav, Sagnik rendezvous at Kalyan.
Vijay ends up on one end, Sushrut walks to the other.
Finally they meet and walk up to Sagnik and Gaurav.
Train announced and we run.
Get inside, split ways.
Journey passes with GoodDay biscuits, laughs.
Karjat:
Observant self in form
Notices Italian cap and white legs
All meet as long lost pals after years
Walk.
Ask for Directions.
Walk.
Bridge. DukDuk Dukkar.
200 bucks. Kondivade.
Photos. Laughs. Tales.
Shamik and Gaurav the only ones with Cams.
Walk.
Ask for directions.
Walk.
Village. Foolhardy Optimism.
Sushrut leads team up the wrong hill.
Error recognized. Laughs. Leader-Taunts.
Team falls back, long muddy walk ahead.
Walk.
Ask for Directions.
Walk.
Vijay talks.
Sagnik creates.
The Game of Unwanted Trivia.
Points, Stars, Credit Cards formed.
Laughs. Laughs.
Trains, Engines, lots of Unwanted Trivia.
Laughs. Laughs.
Kakdi Stop.
Teams overtake us.
"Aur leader kakdi kha raha hai..", says Suppu.
Laughs. Laughs.
Unwanted Saga continues.
Right Village. Right track up the hill.
Into the rich green forest.
Forest that smells of rain.
Track through the forest.
Track that leads up to the Pinnacles of Rajmachi.
:D
Walk. Walk. Walk.
Shamik- "Ambush!"
"Bush hi Bush hai, aur kya Ambush?" :P
Follow white arrows.
Click photos on plains.
Hungry wind of the rain everywhere.
Pastel green grass, trees, shrubs.
Frigging Striped Mosquitoes sucking us alive.
Convoy pic. Water. Sagnik lumbering up.
Prashant running all the way back.
Pics. Laughs. Laughs. Walk again.
Sagnik and Sushrut sing along-
"I fell into a burning ring of fire!"
Wrong turn. To the Caves.
Fall back. Wrong turn again.
We face the cliff.
Sushrut explores, suggests we fall back again.
Shamik and perhaps all suggest climbing up the cliff. (!!)
Some hesitancy in the air.
That moist, virgin air of the rain.
Decision taken. We climb up the Cliff!
Cliff is vertical.
Cliff is slippery.
It's full of snails, some water.
Suppu gets a call.
"He-loee?"
Sagnik climbs up first.
Then Sushrut does.
Our feet supported by dear ol' Suppu.
"He-loee?"
Then we all do.
Crushing the snails.
Risking falling down and breaking our dear asses.
Suppu hangs up by one hand.
Gaurav almost slips.
Vijay almost slips too.
But we all climb up. Sexy.
Bags, Sticks passed on. iPod's safety ensured.
Sagnik is very relieved.
We climb up again and are lost.
Yells. Yells. Some more.
"Koni aahe?!"
"Koni aahe ka?!"
Cows spotted. Cows talked to.
We climb up to the cows. Crushing vegetation on our way.
A bit more horizontal walk and road spotted.
Arrows spotted. Relief like never before.
Kaka spotted. Lunch booked.
Walk again. For 90-120 minutes more.
Sakharam Cafe reached.
2 glasses of lemon juice.
Packet of peanuts. Parle G.
Shamik mistaking the packet for ice cream.
Gives a 100 watt smile initially but loves peanuts all the same.
Vijay preserves some for the train journey back.
Walk to the village. Kaka's place.
Heaven Heavenly Heavenly Heavenly lunch.
Bhakri, Bhaji, Dal, Kairi pickle, Lasun chatni, Papad, Rice, Buttermilk.
Nice. Rural Lunch. Kaka clicks pics.
The Team on a high.
Laughs again on the veranda. Some more.
Rain starts.
Umbrella jokes. Pee jokes.
Dog, a pro, follows us all the way down.
Walk back to Sakharam Cafe and down.
Slippery Road. Falls.
Gaurav in all spectacular positions.
Sagnik, twice, in appreciative elegance.
Flight of Suppu during Sagnik's second.
Down, Down, Down.
Slippery Road. Niiiice Rain.
Dog poses, mocks. Overseeing us clambering down.
Then does the same with ease. Ruddy.
Sagnik jubiliant on the way back.
Teaches us the right way to descend.
"Don't clamber down, jump."
"Just walk, baby! Why worry?"
"I can't stop, I can't stop, I can't stop!"
:P
We meet another team.
They lead us on to a better road.
We follow, with initial skepticism.
Especially from Shamik and Sushrut.
But the heck- the road turns out to be better.
100 watt grins.
Gaurav stubs his toe.
That IS painful, people.
But the matey has a damn good spirit
and never really complains.
Good road down.
"Oooooo Huzooor.. Tera tera tera surroooor!"
"Kajara Kajara kajaraaaree.."
Prashant- "Abbe chup!"
Bwaha!
Slowly, surely, we reach.
Dog eats up an entire packet of Parle G.
He is named Parle G.
Catch a DukDuk Dukkar.
Laughs Laughs Laughs all the way back.
Vadapav bought, eaten.
Saumya catches up in the train.
Suppu gives football updates.
Simadri sends everyone a text.
Shamik eats up Vijay's preserved peanuts.
Sagnik makes hypothetical jokes.
Sushrut forgets Prashant's and Shamik's names.
SP laughs some more.
An awesome day, people.
An awesome day with an awesome team.
:)
